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Toast Levi Casboult

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JohnnyFontane90 said:
i'll put my hand up and say that i was one that didn't want him in the team and he probably isn't best 22 if everyone is totally fit and healthy.

but his performance yesterday gives us the luxury of not needing to rush an underdone charlie back into the side. hell if levi can kick straight like that every week then charlie might need to find a new home! trade him to the gold coast for rankine and martin
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People need to stop thinking as him as playing like a star. He is a role player that can step up and do a good job. Will make mistakes as well.

I have pushed for him in the side this year for purely a structure point of view

He takes the pressure off McKay. Takes away a big defender, crunches packs and can ruck. Allows McKay to stay fresh and then he can use his running ability which stretches defences.

The combination of Kruezer Casboult & McKay is a key one for us IMO. Eventually I see TDK taking over from Casboult but at the moment he is a big part of our side.

Not always about the best players but structure and IMO this one is vital
 
Soapy V said:
People need to stop thinking as him as playing like a star. He is a role player that can step up and do a good job. Will make mistakes as well.

I have pushed for him in the side this year for purely a structure point of view

He takes the pressure off McKay. Takes away a big defender, crunches packs and can ruck. Allows McKay to stay fresh and then he can use his running ability which stretches defences.

The combination of Kruezer Casboult & McKay is a key one for us IMO. Eventually I see TDK taking over from Casboult but at the moment he is a big part of our side.

Not always about the best players but structure and IMO this one is vital
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on yesterday's evidence it's hard to argue with that.

the problem has always been that his contested marking ability was all for nought because he used to always miss set shots. we've always known he can be a weapon if he nails those shots but he never has. in all probability he probably will never totally correct his kicking but at the very least his performance yesterday has certainly earned the opportunity to prove that wrong.
 
Who would have thought not having the burden to shoulder the load of our scoring (thanks mainly to the rise of Harry and others like CC) and vastly improved kicking by our mids has resulted in a much more relaxed and confident Casboult ?

Still has plenty to offer us going forwards big Levi
 
Alphonse_ said:
Who would have thought not having the burden to shoulder the load of our scoring (thanks mainly to the rise of Harry and others like CC) and vastly improved kicking by our mids has resulted in a much more relaxed and confident Casboult ?

Still has plenty to offer us going forwards big Levi
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Levi can ruck - the other talls can't. TDK is Levi's replacement - not Charlie.
 

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One decent game every 5 games isn’t really enough for mine. Not in our best 22 and he is a break glass pinch hitter at best.

Butchered at least two goals against Footscray. Did some good things too but Levi rarely strings two good games together. Hope he can prove me wrong.
 
Dominator68 said:
One decent game every 5 games isn’t really enough for mine. Not in our best 22 and he is a break glass pinch hitter at best.

Butchered at least two goals against Footscray. Did some good things too but Levi rarely strings two good games together. Hope he can prove me wrong.
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The bolded bit is exactly why the rest was unnecessary.
 
Dominator68 said:
One decent game every 5 games isn’t really enough for mine. Not in our best 22 and he is a break glass pinch hitter at best.

Butchered at least two goals against Footscray. Did some good things too but Levi rarely strings two good games together. Hope he can prove me wrong.
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No it doesn't cut it and this is what the MC would clearly be aware of.
By evidence, they'd also be aware of now, that maybe McKay shouldn't be going into the middle as often as he had been earlier on and Kreuzer definitely needs some ruck support.

Casboult is a 'break in emergency' case, but for now there seems to be an emergency there.
Anyway, he couldn't have done more than to have performed the way he did when called upon. Good on him for that.
 
A lot of posters don’t see the bigger picture. Casboult doesn’t have to be no.1 in the current setup. That is a crucial point. He will form a part of the 4 keys and that is a huge bonus. I think he will only build form here and more importantly also allow others like Mac, Charlie, SOJ and Gov dominate. The problem we have now is, how do we fit them all in.....
 
It was good to see it work and good to see the forwards function as a group. Needs to be seen to work consistently.

McKay has got good enough that we don't want to be pulling him out of the forward line now is what changes things.

A few things need to happen IMO to make this work...

McGovern needs to have a massive preseason and train like a midfielder so he can be used as a utility and work at a higher intensity for the ground level stuff up forward.

Curnow needs to work on his midfield craft and spend more time on the ball or on the wing.

Casboult is a handy second ruck and when he takes marks and kicks straight he's a good player but lets not get too excited, again this needs to be seen as something which will happen consistently. TDK is a good option here for this spot in future terms.
 
Best 22, he isn't in the side but a good depth player. He wont kick goals every week or play well but usually plays his role. Even against the swans he didn't get much of the ball or kick a goal but he crashed packs all day. If we had a decent roving forward they would have had a field day.

Then we get games like Sunday, when his kicking is on and kicks his 2 or 3 and has a real impact.
 

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When players like Casboult or even Garlett Goddard Jack Gibbons (as examples) can push for best 22 or play a role that is important it makes your list and depth so much better. Not every player can be a star but if they help us be better it's all good.

Some even re invent themselves and become stars like Jones

I love seeing players make it through shear force of effort. Says a lot about the individual and the club
 
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Casboult has worked his arse off for years as the lone fiddle in front of the ball. He's worked on his kicking, his general play, his rucking; he's as fit as he can be, as good as he'll ever be. He'll never be a great of the game, but I really do wonder how he'd have been remembered had he played in front of a deep and talented midfield his entire career instead of us in our lowest ever ebb.

Enough maudlin talk, well played Cas. Go back and do it again every chance you get.
 
sorry, gatorade - I got to the stage where I just threw my hands up in despair and declared it didn't matter whether he clunked his marks - he just missed too many shots at goal - usually a fan will jump for joy when a big forward plucks a grab inside 50 - with levi we stayed in our seats and covered our faces - on saying that - what a great game by the big lug!
 
thylacine60 said:
sorry, gatorade - I got to the stage where I just threw my hands up in despair and declared it didn't matter whether he clunked his marks - he just missed too many shots at goal - usually a fan will jump for joy when a big forward plucks a grab inside 50 - with levi we stayed in our seats and covered our faces - on saying that - what a great game by the big lug!
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No, I get that. It's deflating as hell when someone misses a set shot on goal, let alone someone whose job is mainly limited to kicking those set shots.

I just wonder how well Fraser Gehrig would've gone in our front half. Or Taylor Walker. Kurt Tippett. Would we have given Tom Hawkins the three/four years of shit performances before he took the comp by the horns? How good would Alistair Lynch have looked in our front half?

Chicken or the egg? If you plant Levi instead of Kent Kingsley in front of Geelong circa 2001-04, do they perform better away from home in the prelims they lost? You trade him to Hawthorn as a replacement for Mark Williams in 2009, does he play in 2013-15?

Hypotheticals are silly, but you've got to respect the level of commitment he's had to improving himself and his game.
 
After 100 games we all should be well aware of what Levi can and can't do.

That said we really need to celebrate his fantastic game on the weekend. He put on a great performance and was a huge reason why we won. If he continues to play like that, or even slightly below that level, then he's not going to miss many games and nor should he.

Happy to say he proved me wrong this weekend and I hope he continues to prove me wrong for the rest of his career.
 

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gandaal said:
After 100 games we all should be well aware of what Levi can and can't do.

That said we really need to celebrate his fantastic game on the weekend. He put on a great performance and was a huge reason why we won. If he continues to play like that, or even slightly below that level, then he's not going to miss many games and nor should he.

Happy to say he proved me wrong this weekend and I hope he continues to prove me wrong for the rest of his career.
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Good on you for saying so mate.
But wouldn't it be easier just not to bag blokes in the first place? For the life of me I don't see the need or purpose of it.
 
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Cas's inclusion is likely to prolong MK's career; while providing another option up forward. It's either that, or you go in with an additional established ruck like Phillips to assist MK. I think Cas is the better option at the moment. Besides, no one on our list splits packs wide open like Cas does,
 
Blue and Blue said:
Good on you for saying so mate.
But wouldn't it be easier just not to bag blokes in the first place? For the life of me I don't see the need or purpose of it.
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Criticism and analysis of performance are not necessarily bagging. It is only when someone can’t see the good or fails to acknowledge it that causes any problems.

Saying someone is proving you wrong might simply mean they are doing better or worse than you thought likely or possible.
 
Jabba73 said:
Criticism and analysis of performance are not necessarily bagging. It is only when someone can’t see the good or fails to acknowledge it that causes any problems.

Saying someone is proving you wrong might simply mean they are doing better or worse than you thought likely or possible.
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Fair point and yes I am aware of that Jabba. Also of who does which.
 
Levi cops plenty from the fans but he was excellent on the weekend.

Dropped a couple of easy ones, but moved well, competed and finished the hard work in front of the big sticks.

I think we face a bit of a conundrum here, we want to move past Levi but for mine he's right now probably our best option to provide Kreuzer with a chop-out in the ruck.

But we certainly don't want to be going into too many games with all four of H, Gov, Charlie and Levi - it's just too tall. There's potential to move Charlie further up the ground when he's fit but I'm not convinced that's our best option.

Anyway, that's something for the MC to ponder and it will be interesting to see what happens.

Back to Cas, clearly he faces a massive year if he wants to stay at the club beyond 2019. I'm not willing to make a definitive call either way just yet, but if he can consistently produce as he did on the weekend, he gets another year.

And if he does get another year, I'll be rapt - not because I think he's a long-term option for us, but because he'll have deserved it.
 

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Toast Levi Casboult

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