Lrt

[cradle of filth]

What do you guys think of him? Does he have any potential, or did he just get a bit lucky on Grand Final day 2005?

 

[liz]

Many Swans fans will disagree with me but he's a decent AFL player. His 2005 GF didn't come out of the blue - he had a very good last third of the season after admittedly being pretty shaky earlier on that year. And he was solid for most of last year too, before suffering a foot injury late in the H&A.

He's no world beater - and is unlikely to become one - but at the moment doesn't seem to have a serious challenger on the Swans' list for his place in the senior team.

 

[FixterFan]

His second half of the season was relatively poor - I actually track his decline back to the Fremantle game where he was thrown into the ruck (and was marched in defence against Sandilands at times), where all that jumping and attacking the ball may have contributed to his broken foot.

But his first half of the season was good, and consistently so - highlights being keeping Brown goalless and Richo to two goals where he smashed them in every one-on-one aerial contest even when the ball was put to advantage.

Worryingly though is that he entered 2006 on a high, having improved with every match in the second half of 2005 (like Richards has done in 2006). He will enter 2007 in the opposite manner - off a run of poor form, and without a preseason to boot. Not great signs, one must admit, although if there's one thing we all know and love about LRT, it is that we know he'll never drop his head.

Watch for him to start slow but work his way back to being a good player in round 15 or so.

 

[natlovestheswans]

Well i'm a big LRT fan, as most would know. I think he still has alot of potential and it would be great to see him play consistently well over an entire season and i really do think it will happen.

Unfortantely the end of last year wasn't all that great for him. The foot injury was a huge set back, but to his credit he did battle on.

 

[scottwade]

Well i'm a big LRT fan, as most would know. I think he still has alot of potential and it would be great to see him play consistently well over an entire season and i really do think it will happen.

Unfortantely the end of last year wasn't all that great for him. The foot injury was a huge set back, but to his credit he did battle on.

Totally agree.
Look how weakened our defence looks without him, going into the WCE game.

The fact that he had an undisclosed (at the time) injury explains his form drop off late 2006.

 

[chammond]

Many Swans fans will disagree with me but he's a decent AFL player. His 2005 GF didn't come out of the blue - he had a very good last third of the season after admittedly being pretty shaky earlier on that year. And he was solid for most of last year too, before suffering a foot injury late in the H&A.

He's no world beater - and is unlikely to become one - but at the moment doesn't seem to have a serious challenger on the Swans' list for his place in the senior team.

His whole career has been two steps forward, then one back. Whenever I'm tempted to write him off, he proves me wrong, so I'm anticipating that he'll take another step up this season.

He just doesn't seem to think like an AFL player. It's like he's been given a scenario checklist by the coaches, and every time he gets the ball he has to mentally tick the boxes before he makes a decision. Hopefully his decision-making will get better with experience.

 

[liz]

He just doesn't seem to think like an AFL player. It's like he's been given a scenario checklist by the coaches, and every time he gets the ball he has to mentally tick the boxes before he makes a decision. Hopefully his decision-making will get better with experience.

Don't totally agree with that bit.

A couple of years ago, sure, but I've been watching tapes of last season during the summer (normally activity to cope with footy withdrawal) and it struck me how much more often he now takes an immediate option and usually delivers it well. His problem is that as soon as he starts to think what to do, he seems to get bogged down with that mental checklist but when he plays on instinct the results are generally good.

I guess part of this is that his reading of the game, and hence vision, has improved so that he frequently knows what options are on before he gains possession. And a bit more confidence probably helps too.

 

[Tuco]

You could say he was lucky to be in the 2005 GF. But so were many were that day. I wouldn't say he was unworthy.

He did some some monster jobs for us over the 2006 season - Richardson and Brown were standouts. And it makes a huge difference having someone like that in the team. He's really toughened up. Quite a few players tried to go through him last year - that sickening knock he took in the Hawks game sticks in my mind. And he always shook them off and got on with things without making a fuss. That makes him a true Swan in my book.

He has weaknesses. But our defence looks excellent when we have running support around him. It's when our support play isn't firing, or when he isolates himself that he can be exposed from time to time.

I noticed some of the knives came out because of his performance in last year's GF. However, that fracture in his foot really held him back and we shouldn't be judging him because of the way Hansen exploited his mobility problems.

 

[SWANNIES RULE]

He's average at best. Very clumsy.