Opinion Luke Ball Replacement

[Nicco_jj]

I'm so shattered about Ball... Fantastic player, amazing leader, great bloke, crucial part of our midfield. easily in my top 5 favourite players at the club...

HOWEVER

I... And, we.... Need to move on!

We need to infuse this board with some hope. Hope is the only thing that can allow me to smile and be positive!

We are seeing Keefe take a really big step in the right direction at the moment. He is still getting beaten, but he is playing well enough to be a genuine full back back-up.
Reid being out will take some of our drive and consistency from our backline - but I feel that him being substituted and out for 3 weeks is precautionary... He will need to be firing against the big teams later in the season.
Nate brown looks to be the next in line to come in, but he is another shut down defender - not a rebound capable damaging defender like Reid. But it will give him a chance to staple himself in to the side - I think he should come back on Anzac day. Until then, maxi will need to play a CHB role.


But, who replaces Luke? Who steps up? Is it possible?
His role is undeniably crucial to our team.

The blokes that I have seen take a next step thais year are (in order):
Steele
Blair
Faz


These 3 are the blokes who I can see becoming the LB replacement for now.

Faz has the pure Didak-esque skill and can tackle, Blair is a tough nut who is as nuggety as they come but lacks ball-like class.
Steele has the skills and class I believe to fill this void.
If steele fills that role I would like to see Faz move in to the mid a lot more.
It's time for blokes to step up.
What do you think?

 

[TheWoodsOf72]

Not Steele please. He is too good to waste on the bottom of packs day-in, day-out

 

[Rustin Cohle]

Blair to play Ball's role and Beams to play more midfield minutes.

 

[bucksisbest]

Not Fasolo.

It will be Blair and Beams getting more midfield time and Wellingham and Sidebottom also having to spend more time in the guts.

It may have a positive effect on our side playing actual flankers like Ugle and having Didak slotted back in the position where he causes the most damage.

I think it is also an option to give Thomas some centre square time.

 

[Ed D]

I would have thought Beams would be one of the first to be put in there, and to be honest I think Thomas could also do alright playing in close, it's just if he's better suited elsewhere on the field. I'm not sure about Fasolo, but Blair and Steele are logical choices that you mentioned.

 

[SwanBet]

3 men will carry the workload left from Ball.

Wellingham, Beams and Sidebottom all will get increased midfield minutes.
All three of the these guys have proved they have the ability to be stars of this club and this competition. Sidebottom was probably our best last night, loves big occasions. Beams and Wellingham are working back from injuries, but i expect them to stand out.

But inevitably, one man needs to stand up, and his name is Dane Swan. Have been pissed off with his attitude after last year, i expected him to be chomping at the bit to dominate this season after the granny, but it seems that brownlow is the worst possible thing he could have recieved.
I hope he gets smashed in the press over the next few weeks to fire him up a bit.
Swan in form, is THE BEST midfielder in the league. If he gets back to that, it will cover Ball.

 

[half_back_flank]

Blair to play Ball's role and Beams to play more midfield minutes.

This.

While the circumstances that have brought this about are to say the least hardly ideal, i'm excited at Beams getting a chance to play predominately midfield. I think he's more suited to playing in the middle than the half forward flank and is really going to shine this year as a result.

 

[Tbone McGraw]

Fasolo and sidey are not inside mids. Good players who will need to step up in the midfield but not replace ball. In order i see Blair (wasn't he the morrish award winner as an inside midsmid in tac cup when we recruited him) and beams. Not sure if beams ever played this position though.

 

[Pera]

The thing is, Ball is probably irreplaceable at the moment. There is no one who can come in and do a 'Luke Ball job'. That gets me asking, why not put a Wellingham or Beams in the midfield more and let them play their own game? It may hit, it may miss, but making players go out of their comfort zone and fulfilling a role that's clearly not suited to their style may cause even more problems.

We've all been waiting for Wellers/Beams/Sidebottom to get more minutes and nows the chance for them to really stake a claim for a permanent position alongside Swan and Pendles, playing the way they play.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

Beams seems the logical replacement. Let's hope though that Wellingham can step up a la vs. Melbourne last year.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Its our 50-70 gamers that need to step up to the plate now.....Beams Blair Wellingham Clarke and Sidebottom. We still have the depth in the midfield if they play to the best of their abilities (and we get no more injuries)....we cant leave all the work to Pendles Swan and Thomas.

Johnson to come in to the team to replace Ball with possibly Didak to follow, and hopefully some youngsters putting their hands up down the track.

 

[TwisTz]

Dayne Beams is the man. Should start in the midfield this week.

Remember R20 last year vs. Port Adelaide? He tore them to shreds (32 possessions, 9 marks, 9 inside 50's, 5 clearances)

Needs to be given the same opportunity as he had a purple patch after that game, which only ended due to the injury in the Prelim.

 

[Baltimore Jack]

Have been pissed off with his attitude after last year, i expected him to be chomping at the bit to dominate this season after the granny, but it seems that brownlow is the worst possible thing he could have recieved.
I hope he gets smashed in the press over the next few weeks to fire him up a bit.

What is wrong with his attitude, what has he said or done that makes you question it?
He got 31 touches in a 10 goal thumping on Friday, way ahead of our next best player.

Not sure where this "poor attitude" thing is coming from.
Sounds like a self fulling internet prophecy thing. i.e, someone says it and a hundred people pile on just to be in on the latest hot issue.

 

[danielnajdek]

Ball can't be replaced. Will be noticed in the center clearances where he does his best work. I'm quite pissed off that we seem to be copping all the long term injuries this year. It gets really annoying when we get all these long termers but Armfield twisted his knee worse and gets off with nothing. Just shows how much luck we've got and it stinks

 

[johncitizen]

Beams best work will be as an inside Mid..Just wait and see ! Another possible replacement will be Josh Thomas once he's back. Also think Jamie Elliot will fill a forward crumber role once he's recovered from the hammy.

 

[HFF]

Beams, Blair and Wellingham are the guys that will need to step it up and they have the quality to do so.

It's a wonderful opportunity for them to take their games to a new level and the team will be better for it too down the track.

Josh Thomas is the next pick of the bunch. I still have incredibly high hopes for that boy. He has the tools to become that next quality kid to come through our ranks as opposed to some of our other "average" kids.

 

[forwardflanker]

We're lucky in a way that Wellingham came back at exactly the time Ball got injured. When he has been fit he has been the most likely to edge into our starting 4 mids and has all the tools to be able to do Balls job. Should get the nod for at least the first few weeks. He think because he was injured for a decent portion of last season people forget how good he was. Just got to remember his 2010 form.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Beams, Blair and Wellingham are the guys that will need to step it up and they have the quality to do so.

It's a wonderful opportunity for them to take their games to a new level and the team will be better for it too down the track.

Josh Thomas is the next pick of the bunch. I still have incredibly high hopes for that boy. He has the tools to become that next quality kid to come through our ranks as opposed to some of our other "average" kids.

You are without doubt a glass half full type! Let us hope that no more 'wonderful opportunities' present themselves masquerading as ACL injuries. Seriously, I would like to be as optimistic about the season as you. Blair just seems a big step down from Ball.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Beams best work will be as an inside Mid..Just wait and see ! Another possible replacement will be Josh Thomas once he's back. Also think Jamie Elliot will fill a forward crumber role once he's recovered from the hammy.

For how many months now has Elliott had a hammy? I cannot remember him featuring in more than a part of a NAB game. Hopefully he is not going to be another Josh Thomas.

 

[HFF]

You are without doubt a glass half full type! Let us hope that no more 'wonderful opportunities' present themselves masquerading as ACL injuries. Seriously, I would like to be as optimistic about the season as you. Blair just seems a big step down from Ball.

I probably am a glass half full type because we have plenty of quality- in fact some of the best if not the best quality in the comp.

"Wonderful opportunities" is not in any way downplaying the significance of Ball's departure and injury.

However, somebody will need to stand up and be counted here though. This is where careers can be enhanced, particularly for young players who can go to the next level.

Beams, Wellingham, Blair and Sidebottom- everyone will be looking squarely at them.

My first choice in the centre square starters is Swan, Pendles and Wellingham.

 

[sr36]

Crashing in like Luke Ball

I personally think that Luke Ball is overrated, but he also may be irreplaceable for the Pies. In my mind, his main role has been to crash in at stoppages and interrupt opposition possession or try to generate some space for his teammates. Can anyone else play this role? Thomas could, but do you really want to use an attacking weapon in that role. The midfield heir-apparents, Beams, Wellingham and Sidebottom, seem unsuited to the role. Blair is more likely, but probably lacks the size to do it. The other likely one for the future is Young, but he's too young. Goldsack has the body type and the intensity, but doesn't have the instincts. Sinclair? Or do we have to alter our midfield set-up and tactics.

 

[FIGJAM]

Re: Crashing in like Luke Ball

Blair is certainly tenacious, but the only one I've seen with the psychopathic relentlessness that sees the likes of Selwood, Ball and Mitchell leave the field strapped up like mummies more often than not, is Josh Thomas.

Marley Williams is another that shows some fearlessness, but we can't expect an 18 year old to crash packs and I'd need to see a bit more of him.

Hopefully we can band aid the problem for a bit and rack up some points, but we need a more permanent solution if we are to remain in the race. Given JT's injury history, I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Re: Crashing in like Luke Ball

I stopped reading after the first "overrated but irreplaceable" sentence.

Did it get any funnier after that?

 

[Shade]

Re: Crashing in like Luke Ball

I personally think that Luke Ball is overrated, but he also may be irreplaceable for the Pies. In my mind, his main role has been to crash in at stoppages and interrupt opposition possession or try to generate some space for his teammates. Can anyone else play this role? Thomas could, but do you really want to use an attacking weapon in that role. The midfield heir-apparents, Beams, Wellingham and Sidebottom, seem unsuited to the role. Blair is more likely, but probably lacks the size to do it. The other likely one for the future is Young, but he's too young. Goldsack has the body type and the intensity, but doesn't have the instincts. Sinclair? Or do we have to alter our midfield set-up and tactics.

Overrated ??

then u throw up Sinclair as a suggestion

Lol

 

[half_back_flank]

Re: Crashing in like Luke Ball

I stopped reading after the first "overrated but irreplaceable" sentence.

Did it get any funnier after that?

Yes, yes it did.