Toast Mark Blicavs

[Seeds]

Could become an all time great. Seriously.

Who can match up on him all game?

Never mind his ruckwork, hes a bloody handy flanker.

The most impressive debutant since our current captain.

Big statements, big potential.

I've been talking up Blicavs alot all season but come on. Menzel, Christensen, Vardy?????? You think he has more potential then them?

 

[vealesy]

I've been talking up Blicavs alot all season but come on. Menzel, Christensen, Vardy?????? You think he has more potential then them?

I didnt say that. I said his first 3 games he has impressed me more than any of those players did in their first 3 games.

 

[catswhiskers]

He's not just an athlete, some of his ball skills were very impressive. Not awkward in the slightest, has great balance and disposes of the ball cleanly. Might just be a natural. Get his marking sorted and he'll be real trouble.

That's why he needs VFL time. When his turn in the VFL comes he needs a license to experiment so he can find out exactly what he can do.

His role in the AFL (when not contesting ruck contests) is very tightly choreographed and this does not include jumping for speccies.

I see the chance to return to VFL footy as crucial to his development.

 

[winty]

The other thing to remember is that he has lined up against Hawthorn, NM and Carlton. That is no cushy line-up!
Loving the Blitz!

Not to mention games against Freo, Adelaide and Collingwood in the NAB Cup!

Highlight for me last night was when Kane Lucas tried to take Blicavs on on the outer wing, only for Blicavs to carrell him on the half back flank. For a ruckman to carrell a midfielder is one thing, but to make him actually lose ground while doing so was even better.

As Tim McGrath said on K-Rock, Lucas must be the dumbest footballer going around since just about every article on Blicavs over summer (and there were lots of them) mentioned his freakish running skills.

 

[Barabbas]

Ridiculously clean hands. Just never fumbles, especially noticeable on a greasy night when some our best couldn't find the handle. Wonder if its from coming from a basketball family, but check it out, he just clunks the ball every time he grabs it.

 

[tenderwarrior]

Loved the big guys game last night.

the effort when Robinson bumped him in the middle and he was still able to find a target by hand as he was going to ground was great.

This. He didn't panic and waited till the perfect moment to release the ball. I noticed that EVERY possession last night was to the advantage of his teammate, an impressive stat considering pretty much all his hand passes are in a congested area.

He seems to be playing wing after the ruck contest, or pushing forward when resting. Last night it was Lucas, against the Hawks it was Smith. That play where he forced Lucas to turn over the ball was awesome work - he attacked him at just the right time, he is such an intelligent player, and has great ball skills and coordination. A jem.

I remember Scott saying after the Hawks game that Blicavs would be in the best 22 regardless of who was available, they rate him that highly. I am starting to agree..

Why have a second ruck resting forward when you can play him on the wing? A potential game changer in the mode of Polly Farmer, and maybe John Barnes (first genuine mobile big man?)- not saying he will be anywhere near as good as Polly (or Barnes), but Geelong have a bit of a history of 'reinventing' the Ruck.

Blicavs could be the next evoulution..

 

[Gaz_Brownlow]

Must say he was excellent last night.

Seems to have a real basketballers approach to ruck and will guide the hit out more than just tap.

Good skills on ground and no doubt can run to any number of contests.

Still have concerns about him in the ruck against bigger bodies though. Would love him to develop as a wingman!

 

[Grizzly_82]

I would say he is starting to have the potential to be a modern day Polly in the sense he could redefine the modern ruckman/winger.

Big call but the kid has that much potential and scary to think with Vardy in the team as well .

 

[JUBJUB]

In Wells we trust

Great pick-up.Better than these Irish spuds clubs piss money away on.

 

[dazbroncos]

Loved the big guys game last night.

Noted than when pressed to his non dominate side he wasn't afraid to put it on the left boot and made really good contact with the ball and completed the pass to Hawkins.

And that effort against Lucas on the wing/flank was as good as it gets for a big man matched up against a smaller quicker opponent corralled him then pressed in for the tackle and forced the turnover, fantastic effort.

He seems to have that ability to have time and space that a lot of people with basketball in their background have, the effort when Robinson bumped him in the middle and he was still able to find a target by hand as he was going to ground was great.

If this is Blitz after 10 games from u/14 can't wait to see what he is going to be like after he has 50 AFL games under his belt.

Balmey go to him now and let him know that he will be placed onto the senior list next year so that no other clubs can get the chance to whisper into his ear

He just seems to be better aware of his body in space than some other big blokes running around out there - and with the speed of the game now you can see his valu ein the 4th qtr as he just keeps running.
Even late in the 2nd he took off and you could almost hear Hampson groan as he realised he was gonna have to chase him over another 200m

Im more impressed even by his bilateral skills and decision making. Im sure as a Rookie he will have a game where he falls off the cliff performance wise and he will get rubbished for it - but after 3 games I am immpressed by him and he has a place out there for sure.

His tap work around the ground and follow up work is improving too...

I made a comment in a VFL thread near the end of last year I thought he might be something from the rough.... so far so good....


Go Catters

 

[Turbocat]

As I said in the votes thread.

Like a lot of what we see. Some of the stuff he does , just looks a little unco but mostly he does a lot right

He will need to work at the art of rucking. Sure he can be helped over the next 12/24 months by our coaching staff. But when the ball bounce suits him , he does get his hand to the ball and can hit targets with taps

Follows up the tap and will go for the contested ball. Can win it , and when he does seems to find a way to get it out and find someone.

He is certainly not the worst guys Ive seen with ball in hand on the run.

Not frightened to contribute in game. At one stage , a Cats player got a high-ish tackle and he turned and told the ump so. I like to see this cause it reflects a natural confidence.

Plenty of test to come. eg. How will he go when he does cop a big crunch? But for now he is doing a real good honest job. He is holding place. Well done , Ballroom.

 

[Tommy the Cat]

the guy is a natural athlete and will only get better each game, gonna be something special I reckon

 

[giggler99]

Can see this bloke become another Kota running down the wings. Needs to work on his reading of the play but that will come.

Bright future ahead if he stays fit and heathy.

 

[iameviljez]

I think that one of the things that the club has done very well is select his role.

He's definitely a second ruckman, not a Maric-type man-mountain to take the ruck contests in large packs, play a kick behind the ball or as a tall target in attack, and have a terrible haircut.

The club seem to have given him licence to use the space wide on the flanks and have resisted playing him through the centre. I think that this is the right move and has paid off well so far.

 

[CharacterFirst]

That's my boy (not literally).

 

[FredLeDeux]

I think that one of the things that the club has done very well is select his role.

He's definitely a second ruckman, not a Maric-type man-mountain to take the ruck contests in large packs, play a kick behind the ball or as a tall target in attack, and have a terrible haircut.

The club seem to have given him licence to use the space wide on the flanks and have resisted playing him through the centre. I think that this is the right move and has paid off well so far.

He has his own distinctively terrible haircut.

 

[Moggy]

He has his own distinctively terrible haircut.

please post pics of yours for appraisal ;-)

 

[Generalissimo]

He has his own distinctively terrible haircut.

Can't be worse than Josh Caddy's "forehead combover".

 

[winty]

Was interested to read in the Herald-Sun this morning that apparently Blicavs is miles ahead of another ruckman with a similar story at the same stage of their career.

That player? The late Jim Stynes.

 

[candiehappy]

This. He didn't panic and waited till the perfect moment to release the ball. I noticed that EVERY possession last night was to the advantage of his teammate, an impressive stat considering pretty much all his hand passes are in a congested area.

He seems to be playing wing after the ruck contest, or pushing forward when resting. Last night it was Lucas, against the Hawks it was Smith. That play where he forced Lucas to turn over the ball was awesome work - he attacked him at just the right time, he is such an intelligent player, and has great ball skills and coordination. A jem.

I remember Scott saying after the Hawks game that Blicavs would be in the best 22 regardless of who was available, they rate him that highly. I am starting to agree..

Why have a second ruck resting forward when you can play him on the wing? A potential game changer in the mode of Polly Farmer, and maybe John Barnes (first genuine mobile big man?)- not saying he will be anywhere near as good as Polly (or Barnes), but Geelong have a bit of a history of 'reinventing' the Ruck.

Blicavs could be the next evoulution..

if we had 2 fit ruckman I could (in time) see a role for him on the wing. Impossible to match up for size & pace

 

[vealesy]

if we had 2 fit ruckman I could (in time) see a role for him on the wing. Impossible to match up for size & pace

This is what excites me the most.

He doesnt need to ruck. I was impressed more with his physical attributes than ruckwork.

He can run like no other big man. An absolutely unique weapon and is going to cause nightmares for opposition coaches.

Dont even need him as a ruck. Plonk him as a half forward and let him find space and just run and run and run.

 

[candiehappy]

This is what excites me the most.

He doesnt need to ruck. I was impressed more with his physical attributes than ruckwork.

He can run like no other big man. An absolutely unique weapon and is going to cause nightmares for opposition coaches.

Dont even need him as a ruck. Plonk him as a half forward and let him find space and just run and run and run.

I remember in a game last year when Nic Nat played rover or ruck rover. How do you match that up? I think we have a similar opportunity when he learns more of the game to have that "unique weapon". Very exciting prospect.

 

[dazbroncos]

This is what excites me the most.

He doesnt need to ruck. I was impressed more with his physical attributes than ruckwork.

He can run like no other big man. An absolutely unique weapon and is going to cause nightmares for opposition coaches.

Dont even need him as a ruck. Plonk him as a half forward and let him find space and just run and run and run.

How about a link up guy link Mackie does on the wing... he can lead into space and run and carry from defense and chase out of F 50 all day long.

Best way to burn up other quicker wings is to have them run out of legs... and Blitz has that covered...

Go Catters

 

[cats_09]

not sure if anyone else was watching Gameday yesterday on 7, they had Bartel on as one of the panelists and they asked him a few questions about Blicavs. When Bartel spoke about his running ability, he mentioned the 2km time trail the guys did over the preseason around the athletics track, and over the course of the 5 laps, Blicavs got home by nearly a lap over the others - he won't tire running up & down the wing over the course of a match, and it will be interesting to see how opposition teams match up on him if that is the path the team takes with him.

 

[topic97]

I was at the game sat night & just watching how easily he moves around the ground for a big fella is extraordinary.
There was a couple of times he effortlessly chased down smaller blokes & there was a sense of "good tackle, holy shit that was our ruck".

Very good prospect for the future, he does need to work on a few areas but he hasnt seemed to take a backward step & is progressing with every minute of game time!!