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Roast Marty Clarke

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WowsersTrousers

Senior List
Suspended
Mar 28, 2012
162
6
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
i wasnt that unhappy when marty clarke left... i always thought he was a bit of an experiment, rather than a genuinely good player... he's not the best kick of the oval ball, he's not quite big enough to be a genuine backman, not good enough to be a forward pocket and he's not a freakish athlete to be molded...

im assuming we got him back to the club for next to nothing, so no gripes about who we could of got ahead him, for i dont think we would have got anyone better... im just worried that we're wasting time on him, he's never going to become a good enough footballer that i'll think 'wow, that guy is something special' let alone a week in week out contributor like a shane obree or such...

i also think he's taken it a bit too lightly, going off for 2 seasons back to ireland to do whatever, then just coming back into the side... this is a professional sport played by professionals, not weekenders like gaelic football...

my question is: if marty clarke was an australian, would he really have made it to playing elite level afl football?

probably not...
 
Yeah, I think so... he's certainly talented at Gaelic and if he'd grown up with the physical aspects of AFL he'd be more ready for it.

I do understand your concerns about him and his level of commitment though, and I'm not sure he'll be able to overcome his deficiencies in order to become better than a roleplayer.
 
WowsersTrousers said:
i wasnt that unhappy when marty clarke left... i always thought he was a bit of an experiment, rather than a genuinely good player... he's not the best kick of the oval ball, he's not quite big enough to be a genuine backman, not good enough to be a forward pocket and he's not a freakish athlete to be molded...

im assuming we got him back to the club for next to nothing, so no gripes about who we could of got ahead him, for i dont think we would have got anyone better... im just worried that we're wasting time on him, he's never going to become a good enough footballer that i'll think 'wow, that guy is something special' let alone a week in week out contributor like a shane obree or such...

i also think he's taken it a bit too lightly, going off for 2 seasons back to ireland to do whatever, then just coming back into the side... this is a professional sport played by professionals, not weekenders like gaelic football...

my question is: if marty clarke was an australian, would he really have made it to playing elite level afl football?

probably not...
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I don't agree with much in this post. Couple of points:

1. Not big enough to be a genuine backman? Not sure what this means. If you mean height, he has sufficient height to be a backman, just needs more speed in my opinion. He is also an elite endurance runner.

2. You don't need to assume - it is easy to find out. We gave up our first round draft pick for him and Jamie Elliot.

3. He doesn't need to be a 'wow, this guy is special' player. He just needs to be a best 22 player. And that he is.

4. He is taking it too lightly? How do you know how hard he works? He isn't getting picked based on his passport, he is getting picked because he is better than the next alternative for that role. If he was from the moon he would still be getting picked.
 

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Wow, a very strange post considering Marty hasn't exactly been our worst the last few weeks... And if you genuinely have no idea about the level of commitment/fitness required to play Gaelic Football then please don't put your ignorance on full display. Calling them weekend athletes is an insult to players who train and play matches pretty much every day of the week at almost a professional level. In fact the training is gone to such extremes that most top level players in Ireland are either students, teachers or GAA coaches, such is the level of commitment needed.

In relation to Marty, I actually think you make a couple of decent points. I have watched him very closely the last few and its clear that he hasn't lost his natural feel for the game and his kicking is still very efficient. But his speed is average at best and going hard at the contest doesn't exactly come naturally to him.

Its fine saying that he can be a role player but what exactly is that role? Its fine being a very much outside player when you have freakish skills and good speed/acceleration ala Didak and Leon but I don't think Marty has the necessary skills to fill this role. I think he would be best fitted to a midfield run with/tagging role with the ability to hurt the opposition the other way, something similar to what Ben Johnson has been doing over the last couple of years. But Marty will most definitely have get used to going harder at the contested ball and hopefully with a few more games under his belt this will improve.
 
I've said it before, but I think Marty could really do with a spell in the seconds - not because he's our worst player - not by a long way - but because I think it would do him good to find touch and confidence and be eased back into the game.

Unfortunately for Marty and for Collingwood, that's unlikely to happen because we don't have so many spare AFL grade players to cover for him at the moment. Maybe if BJ and (dare I say it) Buckley are good for a return then that may free up an opportunity.
 
I think he'd need to improve his tackling by an absolute ton to become a tagger.

Best position for mine is the current Ben Johnson role. Outside, run to receive, hit players by foot.
 
The Royal Sampler said:
I think he'd need to improve his tackling by an absolute ton to become a tagger.

Best position for mine is the current Ben Johnson role. Outside, run to receive, hit players by foot.
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Current Ben Johnson role? How current is Ben Johnson, given he hasn't played all year?

I get what you are saying though. He is an ouside midfielder (i.e. wingman) or a high half forward. I have always said he lacks the speed to be a good small defender, and he isn't inside enough to play in the centre square.
 
The Royal Sampler said:
I think he'd need to improve his tackling by an absolute ton to become a tagger.

Best position for mine is the current Ben Johnson role. Outside, run to receive, hit players by foot.
Click to expand...

Well yeah that's more so what I was getting at, not so much a tagging role but an outside running role that would involve some defensive duties. And he 100% has to improve his tackling and I suppose "head over the ball abilities"

TheClokes said:
this thread should be deleted
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I think its a relevant thread to see how people have viewed Marty's return three rounds in, slightly OTT OP notwithstanding
 
He hasn't set the world on fire since returning but fk, give him a chance, we all know what he's capable of at his best.
 
Marty struggled against Hawthorn, but against Richmond and Carlton, he was actually pretty good. He will run all day, and is one of the best kicks in the side. He lacks pace, but i think his attack on the contest has already improved since round 1.
We can not afford to give him a spell in the VFL. Maybe 2 years ago with O'Bree, Lockyer, Medhurst etc running around in the 2's. As most of us know, we have virtually nobody ready to step up and run off half back. Not this year anyway.
So Marty stays, it's a no brainer.
 
I think referring to Gaelic footballers as 'weekenders' is a fair way off and probably pretty offensive to those players.

Marty was saying last night that the training is just as much and intense as AFL, the difference being that because they don't get paid anywhere near as much so they have to work day-jobs on top of that, so it's probably even harder.

I don't think he'd be planted in the seniors side if we didn't have the injuries we do, probably would've been eased back in like he was originally.

And 'he's not the best kick of the oval ball', sounds more like an assumption than an observation, because I think he's not actually too bad a kick and there's plenty worse kicks on our list ATM.
 

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Marty has done nothing wrong since his return. Injuries or no injuries being best 22 in RND 1 was a credit to his performance on the track in the pre season. His best games for us have been outstanding, prelim 07 and his debut come to mind. I actually think he could be anything still, and patience is required. A supremely gifted endurance athlete which should convert to being a good 4 quarter player. Teach him to spread like sidey and we could have 2 beautiful wingman for the next 8 years
 
For those of you saying he isn't hard enough or quick enough... Neither is Sidebottom. But, they both have very good skills and are both very smart with the ball in hand. I think Marty will improve his decision making of where to run and when to run - just like Sidebottom does so brilliantly. Marty is a natural athlete and a bit of a freak at sport - you can just tell.

I think he can become a very creative wingman and although he will never be a world beater, at the moment I would rather the ball in his hands 20 times a game than alot of other blokes.

His strength and speed will improve and improve him as a player overall.
 
Buena said:
Marty struggled against Hawthorn, but against Richmond and Carlton, he was actually pretty good. He will run all day, and is one of the best kicks in the side. He lacks pace, but i think his attack on the contest has already improved since round 1.
We can not afford to give him a spell in the VFL. Maybe 2 years ago with O'Bree, Lockyer, Medhurst etc running around in the 2's. As most of us know, we have virtually nobody ready to step up and run off half back. Not this year anyway.
So Marty stays, it's a no brainer.
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This X 2.
 
Number 10 said:
For those of you saying he isn't hard enough or quick enough... Neither is Sidebottom. But, they both have very good skills and are both very smart with the ball in hand. I think Marty will improve his decision making of where to run and when to run - just like Sidebottom does so brilliantly. Marty is a natural athlete and a bit of a freak at sport - you can just tell.

I think he can become a very creative wingman and although he will never be a world beater, at the moment I would rather the ball in his hands 20 times a game than alot of other blokes.

His strength and speed will improve and improve him as a player overall.
Click to expand...

and this X 2

one thing the OP needs to consider - no team exists with a champion list of 22. you have maybe, if lucky, 6 elite, hopefully 10 permanent fixtures, and then fingers crossed the rest (including those in the 2nds) arent spud enough to really stink when called upon. thats what we had at the end of 2010. and we do have now, if the injury list was smaller.

from what ive seen so far this year, MC is definitely in the 10 permanent fixtures list now. he needs game time, and like didak, its only game time in the seniors that is going to get him there. fitness is undoubted, so just persevere, cos he will be essential to us remaining a contender.
 

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Thought he did his job quite well against Carlton...certainly isn't roast-worthy. I like having him in the side, especially with the injury's copped-good timing getting him back on board IMO.
 
TOAST; TO MARTY CLARKE FOR REACHING 50 GAMES.:thumbsu::D

He's been in our best players in 2 of our 3 games, not bad for a player a lot said we shouldn't have got back to the club. And the good news is he will only get better as the season goes on, especially when the finals come along and the players with greater endurance become so important.

On Friday Night, when most of the team were out on their feet thanks to a lack of rotations, Marty was still going strong.
 
Marty has improved with each game which is very encouraging.

As I see it the only thing that could tip him out of the side by year's end is that we need to inject some pace into the team as we have too many, run all day plodders and play readers in the side.
 
stupidbigfootysh said:
Personally, I think he could play the "Leon role" I thought his kicking was great against Carlton particularly considering the pressure they all were under.
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I hadn't really thought of this but i reckon it is a good point. We could try him with the kickouts. Can't do any worse than we are currently doing.
 

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