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Mathew Spangher

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I actually didn't think he was that bad today. Redeemed himself to an extent in the second half.

*Runs for cover*
 

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I've made my opinion known in the game thread but I will again.

I think they're using him incorrectly. He's not really a good key defender IMO but he does create a lot of run from defence.

I'm begining to think his best spot is on the wing but then I'm not sure his skills are good enough for that.
 
Jimmy_the_Gent said:
I've made my opinion known in the game thread but I will again.

I think they're using him incorrectly. He's not really a good key defender IMO but he does create a lot of run from defence.

I'm begining to think his best spot is on the wing but then I'm not sure his skills are good enough for that.
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What team did he come from? what posy did he play there?
What under 18s team did he play for? What posy there?
I really want to know why WCE drafted him for????:confused::confused::confused:
 
i thought he had an average game but was far from our worst.

you look at some of the instances where he was done on the lead and the kicks were top notch stuff that even players like glass couldnt spoil.

he probably kicked the best goal of all time today though, never have i seen such grace and poise infused into one human being. magical.
 
I don't see a long term spot for him, he isn't good enough body on body to be a key defender (this may improve with age and experience, but he loses contact when the ball is in flight, it's not so much a strength issue), not quite fast enough to play on smaller opponents, and he isn't better than our midfielders, so a spot on the wing is ruled out too. Probably best playing on a HBF, he provides some rebound.
 

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A good player but like most rebounding defenders he can only really play well once the teams playing well. Definetly in our best 22 atm IMO. The good outweighs the bad
 
Wiseby:

Matthew Spanger

What there is to like about Spangher is to be really, realy liked (and admired).

He is not silky but is as fearless, desperate and accountable a player as you will ever find.

Good pace too.

For him to get drafted he must greatly lift the hurt factor of his kicks and show that he has more strings to his bow than

purely desperado negator.

*TRADEMARK:
- Desperate chase and lunging tackle.

*SUMMARY ASSESSMENT, RECOMMENDATION:

Raw, skinny 6'3"er who doesn't get much ball and has a lot to learn.

On the other hand he is very bottom-age (only sneaks into '04 draft by a week), hasn't played much TAC (7 games) due to Xavier commitments and is improving by the week.

Matthew averages only 1.0 tackles a game but stats can sometimes be deceiving as his biggest asset at this stage is his desperation - chases and chases, throws himself at man and ball and under packs.

I wouldn't consider him this year but I expect him to improve a lot next year. Is skinny and lacks class but I see things in him that appeal to me for down the track.

In one sentence I'd describe him as a "developing athletic goer, low on the learning curve but with a healthy trend line, who is an attractive height but needs weight, patience".

- Great ethic and intensity. Is ultra desperate and absolutely fearless. Runs from opponent to opponent. If he sees any opposion player free in a dangerous spot, no matter how far away, he will run hard to cover him. Gets very dirty on himself when his opponent manages to create damage. Launches himself at the opponent and regularly smothers off the boot

- Great team man. Runs hard to help a team mate and to present an option
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Matthew Spangher (Eastern Ranges)

193/83 top-age right foot (has other foot if necessary) defender.

*STYLE LIKE: Hudgton?

*PROBABILITY OF AFL CAREER: Unlikely.

*HURT FACTORS (Offensive/Defensive/Negative): L-M / H / M / L-M

*TRADEMARK:

- Desperate chase and lunging tackle.
- Spoil
- Run hard downfield to present an option.

*SUMMARY ASSESSMENT, RECOMMENDATION:

- Disciplined, hard-working, attractive height, tall defender who has improved heaps since last year but is probably NQR for AFL

- Determined, hard-running tall who will never be found wanting for effort or ethic buts lacks the pace needed for AFL. Plays with desperation - chases and chases, throws himself at man and ball and under packs..

- His most impressive game to me was the U18 Champs game vs WA. Played CHB on the big names Clark, Kennedy and Gumbleton and IMHO was one of the best on the ground. Was very clean and his disposal and decision-making were very good. I am always particularly impressed when I see a player have those things to the fore in a big game against quality opponents. Has also held other "name" opponents this year, including Lynden Dunn.

- Unfortunately, however, I struggle to foresee a specific AFL role for him. Doubt he'll ever be strong enough for KPP or quick enough for flank. Runs hard to both link and cover but is not quick or especially clean in getting or delivering.

- Groin injury during the U18 Champs. O.P. meant he only played part of 2 late-season games for the rest of '05.

- I expect he will get drafted around late 2nd or early 3rd round. I love his ethic and he will possibly play some AFL games but I am dubious about him sustaining a long-term AFL career and I would rate him as worth a Rookie spot at best.

*DISPOSAL:

- Was very prone to floaters and mongrel wobblers last year. Still does more floaters than we would like but he has improved a lot this year re the power, accuracy and hurt factor of his kicking. Depth is OK. I would describe his kicking overall as "OK" rather than "good" but his accuracy itself is regularly quite good.

- He tends to mainly kick for distance and I'd like to see him mix that up a bit more. Healthy ratio of about 12 kicks per 20 disposals (was less in U18 Champs, bit higher in TAC).

- Handballing is usually good. I'm not convinced he has a genuine left hand, which is a concern.

*DECISION-MAKING, SMARTS:

- Decision-making is generally OK/good and has improved since last year. Still inclined to unnecessarily kick to a contest on occasions but last year had an almost regular tendency when on the run to just bang the ball onto his boot, so he has improved a lot in that aspect.

- Loves to run hard upfield to present but shows good judgement of when to go and when top stay.

- Good evasion for his size.

- Reads the play well.

- When not on the run, routinely shows poise, looks for options and displays very good vision.

*HANDS:

- Not foolproof but is generally clean at all levels.

*OVERHEAD MARKING:

- Can take some strong marks but his judgement is often dodgy, which really worries me. Sometimes takes off too far from the ball or with inappropriate timing. Sometimes positions himself and times his jump in such a way that, by the time he goes for it, he is having to push upwards through the arms/bodies of the rest of the pack When he judges his marks well, he is a fairly reliable contested mark.

- His real strength overhead is in spoiling.

*ATHLETICISM:

- Excellent endurance and runs hard and long through space but lacks pace over a short route. His test times bear this out. Has an almost 15 beep test, his 3km time beat 97% of all DC participants ever (for his height group), but his 20m times are regularly extremely slow, especially for a guy whose main attribute, other than ethic, is hard running. Recorded a terrible 3.24sec 20m at DC, following a similar time pre-season. Is very slow off the mark. I am of the opinion that he shows more pace on-field than his test results suggest. Nevertheless, I doubt he will have the necessary pace for his potential roles at AFL level (although certainly the endurance).

- Still quite skinny but has added 6kg since last year - importantly, without affecting skinfolds. On that basis, although he was only 77kg at a similar height last year, I don't have major concern re his ability to bulk up enough for AFL, at least for non KP. I would expect him to level out at about 95kg after a few years.

- Despite current lack of weight, keeps his feet body on body. Usually holds his ground in a marking contest. Sometimes appears to be unbalanced at a marking contest but I see this more as a reflection of his dodgy judgement of a mark in that he is often coming in to mark too late (or sometimes too early) or not from a good position, which renders him more susceptible to being unbalanced.

- Doesn't regularly display a big leap but surprises on occasions.

- Agility is quite good.

*INTENSITY, ETHIC:

- Excellent work-rate. Great ethic and intensity. Is ultra desperate and absolutely fearless. Runs hard both ways.

- Runs from opponent to opponent. If he sees any opposition player free in a dangerous spot, no matter how far away, he will run hard to cover him. Gets very dirty on himself when his opponent manages to create damage. Displays glove accountability but also likes to run off his man to present an option when his team has it.

- Great team man. Runs hard to help a team mate and to present an option.

- Routinely determined and effective pressurer / tackler. I need to qualify that. His tackle count has improved a lot since last year without being statistically all that impressive. However, his main defensive weapons are his concentration, discipline and especially his ability to spoil in the first place (either aerially on at waist/ground level). He is somewhat of a leech in that he aims to not let his opponent take clear possession in the first place, rather than be the type of player who will be noticed for his tackle count per se.

- Attacks both ball and man with determination.

*CONSISTENCY:

- Quite consistent. Doesn't have big days (statistically or on the highlights reel) but rarely plays genuinely poorly either. What you see is what you get with Matt ... and he'll give you the same effort every week.

*AFL VERSATILITY:

- Has been versatile in U18s but, if he has an AFL career, it could only be as a tall HBF or a 3rd tall defender IMHO. (See above).

*CSI (COMPARATIVE SCOPE for IMPROVEMENT):

- As a top-ager, CSI would be technically classed as at best normal. Main scope will come via the extra strength and confidence he will get from bulking up.

*QUERY:

- Pace
- Marking judgement
- O.P.

*SOME STATS:

- Stats summary '05 TAC:
Averaged 15 disposals in 10 TAC games. 3.9 marks. 2.9 tackles. Total goals 11-9 . 13 kicks per 20 disposals. 5 marks per 20 possessions.
- Mid-way trend .. % change in disposals was -19%. % change in marks was -14%. % change in tackles was -47%.
At least 20 disposals in 1 game. Was nursed "part-time" through his later games in '06 due to O.P., so we must factor that in when considering his performaces and stats in those games (although his 18D finals game was his 2nd highest TD stat in 2 years). Other than R17 (not on-field much), never had fewer than 11D in a TAC game in '06.

- Stats summary '04 TAC:
Averaged 10 disposals in 11 TAC games. 1.9 marks. 0.7 tackles. Total goals 2-1 . 14 kicks per 20 disposals. 4marks per 20 possessions.
- Mid-way trend .. % change in disposals was + 67%. % change in marks was + 11%. % change in tackles was +153%.

- Stats summary '05 U18 Champs:
Averaged 12 disposals and 2.5 marks in his 2 games. (Best TD 15).
Kicks per 20 disp: 8.
Kicks long vs short: 6-2 (8 long per 10 kicks).
Ineffective kicks: 2/10 (2.0 per 10 kicks), incl 1 clangers (1.0 per 10 kicks).
Ineffective handballs: 1/14 (0.7 per 10 handballs), incl 0 clangers (0.0 per 10 handballs).
Ineffective disposals: 3/24 (2.5 per 20 disp), incl 1 clangers (0.8 per 20 disp).
HandBall Receives: 10/24 (8 per 20 disp).
Hardball gets: 1/24 (1 per 20 disp).
S.P. clearances: 0/24 (0 per 20 disp), incl 0 BU (0 per 20 disp), incl 0 CBC (0 per 20 disp).
Tackles: 1 (Avg 0.5 per game).
Marks: 5 (4 per 20 disp), incl 2 contested (4.0 per 10 marks).

*OTHER STUFF:

- Missed '05 Nat game 2 with flu then injured groin early game 3 (but played 1st half with it). Groin injury meant he only played part of 2 games for the rest of '05..
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Embers said:
A good player but like most rebounding defenders he can only really play well once the teams playing well. Definetly in our best 22 atm IMO. The good outweighs the bad
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Well let's have a look at who didn't play but who are close to playing.
Mckenzie, Kerr and Cox didn't play today. They're all better then Spangher. Let's just say they'd come in for Fletch and Mckinley and usually it'd be Spangher. Now apart from Fletch and Mckinley(on form) who exactly would you say Spangher is better then that played today?
 
Mr Casson said:
I actually didn't think he was that bad today. Redeemed himself to an extent in the second half.

*Runs for cover*
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:D

I don't know mate... in defense I thought he was pretty ordinary. Always a pace or two behind his opponent and geez win a few one-on-ones FFS! I actually thought he looked ok while a bit further up the ground, maybe on the wing??? Can't question his effort but just... I don't know... doesn't really do it for me in the backline anymore. Beaten too often. Give him a run up the ground.
 
KamakazeSalami said:
:D

I don't know mate... in defense I thought he was pretty ordinary. Always a pace or two behind his opponent and geez win a few one-on-ones FFS! I actually thought he looked ok while a bit further up the ground, maybe on the wing??? Can't question his effort but just... I don't know... doesn't really do it for me in the backline anymore. Beaten too often. Give him a run up the ground.
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Not disagreeing with that sentiment at all, mainly because it was on the wing that I thought he redeemed himself.

Seems like we can all agree on that at least.
 
Crimson King said:
Sorry lads, I am of the opinion that Wilkes is an absolute spud as a defender. Perhaps up forward might be a different story..
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Agreed.

He played the one good game last year and thats all people remember. To slow, a shocking kick and just seems to be that guy who allows the easy goals every week. Would be a liability back in the side. Again
 

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