NAB Challenge 2014 - GWS v Sydney

[Heeney2Franklin]

i have yet to see the game. I listened to SEN and there seemed to be a few players in the play a lot. Mitchell, Parker, Coniglio, Greene all seemed to be very busy. Macca, Benny, Gazza, Towers in the first half and young Lloyd all seemed to be in the play quite a bit. Joey seemed to be used sparingly and Harry was very good. Harry M seemed to get involved when he came on in the last. The rucks were involved all day and while Mummy was the most prolific ruckman the hit outs all up were GWS 38 to Us 37. reid seemed to get a bit of it too.

Yer Kennedy was just cruising looks to be built like a tank this season, i think we will barely notice Mumford is gone throughout the season.

 

[The King!]

That post really worries me about your footy nous

Didnt say he wasnt quality, but the experts tonight had him above some quality players and i dont think he is there yet.

 

[bedford]

M aybe better holding back your opinion for a couple of years about JC and remember its a practice match

 

[grimlock]

Typical Towers, teases us for a bit then disappears for the rest of the game.

 

[swannyfan]

Would liked to have seen more of Harry Marsh..was pumped up over his preseason and likeness with JK. Also, what's happened with Zak...no mention by Longmire after match of his inclusion for nxt wk's game?

 

[RUNVS]

Typical Towers, teases us for a bit then disappears for the rest of the game.

Still he did show some signs especially if he can work on staying involved in the game.

 

[bungee]

Still he did show some signs especially if he can work on staying involved in the game.

Seemed Towers was taken off for quite some time. He came back on late in the game and got straight into it. I was impressed with his endeavour.

Seeing Gazza and Reid pulling down some high marks was a highlight. McGlynn busted a gut but was error prone earlier. His hard running and sheers guts make up for much. Really liked our rucks giving Mummy a bit of a work over. Mummy looked very fit and I thought it was going to be a one sided affair but Derickx in particular stood up to Mummy rather well. With Naissmith, Nankervis and Derickx all putting in some good play I'm not concerned about our ruck stocks. Competition for ruck positions is hot. Shaw impressed me. Seems he was never away. A couple of clangers but not unexpected for a first hitout. His composure in defence is solid. Richards and Grundy put on the usual Ted and Reg show. Those two are telepathic. I thought Grundy played well despite one obvious brain fade. Mal was hitting up targets and reminding us why teams tag him. BJ showed some good moments while Keiren was 5% off his best but his best is better than most. Had he taken that mark running back to spoil (resulting in Gazza's goal) I'd have pooped myself with joy. Laidler seemed solid without being spectacular. He probably needs to do more to snag a spot but I guess he was finding his feet. Reid is a weapon. Let him loose on a 3rd defender with scope to roam the ground and he will kick bags. His overhead marking was spot on today and his kicking for goal was sweet. Would be a shame if Buddy couldn't break into the senior side !

 

[bungee]

Would liked to have seen more of Harry Marsh..was pumped up over his preseason and likeness with JK. Also, what's happened with Zak...no mention by Longmire after match of his inclusion for nxt wk's game?

Marsh seemed overawed by it all. I suspect he needs another solid season in the NEAFL but he's had his taste of seniors and he knows what he needs to do. Horse would have been pleased with the result but more pleased with giving so many players a crack.

 

[Dangas]

Shaw was great....love seeing a fit Rohan too. Good game.

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

 

[bungee]

i have yet to see the game. I listened to SEN and there seemed to be a few players in the play a lot. Mitchell, Parker, Coniglio, Greene all seemed to be very busy. Macca, Benny, Gazza, Towers in the first half and young Lloyd all seemed to be in the play quite a bit. Joey seemed to be used sparingly and Harry was very good. Harry M seemed to get involved when he came on in the last. The rucks were involved all day and while Mummy was the most prolific ruckman the hit outs all up were GWS 38 to Us 37. reid seemed to get a bit of it too.

Greene got a lot of ball but mostly sprayed it out on the full. Lloyd looked a step behind the pace of AFL but Towers showed something. Parker is a human bulldozer who uses a 'don't argue' to smash through traffic. He gets tougher every year. Mitchell owned the ground yet has played just half a season. Crikey. Macca was slick as always and got into the face of a couple of GWS boys for roughing up Gazza in a marking contest (at least that's what it seemed to be about). Good on him. McGlynn finished full of running after a slightly fumbly start. He pick-pocketed a couple of balls as he closed fast in stealth mode (he's not much higher than the grass) but failed to finish off when he had a set shot on goal. Cunningham should have had 3 + a super goal but badly shanked the first set shot of the night. It didn't put him off. I think Harry needs to work on his defensive game to be the complete package but he's living up to my tip for most improved this year. I'd say he's a reasonable chance to break into the best 22 if he continues this way. At this stage I'd have him ahead of BJ. Harry runs in straight lines and is a clever finisher. AFL must have the replay up soon, if not already.

 

[RUNVS]

Lloyd looked a step behind the pace of AFL

I actually thought Lloyd was the best story of the night as while he did not get a lot of the ball and he had one shocker of a kick towards the end of the game his handballing in tight situations looked elite. I saw him do several handballs in really congested spots that went precisely to where he wanted them to go and as a result we got the ball out easily, handballs that I don't think most AFL players could do.

 

[Wayne Swan]

A lot of pleasing signs tonight given the players who left over summer.

Back up ruckmen look ok, Reid as the fourth tall after Tippett, Buddy and Goodes could cause mayhem, midfield depth looks to have improved with the "addition" of McVeigh, Cunningham looking up to seniors standard, Parker getting stronger! and what about Mitchell's first showing coming off a modified preseason - the kid is a gem.

Pleasing to see the back half looking fairly sharp too although the opposition was only GWS!

 

[Punts]

Probably got over excited last night for just a NAB (its only a practice match ) but its been a while since seeing the guys play.
I think we got a idea of what Mitchell is going to like , extractor with 2nd to none hands ( surprised me a little but got to remember he wont be able to run around free against the top sides but I signs are wow ) he also looks extremely fit.
I think we will see a lot more minutes from Parker and Mitchell at the centre bounces this year.
I hope McVeigh never has to go back to the HBF even though he was All Aus, forgot how vital in the middle he is and kicking skills going inside 50.
I really want Harry to play more seniors this year( if he is playing well enough ) as I think it adds more depth to the midfield and he can push forward and kick goals ( his pace is also value to the team ) don't want to see another Lamb situation with Harry at the end of the year.
I have to admit it was good to see Reid and Rohan hitting the score board and both took some very good marks ( both there defensive pressure will change the Team straight away up forward ).
It was hard to get a read on Laidler but he did some good things but missed a few tackles as a few of the backman did , after not playing a senior AFL game since R2 2013 it will take him a little to get back the feel of things.
The Tower teaser went missing after half time.
Good to hear Horse say LRT , Jetta , Buddy , Pyke all will play next week

 

[grimlock]

Seemed Towers was taken off for quite some time. He came back on late in the game and got straight into it. I was impressed with his endeavour.

It's a trick he pulls too often in the reserves. He has a future in prestidigitation lined up post footy

 

[SM]

It's a trick he pulls too often in the reserves. He has a future in prestidigitation lined up post footy

You and banjo should get a room where you can practice saying your big words to each other.

 

[bungee]

You and banjo should get a room where you can practice saying your big words to each other.

Your post has a certain verisimilitude to it but I sense a lack of veraciousness in your stance which indicates you may be displaying merely the comportment expected of a moderator of these colloquies.

Translation : Hey SM. Who died and made you the boss ?

 

[BarneyBent]

Funny old game. I haven't seen the broadcast but these were my thoughts from the stands.

I've been a "keep Macca in the backline" advocate but my god some of his work out of the center was brilliant...Maybe rotate him through both roles?

Rampe was terribly out of sorts, but he was brilliant in the intraclub. Mark it down as an off night I reckon.

After the intraclub I thought Derrickx was the least of our ruckman, but he was much better. Just edged ahead for Rd 1 selection in my book. Naismith showed a bit, tons to work with but going up against the bigger GWS ruckman he just looked a little out of his depth physically. But he's got plenty of time to work on that. Nankervis also showed talent but couldn't quite get into it.

Reid and Rohan, man it was good to see them up and in form! Cunningham, B.Jack and McGlynn were all also buzzing around and looking very good. We're going to have a very fast and tough forward line this year.

There's been a bit of praise for Towers this thread, I didn't quite see it. Really worried he's hit his ceiling and it's not quite good enough, but we'll see.

Lloyd is coming along. Not gonna a force the door down but if we get some injuries and he gets a chance I think he'll do ok.

Parker and Mitchell, nuff said. GET HYPE.

Laidler solid enough. I don't think he'll do a Craig Bolton, but nor will he wallow away in the reserves.

Others performed more or less as expected.

 

[bungee]

I actually thought Lloyd was the best story of the night as while he did not get a lot of the ball and he had one shocker of a kick towards the end of the game his handballing in tight situations looked elite. I saw him do several handballs in really congested spots that went precisely to where he wanted them to go and as a result we got the ball out easily, handballs that I don't think most AFL players could do.

Don't get me wrong RUNVS. I'm not knocking him. His skills are indeed sublime but it was, to my mind, just a case of not yet being up to the speed at which seniors play the game. He looks good.

 

[grimlock]

You and banjo should get a room where you can practice saying your big words to each other.

We participate in fortnightly poetry slam sessions.

 

[SM]

We participate in fortnightly poetry slam sessions.

That sounds brilliantly violent.

 

[S120]

Much of what I thought about the players out there last night has been said by different posters but to hell with it, may as well post anyway.

My favourite thing to come out of the night was that Tom Derickx showed that he is tough, strong, and angry. I'd seen very little of him but I really liked how combative and up for the challenge he was against a renowned physical beast in Mumford. While he doesn't have the follow up ability that Mummy has, some of his tackles, blocks and bumps were most encouraging. As BarneyBent said above, you'd have to think he is now firmly in contention to be our 2nd ruck should Longmire opt to structure the team as such. Naismith definitely has something too, hopefully an uninterrupted year in the reserves will really see him improve.

I'm an unabashed Harry Cunningham fan and while he butchered the ball a few times last night, I only got more excited about him last night. As a HF/wingman, I think he's just about in a perfect spot to exploit his variety of talents; pace, strength, long-kicking and goal nous. In the predictions thread he's my pick for rising star for 2014 and even though our 22 is stacked with talent when everyone is fit, I honestly think he could hold his spot there, particularly if guys like McGlynn and Bird are going to be played more in the midfield, as Longmire has intimated they might.

Parker and Mitchell need not many words to be typed about them. I mean. Jesus. Hard not to be excited about those two. For Mitchell to be so fit and strong already after such a bad injury is a great sign. He's clearly worked his arse off over the summer.

Sam Reid and Gary Rohan showed the kind of impacts they can have upon the side as strong leading HF's. Their athleticism levels are just above most AFL players right now. Even in a forward line with Franklin, Goodes, Tippett, they can have a strong effect on how our team plays.

Shoutout to Nick Smith. He's just about my favourite player and I know I ramble on about him at times, but **** me, the guy just doesn't make mistakes. I kinda want to watch the entire game again just to actually ascertain whether he did a single thing wrong. At all. Or partly wrong. Ted can fall into this froth category too. Barely put a foot wrong against Jeremy Cameron all night.

The typical guys were solid enough for the first real run of the year. Guys like McVeigh, Jack, Kennedy, ROK, Hannebery. Very heartened to see Rhyce Shaw play well. He'll be a tremendous addition back into the side this year as another hard running, defensive minded pillar at the back.

 

[swansfan51]

No point talking up the senior players as we already know they can play. Great to see Reid and Shaw healthy again.

The only players outside the best 22 that did enough to make a case were Cunningham, Derickx and potentially Laidler. Lloyd did some very neat things but I don't think it is unfair to say he is in quite a long midfield queue. Naismith showed some very good promise but seems a bit off senior level football just yet, hopefully later in the year.

 

[S120]

No point talking up the senior players as we already know they can play. Great to see Reid and Shaw healthy again.

The only players outside the best 22 that did enough to make a case were Cunningham, Derickx and potentially Laidler. Lloyd did some very neat things but I don't think it is unfair to say he is in quite a long midfield queue. Naismith showed some very good promise but seems a bit off senior level football just yet, hopefully later in the year.

Who would you pick for round 1 if only one spot is available?

Cunningham vs B.Jack
Derickx vs Naismith vs LRT (for the 2nd ruck spot)
Laidler vs Rampe

 

[Heeney2Franklin]

Who would you pick for round 1 if only one spot is available?

Cunningham vs B.Jack
Derickx vs Naismith vs LRT (for the 2nd ruck spot)
Laidler vs Rampe

Need more than one game to judge

 

[SM]

Who would you pick for round 1 if only one spot is available?

Cunningham vs B.Jack
Derickx vs Naismith vs LRT (for the 2nd ruck spot)
Laidler vs Rampe

Jack
LRT
Rampe

Based on a combination of how they did last night, the Intra, and how they've performed in the past.