NAB CUP ROUND 1: What Impressed you?

[Buena]

Of our existing players, the ones who really stood out for me were:
Reid - I can see him dominating opposition forward lines for the next 10 years;
Blair - He went from being left out of the team from everyone on this site, to looking like getting plenty of midfield time this year.. He was everywhere on Saturday night.

The usual suspects in Shaw, Sidebottom, Pendles and Harry etc were great, but don't really need to talk about them because they do it week in, week out.

Of the new guys, i thought:

Ben Sinclair was great. A few of you agree with me, but the bulk of you have slayed him, and labelled him the new Jaxon Barham. You are probably the same guys that said Ben Johnson was finished this time last year.
Sinclair plays with an intensity that is hard to match. Still young, give him some time, and don't knife him in the back just yet.

Lachy Keefe. Big lad, took a few strong grabs. Definately something to work with, especially seeing as he was a latecomer to the game. 204cm athletes don't grow on trees, so i'm excited for his future. With the breaking news that Nate Brown has injured his knee, Keefe could be close to getting a game.

Jye Bolton's mark inside 50 was all he had to do for me. 18 yr old kid taking a solid pack mark, then going back and slotting it. Well done.

Not keen:
BOUNDARY LINE RULE=PIECE OF SHIT.

Also, along with Sinclair, you should all get of Simon Buckley's back. He wasn't that bad. In fact, he did some nice things. It takes more than one game to form an opinion on the guys future. Even if you went to every VFL game last year. Its a new year, give him a crack.

 

[TradeDraft]

What did people think of Ugle and Perham?

 

[hotpie]

Of the senior players Thomas was outstanding in the game he played whilst his replacement Ball was very good in the second.

 

[Ed D]

What did people think of Ugle and Perham?

They showed a few good signs of potential but I can't see them being ready to play this year unless they really improve and play consistent footy in the VFL. Too hard to judge them really as apart from a couple of minutes play they weren't really involved in the game all that much.

 

[TradeDraft]

They showed a few good signs of potential but I can't see them being ready to play this year unless they really improve and play consistent footy in the VFL. Too hard to judge them really as apart from a couple of minutes play they weren't really involved in the game all that much.

Yeah they did not do much but what they did was good.

Be interesting to see if the play in RD 2 of the nab cup

 

[PieNSauce]

Watched both games again last night and I have to say the standout things to come from the match were as follows:

Established Players:

Daisy - Was that tackling insane or what? He reminded me of a rabid dog the way he was tackling. - Give me some of whatever he's taking. It looks very much like Daisy is determined to continue improving his game. We seriously need to get him signed before he commands too much of our salary cap.

Blair - Big step up. He's bulked up and increased his work rate by about 50%. Looks like a dose of confidence could have a big impact on him this year. Held his spot last year by being consistent but provided huge impetus on Saturday and may well be a lock if he can keep it up.

New or 2nd Stringers:

Krak - Fairly slow but has great awareness. Gets around opponents without too much fuss. Biggest asset I saw was his ability to feed the ball out from under a pack. Did it several times and would be a worry long term for Luke Ball if he can get up to speed with AFL.

Bolton - Looked a little bit overawed at times but showed enough to suggest big things ahead. Good things seemed to follow him around on Saturday and that's a great sign for the future.

Buckley - Last Chance? Got a fair bit of the ball but which team was he playing for? Too many poor decisions resulting in turnovers. I'm thinking he needs to turn it around fast or he'll be looking for a new club next year.

Keefe - Mt Everest! Can't help wondering if he might ultimately finish up as a potential ruck option if he doesn't make it as a KPP. Hands look pretty good and I saw one absolute sizzling pass that went 40-50m only feet above the ground and deadly accurate. Too early to call but could be a real prospect.

Sinclair - Finds It! This kid definitely knows where the ball's at but will need time to be able to think through the options when he gets it. Definitely one to watch.

Taz - Nothing spectacular. Taz was good enough to suggest he will step up as Brownie's replacement fairly readily but will take time to learn our game style. Nothing more than a serviceable performance IMO.

P.S. Honorary mentions to both Ugle and Perham who each did a couple of things. At this stage I can't recall whether I only saw a small amount because they were off the ground or because they didn't get involved enough but Ugle's goal was a special.

 

[TradeDraft]

Watched both games again last night and I have to say the standout things to come from the match were as follows:

Established Players:

Daisy - Was that tackling insane or what? He reminded me of a rabid dog the way he was tackling. - Give me some of whatever he's taking. It looks very much like Daisy is determined to continue improving his game. We seriously need to get him signed before he commands too much of our salary cap.

Blair - Big step up. He's bulked up and increased his work rate by about 50%. Looks like a dose of confidence could have a big impact on him this year. Held his spot last year by being consistent but provided huge impetus on Saturday and may well be a lock if he can keep it up.

New or 2nd Stringers:

Krak - Fairly slow but has great awareness. Gets around opponents without too much fuss. Biggest asset I saw was his ability to feed the ball out from under a pack. Did it several times and would be a worry long term for Luke Ball if he can get up to speed with AFL.

Bolton - Looked a little bit overawed at times but showed enough to suggest big things ahead. Good things seemed to follow him around on Saturday and that's a great sign for the future.

Buckley - Last Chance? Got a fair bit of the ball but which team was he playing for? Too many poor decisions resulting in turnovers. I'm thinking he needs to turn it around fast or he'll be looking for a new club next year.

Keefe - Mt Everest! Can't help wondering if he might ultimately finish up as a potential ruck option if he doesn't make it as a KPP. Hands look pretty good and I saw one absolute sizzling pass that went 40-50m only feet above the ground and deadly accurate. Too early to call but could be a real prospect.

Sinclair - Finds It! This kid definitely knows where the ball's at but will need time to be able to think through the options when he gets it. Definitely one to watch.

Taz - Nothing spectacular. Taz was good enough to suggest he will step up as Brownie's replacement fairly readily but will take time to learn our game style. Nothing more than a serviceable performance IMO.

P.S. Honorary mentions to both Ugle and Perham who each did a couple of things. At this stage I can't recall whether I only saw a small amount because they were off the ground or because they didn't get involved enough but Ugle's goal was a special.

What did you think of Fasolo?

Agree with Ugle and Perham as they did show some good signs but as you say they where mostly off the ground more than on

 

[PieNSauce]

What did you think of Fasolo?

Agree with Ugle and Perham as they did show some good signs but as you say they where mostly off the ground more than on

Yep. Forgot about Fasolo. He looked like he's got a fair bit of development work to do yet but got around the ball enough to suggest he's got a future if he works hard. Awareness at this stage is something he'll need to work on but it's very early to expect too much.

 

[Chief Ten Beers]

Big call. Lets not forget, he's going to play out his career alongside daisy, pendles, sidey and a few more of our younger stars. Hard to see him outperforming any of them for a whole season.

12 gamer with no pre-season vs players with a few seasons under their belt...............................

Blair is relatively one of the best in the league at what he does.

 

[Ed D]

12 gamer with no pre-season vs players with a few seasons under their belt...............................

Blair is relatively one of the best in the league at what he does.

This is Blair's 3rd season so I'm not sure what you mean with the no preseason comment but he does have improvement left in him. In saying that the others do too and I'm not sure he's up to their standards. I hope he is!