Player Watch Nathan Freeman

[THATSGOLD]

If you use common sense you would of worked out the club has told him not to sprint flat out in games and just get a good block of footy into him and just build into the season as he missed a hole year of footy so yeh did we really need another thread on him TG??
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/the-new-leaner-nathan-freeman.1093112/#post-37871160

Well he was being talked up as the next Dangerfield ready to explode. What's happened since then.

 

[THATSGOLD]

It would be foolish to write him off considering what happened last year with his big injury but that doesn't mean we can't express concerns. One of them would be how much is he going to recover after his damaging hamstring and how much he's missed in his development, which there's nothing the club can do about. The other is what type of player he is meant to become, as with him it's been unclear even from his junior profiles.

Is he going to be a strong contested ball player a la Dangerfield breaking away from packs with speed? If so, we would hope to see some of this in the VFL as so far he's been pretty timid with his attack of the ball and hasn't shown a knack for finding the ball.

Is he going to be a speedy outsider that opens the play for us? If so, we should hope to see him using his speed to gain space at VFL level and showing more football smarts than he has so far as he seems to get caught in the play.

From 2013, McCarthy, Cripps, Dunstan, Merrett, Taylor have shown more than him while players like Acres and Sheed look to be more natural footballers.

This is Freeman's year to start showing promise and show he is a footballer and not just an athlete. If he doesn't show good, strong signs this year in the seconds then we should be worried. As one of our very few top draft picks in the past 8 years, we can't really afford for him to be a disappointment.

Exactly. Those guys took one year to show something, Freeman hasnt shown nothing at all to suggest he is going to be any good regardless of the hammy in 2014. He needs to start playing good VFL footy at least.

 

[Vankri]

Exactly. Those guys took one year to show something, Freeman hasnt shown nothing at all to suggest he is going to be any good regardless of the hammy in 2014. He needs to start playing good VFL footy at least.

I did say that we should give him this year in the VFL to show signs. Think about it as a 2014 draftee with a pre-season under his belt and that's it. You're going too early, give it a year before jumping to conclusions. It's also on the Collingwood development team to put some focus on his trajectory as his profile is a bit of an unknown as very few players have his mix of attributes.

 

[THATSGOLD]

I did say that we should give him this year in the VFL to show signs. Think about it as a 2014 draftee with a pre-season under his belt and that's it. You're going too early, give it a year before jumping to conclusions. It's also on the Collingwood development team to put some focus on his trajectory as his profile is a bit of an unknown as very few players have his mix of attributes.

DeGoey is showing signs he is going to be a star as a first year player so if we want to treat Freeman as a first year he is still worthy of a top 10 pick?

 

[popin]

Not sure why I'm even giving that a response, but it's pretty simple. If his body isn't right to go full on, then he wouldnt be playing. He's been over his hamstring since October last year and there would be absolutely 0 chance that the club would say "don't sprint full on". Just would not happen.

lol

 

[Vankri]

DeGoey is showing signs he is going to be a star as a first year player so if we want to treat Freeman as a first year he is still worthy of a top 10 pick?

Not all players develop at the same rate and De Goey hasn't suffered an extreme hamstring tendon injury in his first NAB cup game.

McCartin, Ahern, Wright, Cockatoo, Ellis from 2014 aren't showing star signs yet, but no one is writing them off. Even from 2013 Boyd, Kelly, Lennon aren't tearing it off either.

Look, I share some of your concerns but you're overreacting. Keep a cool head, watch out for the VFL games and reviews to see how he's tracking, and re-assess mid/end of the season.

 

[Pendles!]

lol

Not sure why you're getting defensive, I'm not bagging freeman at all.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Just thought I would chuck in Knightmare's phantom draft assessment of Freeman. Several observers and posters have noted that Freeman does not find much of the ball despite his strong body, and relies on being given the ball on the outside. Knightmare said the same thing in his phantom draft. What has not been quite so obvious in his VFL games is the blistering pace and run highlighted by Knightmare in his profile. The good finishing within 55 meters of goal has also been absent from his VFL displays this year.

#15 Sydney – Nathan Freeman (VIC – Mid)Height: 181cm, Weight: 85kg, DOB: 16/06/1995
Recruited from: Sandringham Dragons
Style: Luke Shuey
Player comparison: Jonathan O’Rourke
Range: 7-15
Profile: Freeman is an absolute dynamite midfielder with some incredible acceleration. Freeman has an unusual combination of speed, agility and endurance making him one of the really unique athletes in this draft and with that sidestep of his but then also his skillset with his ability to do damage by foot. He can run with the ball as far as you let him and he’ll run the length of the ground and take everyone on if you put no one in his way making him a real penetrating weapon from a run and carry standpoint. By foot he has nice penetration and is both an excellent kick to target over a variety of distances but then also finishing anywhere within 55m from goal. Freeman is a receiver who despite his strong body doesn’t win a whole lot of his own ball inside the contest but then doesn’t tend to find much of it outside the contest either as someone who generally likes to receive by hand and then go for his run with the ball and take on the game and do damage. I am concerned about his ability to find the footy at the next level despite the damage he can do with ball in hand because he’s not even in the TAC Cup level a high volume accumulator and a relatively low volume contested ball winner without that natural linkup ability. Being really unsure that he develops either an inside or outside game I’d like to see Freeman with his strength, athleticism and skillset develop into a rebounding back flanker despite his current role and be used as a rebounding weapon off a back flank as I’m just not sure he can win enough of his own ball inside the contest with his midfield game so reliant on those around him.

 

[Hardas]

That's being generous.

LOL

 

[THATSGOLD]

Not all players develop at the same rate and De Goey hasn't suffered an extreme hamstring tendon injury in his first NAB cup game.

McCartin, Ahern, Wright, Cockatoo, Ellis from 2014 aren't showing star signs yet, but no one is writing them off. Even from 2013 Boyd, Kelly, Lennon aren't tearing it off either.

Look, I share some of your concerns but you're overreacting. Keep a cool head, watch out for the VFL games and reviews to see how he's tracking, and re-assess mid/end of the season.

No but I'm not hearing any positive signs of him playing the game. Even Mason Cox is getting bigger wraps.

 

[popin]

No but I'm not hearing any positive signs of him playing the game. Even Mason Cox is getting bigger wraps.

But you don't like positive signs or things so we are confused now

 

[soreplums]

Might need to start off a half back

 

[pablo disco bar]

Ill say something positive. ..looks fit has time on his side will come good

 

[TradeDraft]

From Reports and what I seen at VFL Level. Still fair way away from Debuting.

 

[TradeDraft]

Yeah, it's strange, he was the young player who was being talked up pre-season ...

Big Difference between Training Track and a Actual Game

 

[TradeDraft]

Salam was taken before freeman

Hine was said to be Super Keen on Salem Pre-Draft

 

[Green Eggs]

Round 20, 2019

 

[Black_White]

Last weeks Buckley ABC interview.
Freeman gets a mention.
Coach, club and player know it's a long road ahead.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-02/interview-nathan-buckley/6439936?section=sport

 

[loki04]

Come back in 12 to 18 months then reassess.

 

[THATSGOLD]

Come back in 12 to 18 months then reassess.

That's 30 months on the list... If he doesn't start playing any sort of decent footy in the next couple of months he's going to be a bust.

 

[Black_White]

That's 30 months on the list... If he doesn't start playing any sort of decent footy in the next couple of months he's going to be a bust.

Such is the way of injury.
Sharenberg isn't much different.
The club will not pull the trigger and delist a player at such a high draft pick without giving him every opportunity to fulfil that potential.
As they should.

 

[soreplums]

Hine was said to be Super Keen on Salem Pre-Draft

He was going to be our pick with all the talk until late that Melbourne we're going to take Freeman

 

[Black_White]

We were super keen on Bontempelli as well.
We need to keep our mouths shut.

 

[jackcass]

That's being generous.

"Drawing a long bow to cast a baseless negative pall over the blog" wasn't an option apparently.

 

[jackcass]

Well he was being talked up as the next Dangerfield ready to explode. What's happened since then.

So an occasional delusional expectation of 1-2 posters sets our collective expectations then.... those posts deserving of no more credence than your ultra negative view. Reality of expectation is somewhere in between until we see what he offers at senior level.