Player Watch Ned Long

[gouki88]

Id say his last 2 games have been disappointing. I appreciate his physicality and he is a tackling machine but 18 disposals and then 12 isnt enough for a midfielder. I also think he hasnt been as clean..Lets hope he gets back to the 20 plus games soon

You say "as a midfielder", but his TOG has been hovering around 70% for the last few weeks. That is bizarrely low

 

[PiCkLeJuiCe]

Id say his last 2 games have been disappointing. I appreciate his physicality and he is a tackling machine but 18 disposals and then 12 isnt enough for a midfielder. I also think he hasnt been as clean..Lets hope he gets back to the 20 plus games soon

Funny, as McCreery played midfield, got 13 disposals and everyone is saying he smashed it last night.

 

[Jen2310]

I think he does a lot that people don't realise, the selflessness that helps others around him, even when he is has been quieter.

He I imagine is still adjusting to playing his role. Won't always get high players, but high impact.

 

[Pie thon]

Id say his last 2 games have been disappointing. I appreciate his physicality and he is a tackling machine but 18 disposals and then 12 isnt enough for a midfielder. I also think he hasnt been as clean..Lets hope he gets back to the 20 plus games soon

I reckon it's fair if he sits getting 2/3 of the disposals of a standard 25 disposal midfielder since he gets the most tackles for us pretty much every game this year, and let's the others accumulate more outside ball. Against Freo, only Crisp got 20+ disposals. So the 12 touches is in proportion to the ball use the team had.

 

[stormskye]

I think he does a lot that people don't realise, the selflessness that helps others around him, even when he is has been quieter.

He I imagine is still adjusting to playing his role. Won't always get high players, but high impact.

He’s only played like 20 games. People forget that. Still very much a kid learning the game

 

[Jen2310]

He’s only played like 20 games. People forget that. Still very much a kid learning the game

Spot on. Understandable he may not have the week in and out consistency. That will come.

 

[manicpie]

I think he does a lot that people don't realise, the selflessness that helps others around him, even when he is has been quieter.

He I imagine is still adjusting to playing his role. Won't always get high players, but high impact.

I think opposition clubs have been keeping him in their sights a bit after his amazing game a few weeks ago. He's been a beast in there with his off the ball stuff

 

[Bianconeri]

He’s only played like 20 games. People forget that. Still very much a kid learning the game

It’s not forgotten it’s just not relevant when it comes to picking our best side.

 

[Bianconeri]

Funny, as McCreery played midfield, got 13 disposals and everyone is saying he smashed it last night.

McCreery had 3 CBA’s to Long’s 20.

 

[Peters_Nuts]

He definitely slowed down a bit last night but I feel like they way he plays wouldn't respond well with a 5 day break.

We only had 1 player with over 20 touches last night so he wasn't the only one who struggled to get hold of it.

 

[DopeMaster]

He’s only played like 20 games. People forget that. Still very much a kid learning the game

Exciting to think of what he could become at 100 games. Very far from the finished product IMO. That he’s contributing as much as he is for a 20 gamer bodes very well.

 

[OfficialJordynRuffhead]

Also noticed a few times he positioned himself well to receive a quick handball from a teamate under pressure, wasn't in lots of space himself but this is his game, has the strength and the Oliver/Cripps style of keeping his arms up high so that he can almost always get a handlball away while braking tackles.

 

[901023]

Id say his last 2 games have been disappointing. I appreciate his physicality and he is a tackling machine but 18 disposals and then 12 isnt enough for a midfielder. I also think he hasnt been as clean..Lets hope he gets back to the 20 plus games soon

Bro, we're coming off a 5 day break. We rested Pendlebury, DeGoey, Maynard and Mihocek. Almost every other midfielder (N Daicos, Sidebottom, included) except for Crisp and Cameron had a stinker!

I think you're being harsh singling out Long here. He did kick his trademark goal tho . Loved that!

 

[Jen2310]

1) This mid-season draftee is driving Collingwood's midfield​

Ned Long has become an important cog in Collingwood's engine room over the past five weeks. Since demanding a spot in Craig McRae

Craig Mcrae

Age

52

Ht

176cm

Wt

73kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.9

3star

K

9.0

3star

HB

3.9

3star

M

2.4

3star

T

1.9

4star

G

1.2

4star

No current season stats available

D

16.2

4star

K

10.6

4star

HB

5.6

4star

M

1.8

2star

T

1.2

3star

G

1.4

5star

's starting 22 in Gather Round, the 194cm inside midfielder has helped flick the switch when the Magpies need a lift. On Saturday against Kuwarna, it was Long in the second quarter who laid three tackles in a minute, then dished off two goal assists by hand in 90 seconds. Long finished with nine tackles – the most on the ground – to go with 19 disposals that left his coach beaming in his post-mortem. The Mid-Season Rookie Draft has unearthed a handful of stars, but not many are having as big an impact as Long is right now. - Josh Gabelich

Nine things we learned: Sydney is too reliant on its midfield stars

The Hawks need their skipper in form, what the Giants are lacking plus more round 10 lessons

www.afl.com.au

 

[ClaytonM]

So is he in the top 10 for the Copeland yet or does he need a few more games to catch up?

 

[901023]

So is he in the top 10 for the Copeland yet or does he need a few more games to catch up?

He's a starting MID. Is that good enough?

 

[gouki88]

So is he in the top 10 for the Copeland yet or does he need a few more games to catch up?

Daicos x 2, Cameron, Elliott, Sidebottom, Schultz, Crisp, Perryman, Pendles, Howe, Maynard & Moore are stiff competition.

 

[901023]

1) This mid-season draftee is driving Collingwood's midfield​

Ned Long has become an important cog in Collingwood's engine room over the past five weeks. Since demanding a spot in Craig McRae's starting 22 in Gather Round, the 194cm inside midfielder has helped flick the switch when the Magpies need a lift. On Saturday against Kuwarna, it was Long in the second quarter who laid three tackles in a minute, then dished off two goal assists by hand in 90 seconds. Long finished with nine tackles – the most on the ground – to go with 19 disposals that left his coach beaming in his post-mortem. The Mid-Season Rookie Draft has unearthed a handful of stars, but not many are having as big an impact as Long is right now. - Josh Gabelich

Nine things we learned: Sydney is too reliant on its midfield stars

The Hawks need their skipper in form, what the Giants are lacking plus more round 10 lessons

www.afl.com.au

I love his combativeness. 22 pressure acts.... makes me excited!

That same will to impact is what I love about Charlie West. Those types of players suit our system perfectly. See ball, get ball.... if you're in the way.... bad luck.

 

[ClaytonM]

Daicos x 2, Cameron, Elliott, Sidebottom, Schultz, Crisp, Perryman, Pendles, Howe, Maynard & Moore are stiff competition.

Tends to hapen when you are top. But in the half dozen full games he has played you would have to think he is in the top 10. Over that stretch he has been amongst the most consistent.

 

[Fat Jesus]

Daicos x 2, Cameron, Elliott, Sidebottom, Schultz, Crisp, Perryman, Pendles, Howe, Maynard & Moore are stiff competition.

Especially when you add Houston.

 

[Rorzza]

The media like BF can push a narrative, and yes his pressure game was good especially some of his tackles on the weekend......but Nic is getting beat up, the past 2 1/2 games the midfield has lost territory and 7 out of 19 of Neds possessions were kicks.......On CFC's list only Cox is a worse field kick than Ned, statistically! Cox completed a brilliant pack mark from a hack kick to lift Neds kicking efficiency to 33%.

You can see the coaching staff tinkering, Crispy last weekend showed there are better options, Beau pinch hitting. This is the coaching staff trying to turn the midfield around.

 

[jmac70]

The media like BF can push a narrative, and yes his pressure game was good especially some of his tackles on the weekend......but Nic is getting beat up, the past 2 1/2 games the midfield has lost territory and 7 out of 19 of Neds possessions were kicks.......On CFC's list only Cox is a worse field kick than Ned, statistically! Cox completed a brilliant pack mark from a hack kick to lift Neds kicking efficiency to 33%.

You can see the coaching staff tinkering, Crispy last weekend showed there are better options, Beau pinch hitting. This is the coaching staff trying to turn the midfield around.

So why did the coach single Ned out for special praise after the game?

 

[VinnieB]

The media like BF can push a narrative, and yes his pressure game was good especially some of his tackles on the weekend......but Nic is getting beat up, the past 2 1/2 games the midfield has lost territory and 7 out of 19 of Neds possessions were kicks.......On CFC's list only Cox is a worse field kick than Ned, statistically! Cox completed a brilliant pack mark from a hack kick to lift Neds kicking efficiency to 33%.

You can see the coaching staff tinkering, Crispy last weekend showed there are better options, Beau pinch hitting. This is the coaching staff trying to turn the midfield around.

I can’t say I share your same concerns about Long. As you point out, he only had 7 kicks (AFL stats say 6 which must be correct as you can’t get to 33%) so that 33% can look low. If he had another 3 easy short passes, he is at over 50%.

But overall he ran at 63%, with 9 tackles, 5 clearances (3 centre bounce), and 6 score involvements, 3 intercept possessions.

I think you are very harsh expecting a 22 year old who was sub the 1st 4 games of the season to be the only player responsible for ‘protecting’ Nick Daicos.

And how many clearances are we getting from Pendlebury and Crisp?


Now, if you say Cox improved Long’s numbers by taking a mark, how many is he negatively affecting?

 

[Ted Parker]

The Dump Truck has moved into the AFL top 10 for pressure acts.

AFL Player Statistics

AFL player statistics.

www.wheeloratings.com

Interesting to compare him against a similar mid-field bull in Brayden Sier

36

Brayden Sier

Age

28

Ht

191cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

17.8

4star

K

7.3

3star

HB

10.4

5star

M

1.2

2star

T

4.3

5star

CL

3.7

5star

No current season stats available

D

16.4

4star

K

7.2

3star

HB

9.2

5star

M

1.6

2star

T

5.8

5star

CL

3.4

5star

, whom many of us had high hopes.
He’s been one that has come out of nowhere on pre-season crystal balling to deliver a significant impact to our ascendancy in 2025. May Neds’ ascendancy continue.

AFL Player Profile

AFL Player Profile

www.wheeloratings.com

 

[Dtennent94]

Especially when you add Houston.

I look forward to seeing him added to the team. When’s that suspension from Port end?