Our midfield...

[The Prosecutor]

We now have a high quality unit.

Watson
Goddard
Heppell
Stanton
Zaharakis
Howlett

I'm in a fantastic mood this morning so I'm just going to say it...

You're looking at a premiership midfield.

Probably not this year, but in the coming years, look out.

While on the broad topic, give Goodwin some kind of guarantee of being Hird's successor at some point. IDGAF what it takes, but that man will be a premiership coach and I want him to be at our club.

 

[ItchMint5]

Loving the freedom of the likes of Stants and Zakka due to Goddard's induction and the continuing development of Heppell. Really brings the midfield quality up to that next level!

 

[Macca18]

Bit early on the premiership midfield call...

I would like to see them against a high pressure midfield like Fremantle this week first before making those claims. Melbourne's midfield is the worst in the competition.

PS - And where is Hird going!?

 

[bombermick]

Myers is also crucial. Our midfield is much improved, but it's our talks that will determine how far we go.

 

[BrunoV]

I agree that we have the making of a premiership midfield.

Watson, Howlett, Hocking and Myers are as strong (in the literal sense) as any midfield group out there, and Heppell is quickly growing into the sort of player to join them. We have absolutely nothing to fear when it comes to winning the ball in close.

Goddard is another proven ball winner but is someone I think of a little differently. Ideally we should be feeding him the ball so that we can get maximum benefit of the class he adds to a midfield still largely made up of workhorses.

The word "spread" shits me but it continues to best describe the movement of the ball out of congestion and the longstanding weakness in our midfield. Our ability to spread, and to keep up with sides like Richmond and Carlton when they get up a head of steam, is still a concern. Fremantle will be a big test with Fyfe, Hill and Pearce.

Zaharakis still plays a largely lone hand in the middle as a dynamic ball carrier. Stanton has evolved into a excellent player but he will always be more suited to the open spaces of the wing where he can run all day to and provide links in chains of possession while we move the ball between half back and half forward.

Howlett can burst out of a pack but he probably lacks class (although as far as guys like Howlett, Myers and Heppell are concerned there are some unknowns and on displayed form the tags of old are seemingly less and less relevant).

My direction should be pretty obvious. Melksham is the missing link. If we can get the ball in his hands 20 times (for as close to 20 kicks as possible), especially in close, he has the tools to change the dynamic of our midfield. While we need the defensive efforts we do not need him to be getting huge numbers to be having the required impact. I'm not saying we have even seen him play the sort of game I have in mind but I am hopeful that it is around the corner.

Adding Jetta to the midfield rotation is a really good idea and the best short term solution. There is definitely room for Merrett, Browne and Kav (numbers and names TBA) because they're all supposed to be good ball carriers and add all important dash to our work in close.

 

[Jager bombers]

How about the continued consistent improvement from watson. Gets better every year and rarely has a game where he has little impact. He is an absolute gun!
Stanton is a real barometer for us this year. With the improvement coming from Heppell and Howlett, along with Zaharakis staying on the park, i think Stants will just run a muck. Goddard i think will be used more as a utility with spells on the ball. Goddard IMO is made for the big stage. He will take big marks, make good decisions and use the ball well when it matters most. Another important factor is that we have decent contribution from our fringe mids like myers and melksham.

The key for us this year for us is limiting injuries. We're a better team than last year with adding goddard and having general improvement in our midfield. It's still early days and even a week is a long time in football, but if we can keep that core group of mids on the park (watson, stants, hepp, zaha, goddard and howlett) for a majority of the year, a top 6 finish is well and truly on the cards.

 

[Jager bombers]

And how could i forget the importance of Hocking. Strong body who not only is more often than not curbing the influence of the oppositions best mid, gets his fair share of clearances.

 

[The Bomb]

Goals vs Adelaide
Total: 10.3

Watson - 1.1
Goddard - 1
Howlett - 4.1
Stanton - 1
Zaharakis - 0.1
Heppell - 0
Myers - 1
Hocking - 1
Melksham - 1

Goals vs Melb
Total: 10.7

Watson - 3.2
Goddard - 1
Howlett - 2
Stanton - 2.1
Zaharakis - 0.1
Heppell - 2.2
Myers - 0
Hocking - 0
Melksham - 0.1

 

[bacon buster]

need to add the ruck combo to the list as well. both offer a different skill set, and complement each other perfectly.

i think we can win a premiership with this midfield as the basis, providing they continue their improvement. there's another 5-6 clubs who think the same, we just need to perform when it counts

Freo away and Pies on ANZAC day are the big tests. win both, and the lid might be blown off

 

[lamaros]

If Myers keep fit and develops at the current rate we will have the best contested midfield group in the AFL by the end of the season.

The real question will be if Jetta can come in and add something. If we can do that we will give it a real shake. I've really been enjoying Melksham's work in the first two round too. I think he'll have a few great games this year when he gets the chance - too many good names ahead of him at the moment though.

Before the game on Friday I was really confident we'd win, then every now and then I'd have half a nagging doubt which was quickly cut off. We have Goddard now. We have too many genuine game breaking players who run through the midfield to worry now. Doesn't matter if any of Watson, Stanton, Goddard, Zaharakis or Heppell has a shocker (though they hardly every do), the other 4 will stand up.

There are only a few teams in the AFL that can match us in this regard - and they're all considered finals sureties and flag chances.

 

[raskolnikov]

My direction should be pretty obvious. Melksham is the missing link. If we can get the ball in his hands 20 times (for as close to 20 kicks as possible), especially in close, he has the tools to change the dynamic of our midfield. While we need the defensive efforts we do not need him to be getting huge numbers to be having the required impact. I'm not saying we have even seen him play the sort of game I have in mind but I am hopeful that it is around the corner.

Winderlich

 

[chrisdon16]

LOVING our midfield. Some really hard work has paid off from the coaching and recruiting staff. Hirdy has been working so hard to get a good midfield together and we are all just starting to see the benefits of that hard work. Loving the fact that teams are double teaming Watto which leaves BJ to run wherever he wants, plus Heppell is maturing as a player and looks like he could be a super player. Also very impressed with our rucks. Belly will be one of the premium big men by season end, plus he can go to the goalsquare for a rest and nab 1-2 goals a game whilst Paddy dominates the ruck. Loving our team this year BUT a long way to go

 

[Kyptastic]

Winderlich

He's not really a midfielder anymore though. At best he's a high half forward who has pace, but his real skill seems to be his footy smarts - reads the play ahead of him as well as anyone and uses that to make an impact.

 

[Zach Package]

Can add in Hocking, Myers, Dempsey and Melksham, which is a pretty decent list of rotation guys.

Soon to be joined by Browne and Kavanagh as well

 

[BrunoV]

Winderlich

In theory, absolutely. He does seem a very, very long way from playing midfield though.

 

[fishardansin]

I agree that we have the making of a premiership midfield.

Watson, Howlett, Hocking and Myers are as strong (in the literal sense) as any midfield group out there, and Heppell is quickly growing into the sort of player to join them. We have absolutely nothing to fear when it comes to winning the ball in close.

Goddard is another proven ball winner but is someone I think of a little differently. Ideally we should be feeding him the ball so that we can get maximum benefit of the class he adds to a midfield still largely made up of workhorses.

The word "spread" shits me but it continues to best describe the movement of the ball out of congestion and the longstanding weakness in our midfield. Our ability to spread, and to keep up with sides like Richmond and Carlton when they get up a head of steam, is still a concern. Fremantle will be a big test with Fyfe, Hill and Pearce.

Zaharakis still plays a largely lone hand in the middle as a dynamic ball carrier. Stanton has evolved into a excellent player but he will always be more suited to the open spaces of the wing where he can run all day to and provide links in chains of possession while we move the ball between half back and half forward.

Howlett can burst out of a pack but he probably lacks class (although as far as guys like Howlett, Myers and Heppell are concerned there are some unknowns and on displayed form the tags of old are seemingly less and less relevant).

My direction should be pretty obvious. Melksham is the missing link. If we can get the ball in his hands 20 times (for as close to 20 kicks as possible), especially in close, he has the tools to change the dynamic of our midfield. While we need the defensive efforts we do not need him to be getting huge numbers to be having the required impact. I'm not saying we have even seen him play the sort of game I have in mind but I am hopeful that it is around the corner.

Adding Jetta to the midfield rotation is a really good idea and the best short term solution. There is definitely room for Merrett, Browne and Kav (numbers and names TBA) because they're all supposed to be good ball carriers and add all important dash to our work in close.

Watson and Goddard are not game breakingly quick, but they are smart with where they run and hence help with the spread. Already at such a young age Heppell is as smart as those two. Stanton assists with the spread through sheer volume of running. Howlett is quicker than most give him credit for so he's no slouch. Zaka's pace is well known and I'd also like to add Jetta to that role as well. So there really is only Hocking not being a big contributer to the spread, however, if he can keep doing jobs like he did in round 1 on Dangerfield we can cop that. While Myers isn't super quick, which is surprising considering he told a bomberblitz poster once he ran a 51 second 400 as a junior, his big body draws players into a tackle, his size means he can outmark most mids and his long kicking can clear a zone.

However, the spread is not ALL about the midfield. Dempsey and Hibberd running from behind is a big part of it. Add Winderlich to the forward line and he adds to that too, especially seeing he is good at leading up. Also Hurley's improved fitness and preparedness to offer options 60m out on the boundary AND hold up a pack in the hot spot spreads the defense too.

All in all with lots of classy disposal from our current on ballers, speed and run on the flanks and wings and KPFs with a big tank makes us very good "on the spread".

If Jetta can't hold his spot in the midfield than he's on competition with Davey for small forward role and Davey is still ahead. Regards the midfield role IMHO he's in competition with Merrett and Kav.

Either way, as has been mentioned in a number of places our "core" is very good now and the coaches and match committee will now tinker around the edges to see if they can get a premiership quality 22 for next year or even by the end of this year.

Hopefully we can remain relatively injury free so that our kids can come in only for support roles, while getting time to develop in major roles in the VFL.

 

[Mercurial89]

We now have a high quality unit.

While on the broad topic, give Goodwin some kind of guarantee of being Hird's successor at some point. IDGAF what it takes, but that man will be a premiership coach and I want him to be at our club.

I would be very happy with Goodwin as our head coach when Hirdy leaves. I don't believe Hirdy could be a career coach, he will get us in a good position, set the club up, maybe taste some success and then head off and dominate something else he hasn't yet excelled at.

 

[Kong]

 

[blitzer]

Its only a matter of time until the rest of the competition and the media cottons on to just how good our midfield is. It was actually pretty decent last year until we were wrecked by injuries but this year its legitimately up with the other contenders and will be our area of strength going forward. People are just so used to saying Essendon has a bad midfield except for Watson by reflex that its going to take them a while to acknowledge it but if we place high enough on the ladder this year, that will change in a hurry.

 

[Yoda_]

Our midfield can only be compared to the powerhouse midfields of Collingwood, Hawthorn and even Sydney. Their depth is incredible, it is not the top end midfield that is good, it is that second and third tiers that will get us to the big dance.

We all know the A - team (Watson, Goddard, Zaharakis, Heppel) are genuine guns, I have mentioned this before but it is the next tier that needs to step up and improve (Howlett, Hocking, Myers, Melksham) that will make us a top 8 team to a top 4 team.

As MIDFIELDERS goes, I would discount Dempsey, Jetta, Winderlich as mids, they have been proven not to be mids but merely those (very good) role players, however we need more rotations. The best teams have up to a dozen possible midfielders, do we?

This is why the aforementioned teams have such powerful midfields, Fremantle are on the rise because of guys like Walters and C.Pearce developing into handy rotations. DeBoer, D.Pearce, Suban running through there yet? Duffield?

As good as our midfield is, we still have a long way to go to get anywhere near the top end midfields.

 

[yaco55]

Yoda - Think you are being overly Negative. Ideally we need another line breaking midfielder - Merret and Glesson are the longer term options - Hams interests me - Is he like a Blair - small player with low centre of gravity with a burst of speed. These are the most likely options - Then if we can get a Jetta/Winderlich/Kavanagh to add to the rotations.

We have enough depth in the midfield - It's a matter of hpw quickly they improve !

 

[Yoda_]

Yoda - Think you are being overly Negative. Ideally we need another line breaking midfielder - Merret and Glesson are the longer term options - Hams interests me - Is he like a Blair - small player with low centre of gravity with a burst of speed. These are the most likely options - Then if we can get a Jetta/Winderlich/Kavanagh to add to the rotations.

We have enough depth in the midfield - It's a matter of hpw quickly they improve !

I dont think Im being overly critical, just being realistic. Is it not the next tier players that shows how good a midfield is? Look at Geelongs! Who would have thought that Kelly, Bartell (played outside the square for some parts on Sunday), Ablett are nott there. It is because the next generation midfielders have come through. The guys like Smedts, Horlin - Smith, Christensen etc. Collingwoods next gen midfielders, Dwyer (2 games!), Blair, Seedsman to. The Hawks are probably the best exponents of developing young mids (see Shiel, Savage, Broooooooossssttttt, now Anderson, Hil also) are all able to go through the midfield.

For someone like MErret, he is still maybe a dozen games away from becoming a midfield rotation, Gleeson wont play games this year (in an ultimate world, too many ahead unless he is DOMINATING VFL footy).

If we can get the next tier of mids into the seniors, they need to displace players. See Nick Kommer being replace by a Nick O'Brien later in the year (should O'Brien develop faster than usual this year), whilst Kavanagh will need to push someone like Myers, or Hocking (and push a Myers into a deffensive role unless Kav plays as a tagger which I highly doubt) out of the side. Browne is the interesting one. Being groomed as a running half back, who will he displace from that back 5 (Fletcher isnt going anywhere )? Perhaps a NLM sub where his versatility and aggression could be utilised?


This years delistings are going to be very, very interesting and may shock a few with who does go.

 

[yaco55]

I dont think Im being overly critical, just being realistic. Is it not the next tier players that shows how good a midfield is? Look at Geelongs! Who would have thought that Kelly, Bartell (played outside the square for some parts on Sunday), Ablett are nott there. It is because the next generation midfielders have come through. The guys like Smedts, Horlin - Smith, Christensen etc. Collingwoods next gen midfielders, Dwyer (2 games!), Blair, Seedsman to. The Hawks are probably the best exponents of developing young mids (see Shiel, Savage, Broooooooossssttttt, now Anderson, Hil also) are all able to go through the midfield.

For someone like MErret, he is still maybe a dozen games away from becoming a midfield rotation, Gleeson wont play games this year (in an ultimate world, too many ahead unless he is DOMINATING VFL footy).

If we can get the next tier of mids into the seniors, they need to displace players. See Nick Kommer being replace by a Nick O'Brien later in the year (should O'Brien develop faster than usual this year), whilst Kavanagh will need to push someone like Myers, or Hocking (and push a Myers into a deffensive role unless Kav plays as a tagger which I highly doubt) out of the side. Browne is the interesting one. Being groomed as a running half back, who will he displace from that back 5 (Fletcher isnt going anywhere )? Perhaps a NLM sub where his versatility and aggression could be utilised?


This years delistings are going to be very, very interesting and may shock a few with who does go.

Our midfield is not that far away from the best midfields - Think you over-rate Hawthorn's mid field - Give it another year and hope that blokes like Kavanagh/Browne/Merritt/Gleeson come through - And we are sitting on a midfielder in Kommer.

Delistings - I think we may be surprised - Do you want to give us a few names ?

 

[Yoda_]

Our midfield is not that far away from the best midfields - Think you over-rate Hawthorn's mid field - Give it another year and hope that blokes like Kavanagh/Browne/Merritt/Gleeson come through - And we are sitting on a midfielder in Kommer.

Delistings - I think we may be surprised - Do you want to give us a few names ?

The way I see midfielders are, do you lose much when you replace *player A* with *player B*.

With Hawthorn, do they lose THAT much if a Shiels goes into the guts in place of a Brad Sewell? Not really. When a Jake Melksham goes into the guts in place of a Ben Howlett, do we lose much? I think we do. Once we bridge that gap, then we can start to compare our midfield to the likes of Collingwood and Hawthorn.

On delistings, pending retirements, you will be very surprised to see who is out of contract and under pressure to get a best 22 - 25 spot on the list going forward.

 

[Lord Nicholson]

This years delistings are going to be very, very interesting and may shock a few with who does go.

Apropos of what? We're two games in.