Our ruck depth

Joined
Aug 17, 2005
Posts
158
Likes
16
Location
Melb
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
The Mighty Pies
Thread starter #1
I posted this at Nicks, once again I thought I'd bring it across here to see what people though...

I've been reading alot of posts on this site and others complaining about the depth in our ruck department, so I thought I'd briefly go through the other club to see how we fared compared to them. I haven't included young players as this is more of an immediate rating and, to be honest, I don't know anything about them:

Adelaide -
Biglands-inconsistent.
Clarke-05 will be last season.
Hudson-Yet to really prove himself.

Brisbane -
Charman-Good young ruckman.
McDonald-Will struggle to overcome knee injuries.
McLaren-Dud.
Keating-Good servant, past his best.

Carlton -
French-Quality ruckman, 31 years old though.
Deluca-Just a plodder, servicable.
Bryan-Showed a bit in bursts this year.

Essendon -
Hille-Thrives when played as the no1 option, is a player of the future.
Allan-Knackered.
Cartledge-Shown very little so far.
Laycock-Looks more of a KP/pinch hitter in the ruck.

Fremantle -
Sandilands-Not overly mobile but a good tap ruckman due to his height.
Longmuir-Once again, more of a pinch hitter. Good player though.

Geelong -
King-Once the best ruckman in the AFL, injuries seem to have taken their toll. Will struggle to regain his best form.
Chambers-No more than a handy backup.

Hawthorn-
Everitt-Gun player, getting on though.
Taylor-Able backup but will never dominate.

Kangaroos -
Hale-Looks to be a player of the future.
Mcintosh-Has been dissapointing.
Petrie-Once again, primary position is not a a ruckman.

Melbourne -
White-Impact has been lessened by new rules, still an influential player.
Jamar-High hopes but has failed to come on when needed most.

Port -
Brogan-Great on his day but inconstent, needs to step up.
Lade-Rucking days are behind him.
Primus-Sadly, gone.

Richmond-
Knobel-Wins the odd hit out but ordinary around the ground.
Stafford-Probably last year in 06.
Simmonds-More of a forward struggled in the ruck in previous years.

St Kilda-
Ackland-Has been impressive this year, ruck is their weakest area.
Kosi-Thomas hopes he will develop in to a ruckman, more of a KP at this stage. Albeit a very, very good one.
Blake-Solid backup, nothign more.

Sydney-
Ball-06 will be last year if he goes on.
Jolly-Once again, a good backup, but may struggle to fill no1 spot.

West Coast-
Cox- Premier ruckman in league.
Seaby-Lots of potential, needs to do more.
Gardiner-Injury prone, best behind him?

Western Bulldogs-
Darcy-Will be used more as a key forward from now I think.
Minson-Showed ability this year, not great around the ground yet.
Street-Handy tap ruckman, poor around the ground.

So that is a very quick wrap up, I went purely from memory and didn't actually research teams so I apologise if I've left anyone out.

Lets compare the above to Collingwood:

Fraser-Was ready to burn in 05 before injury struck, has been extremely durable previously. Is only 23 so lots of room for improvement. Queries at this stage over light frame and ability to win hit outs.

Richards- Could be anything. Once again injuries cut him down in 05 but has shown he is a skilled tap ruckman and can be damaging around the ground. Has added bulk but needs to stay fit.

Fanning-Improved out of sight after only playing a handful of games against men previously. Will need to do the same over the next few years, but if this year is anything to go by, we could be on a winner.

C Cloke- Probably a bit short to be a real ruckman, is an able back up and has plenty of grunt.

My point is when you compare other teams with our division, you'll find it stacks up pretty well. In fact, I would only take the Eagles and possibly the Doggies over ours as a whole. Each club has their worries with age, injuries and inconsistency.

Granted, Richards could go either way with injuries and Fanning is a bit of an unknown, but we're not alone there. Age is on their side and, with a bit of luck, I think all three will be very good ruckman for years to come.

Things are looking good, now lets get some midfielders!
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

Jimbeam

Club Legend
Suspended
Joined
Sep 2, 2005
Posts
1,104
Likes
0
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
pies
#2
Your right but look at the experience they have, not to mention bigger bodies.. I think if Richards and fraser can stand up for a full year then yes, we have a great ruck combo, but at the moment its unproven and way way way to much injury prone.. but next year can change all that..
 

Lockyer24

Brownlow Medallist
Joined
Jul 3, 2001
Posts
20,676
Likes
5,840
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Heat, Victory, Man Utd, Redskins
#3
What we need is a big, experienced ogre who we can move into the ruck and throw their weight around

An example I would use is a fit Brendan Lade for example

Guy and Josh are promising ruckmen but are physically punished and Cameron throws his weight around but doesnt offer enough around the ground yet
 

Lonie_from_50

Brownlow Medallist
Joined
Sep 10, 2003
Posts
14,797
Likes
10
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Seagulls, Bushrangers
#4
Very good piece there...1 point, you did underrate Adelaide's. Easily the best division this year. Biglands was certainly not inconsistant, he has averaged 16 hitouts this year playing on average about 60 mins. Hudson was the reason why Adelaide are where they are. Great ruckman, Great around the game, Great story, Same as Biglands, averaged 16 hitouts in 65 mins per game.
 

magpies42

Premiership Player
Joined
Jun 10, 2005
Posts
3,234
Likes
895
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
collingwood
#5
i have never been one to complain about our rucks even in the days of Mckee, we shark well so we can win enough of the ball! i think our ruck stocks will develop into the best in the comp if they stay uninjured
 

FIGJAM

FigBooty Legend
Joined
Feb 2, 2001
Posts
19,328
Likes
2,096
Location
Valhalla
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
VFL Magpies
#6
We just have ta hope that Guy is has used up his quota of injuries. He's clearly our best ruckman and I was pleasantly surprised that he's put on a bit of muscle. Fingers crossed!

Josh should only ever be a second resort.

Flaps should only be a depth player, although we can only hope he keeps improving.

It's an interesting comparrison. We aren't too far away in terms of telent to many other clubs, yet we get beaten every time, even when fit. Gee, it wouldn't have anything to do with a lack of a propper ruck coach would it??
 

Murray

Brownlow Medallist
Suspended
Joined
Sep 20, 2002
Posts
18,424
Likes
17
Location
Frankston
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Collingwood
#7
Was the response at Nicks

Sup dood, ur so gay 4 doing dis.
i h8 bling bling gay fag ppl they sux
cya
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2005
Posts
37
Likes
0
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
#8
Things are looking good, now lets get some midfielders![/QUOTE]

Perosnally I think the ruckman are a little over rated in the game, If you have a smart midfielders then they can rove to the other ruckman.
Around the ground a kick behing play is where they are valuable.
Thing is though I can remmebr the last season where our No1 ruckman was in the top 10 in hitouts for the season telling me our ruckman are not as good as you beleive.
I also beleive we now have too many:
Fraser - can at least play around ground, most likely up forward
Richards - Our next best but doesnt offer much after the hit out
C.Cloke - as above
Fanning - offers nothing
 
Joined
Sep 29, 2004
Posts
20,166
Likes
4,716
Location
Merimbula
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Bengals
#9
Guy Richards I think will be a fine ruckman. Josh will be a good back up , going forward to be dangerous. I would love a GOOD big bodied ruckman to clear the way but am not sure where that will come from. Having said that Spider isn't that type for the Hawks and they have done well out of the ruck so maybe if Richards can stay fit and improve he may be the answer.
 

hotpie

Brownlow Medallist
Joined
May 1, 2002
Posts
16,837
Likes
21
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Collingwood
#10
We have plenty of good second rucks. Fraser is a quality footballer who had injuries this year. C Cloke is a solid ruckman and will always give a contest. Wobby shoulders though, two reconstructions is a worry. Both his brothers will put their bodies on the line and play ruck at a pinch and be competitive even if they get beaten at the hitouts. Fanning is much maligned. He had a fantastic season considering he by all rights should have been learning the craft for Williamstown seconds. He was on a huge learning curve this season ,and now needs to be on the huge weights this summer. And we've got Rocca who remains a quality ruckman, depending upon his ankle. The only "ruck" I have lost all faith in is Walker, and I never had any faith in Hall.

What we needs is Richards to stand up and do the job at first ruck. The man is serious quality, and could become the best tap ruckman in the game. If he stands up we are fine. If not, we are relying on Fraser again.

Its as simple as that. Richards or bust.
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

Coin_Toss

Norm Smith Medallist
Joined
Apr 2, 2005
Posts
8,371
Likes
9
Location
Melbourne
AFL Club
Collingwood
#12
Frank#22 said:
I also beleive we now have too many:
Fraser - can at least play around ground, most likely up forward
Richards - Our next best but doesnt offer much after the hit out
C.Cloke - as above
Fanning - offers nothing
Harsh. Fanning was only in his first season of AFL this year, so we can't really say whether he will or will not make the grade.
 

FIGJAM

FigBooty Legend
Joined
Feb 2, 2001
Posts
19,328
Likes
2,096
Location
Valhalla
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
VFL Magpies
#14
hotpie said:
Figgy I have reported your post to the moderator!!!

(reason - insufficient exposure of said bust)
There are heaps them about (thanks Heff :thumbsu: ) and in a perfect world, I'd have posted all of them!
 

MarkT

Hall of Famer
Joined
Oct 1, 2001
Posts
32,669
Likes
33
Location
Melb
AFL Club
Collingwood
#16
FWIW, in order of ability:

Rocca – lacks the stamina to play as a genuine ruckman and not has doubts over his ability to run and jump. Has serious rucking ability though both in the centre and around the ground.

Richards – has shown some promise in his very limited appearances as a tap ruckman but huge doubts over ability to stay sound. Would be idiotic to go into a season with him as the only viable ruck option.

Fraser – has won in the ruck less than half a dozen times over his 5 year career. Not strong enough doesn’t jump high enough and has no technique.

Cameron Cloke – has the width but not the height. Can actually ruck but raw and in the end too short to make it as more than a relief option.

Jason Cloke – well he rucked a few times. Not very good at it but what would you expect form a player of his height and agility?

Fanning – ranks after C1 which says enough in itself. Has apparently made giant strides according to the coach which make you wonder why he was rookied – could he really have been a lot worse than he is now? Can’t get to the tap often and when he does can’t direct it. Admittedly its early days as a ruckman for him so he may improve but next time we convert a basketballer I hope we start with a much better, much stronger and less scared one.

Brett Hall – looks every inch a dud but he might have upside somehow. I base that on hope and the fact I haven’t seen all that much of him.

Tristan Walker – just a dud with no upside. Has not only failed in the ruck but as a forward and as a defender.


WE DONE HAVE A SINGLE VIABLE RUCK OPTION AND HAVEN’T HAD ONE UNDER MATHOUSE. We have to pray for Richards to have a miracle cure. If it were up to me I'd take a punt on Gardiner (subject to a medical and resonable trade price).
 
Joined
Aug 17, 2005
Posts
158
Likes
16
Location
Melb
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
The Mighty Pies
Thread starter #19
MarkT, your post is the very reason I put my argument forward. You can say all you like about our players being too short, injury prone or skinny, but almost every club has the same problems with their ruckmen. Our group stacks up well in terms of potential over the next 5-10 years.
 
Top Bottom