premiership must haves

[true blue19]

In last weeks issus of inside footy there was an article premiership must haves. Nathan Burke came up with 5 things every team need to win a premiership and Ben Casanelia did a review of the contenders( Geelong, St Kilda, Dogs, Collingwoods, Adelaide, Brisbane and Hawthorn) So I thought because they must have forgotten us I would do it for them.

1. At least 8 effective onballers (players capable of rotating through the midfield without decreasing effectiveness. Centre square players not wingmen.
Our A team is as good as any with Judd, Murphy, Gibbs and Mclean back up by Carrazzo, Robinson, Walker, Hadley, Grigg, Houlihan and Betts. Gives us a lot depth and class in the middle.

2. Goalkicking forwards ( 3 guys to kick 30 each rather then 1 guy to kick 90)
We got rid of one guy that kicked 89 who had the ball kicked to him over 300 time. We also had two other ( Murphy and Betts) kick over 30. O'hAilpin kicked 12 goals from 12 game, Waite kicked 10 from 9 games playing as a defender with more time and opportunitys up forward both could easily kick over 30. Then improvements from our youngster Henderson, Garlett, Yarran and Robinson could also step up and kick 30.

3. 4 steady defenders
Bower, Thornton, Jamison and Russell if fit that a good start add Waite, Walker, Scotland, Armfield, Austin and Browne. Then there is the youngesters that haven't played a game yet O'Keeffe, Davies and White. Very very solid down back.

4. Good kicks
In the middle Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, McLean, Simpson, Houlihan, Lucas and Kreuzer. Down back Jamison, johnson, Scotland and Davis. Up forward Betts, Yarran and Robinson.

5. Good players
A graders- judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Kreuzer, Waite, Jamison, Simpson and Bower. B grader- Betts, Carrazzo, Joesph, McLean, Russell, Robinson, Thornton and Walker

IMO we are contenders in 2010

 

[Dramoth]

I wouldnt go saying that we are contenders for this years flag.

We have shown a lot of progress and will continue to progress.

This year we have had to step back into development mode for our forward line and I reckon that the first 9 weeks are going to be rough and I think that we will come out of it 3-4/9 and will have a good run home for the final 13 weeks of the season.

We will finish 7-10 I reckon... anything higher up the ladder is a bonus.

Also, if we make the finals this year, I dont think that our stamina is going to be a problem like it was against the paddlepops.

We will surprise a few top 6 teams this year and silence a few of our critics but I dont think that we are contenders... yet!

 

[Sin City]

Week at a time.

 

[OldBlueFan]

In last weeks issus of inside footy there was an article premiership must haves. Nathan Burke came up with 5 things every team need to win a premiership and Ben Casanelia did a review of the contenders( Geelong, St Kilda, Dogs, Collingwoods, Adelaide, Brisbane and Hawthorn) So I thought because they must have forgotten us I would do it for them.

1. At least 8 effective onballers (players capable of rotating through the midfield without decreasing effectiveness. Centre square players not wingmen.
Our A team is as good as any with Judd, Murphy, Gibbs and Mclean back up by Carrazzo, Robinson, Walker, Hadley, Grigg, Houlihan and Betts. Gives us a lot depth and class in the middle.

2. Goalkicking forwards ( 3 guys to kick 30 each rather then 1 guy to kick 90)
We got rid of one guy that kicked 89 who had the ball kicked to him over 300 time. We also had two other ( Murphy and Betts) kick over 30. O'hAilpin kicked 12 goals from 12 game, Waite kicked 10 from 9 games playing as a defender with more time and opportunitys up forward both could easily kick over 30. Then improvements from our youngster Henderson, Garlett, Yarran and Robinson could also step up and kick 30.

3. 4 steady defenders
Bower, Thornton, Jamison and Russell if fit that a good start add Waite, Walker, Scotland, Armfield, Austin and Browne. Then there is the youngesters that haven't played a game yet O'Keeffe, Davies and White. Very very solid down back.

4. Good kicks
In the middle Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, McLean, Simpson, Houlihan, Lucas and Kreuzer. Down back Jamison, johnson, Scotland and Davis. Up forward Betts, Yarran and Robinson.

5. Good players
A graders- judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Kreuzer, Waite, Jamison, Simpson and Bower. B grader- Betts, Carrazzo, Joesph, McLean, Russell, Robinson, Thornton and Walker

IMO we are contenders in 2010

Most of the assessment is reasonably accurate, but Murph is not a forward, so you can't include him in that part of the analysis.

From what I've seen so far, calling McLean a good kick is being extremely generous. And Johnson?!? While the guy might be a good kick, when they go straight to opposition players (from fullback/back-pocket no less) they hurt you way more than the kicks from the likes of Walker and Carazzo that go nowhere in particular, but at least not to opponents!

At the end of the day, the reason we are not genuine contenders (yet) is that you didn't compare these components of our team to those who are.

I feel that we could have a reasonable year (and if we have a good one, ie play 2 finals I'll be over the moon). But this year I just want to see the young guys continue to improve and set us up for a serious tilt in 2011/12.

 

[Faz 2000]

I think there's a massive drop off in our centre square effectiveness as soon as one Mr C Judd is out of there. The first few weeks should be interesting.

I think we have a few guys who are good kicks, but far too many guys who are below average kicks, and I would argue we really only have one (1) player who is an exceptional kick, being Bryce Gibbs. Honourable mentions to Murph, Juddy, and Betts, but there's no Gilbee, Goddard, Hodge, penetrating "weapon" superboots in our team at all. It's totally irrelevant how good a kick Houlihan, Johnson or Davis are, because none of them are in the 22. In general, our footskills are crap.

I think the more true all-round midfielders we add, the better. Guys who can tackle, play inside, and actually do something with the ball when outside. I think we need to build a half forward line as an absolute top priority, one that can control the ball 40-70 metres out from goal and generate high-conversion scoring chances and minimise scores on the rebound.

We're going the right way, but we're not there in 2010.

 

[gbatman]

yeah, Nathan Burke would know every thing there is about winning premierships, how many did he win... But I agree with the points, just not the names mentioned in the OP.

1. At least 8 effective onballers (players capable of rotating through the midfield without decreasing effectiveness. Centre square players not wingmen.
Our A team is as good as any with Judd, Murphy, Gibbs and Mclean back up by Carrazzo, Robinson, Walker, Hadley, Grigg, Houlihan and Betts. Gives us a lot depth and class in the middle.

Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Walker, Hadley, Mclean and maybe Grigg and Robinson are our only center players. Houlihan, Carrazzo are definatly not on ball players, they are periferal flankers, that's why we recruited Davies and Lucas and look forward to getting Buckley because yes, we do lack quality depth in this area.

2. Goalkicking forwards ( 3 guys to kick 30 each rather then 1 guy to kick 90)
We can kick enough goals if we kick straight.

3. 4 steady defenders
Our defence is good, needs to stay injury free more than usual.


4. Good kicks
In the middle Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, McLean, Simpson, Houlihan, Lucas and Kreuzer. Down back Jamison, johnson, Scotland and Davis. Up forward Betts, Yarran and Robinson.

Good kicks are crucial but Judd, Mclean, Walker, Simpson have been suspect in this area. Many of our players have been suspect.

5. Good players
A graders- judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Kreuzer, Waite, Jamison, Simpson and Bower. B grader- Betts, Carrazzo, Joesph, McLean, Russell, Robinson, Thornton and Walker.

Walker can be an A-grader, Kreuzer isn't there yet.

 

[gbatman]

I think we are at least 3 years from a flag, have to rebuild our forward line.

Also rebuilding our midfield, it's highly over rated, it's potentially elite, it's not elite yet.

 

[Banga19]

Also rebuilding our midfield, it's highly over rated, it's potentially elite, it's not elite yet.

Fair enough, but in that case I'd call it building rather than rebuilding. We started rebuilding it a couple of years back. The foundations are well and truly set, and it's getting there.

 

[gbatman]

it's a work in progress.

 

[The Exorcist]

Desire

 

[HBF]

Week at a time.

Yep.
But most premiership teams are built on the back of a solid defence, and Carlton are quiety putting together quite a good backline, as long as they can stay together as a cohesive unit.

 

[invinciBlues]

Yep.
But most premiership teams are built on the back of a solid defence, and Carlton are quiety putting together quite a good backline, as long as they can stay together as a cohesive unit.

This is what springs into my mind, hopefully with the new facilities we see a reduction in LTIs and helps keep the lads on the park.

We still managed to make September with an injury ravaged backline by compensating with a gun midfield and forward line.

Finals should still be on everyones mind, especially if our backline can hold themselves together with our midfield to compensate for our forward line.

 

[parrot]

I actually think our biggest weakness right now is our gameday tactics/gameplan. This has to be sorted out this year.

 

[Blue and Silver]

In terms of the following parameters for premiership success:

1.8 effective midfielders:
Obviously Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Joseph and Simpson are effective in their respective roles. Following up is Mclean, Robinson, Carazzo, Grigg and perhaps Walker who all have to prove to me that they are up to the consistent and quality form that would be required to be in a premiership side. Other players who might get a role are Hadley, Lucas or Russell.

Judging by that list I'd say that we have between 5-6 midfielders who currently could consistently produce the form required to be involved in a highly successful side.

2. Goal-kicking forwards:
Well Betts obviously makes the cut but after that there is a lot of speculation. O'halpin, Henderson, Waite and Robinson can all make a high contribution (over 30) but we would be best getting a further contribution from others around the 20 goal mark.

3. 4 steady defenders:
This is probably the category we are furthest progressed towards. Jamison, Bower, Thornton are definites in my mind, and if Waite continues to play as a defender than we definitely make the cut. Russell was fairly consistent at the end of last year, should he keep that up we should be set here.

4. Good Kicks:
Here I am skeptical. Gibbs is excellent and Judd and Murphy are perfectly fine. Betts has very good disposal and decision-making up forward. Kreuzer's kicking is fine and Robinson, Jamison, Thornton and Waite are all passable for mine.

TBH though beyond these players I have my doubts over some of other players. For the most part this is due to the requirement of a combination of vision, skill, decision making and adaptability required to pass a player as a good kick. Johnson is a perfect case of how a player can excel in one area but be let down in another. His kicking technique and skill is splendid but his decision making and his vision let him down badly.

There are plenty of serviceable kicks in our team, but not enough good ones.

5. Good Players:
Well this is purely based on opinion beyond the obvious players.

Judd, Murphy, Gibbs and Waite are definitely all A-Grade when fit.

Betts, Bower, Simpson, Carazzo, Jamison, Russell and Thornton all have potential to be up at A-Grade this year, but I doubt they will all step up.

Through the younger ranks there is a considerable amount of talent but speculating any player will take such a considerable step is probably a little rash in their first three years.

So in the end we won't be up there this year. But in 2011 or 2012 I think this could be a different story.

 

[carltoninsider]

"Walker can be an A grader , Kreuzer not there yet" . lost me there .. Kreuzer in his 3rd year is the best in the comp ...

 

[Ytoojae]

I think the result at the end of this season will be the following;

"Carlton had to take a small step back to take a giant leap forward."

This is a transitional year for the Carlton Football Club and that's not necessarily a bad thing. We've lost our leading goal kicker over the last decade and we've added a completely new focus up forward.

Rome wasn't built in a day, folks. If we make the AFL Finals this year then they've done a heck of a job. Don't be disappointed if we fall just outside. We know with this team that much better things lay ahead.

Getting another game of finals into this team would be the icing on the cake.

This team also has the element of surprise. As a fan sitting behind me said tonight "They know we're coming but they don't know from where." Summed it up perfectly. I loved how three or four times in the first quarter alone Ratts and co. changed around the forward set up and each time it gave us a completely different look.

I'm glad that we played Richmond tonight (last night) because it was clear that the tweaking is far from complete and that's a good thing. Lots of room for change, additions to the team to ultimately get better and improve, gain greater efficiency. This team has a bright bright future.

 

[Dramoth]

I think the result at the end of this season will be the following;

"Carlton had to take a small step back to take a giant leap forward."

This is a transitional year for the Carlton Football Club and that's not necessarily a bad thing. We've lost our leading goal kicker over the last decade and we've added a completely new focus up forward.

Rome wasn't built in a day, folks. If we make the AFL Finals this year then they've done a heck of a job. Don't be disappointed if we fall just outside. We know with this team that much better things lay ahead.

Getting another game of finals into this team would be the icing on the cake.

This team also has the element of surprise. As a fan sitting behind me said tonight "They know we're coming but they don't know from where." Summed it up perfectly. I loved how three or four times in the first quarter alone Ratts and co. changed around the forward set up and each time it gave us a completely different look.

I'm glad that we played Richmond tonight (last night) because it was clear that the tweaking is far from complete and that's a good thing. Lots of room for change, additions to the team to ultimately get better and improve, gain greater efficiency. This team has a bright bright future.

I think that next week against the paddlepops you will see a more settled forward line. Waite and Hendo working up the flanks towards the wings with Waite possibly even drifting even further back up the field towards the defence to help out there.

Setanta roaming the entire forward line either marking the ball or bringing it to ground and going after on the second effort to try and get it to one of the small/medium forwards/flankers who would be running past him towards the goals.

Our defense (minus Anderson who I think might end up at another club next year maybe) will get a little more settled and Jammo will be watching Fev like a hawk and Bower taking on Brown with T-Bird hanging around like a bad smell to help out. JR, Scotland and Army working the flanks and providing the springboard out of defense towards our midfield.

We are quite a good side and will be the better for this year and next year should be competing for a top 4 spot.

As you said Ytoo, this year is a transitional year. This year is the year we consolidate our efforts for the past couple of years and restructure our forward line. A lot of people have forgotten that we would have had to restructure anyway when Fev retired in a couple of years. We just did it ahead of schedule and picked up a couple of excellent players who are in the same age bracket as our other young stars and will be hitting their prime at the same time instead of being on the decline like Fev would have been in a couple of years.

It's a small step backwards but I think that last night showed the path we have stepped forward onto and what it will lead to.