Rating the players so far

The Shev

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Thread starter #1
1. Heffernan - I believe he is soft and rarely impacts a game when he plays. Has had another frustrating year and is on his last chance. Too slow when he gets the ball and disposal is average.

2. Armstrong - Played mainly with Sandringham but doesn't seem to be taking any big steps in his career. Played a couple of games with little to no impact. Will be at the cross roads very soon.

3. Bizzell - Has been good, knows where to position himself, takes marks and uses the ball well. But gets found wanting in physical contests. Still an important player for us.

4. Holland - Quite regularly drops easy marks or misses easy goals. Provides a tall option but not reliable. Hard to judge whether he should be in our best 22.

5. McLean - Very good year in general. Can expect a little inconsistancy in only his second year. He is hard at the ball, uses it well and has clean hands. A little slow but has a good footy mind.

6. Bate - First year draft pick at Sandringham.

7. Miller - Has been inconsistant. A lot to like though, very physical and aggressive and gives us a marking option. Must produce a bit of consistancy and gain confidence in his ability to kick.

8. Nicholson - Also hard to judge. Can play some good weeks and then have a shocker. Slow, but he strength and is solid in the air. Likes to spoil a lot but must read the play better.

9. Neitz - Injuries and form have made his season inconsistant, but without a doubt a very valuable player to our team. Has kicked a decent tally of goals but must improve his accuracy.

10. Ward - Injured pre-season and only just returning to Sandringham now. Could be a handy player in the defence if he gets his form and fitness back.

11. Johnson - A bit disappointing. Big boy who goes alright in the ruck, but isn't useful around the ground. Should use his body more, and try to impact the game at contests.

12. Sylvia - Has improved every week and has been impressive at times in the midfield. Quick, aggressive, nice skills and good smarts. Will be a great player for us.

13. Yze - Played as a permanent small forward to good effect. Very dangerous to have lurking around the 50. Accuracy hasn't been as good as previous years though.

14. Dunn - First year draft pick at Sandringham.

15. Smith - Another player who is at the crossroads. Playing at Sandringham, but isn't doing enough to get close to senior selection. A big centre half forward who could be handy for us in the future.

16. Johnstone - Having his best season ever after a slowish start. Should win our best and fairest and is a chance for the Brownlow. Creates time and space with ease, tackles a lot and uses the ball superbly. A joy to watch.

17. Johnson - Made his debut against Hawthorn but failed to impress. Got reported and was undisciplined in his temper. Must bounce back with some consistant performances at Sandringham.

18. Green - Hasn't been as spectacular but very consistant this year. Collecting a lot of the ball in the midfield and kicking a few goals when going forward. Should finish Top 5 in the B&F.

21. Bell - Got some games early on and did well in the backline, but got injured and has been at Sandringham since. I like his courage and is generally good with the ball. Not a flashy type player, but will be a solid contributor in years to come.

22. Moloney - A bit inconsistant after an exciting start. Tough young player who runs straight down the lines and kicks long to the forwards. Looks good when doing that, but must develop more strings to his bow. I like his aggressiveness and no-nonsense style of play.

23 - McDonald - Hasn't been his best year but you know he will give 110% every effort and you can't fault him for that. Has been pushed out of the midfield a bit bit Moloney, Sylvia and McLean. Great workrate and a good team player.

24. Robertson - Probably been his best year, even better than his B&F winning 2003 season. Is 3rd in the league goalkicking as a medium-sized forward in a packed forward line. Has really improved his set shots and is now one of our most reliable goalkickers. A star of the game.

25. Brown - Quite a frustrating season. Turns the ball over too much and plays very loose on his opponent. Works hard and gives us plenty of run and ball use, but that isn't always good enough.

26. Williams - Played a game or two earlier and wasn't too bad. Has a bit of pace but that's about all really. Playing regularly well at Sandringham. Career is at the cross roads.

27. Rivers - Hasn't been very consistant this year but we are expecting a lot from such a young player. He is great when he has to zone off and reads the play great, but man on man he can get beaten quite a bit. Needs to tighten up more and become physically stronger.

28. Read - Has hardly played due to injury. Will be a welcome addition when he gets fully fit. His aggression is valuable, but he must control it. Disposal isn't great, so something there to work on.

29. Newton - First yeard draft pick at Sandringham.

30. Godfrey - Hasn't played much this year. Is a battler, but his skill isn't up to standard at times. Can't see him ever becoming more than just a back-up player.

31. Wheatley - Another frustrating player to watch. His kicking and decision making lets him down at times. However, his size and pace is quite handy down back and he is very much a confidence player.

32. Bruce - Started off in Brownlow form but got injured. Since he returned he has been good but not great. Is probably the barometer of our team, when he is up and firing we are dangerous but when he is down then so are we.

33. Hunter - Hasn't played a senior game since 2003 and really has his back up against it if he wants to retain his spot in the list in the next couple of years.

34. White - Good in the ruck, but hasn't been as effective around the ground as in previous years. Always gets beaten by the best ruckmen, but does well against most others. Too slow to dispose of the ball at times and his decision making isn't great.

35. Ferguson - A solid season from the skinny defender. Leads the club in spoils and has played most games. Will need to bulk up if he wants to make full back his own. Can read the play and take a good grab.

36. Davey - While he doesn't always have the same impact every week, his pace and defensive pressure is so valuable. Still doesn't like a hard contest but is gaining confidence in his ability to take players on.

37. Warnock - First year rookie at Sandringham.

38. Van Schaik - First year rookie at Sandringham.

40. Jamar - Like Johnson, he is a young kid with a huge body. However, that's about all we can say for him. He hasn't done anything to impress and should be disappointed that he can't use his body more aggressively.

41. Carroll - Hasn't played a senior game this year much to the fans delight. The fact that Nicholson is way better than him proves how crap he is. Should be delisted soon.

43. Rigoni - Played a few games earlier and was quite solid. Skills are still decent, his finds the ball often and his decision making is good. Good to see him still capable of playing good, senior footy at this stage of his career.

44. Motlop - Played a few games earlier but didn't do much to impress. Wasn't bad but wasn't good. Suffered niggling injuries and currently playing at Sandringham. Can still be an effective back-up for the team.

45. Whelan - Missed a few games through inury but has generally been very good when he is on the park. With the exception of one game recently, he plays very tight, is committed to the contest and his tackling is the best in the team. A very good player for us.
 

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melbournemartin

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#2
gunna have to have a look at our team list and really say "okay, this is who we are gunna use to try and win us finals and this is where they are going to play"

miller will be the one they look at the most. we cant afford to have our best CHF in defence where he isnt any good anyway.

also fergeson/nicholson

wont develope a solid backline if we dont have a regular preformer at FB
 
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#4
Pretty spot on with your summation of the team. I'll just add a couple of notes on a few players.

Robertson's year had been great, possibly because Holland had been playing, hence Robbo getting the third backman. Mind you i'd be putting the second best on Robbo and letting Holland get a few shots as he'll more often then not miss them.

Neitz has been disappointing to be honest...hasn't been able to string games together though in his defence, but he's missed several kickable goals this year, when we really need that "captain's goal". Hopefully will improve his confidence as we move into the second half of the year.

Bruce i'm not sure about, granted he's been excellent this year, but is it because of others helping or because of his efforts. I'm a fan of his but i think he's a frontrunner who does well when everyone is up and going. Will need to lift his performance in those crunch games to be classed as one of the comp's best.

White has been disappointing, but the centre circle has taken away his main asset of jumping over other ruckman. But his around the ground work has been a bit ordinary, and i wouldn't mind seeing him in the defensive 50 a but more when we are struggling.

Johnstone has been great (is he coming out of contract...maybe that's been giving him a bit more inspiration) but seriously he's been classy, consistent and constantly creating to have his best season in his career.

Brock and Colin...keep going with the great work.

Thats about it from me, the last two games we've struggled but we've come up against the premiership favourites at the top of their game and a class team running into some form. We must beat Port though.
 

melbournemartin

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#5
no we contracted him end of last year right? bombers were trying to poach him.

imo, our most important midfielder besides johnstone is moloney

he has been fantastic in his first year as a genuine fulltime midfielder. geelong didnt show him the respect he deserved and just shoved him on a half forward flank at times.

not only his long booming kick and his hardness at the ball, its his no crap attitude that i love. he will get the ball, charge through his opponent and kick it long. no over handballing, just get it down to our forward line

i still reckon we can have a shot at the flag if ND realises that miller will not win us games from the backline

wouldnt u all agree with me on that one?
 

davey_magik

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#6
Mainly agreed. I think Wheatley has been pretty good though as he has regularly shut down his opponent and provided drive off half-back. I think while Wheatley is playing alright and while he keeps playing well Ward won't get it in as they are very similiar type players.
 

melbournemartin

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#7
ward is more in the whelan mold imo but can provide a bit more run.

i reckon we should get nathan brown out of defence. sure let him run off half back but dont make him play on a dangerous small forward
 

The Shev

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Thread starter #10
Like I said, Wheatley sometimes panics with the ball and makes the wrong decision, and also his disposal isn't always the greatest. But overall he has been good.
 
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#11
i think Wheatley is very important to us as he is so versatile and has great skills when confident, which is probably down a bit at the moment as with a few guys.

In criticism of Moloney, a lot of his kicks are long and high, which can be difficult to mark and the game the way it is nowadays, it can get rebounded easily. He did that a bit too much earlier in the year, but recently he's been pinpointing passes more with 40 metre stab kicks. This is what we need more of, it's all well and good that we get it into the forward line quickly, but it's useless if its not to the forwards advantage.
 

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Sylvia Saint

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#12
I'll give all players a grade (of course taking into consideration age, experience, expectation etc).

Heffernan - E+
Armstrong - E+
Bizzell - B
Holland - C+
McLean - A
Miller - B
Nicholson - C+
Neitz - C+
Paul Johnson - B-
Sylvia - B+
Yze - B+
Johnstone - A+
Green - A
Bell - C+
Moloney - A-
McDonald - C+
Robertson - A+
Brown - D
Rivers - B
Wheatley - B
Bruce - A
White - C
Ferguson - B+
Davey - B
Jamar - D
Rigoni - C
Whelan - C+
 

Marns

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Moderator #13
Sylvia Saint said:
I'll give all players a grade (of course taking into consideration age, experience, expectation etc).

Heffernan - F
Armstrong - E+
Bizzell - B
Holland - C+
McLean - A
Miller - B
Nicholson - C+
Neitz - C+
Paul Johnson - B-
Sylvia - B+
Yze - B+
Johnstone - A+
Green - A
Bell - C+
Moloney - A-
McDonald - C+
Robertson - A+
Brown - D
Rivers - B
Wheatley - B
Bruce - A
White - C
Ferguson - B+
Davey - B
Jamar - D
Rigoni - C
Whelan - C+
Yeah pretty fair. Id say that Heffernan doesnt pass.
 
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#14
i would also think that paul johnson does not get a b minus. good in ruck but useless around the ground where he needs to assert himself and his massive frame. that kid is huge and will get bigger no doubt
 
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