Riley Knight - What the hell??

earlsta

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I only found this out 2 or 3 weeks ago but the very last conversation Phil Walsh has was with Riley Knight.

He rang him late on the Thursday night and told him he would play against Geelong. They had 25 to 30 people coming down from the Riverland (Berri) and then everything occured on the Friday morning.
Don't we name the team thursday afternoon?
 

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the universal

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Watching the Tigers notch up another finals just reaffirmed the importance of having players (no matter what age/experience) who stand up in finals, they could have used a Riley Knight type instead of a Reece Conca.
 

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aneale

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I think I have a new favourite player!!!
I love his passion for the club! He truly loves this club! He'll be a 1 club player for sure!
I'll never forget his reaction when the siren went at the Showdown!

2:00
Great reaction.

But what I take mostly from that vision is how the AFL can allow that game to end in darkness using a red ball but today on the G in blazing sun, (despite the hideous shadows) entire game played with a yellow ball.

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Gets!

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Then let him naturally lead without the extra pressure.
We have enough blokes to be in the leadership group as is.
I don't think it would be any extra pressure. Anyway the kid is a ripper and hopefully he backs it up against the Hawks.
 

NikkiNoo

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That game can be summed up by that moment he and Laird tackled. One bulldogs player decided to run off the contest hoping hunter got it out, but laird and knight went at the ball and held it in. Bulldogs were out the back, into an open goal, if not for the two tackling.
Not quite as Sauce had also run down hard to help out and he only stopped to not cover that man once the tackle happened and he saw the ball all locked up.
 
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Our club has been playing safe with selections for too long. The ins and outs over the last few months have been huge. Dropping VB, Wright and DMac I believe has been a massive catalyst for the upswing in our season. Knight thriving in a final has just proved this. So damaging with his kicks.

Wright will win the magarey next year
 
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Our club has been playing safe with selections for too long. The ins and outs over the last few months have been huge. Dropping VB, Wright and DMac I believe has been a massive catalyst for the upswing in our season. Knight thriving in a final has just proved this. So damaging with his kicks.

Wright will win the magarey next year
Yea, if players are consistently underperforming (VB, Dmac, Wright) and don't get dropped they're not being given that incentive to get into better form.
 
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Had to get up at 430 to feed my little one, so decided to watch the replay...
Knight was just so composed for a 10 gamer. A few releasing handballs out of congestion, his two set shot goals, the score involvement with Eddie/Sloane...it was nothing spectacular, but for a youngster to stand up and execute under that sort of pressure; that is what makes a good finals player.
 

Peter J

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Riley has that very difficult to define quality - when the chips are down, when it's tough, when you are looking around at who you've got, he is one guy you want with you.

I see guys like Riley in my line of work, and you walk a bit taller when they are around.

We are lucky to have him.
 

beartoo

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I admit that when we called his name instead of Ben Brown, I was pretty pissed. Couple of years down the track and it looks like an inspired pick, actually looking like a very good draft year in 2013 now, Crouch, Knights, Cameron and Kelly on the Rookie list...pretty good effort by the recruiters in a year of draft sanctions
Maybe it isn't just the recruiters. Could be the way our coaching staff develop young players to bring out the best in them.
 

DJ75

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Like any half forward, he went missing for periods of the game, but gee is first and last quarters were special.

Check the last few minutes again. He gut runs back in to the D50 to help lay the tackle with Laird that held the dogs up after their missed handball. He then peels off the contest, gets out the side and receives the handball fro Sloane. He quickly assess his options and hits the kick to Walker perfectly. Stops a goal, creates a goal. Desperation and composure.

Then he again runs hard backwards and comes across the front of the pack in the D50 to attempt an intercept mark. He gets fingertips to it but it has too much height and spills the mark. He smacks his head hard on the ground on landing. Had he marked it he would be hailed as a hero. As it was that commitment and fearless approach stopped any chance the Dogs had of getting a critical mark and kick at goal.

As Roo said this morning, he looks like a 200 game player.

Seriously how good is our recruiting department?

Meanwhile Mitch Harvey, who Port selected the pick before Riley is likely to be delisted this year...
 
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