Delisted Stephen Wrigley (2012-2013)

[PTizzle]

Yeah, I agree POBT. He needs to find some run and rebounding to add a bit of spark to the backline, as you've said we already have a Patfull and with Drummond out of form and Hanley playing on the wing we desperately need some more rebound. I think he'll play out the season and they'll assess from there. I reckon he's been solid so far and adds a bit while Golby and McGrath are out so I'm happy with how he's going.

 

[thoselionslads]

The dash and rebound that he showed at reserves level seems a bit lost on him at AFL level.

I have been quite impressed with his decision making and execution in the NEAFL but he made some really poor decisions last night. As mentioned before, I'm not sure he has the same ability to play tall like Patfull does.

I'm willing to give him a couple more games, but no senior contract yet.

 

[Lace Out]

Was angry and horrified with some of his kicking but we need to keep him in for the last few games,it could be nerves.

 

[Grimreepah]

Poor man's Patfull at the moment, I think. Patfull's a really solid player for us but a backline of Patfull types is too dour for modern footy. Wrigley showed a bit of an ability to rebound last night but he's got to do a lot more of it if we're going to play him alongside the likes of Merrett, Patfull, Adcock and Harwood in defence.

Not promotion worthy yet IMO but he's making progress.

He sticks fairly closely to his man, but is not a pure negator like Patfull. As he gets more senior experience I expect he'll run off his opponent a bit more, but will probably always err towards the defensive side. I think he could offer similar to what Adcock does. For a developing side I think it's good to have the reliable, no frills, just get the job done types. Nervous nellies have a way of spreading panic and hesitation throughout the whole team.

 

[Haso]

Stephen Wrigley 2012 End of Season Review
by Quigley

Senior games: 3
Dreamteam: 145
Supercoach: 162
Goals: 0
Club Best and Fairest Votes: 0

Image (2012 preseason) courtesy of Mr Ripper

Wrigley was picked up last year as a mature aged rookie and over the year provided great stability and guidance to a young reserves defensive unit. With the likes of McKeever, Michael and Clarke down back in most games and others like Docherty and young top up players like Wallin in there a mature leader was needed and Wrigley provided that. He played most of the year as a rebounding small defender with occasional stints on the wing.

He played 18 reserves games and was named in the best on 9 occasions. His best run of form occurred from round 4 through to around the midseason mark. During that time he was rarely out of the bests and garnered a lot of high praise from Nathan Clarke the reserves coach. Many including myself thought senior games were imminent but for some reason he was not to debut until late in the year.

At midyear he represented the Northern NEAFL Conference in their shellacking of the Eastern Conference and was described as terrific in that game. He was also named in the NEAFL Northern Conference team of the year in the back pocket. Interestingly Wrigley throughout the year often had his best games against the stronger sides. He had two great games against the Swans and was in the best in two of the games against the NT including the Semi in the NT.

Wrigley was our midseason rookie promotion but did not debut until round 18. He played 3 games from rounds 18-20 and averaged 11 disposals, 2.3 marks and 2.7 tackles per game. His best games numbers wise came against Carlton in round 20 where he had 17 disposals. At senior level he did a good job defensively I thought but struggled a little to adapt to the speed of the game offensively with quite a few wasted possessions. The focus for him in his first few games was to do a defensive job though and I think he did that well.

At reserves level he was much more comfortable going forward and in fact this was a strength of his game. He has always been a could counter-attacking runner from defense and continued with that for the Lions reserves whilst becoming tighter defensively. He acknowledged during the year that he had had to tighten up defensively and to his credit he certainly has and was one of the better defensive small forwards in the NEAFL this year.

Wrigley covers the field nicely and at reserves level made good decisions with the ball in hand. He is not a long kick but hits his targets well at short to intermediate range nicely. His skills were consistently described as “neat” by Nathan Clarke. He may not be the most damaging player by foot but he is reliable and combined with his running ability he did provide good go forward from defense.

Overall I thought he was very unlucky not to get games when he was in such good form earlier in the year and was probably slightly out of form when he did get the chance. With that said he certainly deserved his shot when he got it. With us delisting 4 small/medium defenders Wrigley should be right in the mix next year if we run into an injury or two and with a full preseason under his belt he could well put the pressure on from round 1. He does need to bulk up a bit more (although he has put on 6kgs this year) and work on adjusting his game to the speed of AFL but really I think both of those things should be not too hard to overcome. The biggest issue for him coming into this year was being able to do a job defensively and I think he has shown he can do that. From here it is just about whether an opportunity comes his way.

 

[Haso]

Stronger in second year
December 17, 2012
Sam Lord

Despite being drafted as a mature-age rookie from the NEAFL last year, 25 year-old Stephen Wrigley’s body wasn’t that much further advanced than his fellow teenage draftees in terms of AFL readiness.

But after an eye-opening debut season, Wrigley is feeling far more prepared physically as he approaches 2013.

“I’m probably just as inexperienced as (the younger players) are with the gym stuff,” Wrigley told LIONS TV.

“I started from scratch and am still just trying to learn all the exercises and improve my strength and core.”

 

[Haso]

Lions new years resolutions
January 1, 2013

Steve Wrigley – To call my mother more

 

[Haso]

The rookie race
March 6, 2013
Sam Lord

The Brisbane Lions made the conscious decision late last year to pass on their Pre-Season Draft selection and instead fill that vacant senior position with a nominated rookie upgrade before the start of the season.

At 25, Stephen Wrigley is another who could find himself on the senior list in the coming weeks.

Wrigley impressed enough to play three senior games last season, and with another pre-season under his belt, looks even more prepared for senior AFL action in 2013.

 

[CarloLion]

Lions website has mentioned Stephen may have suffered a serious knee injury? Anyone hear about this? Hoping for the best....

 

[WhiteLionFeva]

Lions website has mentioned Stephen may have suffered a serious knee injury? Anyone hear about this? Hoping for the best....

Yeah ZoBlitz mentioned this in his tweets from the ressies game. Sounds bad.

 

[iBeng]

Went for Scans straight away, hopefully will hear something today/tomorrow.

 

[Ray Button]

The Lions website has finally confirmed Stephen Wrigley's plight:

"Wrigley's Season Over

Brisbane Lions rookie Stephen Wrigley is set to miss the entire 2013 season after rupturing his ACL during a recent reserves’ practice match at Southport.

Wrigley has spent the past week considering his rehabilitation options, but looks most likely to undergo a traditional full knee reconstruction.

It is a devastating blow for Wrigley, who had just come off a big pre-season and was looking forward to building on the three senior matches he played last year.

The 25 year-old has already consulted teammates Callum Bartlett and Brent Staker who have faced similar challenges throughout their AFL careers, and will be fully supported by the Club throughout the process.

Wrigley becomes the first major casualty of the Lions’ 2013 season, which officially kicks off this Saturday afternoon against the Western Bulldogs.

He is one of only five players considered definite non-starters for Round One, together with Simon Black (knee), Brent Staker (knee), Jesse O’Brien (adductor), and Michael Close (foot). . . "

Best of luck with your recovery mate.

 

[Haso]

Surely he would have a spare lying around somewhere...

 

[Ceebee]

It is always sad when this happens, must be so tough to get back again.

 

[Dylan12]

It is always sad when this happens, must be so tough to get back again.

Even moreso being a rookie, not to mention a 25 year old rookie. Fortunately for Stephen, he has a promising career outside of football.

Best of luck Wriggles.

 

[LIONHART]

sad to say, it would appear to be the end of the road for him ... a rotten way to go out if true.

 

[POBT]

Yeah, bad luck for him. Hope he recovers fully and can return to footy next year at some level.

 

[Dylan12]

Matthew Leuenberger:

Claye Beams and Stephen Wrigley have been the hard-luck stories for our Club so far this season. Both guys have suffered season-ending knee injuries, and are in the early stages of a long rehabilitation program.

I can certainly relate to what they’re currently going through, and will gladly offer any advice on dealing with injury setbacks. If there’s any solace to be taken from a terrible situation, it’s that they’re not the first players to be sidelined for a long period of time.

 

[Dylan12]

Knee victims start rehab
May 21, 2013
Sam Lord

Claye Beams and Stephen Wrigley have returned to the Hyundai Centre to begin their rehabilitation from full knee reconstructions.

Wrigley ruptured his ACL during a NEAFL pre-season practice match on the eve of the 2013 season, while Beams suffered a similar season-ending injury at training in the lead-up to the team’s Round 3 clash against Gold Coast.

Both have since spent some time ‘resting up’ after undergoing surgery, and will now commence their journey down the long road to recovery. “The two ACL boys are back on deck and have kicked off their rehab,” Strength & Conditioning Coach Matt Hass told LIONS TV as part of the Bupa Recovery Report.“

“Wrigs a little bit longer out and on crutches because of a meniscus injury, but they’re both back and doing their bike and pool work now. They’ll be brothers in arms during the rehab process. Hopefully we’ll see them back fighting fit in 10-12 months.”

The pair will take great inspiration from Brent Staker’s storybook return with the senior team last Saturday after two consecutive knee reconstructions.

 

[Grimreepah]

Feel for Wrigley. For Beams there is light at the end of the tunnel - his hard work will one day be rewarded with a return to senior footy. But Wrigley has to go through all the pain and boredom of rehabilitation knowing that in all liklihood he will be delisted before he is ready to play again.

 

[Balony_pony16]

Feel for Wrigley. For Beams there is light at the end of the tunnel - his hard work will one day be rewarded with a return to senior footy. But Wrigley has to go through all the pain and boredom of rehabilitation knowing that in all liklihood he will be delisted before he is ready to play again.

Yeah, he is prob remembering what happened to Retzlaff

 

[Happy_Neale]

Can we re rookie him for next season or is this the 'upgrade or delist' year from him?

 

[dlanod]

Can we re rookie him for next season or is this the 'upgrade or delist' year from him?

He's got one more year available on the rookie list.

 

[Happy_Neale]

He's got one more year available on the rookie list.

You'd think he may get another chance then...

 

[Dylan12]

Where are your club's rookies at?

Stephen Wrigley

The rebounding defender's second year has been destroyed by injury. Wrigley ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament during the pre-season and has spent all year in rehabilitation. With the continued development of Mitch Golby, Elliot Yeo and Ryan Harwood in his position, it's going to be tough for the unlucky Wrigley to get another chance.