Tabs

[Bicco]

• What do you guys think about changing our backs a bit.. Just an idea that I'm not sure about, but what if Johno went forward and we had Smith playing loose man in defense?

Firstly Johnno is AA back an, so let's just leave him where he is. Secondly there is a reason why back men aren't forwards....they can't kick goals. Far better to develop are young prospect than try something that is pretty much not going to work.

 

[theGav56]

Firstly Johnno is AA back an, so let's just leave him where he is. Secondly there is a reason why back men aren't forwards....they can't kick goals. Far better to develop are young prospect than try something that is pretty much not going to work.

I agree. It also seems really shortsighted given that we are not that far away from needing KPD's as well once MacPharlin puts the boots away. We have a swag of developing forwards who will be needed sooner rather than later.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

Your forgetting Pav had limited games 013.His return to full fitness and goal potential will more than cover any lack of score from a young KPF

My post had nothing to do with Pavlich, rather the expectations couldhavebeen had placed on Taberner.

 

[surfsup]

A good bit of discussion being had here. No Gumby, so whose to replace him? Tabs, Hannath, Kepler? My thoughts have gone further afield. What happens next year? (I think this board could go into meltdown.) There's a possibility Gumby could be delisted at the end of the season, Pavlich might retire and Kepler will be a 29 year old with a re-conditioned knee. I hope Taberner comes along quickly, we'll need him sooner rather than later!

 

[Freomaniac]

So Gumby is going to be out for 12 weeks then?

Alright.... now 1st off lets 1 thing straight, Since Gumby is on the LTI, does that mean freo can upgrade a rookie immediately? If so I would want Tom Vandeleur promoted from the rookie list. Yes he is a key defender, but it wouldnt hurt to give him a game or 2 as a forward. If it doesnt work at least he will get games under the belt.

Anyone on here know when Kelper and Jono Griffin are back from their respective knee injuries?

I have seen the Freo vs West coast NAB cup game, even Though Tanner Smith is a defender, he didnt look too bad as a forward in that Game. Then theres the 2 big blokes freo got in the national Draft last year: Apeness and Alex Pearce.

I saw the highlights clip on the Day he got drafted, I got a feeling he will be in Freos 22 this season. He seemed like a good key forward. I havent seen anything of Alex Pearce. All I know is even though he is listed as a key forward, I reckon he can be the Justin Westoff of our side: A tall half forward flanker and a handy tall loose man in defence.

 

[Spoken4]

A good bit of discussion being had here. No Gumby, so whose to replace him? Tabs, Hannath, Kepler? My thoughts have gone further afield. What happens next year? (I think this board could go into meltdown.) There's a possibility Gumby could be delisted at the end of the season, Pavlich might retire and Kepler will be a 29 year old with a re-conditioned knee. I hope Taberner comes along quickly, we'll need him sooner rather than later!

If Pav retires at the end of this year or next, I would be hopeful that another one or two years of quality development work into our KPF project players - Apeness, Taberner, Pearce, Smith, Hannath - would pay off. I'd be surprised if at least one of them is not ready to step up into the FF or CHF role at that time. No one will fill Pav's boots straight up but hopefully there will be at least one that can show they are well onto the right track.

 

[mike91]

Hopefully Apeness plays well at the WAFL, he may be needed sooner rather than later.

 

[Freomaniac]

If Pav retires at the end of this year or next, I would be hopeful that another one or two years of quality development work into our KPF project players - Apeness, Taberner, Pearce, Smith, Hannath - would pay off. I'd be surprised if at least one of them is not ready to step up into the FF or CHF role at that time. No one will fill Pav's boots straight up but hopefully there will be at least one that can show they are well onto the right track.

Serious question, with Gumby out for a while, you see anyone on freos rookie list that is worth being promoted?

 

[caterina]

Have you been to training at all .

I think you should if not just so that you get some understanding of the guy and how he goes about developing his natural talent .
He is not timid at training and doesn't take a backward step when there is a contest for the ball .

As stated not only by me but others including Sherrif ,Salim,Harry , JMT and E shed ,this kid has it all .

Given a regular spot in the team he will blossom ,the confidence will grow and people from other clubs will be saying "how come he went so late in the draft ,how did we miss him

I've been reading this site for four years and in that short time I have read the exact same words about Bucovaz, Houghton, Sibosado and possibly a few others I've forgotten. I think Taberner is better than all of them but we are not in a rebuilding phase here, we aren't going to start carrying passengers to give them experience and confidence.
I think if either Bradley or Clarke are fit they will come in. If neither are fit Taberner may get a game by default, and only because playing Hannath (who has shown more) and Sandi in the same team is dangerous.
And turning up to training doesn't make you an expert, stop having cheap shots at people

 

[couldhavebeen]

I've been reading this site for four years and in that short time I have read the exact same words about Bucovaz, Houghton, Sibosado and possibly a few others I've forgotten. I think Taberner is better than all of them but we are not in a rebuilding phase here, we aren't going to start carrying passengers to give them experience and confidence.
I think if either Bradley or Clarke are fit they will come in. If neither are fit Taberner may get a game by default, and only because playing Hannath (who has shown more) and Sandi in the same team is dangerous.
And turning up to training doesn't make you an expert, stop having cheap shots at people

Caterina
Where is the cheap shot ,the guys made a post based on little knowledge of the kid .

To further his understanding of how Taberner is going as well as the rest of the squad I've stated to a Perth resident supporter go to Fremantle oval and watch him and the SQUAD train so that he then can see just how hard the team he barracks for trains .

With the injury to Gumbelton someone else gets a shot so who ever puts their hand up gets the gig that's footy and life

 

[Spoken4]

Serious question, with Gumby out for a while, you see anyone on freos rookie list that is worth being promoted?

I agree with your suggestion. Art Vandelay gets the upgrade.

 

[Spoken4]

I've been reading this site for four years and in that short time I have read the exact same words about Bucovaz, Houghton, Sibosado and possibly a few others I've forgotten. I think Taberner is better than all of them but we are not in a rebuilding phase here, we aren't going to start carrying passengers to give them experience and confidence.
I think if either Bradley or Clarke are fit they will come in. If neither are fit Taberner may get a game by default, and only because playing Hannath (who has shown more) and Sandi in the same team is dangerous.
And turning up to training doesn't make you an expert, stop having cheap shots at people

Why is it dangerous to play Sandi and Hannath is the same team? Worked find when we played Griffin and Hannath up until Griff did his ACL. Are Sandi and Griffin materially different players?

 

[Wigarus]

I've been reading this site for four years and in that short time I have read the exact same words about Bucovaz, Houghton, Sibosado and possibly a few others I've forgotten. I think Taberner is better than all of them but we are not in a rebuilding phase here, we aren't going to start carrying passengers to give them experience and confidence.
I think if either Bradley or Clarke are fit they will come in. If neither are fit Taberner may get a game by default, and only because playing Hannath (who has shown more) and Sandi in the same team is dangerous.
And turning up to training doesn't make you an expert, stop having cheap shots at people

BOOM!

 

[Silent Alarm]

I've been reading this site for four years and in that short time I have read the exact same words about Bucovaz, Houghton, Sibosado and possibly a few others I've forgotten. I think Taberner is better than all of them but we are not in a rebuilding phase here, we aren't going to start carrying passengers to give them experience and confidence.
I think if either Bradley or Clarke are fit they will come in. If neither are fit Taberner may get a game by default, and only because playing Hannath (who has shown more) and Sandi in the same team is dangerous.
And turning up to training doesn't make you an expert, stop having cheap shots at people

But you can't just ignore the potential development of a much needed key forward because he's a passenger. What happens when Pav's not playing in a season or two? And then what happens when the rest of the forward line slowly fall away and we look like St Kilda do now with inexperienced and 25-year old Taberners who are still out of their depth? Geelong give a few rookies a go every season. They don't play every game unless they're stellar but they get 8 or so appearances. They can coast a bit but they experience a winning side, not getting flogged every weekend, experience the deep end but still have time to go at their own pace and not be under pressure to win games themselves.

You can't nurse kids through it but you can't chuck them straight in. I reckon Tabs should really be playing like 10, 12 matches this season.

Definitely give him a go. I reckon you could hit the middle-ground between flag winners and the next flag winners well.

 

[E Shed]

As one of the training watchers being cited I'm pretty sure I've never said that Taberner has it all.
What I have said (over a year ago) is that of the rookie talls we had around he looked the most promising in terms of mobility and skills, an assessment that I think has been vindicated by him not only surviving the cut but being upgraded to the main list. From what I have seen of him this season he is still a fair way off an AFL tall forward and will never be a replacement for Pav. Pav is a once in 20 years player up there with Rievoldt, Tredrea and John Brown as the best of his era. I haven't seen anything to say he will even make it as an AFL player let alone reach Pav's level.

I'm pretty sure while I'm at it, that I never said Bucovaz was the answer to anything. I got excited by Joel Houghton's draft reel but never reported that he was burning up training and looking like the next Carey. I did watch him in the WAFL every week for a while with great hope and interest but never saw anything even remotely exciting. Sibosado I still think could play but he obviously had something wrong between the ears for AFL. He did some things at training and in the WAFL where I went WOW! but not often enough. When he did get a game by default when we were resting everyone I thought he actually look promising, managed to get his hands on the footy, make some nice moves, take a contested mark and have a shot on goal before blowing up before half time!

On Geelong giving their kids a go, Geelong have had one of the great midfields in the game and have been able to take skinny, speculative, tall kids like Kersten and Hamlyn and bury them in the VFL for a few years while we have been drafting for more immediate needs. The only exception to this is when we (inexplicably) left a ready to play power forward on the table (Darling) to take a skinny, speculative medium utility (Pitt).

We are going to be praying we can get a decent power forward though trading or free agency this year because we have nothing that is even remotely in Pav's league in the shed right now.

 

[go_the_dockers]

Let him play 3-4 WAFL games and if he averages over two goals a game then consider him. He hasn't shown anything in the NAB cup to warrant selection.

We are going to be praying we can get a decent power forward though trading or free agency this year because we have nothing that is even remotely in Pav's league in the shed right now.

Mitch Thorp would have been very handy on the rookie list this year .

I expect us to chase each of Hogan, McCarthy, Frawley and Jaksch with the hope of getting 1 or 2 of them.

 

[Silent Alarm]

Frawley would be my dream pick. Great player who'd thrive in a backline he wouldn't have to hold up himself, and under the strictness of Lyon. But with Roos there now, it might be harder than it was a year ago.

Also, we'll never get a Pav replacement. All we need is a serviceable key forward who's reliable and goes well enough. A star would be great, but it's very unlikely. Unfortunately I have no idea where we'll be getting a full forward from...

 

[Simmofreo]

Well no one else has been picked for the WC team except Tabs and Hannath. Not even Sylvia. So he is obviously who they are planning around

 

[Wigarus]

Let him play 3-4 WAFL games and if he averages over two goals a game then consider him. He hasn't shown anything in the NAB cup to warrant selection.




Mitch Thorp would have been very handy on the rookie list this year .

I expect us to chase each of Hogan, McCarthy, Frawley and Jaksch with the hope of getting 1 or 2 of them.

Is it you that was constantly harping on about Thorp last year? Because we didn't even throw a rookie spot at him and instead took a mature aged mid that will probably struggle to get a game with us. Nobody picked him and I think as a general rule the clubs tend to get it right.

 

[jusjoshin]

Is it you that was constantly harping on about Thorp last year? Because we didn't even throw a rookie spot at him and instead took a mature aged mid that will probably struggle to get a game with us. Nobody picked him and I think as a general rule the clubs tend to get it right.

He wasn't alone if he was. Quite a few (myself included) thought that having a decent KPF ready to drop in could be worth a late pick or a rookie listing.

Otherwise you have what we see now, a debate about who should be named, a couple of youngsters who need to show a bit more (Taberner, Apeness), a couple of rucks who might be good for a goal (Hannath, Moller) and a couple of guys who won't be fit for a while (Griffin, Clarke, Kepler).

If Pavlich or Sandi go down in the first few weeks before our other talls start to come back, we are going to be in a spot of bother, having to play Fyfe forward for a few weeks, or go in to a few games severely undersized up forward.

 

[Wigarus]

He wasn't alone if he was. Quite a few (myself included) thought that having a decent KPF ready to drop in could be worth a late pick or a rookie listing.

Otherwise you have what we see now, a debate about who should be named, a couple of youngsters who need to show a bit more (Taberner, Apeness), a couple of rucks who might be good for a goal (Hannath, Moller) and a couple of guys who won't be fit for a while (Griffin, Clarke, Kepler).

If Pavlich or Sandi go down in the first few weeks before our other talls start to come back, we are going to be in a spot of bother, having to play Fyfe forward for a few weeks, or go in to a few games severely undersized up forward.

The only talls that are currently injured are Clarke, Gumby, Griffin and Bradley. Given that Bradley and Griffin were both ACL injuries, the club would have known that they would be unlikely for the first half of the year. Given Gumbletons history of injuries it goes without saying that he would potentially be unavailable for some of the year.

Clarke is the only real surprise injury this year so its not like there has been a sudden influx of injuries to big men that would have had us scrambling for Thorp (if he was on our list) He was available at our very last pick which was absolutely worthless and every team in the comp overlooked him.

The bottom line is that good tall forwards at VFL / SANFL / WAFL level that are able to come in and perform at AFL are a pipe dream. Even Tom Lee (who even I think we missed out on) has hardly been setting the world on fire. If Beau Maister can get your spot in the 22 as a forward I'd rather have a ruck playing.



edit - Also I completely agree with you that:

having a decent KPF ready to drop in could be worth a late pick or a rookie listing.

I just disagree that Thorp was a decent AFL KPF.

 

[mike91]

Would be good if Ibbo plays, interesting though, given Lyon has said it's highly likely he wont play round one.

 

[jusjoshin]

edit - Also I completely agree with you that:

I just disagree that Thorp was a decent AFL KPF.

He wasn't the best ever, I just thought he offered at least as much as Gumby, and he's likely to be fit for more than 3-5 games a season.

In terms of injury to our remaining talls, Sandi has had a real issue staying fit for the last 3 or 4 seasons. His body has been breaking down. I hope he stays fit, but I wouldn't count on it. So we are playing either Taberner, Apeness, or Hannath as a KPP. Surely having someone like Thorp (even if it is just because he has an AFL ready body and knows where the goals are) would be handy while we are waiting for Kepler and Gumby to tighten their bolts on the sidelines.

 

[E Shed]

No one thought Mick Barlow could play either.

 

[clogged]

Here's hoping the new Peel setup assists with the development of talls.