The forgotten man

[Go Pies!!!!!]

You can just see him leaving to play elsewhere and the magpies faithful wondering why why didn't we play him.

Jarryd Blair (15k, 17h, 5m, 1g, 4t): Probably our best player. On which player Blair resembles in the club’s senior 22: Probably no one. He is similar to (Luke) Ball in that they both win the hard ball. Blair has a bigger tank and spreads to get some of his possessions. He has the ability to run and receive an uncontested mark (which he needs to do more often). Blair can extract the ball and break away from the pack whereas Ball will look to carry the load and then handball off.

WOW Sounds like ALL AUSTRALIAN
He might make it at senior level but this is jsut a little over the top IMO

 

[Swanny36]

Different player to Harvey. Harvey is, by and large, an outside mid who thrives because of pace and skills. Blair plays an inside stoppage game, more like an undersized Kerr or Ball. It's a massive ask to play that style of footy at senior level given Blair's size.

Personally, I wouldn't be against giving him a crack at it -- he's been consistently good at VFL level, after all -- but I think the odds are stacked against him.

I wasn't meaning he is the same sort of player as Boomer, my point was that Boomer hasn't suffered in his game at all with his size, and there is no reason that Blair shouldn't be able to fullfil his role in the team in the future if he is good enough. Which I think he is.

Blair has alot more natural ability than O'Bree and from what I've seen he is a very good disposer of the ball by foot especially.
Plus Blair can play outside mid aswell fairly well, he isn't that slow but he is average paced, but for his lack of pace he makes up for in his footy smarts and quickness to make the right decisions.

Personally I think he will make it, has way too much natural ability to not make it and he won the Morrish Medal, I think that has been forgotten and under-rated.

Will be a very good player IMHO.

 

[Old Spice]

Is there some space next to the hyperbaric chamber for a rack?

 

[dswan]

I wasn't meaning he is the same sort of player as Boomer, my point was that Boomer hasn't suffered in his game at all with his size, and there is no reason that Blair shouldn't be able to fullfil his role in the team in the future if he is good enough. Which I think he is.

Blair has alot more natural ability than O'Bree and from what I've seen he is a very good disposer of the ball by foot especially.
Plus Blair can play outside mid aswell fairly well, he isn't that slow but he is average paced, but for his lack of pace he makes up for in his footy smarts and quickness to make the right decisions.

Personally I think he will make it, has way too much natural ability to not make it and he won the Morrish Medal, I think that has been forgotten and under-rated.

Will be a very good player IMHO.

Firstly great post mate.
Secondly people need to get there head out of the hand and be pro-active. Its always the same old opinionated people who think a guy can't make it and are proven wrong. If Blair is offered a contract elsewhere and accepts it, it will be because we denied him that opportunity to shine.

 

[mdc]

Secondly people need to get there head out of the hand

...but I thought a head in the hand is worth two in the bush?

 

[Optimax]

...but I thought a head in the hand is worth two in the bush?

Boom tish

 

[esc0bar]

No No Dswan it was not us who will decide if he can make it but the coaching staff... He is going through the system like every other player and unfortunately for him we have a great list at the moment which denies new players a chance to put continuous games together barring injury. We all want the kid to make it, probably will as well due to his tenacity and ability however it is a process. We have great depth and cannot risk new players for the sake of keeping them. A lot goes on behind closed doors so Blair will know his place, even if he is not selected in the team 22. By all accounts he is loving it in pie land and due to obrees likely retirement next year will be likely to stay with the possibility of games next year.

gee you act like its a grassroots organisation and players decide if they wanted or not based on their selection. I will reinforce that alot goes on behind the scene from not only coaches but the whole human resource management team who are set up to encourage motivate and retain our players.

 

[Number 10]

Bazinga.

im still waiting for josh thomas to get a game, but im being patient.

here is our perfect chance to get some silverware and we need experience in the side to go all he wall. dont want to risk it with kids.

be patient mate.

Correct, Look at Geelong for example. Haven't changed the team for 3 years whilst being in their Grand Final winning form. It is only this year with injuries and retirements they have seen a few kids coming through. And look how good they are given time to mature and reach their potential.
It will take a while as opposed to a struggling team like Richmond, Adelaide and Hawthorn (Not comparing Adelaide and Hawthorn to Richmond, just saying that rookies/young kids are getting games due to injuries).

Now, if we are arguing about if he will go or stay. It's a pretty straight forward.
If Blair wants to play for Collingwood he will have to wait, just like the other guys in his position, and one day he can hopefully say he played for the Collingwood Grand Final Team.
On the flip side, a job is a job (if this is his primary job). He has a choice of staying at the most reputable company in the AFL, and waiting for his time to make the big bucks. Or he can take a gamble and go to somewhere less-reputable (lets say GC) and hope to earn some big money there.

He is a very good footballer and everyone knows this. If O'bree retires next year, we'll need him to cover for Bally if he gets injured.

On a side-note, I'm far more worried about Kris Pendlebury being nabbed by someone else. I would not be surprised if he turned out to be a superstar in a few years. ALA Barlow

 

[Palmer Stoat]

my point was that Boomer hasn't suffered in his game at all with his size, and there is no reason that Blair shouldn't be able to fullfil his role in the team in the future if he is good enough. Which I think he is.

What I'm saying is that size doesn't really hamper the style of footy that Harvey plays. Harvey excels in handball receives, breaking lines, and using the football. You don't need to be 185cm and 90kgs to do that.

It's a bit different when you play like Blair, whose bread and butter is at stoppages. That's a punishing gig, and in the clinches size and strength does help in the week-in week-out grind of senior footy. You would've seen the hammering that the body of someone like Kerr or Ball or Jude Bolton takes, so imagine someone Blair's size being expected to play that kinda role on a weekly basis, especially at the next level where he'll be pitted against players who are, on average, bigger, better and faster than the players he's up against in the VFL.

Like I said, I don't have anything against him. I have a lot of respect, in fact, for the way he goes about his footy, and I expect that at some point he'll probably get an opportunity at AFL -- if not with us, then with some other club. But anyone who thinks that his size isn't a relevant consideration is kidding themselves IMO.

 

[dswan]

So your saying a tall and skinny guy doesn't get as hurt as much as a shorter more solid guy? The skinny guy will definitely take more punishment. Short doesn't effect core strength. Get your facts straight.

 

[danielnajdek]

On a side-note, I'm far more worried about Kris Pendlebury being nabbed by someone else. I would not be surprised if he turned out to be a superstar in a few years. ALA Barlow

I feel the same way about Kris. Everytime i've seen him play he has been one of our best.Seems to have good disposal by foot and controls the backline nicely.IMO he deserves a shot.

 

[Keele]

Interesting topic this one.

I was having a heated argument with my brother (who is a loyal collingwood member) about Blair.

He is of the opinion that Blair won't make at AFL simply becuase of his size.
My brother reckons he is too small.................Hello i said to him,what about players like marc murphy, nahas, ablett, carrazzo, foley, boomer Harvey, Melchan,Scully,trengove, and the list goes on.

Blair is a pure ball magnet with an uncanny flair to be where the ball is at all times he can run and carry and is a tough little hard nut.We need that sort of player.
He is quietly going about his business at VFL level and will be ready if called up.He averages at least 30 possies every game

He has been by far our best and most consistant player at VFL level over the past 12 months.Surely we need to give this kid a go.

By the way pies don't stuff this one up like we did when we had a kid called Liam Jurrah and we let him go,could have gotten him back through rupert bethras but passed on him and now the DEES are laughing.
We let go a future superstar don't do the same with this kid.

First off great post Mrs Blair


Daics Cousin... can you show me how we could have bypassed the draft system and or use an earlier pick than Melbourne had for Liam?

 

[Palmer Stoat]

So your saying a tall and skinny guy doesn't get as hurt as much as a shorter more solid guy? The skinny guy will definitely take more punishment. Short doesn't effect core strength. Get your facts straight.

A genuinely lightly framed mid, even if he was tall, would have a lot of the same issues. That's why tall, skinny blokes are rarely, if ever, inside mids.

What I'm saying is pretty straightforward. Why are you having so much difficulty with it?

 

[Swanny36]

What I'm saying is that size doesn't really hamper the style of footy that Harvey plays. Harvey excels in handball receives, breaking lines, and using the football. You don't need to be 185cm and 90kgs to do that.

It's a bit different when you play like Blair, whose bread and butter is at stoppages. That's a punishing gig, and in the clinches size and strength does help in the week-in week-out grind of senior footy. You would've seen the hammering that the body of someone like Kerr or Ball or Jude Bolton takes, so imagine someone Blair's size being expected to play that kinda role on a weekly basis, especially at the next level where he'll be pitted against players who are, on average, bigger, better and faster than the players he's up against in the VFL.

Like I said, I don't have anything against him. I have a lot of respect, in fact, for the way he goes about his footy, and I expect that at some point he'll probably get an opportunity at AFL -- if not with us, then with some other club. But anyone who thinks that his size isn't a relevant consideration is kidding themselves IMO.

What about Libba?? he didn't seem to suffer too much, he is considered one of the great players of Footscray.

Blair could easily fill O'Bree's role and maybe even create a very good tandom with Lukey Ball.

But in saying that I don't think we will lose him to the GC he will be given an opportunity in the AFL next year IMO. If he takes it with both hands he'll be great if not, there will be more opportunity's for him I think.

 

[Palmer Stoat]

What about Libba?? he didn't seem to suffer too much, he is considered one of the great players of Footscray.

Blair could easily fill O'Bree's role and maybe even create a very good tandom with Lukey Ball.

But in saying that I don't think we will lose him to the GC he will be given an opportunity in the AFL next year IMO. If he takes it with both hands he'll be great if not, there will be more opportunity's for him I think.

Libba's a good comparison. I'm not saying he can't succeed, just that the odds are against him -- which is why there have been so few Libbas over the last 20 years.

I hope you're right.

 

[Dawson]

It's going to tough for him to get a gig, I think both Blight and Rounds are in front of him.
Sinclair could be anything and Thomas looks like a player.

Like I said it is going to be tough

 

[Swanny36]

Libba's a good comparison. I'm not saying he can't succeed, just that the odds are against him -- which is why there have been so few Libbas over the last 20 years.

I hope you're right.

Yes, it is going to be very hard for him, which means if/when he does make it, it will be that much sweeter.

I hope I'm right aswell. Love him.

 

[look at him goooo!]

when i read the thread title i thought the thread was going to be about goldsack. cant really say that blair has been forgotten, he just hasnt had an opportunity to crack into the team yet. he is a second year rookie ffs. imo he'll be elevated at the end of the year

 

[The Royal Sampler]

You can just see him leaving to play elsewhere and the magpies faithful wondering why why didn't we play him.

No you cant

and there are plenty of reasons why he doesnt get a game
height
Short arms
lack of speed
poor kick
doesnt get involved enough away from the midfield

I think the truth is somewhere in the middle on this one. Firstly, I don't think we'll be ruing his departure if he were to crack the shits and leave, but that's a hypothetical and frankly very unlikely scenario anyway.

Secondly, Blair's kicking and speed are fine. The problem is that they're not genuinely exceptional. Blair's best attribute is his ability to find the ball, he's a neat kick and pretty quick. That's generally not enough to forge a career in the AFL.

I wish Blair all the best in his attempts to break into the side, he seems like an outstanding bloke, just not an outstanding player. My preference at the time we selected him was for us to take Christian Bock, so it's not as if I've done any better so far. On our list currently though, I'd say Sinclair and Thomas are probably already ahead in the pecking order for a midfield gig, Blight can play midfield or wing, and then amongst the rookies Hunter is closing rapidly and Young will go straight past Blair.

 

[dswan]

You can just see him leaving to play elsewhere and the magpies faithful wondering why why didn't we play him.

Jarryd Blair (15k, 17h, 5m, 1g, 4t): Probably our best player. On which player Blair resembles in the club’s senior 22: Probably no one. He is similar to (Luke) Ball in that they both win the hard ball. Blair has a bigger tank and spreads to get some of his possessions. He has the ability to run and receive an uncontested mark (which he needs to do more often). Blair can extract the ball and break away from the pack whereas Ball will look to carry the load and then handball off.

See His Playing Now!!

 

[Pie eyed]

I can see that TRS's last post was spot on the money and Blair when given opportunity has taken it in both hands.


Good on him.

 

[morax]

See His Playing Now!!

Yep he is and playing well. You would have to admit that Collingwood are very good at developing players, yes ?

Still think Blair is heading to another club or is their another young player in the reserves not getting a fair go in a top four side ?

 

[sgnl00]

Some good laughs in this thread.

 

[Cousin of Daicos]

Bit of a fan of Blair.

Hopefully, like Beames, he continues along in an upward scale.