This is Scott Welsh's value

[lacrow]

People who bag on Welsh really need to get their heads examined. His performance against the Bulldogs was sensational.

More importantly, it showed what he is capable of when playing against like opposition... meaning, if he was being played as the 3rd option (or even the second) in a decent forward line, the guy would be absolutely deadly.

Make no mistake, he is a GUN forward... just not a gun 1st option forward.

I really don't understand all the bagging the guy gets. Seriously, if you took Michael Jordan and played him out of position as your Center, he would get taken to the cleaners and look like crap too. Or how about playing Michael Voss as your ruckman, how many times would he get bagged for losing hitouts?

I think it's time to end ridiculous bagging of players, especially when there are OBVIOUS reasons to cut them some slack.

 

[TheLeftFist8]

People who bag on Welsh really need to get their heads examined. His performance against the Bulldogs was sensational.

More importantly, it showed what he is capable of when playing against like opposition... meaning, if he was being played as the 3rd option (or even the second) in a decent forward line, the guy would be absolutely deadly.

Make no mistake, he is a GUN forward... just not a gun 1st option forward.

I really don't understand all the bagging the guy gets. Seriously, if you took Michael Jordan and played him out of position as your Center, he would get taken to the cleaners and look like crap too. Or how about playing Michael Voss as your ruckman, how many times would he get bagged for losing hitouts?

I think it's time to end ridiculous bagging of players, especially when there are OBVIOUS reasons to cut them some slack.

43:18 in 18 games, 13th on AFL goalkicking list, our best forward by a country mile in 07...all with minimal help from those around him and poor delivery in terms of quantity and quality most of the time...great player in the correct roles.

But don't worry, as soon as he has a bad game and doesn't carry the forward line each and every week, he is a lazy selfish chump who deserves to be dropped...GET REAL...if lived up to those expectations he would be Garry Ablett Sr or Wayne Carey...but no, he is Scott Welsh, an extremely valuable lead-up FF or HFF, our best forward, who should be one of the first picked each and every week in a Crows side needing to kick a winning score.

 

[TheLeftFist8]

BTW, of the top 20 AFL goalkickers this year, Welsh has the 3rd highest tackle count...but i guess no amount of defensive action and team play will change the minds of some.

 

[jenny61_99]

BTW, of the top 20 AFL goalkickers this year, Welsh has the 3rd highest tackle count...but i guess no amount of defensive action and team play will change the minds of some.

According to some he HAS no defensive action and is soft as butter!

 

[jmorg1]

One of the few players in the side (apart from Scott Stevens who plays mostly defence) with a good conversion rate in front of goals.

 

[Vader]

What he IS is an enigma.

His best is very, very good - he has several bags of 6+ to his credit. He could have added another on Sunday night, but it wasn't to be. On Sunday he looked good, chasing & harassing his opponent when not in possession of the ball himself.

On the other hand, his worst is very, very rotten. When it's not happening for him, we might as well be playing a man down. The chasing & harassing doesn't happen, and he's just as likely to end up with donuts for stats. Take his R1 performance (against Dustin Fletcher) as an example of this.

Welsh's greatest problem is now, as it always has been, a lack of consistency.

A typical Scott Welsh season usually looks something like this (assuming 22 H&A rounds, plus 2 finals):
8 games MIA through injury
3 games superstar - 6 goals+
3 games very good - 3-4 goals, genuine contributor to team victory
3 games complete dud - donuts for stats
7 games average output - 1-2 goals, does OK without being particularly good or terrible

Part of his problem is no doubt due to being forced to play as our #1 forward, and hence having to cope with the opposition's best defender. He's not tall enough to be a #1 forward, and we shouldn't be expecting this of him. He's a strong leading forward, who should be taking the opponents 2nd or 3rd best defender each week.

The problem with being so inconsistent is that the fans expectations rise and fall in accordance with his performances. When he's bad, there are calls for his head. When he's good, his supporters say "I told you so". The fact is, that his inconsistency means that both sides have some validity to their arguments.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

According to some he HAS no defensive action and is soft as butter!

That thinking is rubbish.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

What he IS is an enigma.

His best is very, very good - he has several bags of 6+ to his credit. He could have added another on Sunday night, but it wasn't to be. On Sunday he looked good, chasing & harassing his opponent when not in possession of the ball himself.

On the other hand, his worst is very, very rotten. When it's not happening for him, we might as well be playing a man down. The chasing & harassing doesn't happen, and he's just as likely to end up with donuts for stats. Take his R1 performance (against Dustin Fletcher) as an example of this.

Welsh's greatest problem is now, as it always has been, a lack of consistency.

A typical Scott Welsh season usually looks something like this (assuming 22 H&A rounds, plus 2 finals):
8 games MIA through injury
3 games superstar - 6 goals+
3 games very good - 3-4 goals, genuine contributor to team victory
3 games complete dud - donuts for stats
7 games average output - 1-2 goals, does OK without being particularly good or terrible

Part of his problem is no doubt due to being forced to play as our #1 forward, and hence having to cope with the opposition's best defender. He's not tall enough to be a #1 forward, and we shouldn't be expecting this of him. He's a strong leading forward, who should be taking the opponents 2nd or 3rd best defender each week.

The problem with being so inconsistent is that the fans expectations rise and fall in accordance with his performances. When he's bad, there are calls for his head. When he's good, his supporters say "I told you so". The fact is, that his inconsistency means that both sides have some validity to their arguments.

A very fair assessment IMO.

 

[lacrow]

While I agree with Vader's assertion that it's the inconsistency that frustrates fans (getting their hopes up one day, then dashing them the next), the problem with his assessment is that it ignores my main point: that Welsh is a great forward WHEN PLAYING AGAINST SIMILAR SIZED OPPONENTS.

Putting up the example of Round 1 and him playing against Fletcher only serves to reinforce my point. If we had another tall forward that Fletcher took in that game I'll bet Welsh's output would have been significantly better.

 

[haydo]

If Brendon Fevola came to the Crows, then Welsh would be a awsome player. All the hype and attention will go on Fev (as it does to the Blues) Then Welsh will get a 3rd tall, and then just dominate play, and kick 60 goals a season

 

[King Elvis]

I've been one of his biggest critics this year, but I've been silent the last few weeks.

As has been said, he's very hot and cold - his first few games of the season I didn't rate at all; he kicked a few goals, but a lot of them were cheap, and he went missing.

But lately, he's been very good; and as was said, now he's playing a role in a forward line with a variety of options, he's starting to look the goods again.

 

[KUNG FU]

I gave him 5 votes this week and I can't believe some people gave him nothing. However, he will never be highly rated by the fans cos he doesn't do the right things at the right time. He only has a couple years left in him you'd think though, considering his age and history with injury. Hopefully Walker can succeed him comfortably.

 

[jenny61_99]

That thinking is rubbish.

I agree! I think Welsh has been invaluable for us this year... particularly when we've struggled when going forward. I have always loved his defensive work - he tries his heart out to keep that ball in. Soft??? I think not! Nope, without Welsh this year, we'd be no doubt in the bottom 3.

 

[smoovy]

According to the coaches, he was 2nd best on Sunday.

Votes Player

8 Andrew McLeod
6 Scott Welsh
5 Brent Reilly
3 Chris Knights
3 Kris Massie
3 Matthew Boyd
2 Sam Power

 

[-WWJD-]

As soon as he kicked his second goal my mate and I turned to each other and said 'we're gonna win'. He really is a barometer of the side, if he has a big one generally we get up. That contested mark on the back flank was an absolute ripper and so very crucial. Came off a few minutes after and looked buggered.

His set shot kicking has been superb this year. Unlike most of our fords, I feel completely confident when he's got the ball.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

As soon as he kicked his second goal my mate and I turned to each other and said 'we're gonna win'. He really is a barometer of the side, if he has a big one generally we get up. That contested mark on the back flank was an absolute ripper and so very crucial. Came off a few minutes after and looked buggered.

His set shot kicking has been superb this year. Unlike most of our fords, I feel completely confident when he's got the ball.

Has kicked some crucial goals when it has mattered this year. With Hentschel & Roo out, he & Burton are our only real dangerous matchwinning forwards. I'm hoping Porps gets there too. All we need is a KPP forward to compliment them.

 

[crow87]

I can't let it ride, Scott Welsh Does not equal Michael Voss, let alone Michael Jordan. Point taken though, for my views please see Vader's post.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

I gave him 5 votes this week and I can't believe some people gave him nothing. However, he will never be highly rated by the fans cos he doesn't do the right things at the right time. He only has a couple years left in him you'd think though, considering his age and history with injury. Hopefully Walker can succeed him comfortably.

I didn't only because of the overall team performance. I had to think long and hard about my choices and he definately was in the mix, and I could have made a different choice if I did it again.

But you call it as you see it.

Very good game.

 

[ROOno.1]

I always thought that his inconsistency was because he always had such a broken up season missing so many games through injury. Hes played all but 2 (?) games this year. Hopefully this has something to do with his improved season. Keep it up welshy and PLEASE prove the critics wrong.

 

[ThePeckers]

Always been a fan of Welsh, but not a massive fan. He is a small forward, not a key forward. People who call for him to be dropped should realise that would mean our ability to score would nose dive.

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

It's been said plenty of times in defence of Welsh and Perrie that they're an "excellent 3rd forward" who struggle when given the opposition's number one key defender. The argument continues along the lines that if only we had a strong, marking key forward to take the pressure off them then they'd be good, consistent, first 18 contributors. And that's probably true.

It also creates a rather large barrier at the club.

How do you uncover or develop a genuine Number 1 key forward? Very difficult to get one through trading as clubs are loathe to release this type of player. So that leaves the draft. From the draft we have Sellar and Tippett on our list and we need them to become quality, marking key forwards for us. But how is this going to happen? Are they going to be able to string together some AFL games next season, to find their feet, to test their ability, to be exposed at the highest level, to experience the pace and ferocity of an AFL game etc?

I don't think they will.

For us to be competitive we need three of Welsh, Perrie, McGregor and Gill playing at or near their best. If we drop one or two of them to make way for Sellar and/or Tippett we will get absolutely slaughtered. Welsh, Perrie and Gill + our quality midfield + our outstanding defence is just enough to be competitive with the top eight teams at AFL level. Only just mind you. There is no margin for error whatsoever. No room to experiment.

The bottom line is that our forward line is not good enough for us to allow Sellar or Tippett to serve an apprenticeship. Gumbleton will get games at Essendon next season because he has a bit of talent plus Lloyd and Lucas are there. The Bombers won't be relying on output from Gumbleton. Anything he does do is a bonus. We do not have that luxury.

Our young forwards will need to kick Welsh, Perrie and Gill out of the team purely on merit. They will need to kick consistent bags of goals at SANFL level to prove to NC that the team's performance will not drop an inch - we're barely keeping our heads above water as it is. Realistically, do you think this will happen? How do we stop Sellar and Tippett becoming another chapter in the Fergus Watts saga?

 

[kingyubbo]

Welsh is too inconsistent to be of high value elsewhere, but he fits in well at our club. I think he has lost some of his spark that was around 2-3 years ago, but his ability to mark and goal is far better than anyone else we have.

I'd like to see Tippett or another tall-ish forward be put out on to the ground soon. Hopefully we'll be able to get something like Port have with Westhoff. A real find.

I have heard from reasonably good sources that Sellar won't play this year. He's not ready to physically and mentally. Look out for him next year. In saying that, if anyone knows James personally, ask him

 

[lunacy]

It's been said plenty of times in defence of Welsh and Perrie that they're an "excellent 3rd forward" who struggle when given the opposition's number one key defender.

Surely that is not an objective view. Welsh yes. Perrie??? certainly not an ecellent 3rd forward. Gill >> Perrie for mine. No room for Perrie anymore.

 

[Alecks]

Surely that is not an objective view. Welsh yes. Perrie??? certainly not an ecellent 3rd forward. Gill >> Perrie for mine. No room for Perrie anymore.

Ill second that !

 

[Cap]

Welsh is too inconsistent to be of high value elsewhere, but he fits in well at our club. I think he has lost some of his spark that was around 2-3 years ago, but his ability to mark and goal is far better than anyone else we have.

I'd like to see Tippett or another tall-ish forward be put out on to the ground soon. Hopefully we'll be able to get something like Port have with Westhoff. A real find.

I have heard from reasonably good sources that Sellar won't play this year. He's not ready to physically and mentally. Look out for him next year. In saying that, if anyone knows James personally, ask him

well considering there is two games left i'm pretty sure its a good bet he won't be playing