Toast Travis Varcoe

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Geelong_Bisons_#36

Geelong_Bisons_#36

Premiership Player
Golf Enthusiast Veteran
Jun 17, 2007
3,756
4,878
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
Inverleigh Hawks
I have to admit, I was not very happy about the club getting Varcoe.

But I'm here today to say I was wrong.

Let's be honest, he's never been or never going to be a tough player, but his kicking skills stood out last night in poor conditions.

He might be the answer to our deplorable fwd 50 entries of the last few years.

Welcome to Collingwood Trav :)
 

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He took a nice mark low down and kick the goal after generally he played within himself last night I thought there were a couple of contests where he could have gone a bit harder but he went okay,
I thought Merrett was very lucky to not be looked at for sliding in with the knees after Varcoe had already marked the ball but I am not surprised as he only got 3 weeks for a blatant head high on a Suns player last season.
 
TradeDraft said:
Just wish he attacked the Ball more instead of waiting for someone to get the ball to him
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Yeah there was a little bit of hanging on the outside of the pack waiting for the ball to be given to him when he had clear opportunity to get in and get it himself. He did go a little harder in the last 10 mins IMO which was great to see when the game was on the line.
 

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Just an aside but despite winning the contested ball numbers I noticed a change in our game plan last night.
In pack situations we allowed one Collingwood player to contest and then others intentionally stayed outside the pack to await the results. This is a real change from previous years where we've committed 2's and 3's at contests and then been shown up by a quick release to an opposition runner. Maybe Varcoe was intentionally sought for this purpose in mind but many times last night it was Pendles or Sidey or Swan waiting for an Adams or a Grundy release. I like the change in thinking.
 
Markfs said:
Did some nice things but i still think he should be able to take over Lumumba's role at BF...
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Who do you prefer in that role at BF?
 
ipswichpies said:
He took a nice mark low down and kick the goal after generally he played within himself last night I thought there were a couple of contests where he could have gone a bit harder but he went okay,
I thought Merrett was very lucky to not be looked at for sliding in with the knees after Varcoe had already marked the ball but I am not surprised as he only got 3 weeks for a blatant head high on a Suns player last season.
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I was trying to think of the words and you have summed it up for me. That is what I am not liking.
 
Robroy22 said:
Just an aside but despite winning the contested ball numbers I noticed a change in our game plan last night.
In pack situations we allowed one Collingwood player to contest and then others intentionally stayed outside the pack to await the results. This is a real change from previous years where we've committed 2's and 3's at contests and then been shown up by a quick release to an opposition runner. Maybe Varcoe was intentionally sought for this purpose in mind but many times last night it was Pendles or Sidey or Swan waiting for an Adams or a Grundy release. I like the change in thinking.
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Hmmmmm. I did notice this too.

Maybe I'm too hard on Varcoe, but geez he looked soft.

Anyway, thanks, a bit of food for thought.
 
Robroy22 said:
Just an aside but despite winning the contested ball numbers I noticed a change in our game plan last night.
In pack situations we allowed one Collingwood player to contest and then others intentionally stayed outside the pack to await the results. This is a real change from previous years where we've committed 2's and 3's at contests and then been shown up by a quick release to an opposition runner. Maybe Varcoe was intentionally sought for this purpose in mind but many times last night it was Pendles or Sidey or Swan waiting for an Adams or a Grundy release. I like the change in thinking.
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As people know, I'm a very poor student of the game but I did notice players hanging back and allowing one player to contest the ball. It worked pretty good. Is that a game plan thing or did they just happen to stumble on it? Anyway, if it was a game plan thing, it must have been introduced by Balmy as he's the new guy in the footy side of things.
 
It's a win/win for everyone involved the Lumumba/Varcoe/Clark trade.

We get a player without the baggage that H had while the Dees get a good footballer to help them remain competitive. Clark goes to a club where he won't have intense media pressure and can just play footy.

Varcoe was ok last night without being in the best players, but his poise under pressure due to experience is big, while many were panicking late in the game he wasn't.

Will play every game for us this year if he remains fit, handy pick up.
 
mattys123 said:
It's a win/win for everyone involved the Lumumba/Varcoe/Clark trade.

We get a player without the baggage that H had while the Dees get a good footballer to help them remain competitive. Clark goes to a club where he won't have intense media pressure and can just play footy.

Varcoe was ok last night without being in the best players, but his poise under pressure due to experience is big, while many were panicking late in the game he wasn't.

Will play every game for us this year if he remains fit, handy pick up.
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well balanced even handed analysis... i'd go further and state that varcoe will probably finish top 3 in the copeland. If he doesnt kick at least 35 goals this year, i'll be very surprised. I'll be revisiting this comment in the coming weeks and I expect to make further irrational comments based on this analysis...
 
Varcoe brings some strengths and I liked parts of his game, but I'm still not totally sold. Think it might come down to if you'd prefer 15-20 touches from Varoce vs 20-25 from Lumumba, ie he might get less of the ball, but hopefully uses it a little wiser and better, more consistently.

Also while Varcoe maybe an outside player and Clark would have been my preference, I'm glad we traded for Varcoe and not his ex-teammate Christdivesen, who may have also been a list fit in a small forward role. The amount of times he threw his head back, when there was no contact was embarrassing, that even the commentators were calling him out on it says a lot. If he was at Collingwood I'd be wanting him to stamp it out, not defending him to the hilt like several Brisbane fans.
 
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