Walker. Now delivering.

[Dustyjackman]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I think some blokes are bagging Walker at their peril. I also think opposition coaches who don't pay him enough respect will do so at their peril.

As the season progresses and things settle down a little I see Walker has having the ability to kick a few bags of goals, particularly against teams who lack enough quality defenders. With teams needing taller, stronger opponents on Waite, Henderson and the revolving door of ruckmen resting in the forward line they will quickly run out of backmen who can account for Walker both in the air and on the ground.
Walker will have a few afternoons out this season where some sides will simply not have enough stopping power to control all of our main forwards.

Walker is fast, can jump and catch the pill, is evasive and tricky, strong through the core and once he gets some confidence happening, from say, a few early grabs and a goal or so, he will become very hard to stop.

I say, sit back and enjoy the ride as it unfolds.

 

[Madblue]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Walker has alot going for him and alot to offer but his kicking is not AFL standard which is a real worry.................

 

[OnceWeWereKings]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I think some blokes are bagging Walker at their peril. I also think opposition coaches who don't pay him enough respect will do so at their peril.

As the season progresses and things settle down a little I see Walker has having the ability to kick a few bags of goals, particularly against teams who lack enough quality defenders. With teams needing taller, stronger opponents on Waite, Henderson and the revolving door of ruckmen resting in the forward line they will quickly run out of backmen who can account for Walker both in the air and on the ground.
Walker will have a few afternoons out this season where some sides will simply not have enough stopping power to control all of our main forwards.

Walker is fast, can jump and catch the pill, is evasive and tricky, strong through the core and once he gets some confidence happening, from say, a few early grabs and a goal or so, he will become very hard to stop.

I say, sit back and enjoy the ride as it unfolds.

Yep

 

[BluezRback]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Expect Tex to have a day out this week, I just took him out of my Super Coach side (did replace him with Curnow though!).

 

[Jabba73]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Whoa ... what? She is really a guy? Bruce Willis was dead all along?

Mind officially blown.

Not sure if I am on the right track but the silence is deafening ..........

Cannot think of any other reasonable explanation for what was written.

 

[TheKITC]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

As far as I can remember, I don't recall ever passing judgement, good or bad on Walker but will do so now.

A few facts on AW are necessary I think to get a full picture;

- has only recently passed the 100 game mark

- had multiple major and minor injury concerns throughout his career

- has been played in multiple positions with differing roles

With these things in mind, I think the criticisms leveled at Walker in terms of producing really good footy are unfair.

I would be interested to know also, of his 104 games how many have been consecutive (my guess would be not many). When you put this with the fact that he has been used as a KPD, running defender, midfielder, winger, half forward etc. I think it's unfair to judge him harshly.

Having said this, I think this year will give us a better indication of what Andy is actually capable of contributing to our side.

I think he potentially gives us great flexibility, variety and unpredictability in his current role up forward.

If he can contribute a few goals here and there, provide a link/hit up target between the midfield and up forward, create and awkward match up due to his attributes and spark some opportunities for our smaller players as well as create some for himself then he will be a valuable asset to us, as a forward.

We have to remember that week to week, such is his versatility IMO, that he will have a slightly different role depending on what Ratts and co. want from him and perhaps need to look beyond statistics and BF expert opinions when critiquing his game.

I'm looking forward to his 2011, If he can find that continuity of games and position then we can fairly assess where he is at without excuses.

 

[OnceWeWereKings]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Walker has alot going for him and alot to offer but his kicking is not AFL standard which is a real worry.................

because every weekend hack can break free, swing onto the opposite foot....and drill one from 55

He may not be elite, but he's certainly up to AFL standard.

As others have mentioned, on track to kick 50 goals this season, sure its week 1 but so are the assessments.

If he gets near the 50 goal mark this season it will be a massive win for the Blues.

 

[Faz 2000]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Walker's kicking is lousy and always has been. That one where he spun onto the left peg and dobbed it was extraordinary, in no small measure because it came from the least likely source.

I like everything else about him as a forward though. The guy is searingly quick, agile, can leap. He's a threat on the lead, leaping over a pack or roving the contest, something none of our other forwards can boast. His kicking is unreliable at best, an abomination at worst, but everything else about him makes him a really good option in our forward line.

17 touches, 5 marks, 5 scoring shots for a guy playing exclusively forward is a really solid return. Had that been 4.1 instead of 2.3 this thread wouldn't exist.

Will Walker ever deliver on what we would hope for from a #2 pick? No.

But I have him in our best 22, starting 18, for sure right now as a HF.

 

[T2B_]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Already has quite the highlights package from previous years despite having issues with staying on the park.

Seriously, leave him up forward and he is going to be a headache for matching up as indeed, he can lead, leap and run, all those sorts of things as well as just being plain unpredictable. Skills can let him down at times but he has X factor in spades and yet seemingly in all the games we've stuck him down there recently, he has consistently been putting at least 2-3 goals on the board (I could be wrong but that's the impression I get). Not too bad if you ask me

Having being rebuilt so he's practically half machine now will help too

 

[Premiership Quarter]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I think some blokes are bagging Walker at their peril. I also think opposition coaches who don't pay him enough respect will do so at their peril.

As the season progresses and things settle down a little I see Walker has having the ability to kick a few bags of goals, particularly against teams who lack enough quality defenders. With teams needing taller, stronger opponents on Waite, Henderson and the revolving door of ruckmen resting in the forward line they will quickly run out of backmen who can account for Walker both in the air and on the ground.
Walker will have a few afternoons out this season where some sides will simply not have enough stopping power to control all of our main forwards.

Walker is fast, can jump and catch the pill, is evasive and tricky, strong through the core and once he gets some confidence happening, from say, a few early grabs and a goal or so, he will become very hard to stop.

I say, sit back and enjoy the ride as it unfolds.

spot on.

We are top 4 material with him in the team

 

[BlueGibbs2011]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Walker will benefit the most from playing Kruezer in the square. All opposition players will be mobbing Kruezer leaving Walker slightly unmarked for a free run at the flight of the ball.

Missing Kruezer, Waite (once injured) and Hendo as solid fwd talls really hurts Andrew's game. Shown in the tigers game.

Will be much better on Hendo's/Kruezes return.

 

[HBF]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

He'd be a better player if he didn't try and take mark of the year every week.
Just concentrate on getting the ball, and practice your kicking at goal every chance you get.

 

[johnsy14]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

He'd be a better player if he didn't try and take mark of the year every week.

Seems that he's copping flack for this from a lot of people, as I see it only because he is capable of taking mark of the year. Most players will fly for marks during games but because they don't have the springs to get way up there like he does, they aren't accused of trying to take mark of the year.

Keep up the good work AW - I hope you'll be a Blue for life. And also hope you do take mark of the year!

 

[thylacine60]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Seems that he's copping flack for this from a lot of people, as I see it only because he is capable of taking mark of the year. Most players will fly for marks during games but because they don't have the springs to get way up there like he does, they aren't accused of trying to take mark of the year.

Keep up the good work AW - I hope you'll be a Blue for life. And also hope you do take mark of the year!

Can't agree. He's been missing these marks since he missed the one on his debut in 04. It puts him out of the contest lying on the ground. He can take a good strong pack mark (TG please) that's his best option. Mind you 7/8 years indicates he is a slow learner. On the flipside it must be a joy for the bloke to be finally playing and jumping unencumbered by injury.

 

[DinDin]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Didn't think he played a bad game on Thursday night! The reason we've persisted is because he has heaps of talent and injury to match. Not sure we would get to much for him in the draft either.

 

[Stefchook]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

He also chipped in with a few goal assists. Good game. With better kicking could have been a terrific game.

 

[Korn]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I don't think he is playing anywhere near his capability at the moment. He still gets pushed off quite easily. All he need now is about 10 to 15 consecutive games and he will be back to his best. When was the last time he had that many consecutive games? probably 3-4 years ago.

 

[RobGal]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I have to agree - I'll have him our best 18 on the ground any day.
As said before by many in this forum, his kicking lets him down a bit.
I have always been a big fan of Walker, even likened him to the great Kouta, in the style of play he has. Great leap, pretty goods hands, fast, agile and quite verisitle player aound the ground.
But alas he never has got to the level that Kouta was and possibly may never get there. Netherless to say, I think he has been more than a handy player to have at Carlton and on his best day (and he is on fire) - he is an absolute star.....it's just a pity that those days are not frequent enough.

 

[blues4flag]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Big Walker fan, always have been. He contributed well on Thursday and were it not for wayward kicking, would have been one of our better players.

My main criticism of him is why somebody so quick, so fit and with a brilliant physique can't stick his tackles? It might be a lingering byproduct of a lack of confidence in his shoulders borne through years of injury. Whatever the reason, he could and should be doing much better defensively. Hopefully as the season progresses this part of his game improves.

 

[Blueboys7]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Can't agree. He's been missing these marks since he missed the one on his debut in 04. It puts him out of the contest lying on the ground. He can take a good strong pack mark (TG please) that's his best option. Mind you 7/8 years indicates he is a slow learner. On the flipside it must be a joy for the bloke to be finally playing and jumping unencumbered by injury.

Agree, old wise one. He continually takes himself out of the contest flying for the mark which is okay on the odd occasion when no one else is crashing the pack. When we have Hendo, Waite and Kruezer in the forward line we won't need him flying for those marks because he is just as good at ground level.

When one on one I'd like to see him use his body and get in a good marking position and even if he doesn't mark it he will still have an opportunity when it hits the deck, unlike when he has flown for an unrealistic mark attempt taking him completely out of the contest.

 

[Jeremias]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

I really like Walker, and think he can be a very good footballer for us, but it is clear that he is not the smartest footballer going around.

It is all well and good to want to take mark of the year and get yourself on the front page of the paper the next day, but he just has to cool his jets a little and remain realistic.

Flying for pack marks looks fantastic, it really gets the crowd going and for all I know getting up on someone's shoulders may give you a good confidence boost during the game - but the game is not about Walker. It's about his role in the team and what he, along with every other player, can do to improve the team.

Flying for marks when it is clearly not the correct thing to do does not help the team. It has the opposite effect, with teams often able to run the ball out of the backline with relative ease. Instead of having 2-3 players jump for the ball every time it ventures forward, sometimes you need to take one for the team and stay down and wait for the drop of the ball.

I'm not saying that he should completely eradicate the high flying aspect of his game. Far from it - I would love to see him hang on to a massive grab - but he really has to be smart about it. When you need to go for it, do so by all means, but you don't need to go for it at every opportunity. And he shouldn't.

Aside from that, I thought Walks was impressive on Thursday night. I love him playing the half forward role, I think it really suits him. He can use his athletic abilities to push up the ground onto the flanks and the wing, to present a strong marking target which is crucial. He is also very dangerous around the goals and knows how to find them.

2 goals 3 behinds is a fantastic return for a player that has not been a permanent forward but may be looking to take that role. A little more accuracy in front of goals and most, if not all of us would be raving about him so he really is not far off dominating a game.

If we can get a similar result from him most weeks, we'll be an infinitely better team. We need to constantly look for more avenues to goal, and if Walks can contribute 25-30+ goals this season then we will benefit immensely. And to be honest, I've got no doubt he can reach that target if he continues to concentrate and to work on his game.

The final against Sydney last year was a really promising sign for Walker and the CFC with him playing as a defensive forward. I'm confident he can play that role again if need be, or he can play as an attacking half forward - either way we need him impacting the scoreboard which he is capable of doing.

Having said all that, I just can't shake the feeling that this will be the last year we see 1AW in Navy Blue...

 

[Blue Bawls]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

It seems to have escaped recollection that he demanded a forward role after openly seeking a trade, something to which Ratts has agreed. He's now under enormous self-imposed pressure to perform. I feel kinda sorry for him.

 

[Azul]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

sack walker. 4 goals in a half.

 

[Sin City]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

Playing against witches hats but his kicking for goal has been excellent this week.

 

[lionel_luthor]

Re: Walker. Will he ever deliver?

credit to him, has really worked hard over pre season and played one of his best games for the club, hope he can back it up next week