- Mar 1, 2005
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There is no doubt in my mind that we have a great coaching team led by BB. So what should we expect next year?
BACKLINE. There is no reason to expect us to go backwards in our backline. We have depth there and some real class. Yet we saw these players operating together this year for the first time. Weitering, Plowman, byrne were all great additions.Touhy, Simpson , Docherty and Rowe having excellent seasons.
But it is the further development possible of each individually and also as a team, that excites. Weitering is just starting his development, yet he played consistently to such a high level. He can only get better. Plowman had a slow start due to injury. Yet he performed very solidly. With fitness and another preseason, i expect an even better performance . Byrne is such an exciting player, but injuries this year cut his season short. His upside seems enourmous. Simpson and Docherty have had outstanding years. Its hard to see simmo improving on this year but , his body is resilient. Docherty has had a breakout year, and i expect even better next year. Touhy has also been excellent. Rowe seems to have thrived in the team defence environment. Considering the development potential, it seems hard to imagine our defence not being one of the best in the competition.
MIDFIELD. our stocks are thin in the midfield , no doubt. We are at least 2 class midfielders short. But the good news is that sos will be on to the job.
The injured Murphy showed his importance to our midfield in his absence. Cripps will only get better, which is amazing given his high level of achievement so far. Gibbs will thrive in a midfield that runs deeper. Curnow has had a chance to move out from his pure tagging role, and has thrived.
But once the rotations kick in we struggle. Graham, Kerridge and Wright are not the answer. Any class midfield addition will be significant upgrades on these 3, and we desperately need this to happen. And it will. So with at least two midfield additions, i expect a significant improvement-especially with murphy coming back in, and the likely performance increases to gibbs and cripps with others to share the load.
FORWARDS
Its hard not to be excited about our forward line in 2017.
Silvagni has already shown his class. With a full preseason, his speed and endurance will improve. And it needs to , as this has been his weakness. Which only underlines how good he is- his game against brisbane, giving us a glimpse of what he is capable of. A beautiful kick of the ball, means he wont need to get it often, to have a massive impact on the scoreboard. Yet he is likely to be able to improve significantly in his ball winning ability with his extra fitness and a bigger body.
Curnow. Another beautiful kick. Already with elite endurance. I expect a much bigger charlie to come out next year, after another preseason in the gym. A great mark , mobile with a great tank, he us likely to run defenders off their feet. He us a prodigious kick , being able to kick them from outside 50 m.
Harry. Didnt get on the park to show us what he is capable of. Internally rated as possibly the best of the 2015 draftees, which is amazing given how the others have performed already. Needs a big preseason to hopefully show us why we rated him so highly.
Casboult. The source of many frustrations to us all. An elite mark with terrible kicking. But he has suffered from the pressure of being our only key forward. This has affected his confidence IMO. Put him in a forward line of Silvagni, Curnow and Mckay, and he will be a real handful.
With improvements across all lines likely, and a great coach, i feel like the future is bright. We wont need to wait 5 years as some have suggested. If we can run the likes of Hawthirn, Sydney and West coast to a close finish this year, i am sure we can beat them next year
BACKLINE. There is no reason to expect us to go backwards in our backline. We have depth there and some real class. Yet we saw these players operating together this year for the first time. Weitering, Plowman, byrne were all great additions.Touhy, Simpson , Docherty and Rowe having excellent seasons.
But it is the further development possible of each individually and also as a team, that excites. Weitering is just starting his development, yet he played consistently to such a high level. He can only get better. Plowman had a slow start due to injury. Yet he performed very solidly. With fitness and another preseason, i expect an even better performance . Byrne is such an exciting player, but injuries this year cut his season short. His upside seems enourmous. Simpson and Docherty have had outstanding years. Its hard to see simmo improving on this year but , his body is resilient. Docherty has had a breakout year, and i expect even better next year. Touhy has also been excellent. Rowe seems to have thrived in the team defence environment. Considering the development potential, it seems hard to imagine our defence not being one of the best in the competition.
MIDFIELD. our stocks are thin in the midfield , no doubt. We are at least 2 class midfielders short. But the good news is that sos will be on to the job.
The injured Murphy showed his importance to our midfield in his absence. Cripps will only get better, which is amazing given his high level of achievement so far. Gibbs will thrive in a midfield that runs deeper. Curnow has had a chance to move out from his pure tagging role, and has thrived.
But once the rotations kick in we struggle. Graham, Kerridge and Wright are not the answer. Any class midfield addition will be significant upgrades on these 3, and we desperately need this to happen. And it will. So with at least two midfield additions, i expect a significant improvement-especially with murphy coming back in, and the likely performance increases to gibbs and cripps with others to share the load.
FORWARDS
Its hard not to be excited about our forward line in 2017.
Silvagni has already shown his class. With a full preseason, his speed and endurance will improve. And it needs to , as this has been his weakness. Which only underlines how good he is- his game against brisbane, giving us a glimpse of what he is capable of. A beautiful kick of the ball, means he wont need to get it often, to have a massive impact on the scoreboard. Yet he is likely to be able to improve significantly in his ball winning ability with his extra fitness and a bigger body.
Curnow. Another beautiful kick. Already with elite endurance. I expect a much bigger charlie to come out next year, after another preseason in the gym. A great mark , mobile with a great tank, he us likely to run defenders off their feet. He us a prodigious kick , being able to kick them from outside 50 m.
Harry. Didnt get on the park to show us what he is capable of. Internally rated as possibly the best of the 2015 draftees, which is amazing given how the others have performed already. Needs a big preseason to hopefully show us why we rated him so highly.
Casboult. The source of many frustrations to us all. An elite mark with terrible kicking. But he has suffered from the pressure of being our only key forward. This has affected his confidence IMO. Put him in a forward line of Silvagni, Curnow and Mckay, and he will be a real handful.
With improvements across all lines likely, and a great coach, i feel like the future is bright. We wont need to wait 5 years as some have suggested. If we can run the likes of Hawthirn, Sydney and West coast to a close finish this year, i am sure we can beat them next year
