Retired #18: Michael Hurley 🐻 - Staying on in a coaching and player welfare role! - 3/10

[Lore]

Contract Status: Retired
Last Game Played: Currently in the side
Injury Status: Comes back from injury to play his final game for the club this weekend - 18/8

Spoiler

2022
He's back! Playing a half in the VFL this weekend - 15/7
Joins main training in the next couple of weeks! - 15/6
Had a calf setback, now running again - 28/4
Wants to play a half in the VFL in the next couple of weeks - 30/3
Joined main training? - 3/3
Ahead of schedule, doing some big running loads - 16/2
Progressing well, R1 'too soon' to return, no time frame - 11/1
On track for playing return around Round 6 - 12/3

2021
Ahead of schedule, running soon - 15/12
Hip replacement surgery - 10/10
Placed on the inactive list, will not play in 2021 - 31/5
Hopes to play the last 6 weeks of the season if not sooner - 26/4
At the club daily doing 1-2 hours of exercise for recovery - 23/3
On the mend - 19/3
Apparently using the hot/cold pools at the club, progress? - 5/3
Limping on crutches with an IV at the preseason game - 25/2
Discharged, recuperating at home... again. No time frame on return - 17/2
Apparently back in hospital - 15/2
Discharged from hospital, recuperating at home. No timeframe - 9/2
In hospital with an infected leg - 4/2

My Boy Draft 2022: Claim here

 

[Coldacre]

has last seriously good game was taking J Pod apart in the win against Geelong

a natural backman

 

[Old Campaigner]

Could not work out the Norf game plan last night.

Neither could Brad

 

[Shane Hird]

Hardingham is such a good replacement for Dempsey when he's out. Get Courtney back and we have ourselves an awesome BL.

 

[84859300]

Hurley taking the piss out of Black, ran off him all night.

I saw him regularly across the CHF line when the ball was forward of the wing, most times unguarded.

 

[Darealrath]

Just looks so comfortable back there.

 

[Darealrath]

Hardingham is such a good replacement for Dempsey when he's out. Get Courtney back and we have ourselves an awesome BL.

Hardingham impressed me in just about every game he played last season. Has obvious disposal flaws but more than makes up for it and is great depth.

 

[dnbassador]

Hurley would have to be our best kick out of defence by a mile every time he kicks the ball its lethal

 

[Old Campaigner]

We are getting some great ball users out of defense. We know how good Dempsey and Hibberd are out of defense, but Hooker has come along in leaps and bounds, Hurley and Fletch are great as well, and Baguley seems to have really worked on his kicking too. That said, it will be good to play a team that actually puts a bit of pressure on the player with the ball and set up properly ahead of the play so we know where we sit in the scheme of things.

 

[dnbassador]

yeah that was the biggest problem on friday norf really did make it easy for our defence haha

 

[Don Won]

As someone said, we were excited about Hurley kicking 3 goals last year, Carlisle did it without much fan fare. If his (Carlisle's) output was 1.5 goals a game, I would happily take that over the course of the season (33 goals). If JD can average a goal a game, then we would be happily on our merry way to September.

Carlisle could have easily had 3 Friday. His set shot was only just off, had a couple of snaps that he hurried and skewed.

More importantly, he got himself in great spots when the ball was coming forward and had better understanding with joey.

Hurley was brilliant down back. Intercepts well, spoils well was effective in front and when caught behind his opponent. But the thing that impressed me most is his ability to kick long flat bullets. This will cut through opposition's zones.

 

[Zach Package]

2 goals kicked on him in 3 weeks. Also getting north of 15 touches at a high DE.

obamanotbad.jpeg

 

[rines]

Glad others noticed.. Hurley in some of the best form of his career.. delivering on the promise..

Wins most 1-1 contests, uses the ball well and held Carlton key forwards out of the game..

 

[silk]

He is brilliant, but funny enough he is probably our 4th or 5th best backman so far. Shows how good the defence is now.

 

[Zach Package]

He is brilliant, but funny enough he is probably our 4th or 5th best backman so far. Shows how good the defence is now.

Carlisle might have taken big pack clunks, but he also had a couple of bags on him, Hurley just doesn't get beaten in the contest and is better going forward. He is indeed, just an absolute 100% natural defender.

 

[silk]

Carlisle might have taken big pack clunks, but he also had a couple of bags on him, Hurley just doesn't get beaten in the contest and is better going forward. He is indeed, just an absolute 100% natural defender.

I mean Hooker, Hibberd, Baguley and Fletcher. It was a moderately glib post.

 

[rines]

Posted in the votes, watching the replay.. Hurley is a beast down back. Completely shut Waite out of the game..

Shame we wasted three years trying to turn him into a forward because of team balance. The man is a CHB and a damn good one. Will anchor our back line, along with Hooker, for the next 10 years.

 

[bombermick]

You can take it to the bank his opponent will barely touch the ball; he is the perfect KPD. Still a shirt haircut though.

 

[eth-dog]

You can take it to the bank his opponent will barely touch the ball; he is the perfect KPD. Still a shirt haircut though.

This post literally sums it up perfectly

 

[bombermick]

That should be a shit haircut lol

 

[BrunoV]

Thought that last night he got closer to the player we are expecting him to be down back.

The replay of the Hawthorn game confirmed just how shitful Hurley was for most of it. The only reason he wasn't given a bath was because Gunston seemed to play decoy for much of the night.

Still seems to be a guy trying too hard (much in the same way as he did when forward). He's going to have to temper his streamlined approach because smart forwards will start to use it against him (I'd try to run Hurley under the ball because he's not going to recover particularly well). Even when he wins a contest it still looks quite clumsy as opposed to the way he moved forwards around at will when we first got an idea of how good he could be.

It will all click at some point in the first half of the season but I can't accept any "see I told your Hurley is a natural defender" crowing just yet.

 

[Yoda_]

Thought that last night he got closer to the player we are expecting him to be down back.

The replay of the Hawthorn game confirmed just how shitful Hurley was for most of it. The only reason he wasn't given a bath was because Gunston seemed to play decoy for much of the night.

Still seems to be a guy trying too hard (much in the same way as he did when forward). He's going to have to temper his streamlined approach because smart forwards will start to use it against him (I'd try to run Hurley under the ball because he's not going to recover particularly well). Even when he wins a contest it still looks quite clumsy as opposed to the way he moved forwards around at will when we first got an idea of how good he could be.

It will all click at some point in the first half of the season but I can't accept any "see I told your Hurley is a natural defender" crowing just yet.

Is Hurley better suited to playing deep and Hooker outside the defensive 50?

 

[drew_j]

It's good to see he can be an answer for Waite. He carved us up second Blues game last year. Scared me coming into this game.

Mind you the team effort as a whole probably helped

 

[eth-dog]

It's good to see he can be an answer for Waite. He carved us up second Blues game last year. Scared me coming into this game.

Mind you the team effort as a whole probably helped

He didn't kick a goal in the return fixture

 

[Yoda_]

I know you don't want to get ahead of ourselves rines but Hurley looks so much more comfortable down back.

 

[drew_j]

He didn't kick a goal in the return fixture

Correct, my bad I was thinking about R 11 where he kicked 7.