Player Watch #22 Jacob Hopper

[Tygrys]

In fairness he has had zero preseason and a very bad knee which then led to hamstring issues. Obviously that is effecting his disposal and motor. He looks like a bloke playing in the preseason at this stage but due to our poor footy department and how we have shown to manage players this year, we are playing him and smashing his confidence every week as he cant perform.

Go watch him at GWS, he is a talented mid, next year is a huge one for him

Is or was a talented mid? Players can peak at different times of their careers and players decline. He hasn't been that player for at least 4 years now. He'll be 28 next Feb and since then we're had three years of excuses ie limited pre-season, injury interruption, learning new game plan etc. And I have a feeling that if Hopper doesn't perform as you would expect with the length of his contract and salary, we'll still hear more excuses again next year. Frankly I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Tygrys]

Worst mistake the club recently has made, remember when we got players like Houli & Grigg for nothing basically? yet we get this spud for what cost the farm...

It cost us Nate Caddy, as I should imagine he would have been the most likely player we would have selected considering our KPF crisis. Depressing to say the least.

 

[Daka]

In fairness he has had zero preseason and a very bad knee which then led to hamstring issues. Obviously that is effecting his disposal and motor. He looks like a bloke playing in the preseason at this stage but due to our poor footy department and how we have shown to manage players this year, we are playing him and smashing his confidence every week as he cant perform.

Go watch him at GWS, he is a talented mid, next year is a huge one for him

He has talent but I always thought he was overrated, even when he was playing his best footy.
he can find the footy but he has never done anything that blew me away with the ball most certainly not enough to warrant his contract. No hate for Jacob he seems like a great bloke & I am sure he is but the club seriously lost their mind on that one.

He had injuries the last couple of years at GWS too & it has carried over at Richmond, the club should have known better.
We can't keep defending this trade.

The trade got us Hopper, Kaleb Smith and Steely Greene. A lot to play out on this one.


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Those guys won't make it. and just think about who we could have got if we kept the picks that were used on Hopper.

 

[captain cotch 9]

Taranto-Tick
Hopper-Fail.
We needed 1 senior player but getting Hopper was the reach to steal another flag IMO.

 

[Boston tiger]

What worries me is that the year Hopper and Taranto leave GWS they come within a bees dick of winning the flag and are currently one game off top spot.
Would they get a game at GWS ?
Our ceiling looks like it’s middle of the road for a while similar to the era when Wayne Campbell was winning B&Fs.

 

[captain cotch 9]

His decision making is the worry.

He often runs past a player about to kick asking for the cheap handball then proceeds to turn it over.

 

[guruisatiger]

It cost us Nate Caddy, as I should imagine he would have been the most likely player we would have selected considering our KPF crisis. Depressing to say the least.

How did it cost us nate Caddy

 

[guruisatiger]

Huge pre season for Jacob if and it's a ****ing Huge if we can get his body right
He can and will be a valuable player going ahead. I still have faith but
If we can't get his body right then we are stuck with a list clogger for 5 more years

 

[Wooden Robot]

Sadly, we're stuck with him.
Virtually untradable now.

 

[Vassp]

What worries me is that the year Hopper and Taranto leave GWS they come within a bees dick of winning the flag and are currently one game off top spot.
Would they get a game at GWS ?
Our ceiling looks like it’s middle of the road for a while similar to the era when Wayne Campbell was winning B&Fs.

Ding ding, this is something most our posters will not accept, they are plodders and stat getters --TTs output has been far greater than hoppers. At least TT can go forward and kicks goals, I still believe that his best position.

 

[db26]

His got no reason not to get the basics right in footy. My take try to get trade for him.

 

[voorhees]

His got no reason not to get the basics right in footy. My take try to get trade for him.

it won't happen.
Hope Hop's goes away in the off season to invest in his body with one of those fitness/strength camp overseas.
Haven't given up on him... confidence in his body and time on field can turn his situation around.

 

[Vassp]

it won't happen.
Hope Hop's goes away in the off season to invest in his body with one of those fitness/strength camp overseas.
Haven't given up on him... confidence in his body and time on field can turn his situation around.

if you cant do the basics right, fitness has nothing to do with it.

 

[tropicaltiger]

if you cant do the basics right, fitness has nothing to do with it.

I have no issue with Jacob. in fact once he has a pre-season and teammates learn and read him and demand the ball from him it will be fine. he definitely knows how to get his hands on the pill better than most. problem is, most of our mids and half forwards are running around like headless chooks.

 

[Bojangles17]

The disappointing thing about hopper is that he can actually win the footy but almost always takes the easy option with a pissy HB or kick , nothing that ever hurts the oppo. Shrewd posters would recall in our prime I would often scoff at gws flag prospects suggesting they were grossly overrated, I didn’t ever notice most of their so called stars and hopper was one of ‘em
If everything goes to plan and we bring in 6 R1s I expect by sec half of the year that a few will really be pressing for midfield time at which Point hopper will be first to step aside on track to eventually be our VFL captain

 

[voorhees]

if you cant do the basics right, fitness has nothing to do with it.

fitness has everything to do with it.
we need a fit Hopper in the midfield come next year and beyond protecting the smaller bodies of the new recruits

 

[Vassp]

fitness has everything to do with it.
we need a fit Hopper in the midfield come next year and beyond protecting the smaller bodies of the new recruits

tell that to greg williams.

 

[GhostofJimJess]

Those guys won't make it. and just think about who we could have got if we kept the picks that were used on Hopper.

Stop torturing yourself with the past mate. Get over it.

 

[GhostofJimJess]

In 2023 He got 19 Brownlow votes and finished 17th in the coaches votes. So umpires ranked him top-10 in the league and coaches top-20.

Won the B&F. 15th in league in clearances. 11th in tackles. And kicked 19 goals which was 4th most by a pure midfielder.

I agree he’s not the best user of the ball, but neither is Danger, Fyfe, Cripps, Walsh, Anderson, Rowell … I won’t go on.

TT is a gun and we are lucky to have him and we’d do the same trade in a heartbeat.

And you can bet those same negative campaigners who want to relentlessly bag TT now would've also been carrying on with "but we could've had Taranto" had we not grabbed him, and were languishing at the bottom of the ladder and he was taking GWS to a flag in 2023 and maybe 2024.

 

[Vassp]

And you can bet those same negative campaigners who want to relentlessly bag TT now would've also been carrying on with "but we could've had Taranto" had we not grabbed him, and were languishing at the bottom of the ladder and he was taking GWS to a flag in 2023 and maybe 2024.

TT would be lucky to make that midfield.

 

[Daka]

Stop torturing yourself with the past mate. Get over it.

I think we need to hold the club accountable. Or else mistakes will continue to be made. I don't want to see us being bad for another 30+ years.

 

[RichmondEshays]

And you can bet those same negative campaigners who want to relentlessly bag TT now would've also been carrying on with "but we could've had Taranto" had we not grabbed him, and were languishing at the bottom of the ladder and he was taking GWS to a flag in 2023 and maybe 2024.

Is he better than Callaghan, Kelly, Cogs and Green? I don’t think hopper nor Taranto is so gws smartly cashed out. Tim quite literally couldn’t get a gig in the guts during 21 and 22 I think and was playing more time forward

 

[Meteoric Rise]

Is he better than Callaghan, Kelly, Cogs and Green? I don’t think hopper nor Taranto is so gws smartly cashed out. Tim quite literally couldn’t get a gig in the guts during 21 and 22 I think and was playing more time forward

2021 GWS Centre Bounce Attendances...

CBAs - DFS Australia

Centre Bounce Attendances are available from the 2020 season. Average refers to the percentage of CBAs each player has attended for the season (considering only those games they have played). Each round is denoted as percentage of CBAs attended for that round. Centre Bounce Attendance Percentage...

dfsaustralia.com

2022 GWS Centtre Bounce Attendances....

CBAs - DFS Australia

Centre Bounce Attendances are available from the 2020 season. Average refers to the percentage of CBAs each player has attended for the season (considering only those games they have played). Each round is denoted as percentage of CBAs attended for that round. Centre Bounce Attendance Percentage...

dfsaustralia.com

 

[Crumpet_avenger]

I think we need to hold the club accountable. Or else mistakes will continue to be made. I don't want to see us being bad for another 30+ years.

Dont buy a digital brick or raffle tickets
That'll really show em

 

[panatha1908]

How did it cost us nate Caddy

Our future first went at pick 8 . Adelaide used it on curtain. Then it was a GC academy player and then caddy. Either caddy or curtain would have been taken as we need key position players. I know people say picks might not work out, but a top 10 pick is the best way to snare a gun player. Sometimes you just need a few goes and some work and some don't. He hasn't really worked though which sees us drop and players now wanting to go.home or to clubs in the window.