Past #23: Kieran Harper - delisted by the club (29/10) - will miss '16 VAFA season, surgery on ankle

[LuvtheKangas]

I understand he had better stats in the VFL on the weekend.

Time to unleash the Harps, Brad. Do it.

 

[Psicosis]

Interesting to see if he is considered this week. I don't see him getting much better stats then he got, he's never going to get 20+ and 5 goals, so I'm interested to know what else they want him to do.

 

[Roos Addick]

He is one more decent game away from getting a go I reckon.

Brad has his favourite players and Harper IS one of them. He stuck by him for so long through crappy form.

I personally can't wait! I want him in this week please.


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[GremlinCRHF]

I 100% believe he can be our Wingard. I think against St. Kilda is the perfect time to bring him in, having said that, still so nervous over him, obvious confidence issues. One of my favourite players though, god I want him to be good.

 

[archereleven]

Interesting to see if he is considered this week. I don't see him getting much better stats then he got, he's never going to get 20+ and 5 goals, so I'm interested to know what else they want him to do.

He is getting his possessions as an inside mid. We need him getting his disposals up forward. From what im reading, when he goes up forward he isnt getting near it.

 

[ArjenTheGreat]

Interesting to see if he is considered this week. I don't see him getting much better stats then he got, he's never going to get 20+ and 5 goals, so I'm interested to know what else they want him to do.

Not even in the mix.
Baffling.

He can't be any worse than Anthony.

 

[Only Forwards]

Not even in the mix.
Baffling.

He can't be any worse than Anthony.

I want to see a Levi type rise next year.

I reckon that we are likely to hold him back this year until he's completely smashing the door off its hinges and even then we may not play him.

Next year though, this kid is gonna go bang.

 

[Kangaroos4eva]

I want to see a Levi type rise next year.

I reckon that we are likely to hold him back this year until he's completely smashing the door off its hinges and even then we may not play him.

Next year though, this kid is gonna go bang.

I hope so for our's and his sake.

 

[Only Forwards]

I hope so for our's and his sake.

In 2012 he showed he has smarts about him.

His return from injury has been longer than he would have expected because the team evolved while he was out.

I believe that he wants it, that he's working for it and that next year that work will bear fruit.

This board often screams out for players to earn their way back into the side, its what he's doing. I truly believe that he will get there.

The fact he's playing an inside type role getting his own ball in the VFl is a good thing too.

 

[Devington]

Not even in the mix.
Baffling.

He can't be any worse than Anthony.

I think we'd risk just obliterating what meagre confidence he has though if he doesn't play well, which is a realistic risk.

I'm with the guys that think the path forward is to keep building confidence and gaining new aspects to his game at VFL for the year, then pray for an injury free and solid pre season.

 

[Psicosis]

Love that he is being taught to win his own ball on the inside through the VFL, but can I ask what is the actual likelihood of playing that role at AFL level? Pretty unlikely I'd have thought. I know it's teaching him things, improving aspects of his game and will help his development, however should we concede that he is purely a HFF/FP?

 

[ROOboy81]

Is he completely over his ankle injury, or is he suffering from a complete lack of confidence as a result of not being able to perform at his optimum as a result of the ankle.
Was his ankle injury as bad as JWS's??
If that's the case he could be in some trouble.
There are a number of supporters calling for him to be culled from the list....I think the club will err on the side of caution and hopefully with a solid pre-season under his belt, he will be back to his best...I'd like to compare his predicament with that of Levi Greenwood...2012,2013 were years to forget - 2014 saw his rebirth...Let's hope Harper is not too far away from re-capturing his best form.

 

[Donkey Chop]

Is he completely over his ankle injury, or is he suffering from a complete lack of confidence as a result of not being able to perform at his optimum as a result of the ankle.
Was his ankle injury as bad as JWS's??
If that's the case he could be in some trouble.
There are a number of supporters calling for him to be culled from the list....I think the club will err on the side of caution and hopefully with a solid pre-season under his belt, he will be back to his best...I'd like to compare his predicament with that of Levi Greenwood...2012,2013 were years to forget - 2014 saw his rebirth...Let's hope Harper is not too far away from re-capturing his best form.

Difference is Levi was dominating for a while in the vfl. Levi doesn't have issues finding the ball. Last game I watched Harper was following the play around like an umpire

 

[Azul]

What would you take for him, a 4th rounder?

With an injury free preseason and he could be a handy player.

 

[Greater Gattsby]

What would you take for him, a 4th rounder?

With an injury free preseason and he could be a handy player.

Try a first rounder or trade with Menzel

 

[HARPSichord]

What would you take for him, a 4th rounder?

With an injury free preseason and he could be a handy player.

A second rounder I'd say, but I think we will give him another year.

 

[The Dingrel]

A second rounder I'd say, but I think we will give him another year.

Buy low sell high,,,,he's worth next to nothing at the moment, and contracted for next season. No upside in north trading him.

 

[tales129]

Looking at his stats over the past seven weeks an interesting coincidence is he has only hit the scoreboard in games he's had 6+ tackles.

His possessions have ranged from 12-17.

Seems it's all about intent and pressure

 

[lukegags]

I guess we will see, won't we....
I reckon harps will get a go at some point in the next few weeks, without ripping up the VFL.... Would that make you wrong??

Looks like I win...

 

[Phillyroo]

Looks like I win...

Looks like it.... And for your prize??

 

[WesternRoo]

Not this thread again...

 

[Twinkletoes]

Not this thread again...

It's like herpes mate. It never truly goes away completely, despite not showing itself for awhile.

 

[Long Live the King]

I like this kid but unfortunately he was probably labelled as having that X factor too early in his career which invariably translates to we expect it all the time / will never find the consistency needed to get a full time spot in the seniors.
Id rather he do the 1 percenters consistently and leave the X factor to guys like Cyril.

 

[justroyal]

My greatest fear for harper is that he finds himself out of AFL standards and partakes in weekely reserves footy while spending the rest of his time performing as a chip n dale dancer..

 

[scooby1279]

From AFL website

ONE OF the best feelings North Melbourne forward Kieran Harper has had on the field this season came after he was caught holding the ball in a recent VFL match.

Brad Scott and his coaching team had told Harper "1000 times" before that they didn't care if he got pinged in a tackle provided he was taking opposition teams on with his speed.

Brent Harvey had worked closely with Harper this year, often studying his match vision with Werribee and identifying moments when he could have taken the game on.

Harvey's message to Harper had been simple – if he backed himself, he would only get caught one out of every 10 times he took off with the ball.

But Harper has struggled to act on that advice in the season and a half that he has been out of North's senior team.

He couldn't help feeling he was letting his teammates down every time he got pinged for holding the ball.

But when he gave away a free kick after an ill-fated run for Werribee, Harper reacted the way Scott and Harvey had long wanted him to.

"There's a fine line between taking the game on and giving it to the best option, but I'm slowly working on it," Harper told AFL.com.au this week.

"A couple of times in the past few weeks, I've taken the game on and the one time when I got caught it was one of the best feelings that I've had.

"I didn't care because I thought, 'Look, it's OK, I took the game on' and it was just a good feeling that I was using my speed'."

Roos fans were treated to regular sightings of Harper in full flight during his first two seasons at Arden Street.

The No.27 pick in the 2010 national draft, Harper played 37 games in 2011 and 2012 and, along with fellow 2010 draftee Shaun Atley, gave North, widely seen then as heavy on grunt and short on class and pace, an exciting new look.

As expected, Atley has continued to develop as a counter-attacking backman in the past two seasons, and has not missed a game.

But the similarly high hopes North held for Harper so far have not been met.

Quiet in the opening three rounds of last season, he was dropped and has not played a senior game since.

Harper's subqequent form in the VFL hasn’t demanded a senior recall.

He has shown trademark flashes of brilliance, but has not put together the consistent stretch of good form that would force North's hand at the selection table.

In fairness, he has struggled with an ankle injury. It required an operation in October last year and another in late January, which severely interrupted Harper's 2014 pre-season.

But when asked what was holding his football back at the moment, Harper did not use injury as an alibi, pinning most of the blame on a simple lack of confidence.

Desperate to improve the mental side of his game, Harper has been working regularly with a sports psychologist this season.

In their sessions, it soon became apparent Harper's confidence problem stemmed from issues beyond the football field.

"I went in there thinking I need confidence in my footy, but he (the psychologist) said it comes off the back of the other parts of your life," Harper said.

"He said, 'You're not really confident in everything else so you need to work on your life outside football to become more confident.'"

One of the main challenges Harper subsequently set for himself was to knock on the doors of Scott and the rest of North's coaches to seek feedback on his game and senior selection prospects.

It sounds a simple task.

But Harper had always been a quiet, non-confrontational person, who was content to "sit back and take things as they come".

His new challenge has taken him out of his comfort zone.

He is now a regular visitor to the offices of North's development coaches, Gavin Brown, Ben Dyer and Jarred Moore, and will knock on Scott's door from time to time to check how far he is from a senior recall.

Kieran Harper celebrates with Robbie Tarrant during an early senior appearance in 2013. Picture: AFL Media

Harper is also trying to speak up more at team meetings, and even to occasionally challenge his coaches when they're discussing his game vision, rather just accepting their take on his performance.
Contracted to the end of the 2015 season, Harper is determined to fulfill his football potential.

"It was pretty hard for me at the start to do it, but I've been told by so many people that you've almost got to be a pest around the club to keep your name up in lights, so they don't forget you," Harper says.

"At the end of the day, when the club has to delist people, they're going to pick the person who looks like they're not having a crack.

"So you want to be looking like you're a least trying to get the best out of yourself."

Harper says his "really slow start" to 2014 frustrated both him and North's coaches, but feels he is slowly starting to produce some consistent VFL performances.

The 22-year-old says the three on-field things he is focused on are winning more of the ball – he is working closely with Gavin Brown on this – defensive efforts and fitness.

Harper says his ankle still requires constant physio because of his tendency to produce more scar tissue than normal, but is "almost there" and should allow him to embark on a full 2015 pre-season.

But before that Harper is focused on having a strong finish to 2014 and has not given up on a senior recall.

"Hopefully soon I can get back in there," he says.