Strengths: Scott Lucas.
Weaknesses: Everything except Scott Lucas.
Weaknesses: Everything except Scott Lucas.
Essendons Strengths & Weaknesses
- Thread starter Schmick
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Red Black and Blue
Brownlow Medallist
I’m pretty excited about Essendon’s 2008 campaign:
Strengths: That I’m gonna make out like a bandit with the bookies betting on Dons’ losses.
Weaknesses: leadership, speed, midfield, coaching, defence, etc, etc, etc.
All teams are "training down the house," all players are bulked up, and everyone’s currently healthy.
This is still Sheedy’s team and I’m "betting" on Knights& Co being lost in box. It’s been a magical 25 years of success, but it’s over.
Now what will I spend all my money on ?
Agreed.sez it all for mine. Enjoy the next few years guys at the ass end of the ladder.
how about you wait until your teams finish higher on the ladder before you start talking s**t
That would be the worst group of players aged 23-28 in the AFL.
No stars at all in that bunch.
That is Essendon's problem.
Davey a first year player, looks good but who knows what may happen.
Hille, struggling to even be ur first ruck these days
Johns, a dud
Laycock, fragile ruck who has talent but struggles to produce it
Lovett, very flightly player...all over the shop off field which seems to distrat him on field.......hardly a bloke i would want to rely on week in week out for 22rnds
Lovett-Murray, dime a dozen player
McPhee, talented but doesn't influence games like he should
McVeigh, good player-next captain?
Rama, never be the same.....
Welsh, most maligned player on the list...dont know why, does his job pretty well but will never be anything special
Winders, plenty of hype around him, only had the one good year and it was again curtailed by injury
These are the blokes your supposed to build ur team around.....that is the weakness of Essendon.
Hope he can get back to his best.....be a tremendous effort from Rama.
That's the problem for Essendon now rebuilding.
Brisbane rebuilding went youth, but had Black, Power, Brown, Lappin, and now traded for Johstone, so their second tiered age group steps up into the senior level with the loss of Voss, Leppitch, Michael etc.
Essendon don't have a group like that to take over, and their senior guys who are there are probably about 3-5 years too old to build around, so the youngstes they do have don't compliment a group to build around like the Lions were able to do, which is why they'll be competitors again a lot quicker than the Bombers will, or for a longer period if Bombers can somehow get together for the last few years of Lucas, Lloyd and Fletcher.
That's why I thought trading for Michael didn't make whole lot of sense, as it just adds to the problem they will be inbalance of their list, and doesn't look to solve any future ones. It may give Ryder an extra year or so to develop I guess, that's a positive.
At trade week and delisting time I'd be looking to add some guys in the 21-24 age group, like we did with Guerra, Gilham, McGlynn, Taylor, and now Dew, which has made us a lot more solid than you would expect from a young side. But again, we had Hodge, Mitchell on the list, which the Bombers are desperately in need of, so it'll be interesting how Knights structures the next few years.
Michael Lloyd Lucas Fletcher?
Wow, he's gotta be from Alabama or one other of those weird religious southern cults in the US.
Well keep it to yourself. It took me years to get over Jonestown and then Waco - Only pleasing thing from then until now was the demise of Carlton.Blueinblood said:
We didn't trade him, we picked him up in the pre-season draft.
I reckon Mal has been great for our footy club, he's provided a level of leadership and education for young players we didn't have.
Ryder, Daniher, Hooker, Pears, Chartres, none of these kids are ready to play Key Back for 22 games.
But Hawthorn are still sh!t...have been for years. I'm over people using the Hawks as a yardstick - they have shown me nothing. Had nothing but a Freo year last year, got embarrased in the finals. Essendon may be struggling, but I'm not going to take advice form A Hawks fan....
We weren't embarrassed to be playing finals, we were more embarrassed when we weren't.
Why are people talking or using Hawthorn as an example?
Maybe because we had a basketcase list much worse than what Essendon have had to deal with in 2004 combined with major off field problems, and turned it around in 3 years to be one of the most promising lists in the AFL, and are in top 4 contention already.
We haven't achieved anything, but you can't tell me the list isn't in good shape to make a tilt in the coming years. That doesn't amount to anything, but we are talking problems with Essendon's list at the moment, and what they can do to improve. There may be method in some of what Hawthorn did to rectify their list, maybe.
Maybe because we had a basketcase list much worse than what Essendon have had to deal with in 2004 combined with major off field problems, and turned it around in 3 years to be one of the most promising lists in the AFL, and are in top 4 contention already.
We haven't achieved anything, but you can't tell me the list isn't in good shape to make a tilt in the coming years. That doesn't amount to anything, but we are talking problems with Essendon's list at the moment, and what they can do to improve. There may be method in some of what Hawthorn did to rectify their list, maybe.
You have been rebuilding since 1995 - you're bound to get a little luck sooner or later. I'll take our chances thanks - you can have your own incompetence and wrap it up in whatever you like....
Whatever.
If you want people to come on and say "essendon are crap, they're going no where", that's fine, and turn it into a Hawthorn Essendon rubbish that happens all the time on bigfooty, then fair enough, go ahead. I couldn't care less.
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Daniel Kerr is quick, so you are struggling.
A few guns midfielders called Judd, S.Burgoyne, Cox, C.Cornes, Goodes and Gary Ablett aren't slow.
- Oct 9, 2003
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In defence CS, people use Hawthorn as a benchmark all the time and I think he does have a point.
We should be looking at teams that have had a sustained period of success like Adelaide, Sydney and West Coast (even Port, perhaps C'wood) as teams to look at as examples.
I have no intent on turning this into a Haw/Ess thing either.
Actually for a thread on Essendon its been remarkably insightful for the most part. Quite amazed that you can get this on Big Footy still.
I didn't say "Look at Hawthorn, and try to become them". I used one example of what I'd do to improve your list, and add some middle age players, and used us an one example in a long post.In defence CS, people use Hawthorn as a benchmark all the time and I think he does have a point.
We should be looking at teams that have had a sustained period of success like Adelaide, Sydney and West Coast (even Port, perhaps C'wood) as teams to look at as examples.
I have no intent on turning this into a Haw/Ess thing either.
Actually for a thread on Essendon its been remarkably insightful for the most part. Quite amazed that you can get this on Big Footy still.
That got changed into "your club is crap, shutup".
If you want reasoned opinions you can't respond like that, especially since he didn't actually what was incorrect in my post, except people don't like the Hawthorn reference. A bit sensitive I would have thought, because that wasn't my intention.
What's your point? That there are some gun midfielders who are quick?Daniel Kerr is quick, so you are struggling.
A few guns midfielders called Judd, S.Burgoyne, Cox, C.Cornes, Goodes and Gary Ablett aren't slow.
Well spotted.
I feel this season could go eiher two ways for Essendon, either they struggle immensly through the loss of a few senior players (Hird the obvious one) and Sheedy and the natural cycle of rebuilding their list which happens to coincide with a fresh coach and they could find themselves with some more high draft picks next year and a long season.
Or, they could surprise me and many others, and push for finals and enjoy an improvement from their younger core. If Fletcher, Michael, Lucas and Lloyd all play over 18 games they will always be competitive, these 4 are sensational bookends, Lucas and Lloyd especiall are the most dangerous CHF/FF combinaion in the league, but I feel it'll be tthat 2nd tier that needs to lift.
Or, they could surprise me and many others, and push for finals and enjoy an improvement from their younger core. If Fletcher, Michael, Lucas and Lloyd all play over 18 games they will always be competitive, these 4 are sensational bookends, Lucas and Lloyd especiall are the most dangerous CHF/FF combinaion in the league, but I feel it'll be tthat 2nd tier that needs to lift.
- Oct 9, 2003
- 15,667
- 830
- AFL Club
- Essendon
- Other Teams
- Bolton,Clippers,Falcons,Mariners
Fair enough. I do agree that there is a gap in the 22-25 yo's at the club.
However, disagree with your assessment of Michael. He has been a real asset to the club so far.
Fair call, haven't seen enough of Michael, except for games against us and a few others where he struggled.
Probably not fair to judge on that.
Probably not fair to judge on that.
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