- Jun 28, 2013
- 32,589
- 50,059
- AFL Club
- Hawthorn
Scrimmers being mentored by his hero Birch is genius.
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AFLW 2024 - Round 6 - Chat, game threads, injury lists, team lineups and more.
If he's fit he will be straight back inI actually think that Birch will be hard pressed to make the side. Although he is experienced and has great footy sense, the youngsters have been working quickly to improve. The defense was working quite well last year. It had good teamwork. I wouldn’t be surprised if we find that he is hard pressed to fit into that team and click as well as others. I’m not saying he’ll be cut but I am saying he’s not an automatic inclusion. Maybe like Sewell toward the end.
No. He'd be second picked in that backline behind StrattsI actually think that Birch will be hard pressed to make the side. Although he is experienced and has great footy sense, the youngsters have been working quickly to improve. The defense was working quite well last year. It had good teamwork. I wouldn’t be surprised if we find that he is hard pressed to fit into that team and click as well as others. I’m not saying he’ll be cut but I am saying he’s not an automatic inclusion. Maybe like Sewell toward the end.
No. He'd be second picked in that backline behind Stratts
If he's fit he will be straight back in
He may come back via Box Hill for touch if they want to build him up a bit, if they are eying a return in round 5 like Tyler mentioned I think a couple of weeks at Box Hill on controlled minutes will happen.I think Birch is now bonus, or cream to the backline.
No doubt Clarko has an enormous regard for a fit, firing and in form Birch - and is as you say one of the first picked.
In saying that, there's no way without showing high level performance including next to no slippage because of age and time out of the game, fitness, and the ability to follow up one performance after another, that he'd be picked ahead of Sicily or Hardwick.
Those kids are the future and present and would be permanent inked on the whiteboard for at least 5-6 weeks of lost form before getting dropped for a Birchall in the wings.
If Birch can't show 'It' in his first game or two back, he'd be at BH for 4 weeks finding it or however long it took.
He may come back via Box Hill for touch if they want to build him up a bit, ...
I actually think that Birch will be hard pressed to make the side. Although he is experienced and has great footy sense, the youngsters have been working quickly to improve. The defense was working quite well last year. It had good teamwork. I wouldn’t be surprised if we find that he is hard pressed to fit into that team and click as well as others. I’m not saying he’ll be cut but I am saying he’s not an automatic inclusion. Maybe like Sewell toward the end.
He didn't miss 2 years of footy.People expecting a 31 year old who's missed almost 2 years of footy and maybe even more, to come back and be the player he was? Temper our expectations a little maybe? Birch at 70-80% will be a good acquisition but we're a club that needs to get younger so I'm not overly fussed if he comes back or not.
36 games in a row is still damning but would love a Lazarus Effect!!!He didn't miss 2 years of footy.
He didn't miss 2 years of footy.
Same.He’ll play Easter Monday v Geelong. Can’t wait.
You must be expecting Birch to be about a 3rd of the player he was pre injury, that's the only way he's hard pressed to make the side if fit.
Depends how he comes back, realTige.People expecting a 31 year old who's missed almost 2 years of footy and maybe even more, to come back and be the player he was? Temper our expectations a little maybe? Birch at 70-80% will be a good acquisition but we're a club that needs to get younger so I'm not overly fussed if he comes back or not.
I actually think that Birch will be hard pressed to make the side. Although he is experienced and has great footy sense, the youngsters have been working quickly to improve. The defense was working quite well last year. It had good teamwork. I wouldn’t be surprised if we find that he is hard pressed to fit into that team and click as well as others. I’m not saying he’ll be cut but I am saying he’s not an automatic inclusion. Maybe like Sewell toward the end.
Depends how he comes back, realTige.
I've posted that I felt he'd lost agility & his capacity to change direction at pace by the end of 2016, so if he comes back similarly restricted with regard to turning or without his acceleration then you're probs correct - he'll not add to the team.
But... If it's been a pain management issue (or whatever) & he's past it now; &, his acceleration/agility has returned, then I see no reason that he won't return close enough to previous levels.
Skill/talent wise, he should (to my understanding) be relatively unaffected. It's not like he relied on his ability to leap etc., which has been taken away.
If he can accelerate & he can turn then I can't see why he doesn't return to early 2016 form.
My feed is very quite, I’m getting a little lonelyI just don't understand. If you don't like someone, just ignore them and their opinion.
Then you'll be left with everyone you like!
Wat?Sicily hardwick stratton impey all seem certainties for our backline so far, then theres Frawey who seems next to a certainty and one or two(including a bench spot) more backline spots for Brand, Glass, Scrimshaw, Birchall and TOB to contest for assuming all above are fit. Seems like birchall will be fairly hard pressed for selection imo.