sr36
TheBrownDog
Murphy played forward, back flank and wing in his first few years, couldn't get an easy kick and always, even at his best, had mediocre skills. Not sure where you saw the good skills and reading of the play.
Player Watch Jakob Ryan
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Ryan and Murphy are a bit different for mine
Murphy a few cm taller which helped him play as an… undersized (by todays standards)… key back
Murphy whilst lean as a draftee, already had some shoulders on him… he was able to put the key position size on to his frame
Ryan more of a Maynard than Murphy type of defender for mine… but probably minus the burst of pace that a defender like that needs
And doesn’t really have the intercept marking to be a Howe replacement
I’d be playing Ryan on the wing at VFL level
Could go from a on average 17 disposal, 5 mark game down back at VFL level to a 25 disposal, 5 mark game on a wing
And his running endurance and relative height for such a role could be a point of difference there
Murphy a few cm taller which helped him play as an… undersized (by todays standards)… key back
Murphy whilst lean as a draftee, already had some shoulders on him… he was able to put the key position size on to his frame
Ryan more of a Maynard than Murphy type of defender for mine… but probably minus the burst of pace that a defender like that needs
And doesn’t really have the intercept marking to be a Howe replacement
I’d be playing Ryan on the wing at VFL level
Could go from a on average 17 disposal, 5 mark game down back at VFL level to a 25 disposal, 5 mark game on a wing
And his running endurance and relative height for such a role could be a point of difference there
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Finally someone else jumps in here. I felt like I was losing my mind with that ludicrous reimagining of Murphy's early career.
sr36
TheBrownDog
Murphy always had incredible commitment to the contest. What he added was incredible judgement and timing. That wasn't always there. For a while his signature move was throwing himself at the footy when not quite in position to impact, leaving him on the ground and out of the contest as the ball was swept away.
Josh had all the skills and showed some real signs, there was a game against North, down the back, extracted himself out of trouble and laced someone (can't remember who?) off the left down the middle. It took Josh time to build but the talent was there, he wasn't AFL ready early and was lucky to get a few games. Maybe I was looking at him through my Daicos pink rose coloured glasses but I always felt there was something there.
I'm not sure with Jakob, I'm hoping he can show some signs and lets hope we look back and say most got this one wrong.
I couldn't see it in Murphy early, couldn't understand why we thought he was a top 10 prospect and potentially picked at where we got Stepho. throwing yourself at every contest gets you a long way in juniors, at AFL level you need a heap more going for you.
He turned out a real difference maker in our team, sometimes it just takes time and putting the hard yards in. (Dane Swan?)
What I noticed about Murphy early career was that he seamed to read the ball well in the air and often got his hands to the ball but seamed to drop it most of the time. After he came back in 2022 his stronger body enabled him to complete these marks more easily. Agree with the rest.
Mollythedolly
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At every VFL match I went to where he played. Not sure who you were watching.
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On a average a 25 possession five mark game on the wing..? That would make him close to an AA wingman..
I don't see any actual attributes in him that suggest he's suitable for a wing role at AFL level. Wing seems to be a position that a lot of Bigfooty people think players who have failed at their primary position might go to succeed.
The two attributes you've called out are endurance and height. On endurance - sure, he won a time trial against a few young blokes and a few old blokes, but time doesn't make him an elite in endurance.
On height - it is the most overrated feature for wingman that people keep talking about. The number of people that recommend we should be playing 'tall' mobile players on a wing because of their height is one of my main frustrations. Year after year the best wingman are small, highly skilled, good speed / endurance combination. Height doesn't play a part.
At AFL level I didn't really notice his good skills early career. Although I vagley remember this more at VFL level. But this may have been more of an opportunity thing. I did notice that he read the ball well in the air although he struggled to complete many marks.
sr36
TheBrownDog
He didn't have good skills. Favoured chest marks because his hands weren't great (probably cost him a concussion or two). Kicked it down the line or safe sideways because he wasn't trusted with harder kicks. Pretty safe at ground level.
Bacame an excellent kpd in our system because his judgement, timing and committment to the contest were outstanding.
Mollythedolly
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Bit like Tooves, a lot of people couldn’t see it, but I was on their respective bandwagons early.
Do_Beta_Rapport
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Given his running capacity perhaps some time on the wing beckons.
Jen2310
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Seems like a no brainer, not everyone can run like he can, so makes sense.. and not like we have a ton of young wingers
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I’d play him in the centre all season
Jen2310
Premium Platinum
He's not lightning fast, he's not slow either. He's alright
Always had elite burst speed
Just goes to show, every player has to have a real strength that they can maximise to make it at the AFL level.
For some players it's really only one narrow thing, but in the right role it can be enough..
The issue with players like Ryan and McRae is that I can't see even one top attribute on display. For these vanilla players, it's hard to see where they fit in other than depth
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This is probably at the core of it
I'd like to see Ryan in the middle, not just bc he has speed to break away from the contest, I also want to see some strength and willingness for the hard ball
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I said at VFL level…
But alright the … 20 touches then on a wing…
As for regarding height for the wing as inconsequential
Wingers are not always as short as you say they are
Kamdyn Macintosh
188cm
Ollie Dempsey 187cm
Blake Acres 191cm
Bailey Banfield 190cm
At
186cm WHE and 186cm Perryman has spent decent amounts of time on the wing previously
So if given the choice between 2 wingers of similar ability… I’ll take the one who is taller because it will aid with marking and providing a better target to kick to
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TradeDraft
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I would not use the Word Fast when Explaining Sidebottom
sr36
TheBrownDog
I said at VFL level…
But alright the … 20 touches then on a wing…
As for regarding height for the wing as inconsequential
Wingers are not always as short as you say they are
Kamdyn Macintosh
188cm
Ollie Dempsey 187cm
Blake Acres 191cm
Bailey Banfield 190cm
At
186cm WHE and 186cm Perryman has spent decent amounts of time on the wing previously
So if given the choice between 2 wingers of similar ability… I’ll take the one who is taller because it will aid with marking and providing a better target to kick to
I think the point is that there's long been talk of playing KPP types on the wing but it's just not how the role has gone - it's a runners role - you very rarely kick to contests on the wing that don't involve rucks and/or KPPs so guys like Perryman and Acres extra height isn't useful, as they stay down leaving the pack work to the aerial specialists. It would come in handy when they're dropping into holes in defence though - Sidey gets caught one out too often because he runs so hard and is first man back quite often - but even then that's a product of him being such a good runner - which is first and foremost for a wing.
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I said at VFL level…
But alright the … 20 touches then on a wing…
As for regarding height for the wing as inconsequential
Wingers are not always as short as you say they are
Kamdyn Macintosh
188cm
Ollie Dempsey 187cm
Blake Acres 191cm
Bailey Banfield 190cm
At
186cm WHE and 186cm Perryman has spent decent amounts of time on the wing previously
So if given the choice between 2 wingers of similar ability… I’ll take the one who is taller because it will aid with marking and providing a better target to kick to
I'm not saying wingers need to be short. I'm saying winger need to be elite speed/endurance runners who cover a lot ground both ways, run and carry, receive handballs from stoppage players, link through the middle, and deliver with very good skills very regularly. I don't care whether they are 175 cm or 200 cm.
What I am saying is that the presence of height doesn't make up for the absence of the above.
