Player Watch Jordan Dawson - Our New Captain!

[Mr MysteryGuest]

Why exactly?

What leadership qualities does Keays possess other than being a hard worker?

I think you also dismissing his weaknesses as a player a little too much. It’s not just just his kicking but his positioning and decision making are questionable.

Our midfield actually ran more smoothly when he got pushed to hf at the end of season.
You can’t have a player like that as one of main leaders.

Keays has his role in the team but if we’re serious about improving then he should become more a fringe player in 3 years time.

 

[Mutineer]

What leadership qualities does Keays possess other than being a hard worker?

I think you also dismissing his weaknesses as a player a little too much. It’s not just just his kicking but his positioning and decision making are questionable.

Our midfield actually ran more smoothly when he got pushed to hf at the end of season.
You can’t have a player like that as one of main leaders.

Keays has his role in the team but if we’re serious about improving then he should become more a fringe player in 3 years time.

Where was the IMO in all that because the only part I agree with is his kicking could be better but it's only marginally worse than some mids that get lauded on this board.

 

[Dangerousfield]

Making Keays vice would be a poor decision

Correct, will be squeezed out of the team as the youngsters blossom.

Dawson a lock IMO to at least share it with Sloane.

Who ever said that the 2023 captaincy decision will be defining for 2023 and beyond is correct. Time to ditch the recent past crap and move onto a new brighter future.

 

[Golumless]

What leadership qualities does Keays possess other than being a hard worker?

I think you also dismissing his weaknesses as a player a little too much. It’s not just just his kicking but his positioning and decision making are questionable.

Our midfield actually ran more smoothly when he got pushed to hf at the end of season.
You can’t have a player like that as one of main leaders.

Keays has his role in the team but if we’re serious about improving then he should become more a fringe player in 3 years time.

I highly doubt Keays becomes a fringe player in 5 years, let alone 3 providing he stays healthy. He'll get ousted from the midfield at some point (likely this year) but he should end up finding a niche as a defensive half forward for the rest of his career (which it's a safe bet that we'll run it).

 

[Big Dub]

Correct, will be squeezed out of the team as the youngsters blossom.

Dawson a lock IMO to at least share it with Sloane.

Who ever said that the 2023 captaincy decision will be defining for 2023 and beyond is correct. Time to ditch the recent past crap and move onto a new brighter future.

I'd be ecstatic if Keays is squeezed out of the team by better players, but I don't see it happening any time soon. Laird is the only centre square mid ahead of him at the moment. Even if all of Berry, Schoenberg and Soligo (playing inside) go past him, he'd still hold a spot on the bench or as a defensive forward.

He has his deficiencies, but he also creates more than a goal a game and racks up the ball with a disposal efficiency about what any inside mid has. He's also a better player than Mark O'Connor and Jack Viney in their premiership years. So there's no issues with us still having him in our side once we are contending.

 

[Mr MysteryGuest]

I highly doubt Keays becomes a fringe player in 5 years, let alone 3 providing he stays healthy. He'll get ousted from the midfield at some point (likely this year) but he should end up finding a niche as a defensive half forward for the rest of his career (which it's a safe bet that we'll run it).

If he’s pushed to hf then he’s playing defensive forward role as the 7th forward.
He would the 20th-22nd player picked, in other words he would be a fringe player.

 

[Mr MysteryGuest]

I'd be ecstatic if Keays is squeezed out of the team by better players, but I don't see it happening any time soon. Laird is the only centre square mid ahead of him at the moment. Even if all of Berry, Schoenberg and Soligo (playing inside) go past him, he'd still hold a spot on the bench or as a defensive forward.

He has his deficiencies, but he also creates more than a goal a game and racks up the ball with a disposal efficiency about what any inside mid has. He's also a better player than Mark O'Connor and Jack Viney in their premiership years. So there's no issues with us still having him in our side once we are contending.

Not sure I agree that he is or was better than Viney

 

[Golumless]

If he’s pushed to hf then he’s playing defensive forward role as the 7th forward.
He would the 20th-22nd player picked, in other words he would be a fringe player.

You're going to be bitterly disappointed if you think that's the case.

Whoever is in that defensive half forward role is going to be an automatic selection and sitting in those 12-18th spots where they're in no real danger of being dropped, considering our main focus going forward is getting everything we can out of Rankine, Thilthorpe and Rachele. That pretty much means, by necessity, we're going to run someone with the main intention of shutting down the more important half back our opposition have.

The only way someone like Keays would lose that spot if we got ridiculously lucky and stumbled on the next Charlie Cameron, because he's a fair bit better than most of the players vying for that role in the league.

 

[Big Dub]

Not sure I agree that he is or was better than Viney

Keays looks to have him covered for pretty much everything:

 

[Mutineer]

Keays looks to have him covered for pretty much everything:
View attachment 1579724

Mate it's just hard for these types to change their perception even when presented with the facts...

 

[Big Dub]

Mate it's just hard for these types to change their perception even when presented with the facts...

To be fair, he plays better than he initially looks.

I do hope he ends up our 3rd to 4th best mid once the kids come on/ we trade in a top end mid. But it's not Keays' fault that he has to play key mid until that happens.

 

[1970crow]

I highly doubt Keays becomes a fringe player in 5 years, let alone 3 providing he stays healthy. He'll get ousted from the midfield at some point (likely this year) but he should end up finding a niche as a defensive half forward for the rest of his career (which it's a safe bet that we'll run it).

That’s a tough forward line to get a spot in though. Obviously depends on how much time Rachele and Rankine spend in the middle. I see him in real trouble in 2-3 years if he can’t learn to make better decisions and execute better. He’s golden for 2023 but he’ll want to have improved to tendon so after that. Plus he’s finished the last 2 seasons banged up, he looks like a classic quick cliff type to me.

 

[1970crow]

I'd be ecstatic if Keays is squeezed out of the team by better players, but I don't see it happening any time soon. Laird is the only centre square mid ahead of him at the moment. Even if all of Berry, Schoenberg and Soligo (playing inside) go past him, he'd still hold a spot on the bench or as a defensive forward.

He has his deficiencies, but he also creates more than a goal a game and racks up the ball with a disposal efficiency about what any inside mid has. He's also a better player than Mark O'Connor and Jack Viney in their premiership years. So there's no issues with us still having him in our side once we are contending.

Better than Jack Viney, **** me. Wouldn’t get a game in Melbourne’s 22.

 

[George Kramer]

Better than Jack Viney, * me. Wouldn’t get a game in Melbourne’s 22.

Stats

 

[Big Dub]

Better than Jack Viney, * me. Wouldn’t get a game in Melbourne’s 22.

Trent Rivers got a game for Melbourne in a grand final.

Also, look at the player comparison of Keays v Viney above.

 

[Danger in Texas]

Better than Jack Viney, * me. Wouldn’t get a game in Melbourne’s 22.

Nah don't be daft, he's playing ahead of Tom Sparrow and James Jordon

 

[Mr MysteryGuest]

Mate it's just hard for these types to change their perception even when presented with the facts...

‘These types’

Pfft

 

[George Kramer]

‘These types’

Pfft

Yep, it’s pretty pathetic, much better to be a cheerleader

 

[Mutineer]

Trent Rivers got a game for Melbourne in a grand final.

Also, look at the player comparison of Keays v Viney above.

Ben Keays 22 votes in 2021/2022 - 44 games played

Jack Viney 10 Brownlow votes in 2021/2022 - 37 games played

 

[1970crow]

Trent Rivers got a game for Melbourne in a grand final.

Also, look at the player comparison of Keays v Viney above.

That’s not a ‘player’ comparison.

 

[Dangerousfield]

Ben Keays 22 votes in 2021/2022 - 44 games played

Jack Viney 10 Brownlow votes in 2021/2022 - 37 games played

Viney probably, I say probably, had a few more team mates grabbing the votes off him as opposed to the rubbish that were in Crows jumpers.

Move forward AFC, Dawson for captain in 2023

 

[Mutineer]

Viney probably, I say probably, had a few more team mates grabbing the votes off him as opposed to the rubbish that were in Crows jumpers.

Move forward AFC, Dawson for captain in 2023

Basically played against the same opposition...Keays is best 22 for quite a while yet..

 

[Big Dub]

That’s not a ‘player’ comparison.

But it is.

If Keays was playing third fiddle to Oliver and Petracca, nobody would care about Keays playing.

If Keays was playing third fiddle to Laird and another gun mid, nobody would care about Keays playing.

Our issue is that Laird is not Oliver AND Petracca.

 

[thebirdman 24]

We are talking about Keays as if he is hogging a spot in a challenging team. If that were the case, yes we would be weeding out panicky players with iffy disposal like Keays.

But in reality we are still a bottom 4 club and Keays is simply better than most of our other mids at this point. I expect that to change in 2 to 3 years but for now he plays. He will always compete and put in decent performances.

On SM-A325F using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

The issue is that because our inside midfield brigade only runs 4 players deep that means Keays (or Sloane or Crouch) takes up a big slice of it and prevents others from developing in there.

If we ran 5 or 6 through there it wouldn't matter.

We hamstring ourselves with our structure.