Game Day NAB Wk 1 Crows Vs Saints Vs Power

[Tex200]

Goo

Martin and Petrenko are two completely different players and at this stage Martin is no threat to take Pets spot in the forward line. I agree with your thoughts on Martins strengths - however this proves just how different Pets / Martin are. Wishing that Martin had Petrenko's toughness, pressure and attack on the footy is like wishing Callinan was 2 foot taller so he could take over Kurt Tippett's position.

Pets cemented his spot in our forward line last year when he played 23 games, was 2nd in our team for goal assists and 5th in our side for tackles. His entire role is to apply pressure and keep the ball inside 50. We were the 2nd highest scoring team in the league last year - he wasn't there to kick goals. If we don't perform well this year up forward it won't be because a Petrenko/Martin didn't kick enough goals - it will be because Walker/Jenkins/Porps and Callinan don't.

Also - Pet's actual goal kicking wasn't as dramatically bad as some on here say - kicking 16 goals and 14 behinds (53%).

Good post.

You do realise you will start scaring people by using those pesky things called facts all the time.

 

[Vader]

Also - Pet's actual goal kicking wasn't as dramatically bad as some on here say - kicking 16 goals and 14 behinds (53%).

He started off OK - 10.6 from R1-R10. Then he went AWOL for a month, kicking just 0.1 from his next 5 games. His finish to the season was when he earned a reputation for shitting himself in front of the big sticks - 4.10 from R19 to the end of the season.

 

[AFC979810]

He started off OK - 10.6 from R1-R10. Then he went AWOL for a month, kicking just 0.1 from his next 5 games. His finish to the season was when he earned a reputation for shitting himself in front of the big sticks - 4.10 from R19 to the end of the season.

Yup - had a rough patch. However those games from rd 19 - Prelim represent 15% of his career. Overall he has kicked 33 goals from 60 shots in his career. Not shocking by any means.

I also don't have the time to go through those his last 8 games, but as a crumbing forward i would imagine the majority of his shots on goal wouldn't be from set shots from a mark- rather in live play, under more pressure which would account for a lower accuracy rate.

 

[Vader]

Yup - had a rough patch. However those games from rd 19 - Prelim represent 15% of his career. Overall he has kicked 33 goals from 60 shots in his career. Not shocking by any means.

Doesn't take into account the number of times he failed to score at all - either dropping short, or kicking it out of bounds.. but I take your point.

I also don't have the time to go through those his last 8 games, but as a crumbing forward i would imagine the majority of his shots on goal wouldn't be from set shots from a mark- rather in live play, under more pressure which would account for a lower accuracy rate.

His kicking from set shots was truly deplorable - you could literally see the fear in his face as he ran in to kick the ball.

His problem, particularly in the second half of the season, was more mental than technical. That said, his technique isn't fantastic.

 

[azza77]

I don't think a handful of games does enough.

And the number 2 was just an example. If it's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... talented youngsters the coaches believe will be genuine quality players then they need the investment in all of them.

And they need to be discerning. Can't give games to everyone because every player who walks into an AFL club has some talent (except Stevens) and they won't all be guns.

Yeah thats my point though, the crows currently have a lot of promising youngsters that are all deserving of game time. We have the likes of Kerridge, Riley, Lyons, Grigg, CEY, Crouch, Atkins, Siggins, , johnston and Laird even, just as an example. Unless we want to go into a massive rebuild phase after our premiership window, then these players need to be given the odd games here or there to fast track their development. All the players listed could well make it at AFL imo and only giving Crouch and one other player heaps of games is not going to help the future of the club at all. Crows are a very well rounded team and have a lot of depth, so in the easier games against GC, GWS, Bulldogs for example, we can afford to give these players a few extra games, unlike someone like North or Richmond who need to be going all out every round of the year.

 

[azza77]

Oh, I freely admit to being obsessive. I have my favourites and my whipping boys, just like everyone else around here... and those who I just think are flat out over-rated (which includes Martin & Riley).

We've been over this Martin thing before, but I just don't see him ever breaking into our best 22. We have many, many mids ahead of him in the pecking order - and more of them coming through this year (Crouch, Lyons - and possibly Kerridge & Riley). Martin is never going to dislodge any of our senior players - not even BigFooty punching bags like Douglas. He's a handy depth player and nothing more. That said, he'll still get a few games this year unless we have a ridiculously good injury run like we did in 2012.

** Now, if he could reinvent himself as a small forward with aggressive tackling and strong defensive skills, then maybe - just maybe - he might be able to take Petrenko's position. Petrenko's disposal is ordinary at best and tends towards spectacularly awful when kicking for goal. This makes his position vulnerable in my eyes. That said, his manic defensive pressure and tackling ensures his regular selection every week. If Martin can match Petrenko's manic defence, with better disposal than Pup, he might, just maybe, find a way into the best 22.

Just because he can't currently crack into our 22 doesnt mean that he is not a decent player in the making. Yes we have many mids ahead of Martin, but the kid has had so many injuries to deal with and he keeps coming back and showing something in a game here or there. If he can get a decent run of games then we will start to see the real Martin. The same applies for Riley, the guy has played under 20 games and is already a clearance machine. That suggests some serious talent to me. Yes, currently Riley and Martin may not be in our best 22 but that doesn't discount them from being 'good' players. I think they could almost walk into the starting line ups of a lot of other clubs in the AFL, its just unfortunate that crows have such a large rotating midfield at the moment which doesnt include them.

 

[macca23]

Yup - had a rough patch. However those games from rd 19 - Prelim represent 15% of his career. Overall he has kicked 33 goals from 60 shots in his career. Not shocking by any means.

I also don't have the time to go through those his last 8 games, but as a crumbing forward i would imagine the majority of his shots on goal wouldn't be from set shots from a mark- rather in live play, under more pressure which would account for a lower accuracy rate.

But this is exactly my criticism of Pets and his kicking for goal.

I don't have the break-up but IMO if we did, we would find that he had a reasonably good ratio from non-set shots.

It's when he has the set shots that you can see that he is shitting himself, and once again only IMO, but I would think that he has a disappointing conversion rate from set shots given that a lot of them are from relatively close to goal.

This is the area of his game that I think he has to improve on to make his spot in the 22 beyond challenge.

 

[azza77]

Martin and Petrenko are two completely different players and at this stage Martin is no threat to take Pets spot in the forward line. I agree with your thoughts on Martins strengths - however this proves just how different Pets / Martin are. Wishing that Martin had Petrenko's toughness, pressure and attack on the footy is like wishing Callinan was 2 foot taller so he could take over Kurt Tippett's position.

Pets cemented his spot in our forward line last year when he played 23 games, was 2nd in our team for goal assists and 5th in our side for tackles. His entire role is to apply pressure and keep the ball inside 50. We were the 2nd highest scoring team in the league last year - he wasn't there to kick goals. If we don't perform well this year up forward it won't be because a Petrenko/Martin didn't kick enough goals - it will be because Walker/Jenkins/Porps and Callinan don't.

Also - Pet's actual goal kicking wasn't as dramatically bad as some on here say - kicking 16 goals and 14 behinds (53%).

Agree with Peter J, great post. Ive been trying to tell people that about Petrenko but they dont seem to understand it. While he may not exactly be all that flashy with his goal kicking etc, he is most certainly integral to our forward structure. people often just look at the goals scored at the end of the day and base so much on that, when deep down there's so much more. Callinan is our finesse player, Petrenko is there mainly to lock the ball in the 50 and shut down rebounding defenders. He has the pace, strength both in the air and contest and is as aggressive as they come. He fills that role perfectly, bar his goalkicking which is unfortunate because it would mean he would be a more complete player in his role. People are also forgetting that he never really was a small forward type and would still be adjusting to this. He has time on his side to fix his goal kicking errors. He has half decent disposal around the ground, just got to find that composure when going for the big sticks. Maybe porps and wingnut should get stuck into him and teach him a trick or two