Player review vs Carlton

[Snoop Dog]

Sorry bit tardy getting this 'up'. Celebrated long and hard after that one. That win was as much about the players out, inexperienced backs and the way the kids just launched into Carlton. They were v v good last night and we should have won by 20 goals and been the catalyst for a week of pain for Mick, Daisy and the blue baggers.

Geez Daisy had one to forget didn't he. Kick was awful, staged a dive on Pendles, ducked his head in an uncontested marking contest, barely had an influence and was roughed up by a 19yo who was BOG….makes me laugh….anyway hope he enjoys spending his $750k as much as Carlton love paying it to him.

5 - Langdon
4 - Elliott
3 - Beams
2 - Williams
1 - Frost / Blair / Witts / Dwyer (sorry couldn't split them)

Ps How good is it that its all young kids!

Dwyer - BOG for mine midway through the match but ran short of petrol tickets. Defensive pressure and spread was really good early and one of the few who used the ball well from the get go. Didn't lay a tackle was probably the only mark against him.

Caf - Really good again and one or two of those frees (Daisy one particularly) was v poor and he shouldn't have to cop that. Congrats to the umpires though who didn't get sucked in by Murphy late in game when he was engaging Caf and wrapping his arms around him. Caf ball use was awful though and he is much better than that. He was an elite kick at junior level.

Grundy - Super game by the big boy and he is getting better. He curbed his aggression at the stoppages a bit and i thought he struck the right balance. Goal late was a look into what he is capable of. Thought he got paid against him at ruck bounce which wasn't there so only had 1 against him for the night. That would be a PB!

Goldsack - Hard to gauge. He played on one of their best for the night but given how often they tried to go thru Robinson I thought 'Goldnuts' was good. His pressure acts were right up again and he had the physical will to match the mad Tasmanian. Really pleased for Goldy. Was a kid watched as a junior and liked and I just feel he is really putting together some of his best footy.

Kennedy - I feel for BK. He is good enough to be playing in most teams but he is probably doing to drop back vs Crows. I think he is a ripper. Works hard, goes hard and his time will come for sure.

Lumumba - Quieter one but did his job well.

Pendles - Had the jets on early and thought he must have been so pleased to get Simpson on him! Looked to drop a gear and coast home which might be rough but he had plenty left I reckon. Looked pretty relaxed at the end of the game and I thought he was rested up a bit by the coach. Was with a friend actually who doesn't watch any AFL footy (foreigners!) and he remarked how #10 seemed to have so much more time and space. I think sometimes we take it for granted don't we!

Blair - Super game and like his GP brother having a cracking season. The pressure for spots / a contract would be felt by this bloke and he is lifting to 2010 form. 11 CP, 6 tackles, runs hard. If he used the ball better last night would have been BOG for mine.

Ball - Quiet one. Bloody good mark and goal though. Copped a ball in the head off one of Daisy many errant kicks. Daisy is a weak pr&ck and came over and pushed him over which I thought was hilarious given it was caused by his crap kick. I reckon there was a bit more behind it such as something along the lines of Ball being one of those that didn't think #13 was fully 'bought in'. Ball shook his hand at the end of the game but have a look at how Daisy tries to have a chat with him and Bally just blows him off.

Adams - I thought he was good. He would have felt the pressure to perform last night and I reckon he had his best game. Physically was into the game, missed a lot of possessions but he was in the running wave and could easily have had another 5-6. Coach would want more tackle pressure from him but he played his role well. Loved him getting into Daisy after half time. Daisy gives him the cheap one in the back and Adams could care less.

Witts - One of his best games. 8 CP and 4 tackles. Maybe gone ahead of Grundy now. I reckon only one will be played when Reid back. What others think?

Beams - Quiet start and Scotland did ok early on him…..ripping end! 11 CP, 6 tackles and good ball use. He cut them up fwd 50.

White - Very quiet and needs to find a way to get into the game more. Ball use coming into 50 isn't helping him. Still can see work rate is there.

Elliott - Close to BOG wasn't he. Geez he is flying this year and relishing the freedom he is allowed. 90% DE was exceptional given he rarely had without any pressure.

Sidebottom - Quiet by his standards but he has been up for so long he may have tired. They also paid him much closer attention.

Keefe - Did a really good job and could have gotten votes. Kept his bloke when heat was on and you would have to say his composure is getting better and better. Doesn't get a heap of it but always seems to make a good decision

Thomas - Was ok. He just needs a good run of games.

Williams - Outstnading. With Waite out Gartlett and Henderson were key for them and this bloke who has played 1 pre season game, 3/4 a VFL game comes in and completely smashes him.

Cloke - Quiet but could have ended with 4 goals. Work rate was good and was involved just a shame didn't kick a few more.

Swan - 30+ again and was good. Ball use was average at best but he is working hard and getting back and fwd. That is the key for him. Just run. 8 CP was probably the best bit about the game for him.

Langdon - BOG. Composure, ball use and ability to go in and get it was outstanding. Outmarked Warnock at one stage! He is going to be a v v good player. I saw him in '12 as a junior and then again last year. His pace of development is really amazing. I loved how he was prepared to hook into Daisy….just loved it.

Frost - Super game on Henderson and really should get votes. He, Murphy and Waite were the only ones I was worried about last night. He shut him out for the most part and had 100% DE.

 

[Manic Magpie]

Regarding playing only one of Witts and Grundy when Reid returns, both guys are great together and are playing their best football as a combo. White should make way for Reid, not Witts or Grundy. Good write up, Snoop. Player review is my favourite after game thread.

 

[Swanny36]

I think that if White keeps playing like that then it could just be a straight swap, Reid comes in for White, Witts and Grundy stay in.
There is absolutely no reason to take one of them out whilst they're playing the way they are.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

 

[Giant Sphinx]

Really liked Adams game. Some of his kicks weren't the best but his pressure and tackling was great. Played in a foreign spot but did well. Put his hand up and that's all you can ask from guys coming in.

 

[lozza63]

Nice work Snoop. My thoughts

Dwyer - just mopped up supremely especially in the second quarter would have had him in the votes but his going off just meant he didnt finish it off.

Caff thought he won his battle against Murphy - 20 possessions for their capt wasnt enough imo. Didnt allow Murphy to impose himself with his run.

Brody - gee this kid loves to run with the ball thought he was ok - should have lowered his eyes with Bally alone in the square. His running goal at the end was massive.

Sack - great presence from him tackling and chasing things all footy purists love to see.

BenKen - yeah did some nice things agreee with Snoop will lose his spot (is the the sponsorship curse?)

Lumumba - i thought he was taken out of the game really - poor night overall for "H".

Pendles - looked to be carving it up in the first half - didnt really finish it off for mine.

Blairy - top game i reckon he's been feeling the kids breath down his neck and he wants his spot!

Bally - not sighted in the first quarter possibly the least effective i've seen him ever!

Adams - this kid is cut from granite but somehow i felt his decision making was average especially when not under pressure - was expecting more from him after his PS game against the Cats.

Witts - bloody great game and even sold a little candy there on the southern wing - loved that he hit the scoreboard too.

Beams - a little like Bally in the first then really got into it - i'm sure he's welcoming the bye more than anyone after the pummelling he received!

White - beaten by White!

Elliott - gee this kid is just a gem fast becoming my favourite player (sorry Trav) - really hurt the Blues on the scoreboard and is effective when drifting down back - a complete player and in this form is close to the best small forward in the business.

Steele - never really got into it last night fumbled and bumbled around uncharacteristically for me.

Keeffe - thought he did a good job along with most of the backline - looks to have cemented a spot in the 21 atm.

JT - didnt really seem to shine perhaps played that anonymous type of game.

Marley - gee this kid is impressive first game back after such a trying three months - well done marls.

Travis - i saw heaps of improvement there tonight looks ready to snag a bag!

Swanny - yeah workmanlike 30+ touches but didnt really hurt them that badly enough with them unfortunately.

Langdon - what a star this kid is - composed with his kicking reads the play so well and his marking wow - 7 of the best games from a debutant ever - has he had a rising star nom yet - should have had two by now if not!

Frost - great game - will keep Browny out with this type of form imo.

Overall it was a fine team performance marred by a less than acceptable last quarter fade out - i'm not certain why we have developed this habit but as a fan i find it annoying that the players couldnt have really ground the Blues into the turf. Surely the lads werent physically fatigued given we only layed 65 tackles and won 131 contested possessions - showing that this game was one of the least intense of the year imo.

Come on boys we need a top 3 spot and percentage was on offer!

 

[Pie eyed]

Absolutely the best thing about the win....the names of the extremely young in our best...

5 - Langdon
4 - Elliott
3 - Beams
2 - Williams
1 - Frost / Blair / Witts / Dwyer (sorry couldn't split them)

 

[Pendles!]

I always look forward to your player review Snoop, good work again.

I agree on Adams, thought he looked real good with ball in hand and found it well just tried to do to much with it.

Where do you see Ben Kennedy long term? I reckon he puts on a bit of weight and comes in as a more damaging version of Blair. Would like to see more of him in the one's, which I'd say will happen through the middle of the year.

 

[Big Bryza]

Not since Neon Leon in his prime have we had a player that the crowd goes nuts for when he gets possession. We have another now, Billy Elliot is the man.

 

[jonbe54]

Three standout impressions for me on the night, although I must admit I set myself to watch for them.

The ruckwork and around the ground performance of our two young Turks is improving steadily and is a sign of wonderful things to come.

Langdon is part of our answer to the Hawks running backs, talented and poised with fine disposal - just think of the potential with Shazza, Langdon and Reid in that back half. All serviceable to great in the air, all composed and good at ground level and all fine users of the ball. This is Hawthorns strength area and one of the reasons they can dominate teams - we look to be building a similar capability.

The single most inspiring and awesome act of the night was Grundy's running goal late in the game, we need to give him the opportunity to do more of this. It makes him fearsome because it means he can't be discounted at any time forward of the center and he doesn't need to drift into the forward line and take a mark to hurt on the scoreboard.

Even if we have to do what West Coast did for Judd and run interference for him and clear his path it will be worth it!

 

[Manic Magpie]

Is anyone able to insert video of Grundy's goal? I would love to see it again.

 

[jonbe54]

Is anyone able to insert video of Grundy's goal? I would love to see it again.

Agree I have a huge bruise on my jaw from watching it the first time . . . salivating stuff!!!

 

[sloth6]

Blair needs to learn that he can't kick 50m. If he kicks another long point from the 50 I'll throw something through the tv.

Other than that, you couldn't be unhappy with any of them for the first three quarters.

 

[Quicky]

I must say that I have a different view of most on Keeffes game. And I am a Keeffe fan in the face of much of his criticism. I thought he flapped about a bit last night, got caught body on body at wrong times, or out of position on others. Considering he was in effect minding Casboult, hardly a formidable opponent, I thought his game was disappointing. Got the distinct impression that if he was on an opponent of note we would have got punished. I would have thought that Brown is a chance to come in this week at Keeffes expense on the proviso his form in the Magoos is solid.

 

[UpTheMags]

our for

Regarding playing only one of Witts and Grundy when Reid returns, both guys are great together and are playing their best football as a combo. White should make way for Reid, not Witts or Grundy. Good write up, Snoop. Player review is my favourite after game thread.

i think ur right but i just worry that our forward line will be too cumbersome. jesse's legspeed makes our tall forward line still function

 

[Manic Magpie]

our for

i think ur right but i just worry that our forward line will be too cumbersome. jesse's legspeed makes our tall forward line still function

But Reid would be the direct swap for White and he would bring his own set of skills to the forward structure. There will be so tough decisions to make when Reid becomes available.

 

[forwardflanker]

I must say that I have a different view of most on Keeffes game. And I am a Keeffe fan in the face of much of his criticism. I thought he flapped about a bit last night, got caught body on body at wrong times, or out of position on others. Considering he was in effect minding Casboult, hardly a formidable opponent, I thought his game was disappointing. Got the distinct impression that if he was on an opponent of note we would have got punished. I would have thought that Brown is a chance to come in this week at Keeffes expense on the proviso his form in the Magoos is solid.

Even though Casboult is crap he is an absolute gorilla and right up there as one of the top contested marks in the comp imo. He's also a type player Keefe wouldn't have much experience playing on which I think showed in a few contests. Even though Waite is a better player than Casboult both he and Henderson are much better match ups for Keefe imo.

I still prefer Keefe over Brown on the basis he's near as good a defender (potentially better on account of his athleticism) and also provides greater rebound. I also think structurally he works better in that he and Frost as a combo work can work against almost any type of tall forward attack. An example would be versus Hawthron - who have two very quick forwards in Gunston and Roughhead but also have a ruck/forward in Hale. Frost is always going to get the quick guys and Keefe is always gonna work better than Brown on the 200cm + forward of which there are quite a few around atm. Sydney's another good example, with Tippet and Buddy up there, Frost and Keefe match up really well imo.

Providing he continues to play well the only way I see Keefe being dropped is if we decide to keep going with Grundy and Witts as a ruck combo which means Reid will return to CHB

 

[forwardflanker]

But Reid would be the direct swap for White and he would bring his own set of skills to the forward structure. There will be so tough decisions to make when Reid becomes available.

I doubt they will drop White for Reid. White is really really important in situations where we are rebounding out of a flooded back 50. A straight swap of Reid for White will rob as of a key forward who is as fantastic at running into space on the rebound. I doubt there is any defender in the game who can go with White in those situations, we would lose a lot with him out of the side imo

 

[September Action]

I love Sack and Dwyer. I think lower draft picks can sometimes go a bit unheralded b/c people assume they're not going to be more than "good".

Witts/Grundy (?? "Gritts" ??) should stay together. Working well.

Pendles with ball in hand is obviously class, but without the ball, gee he covers the ground. Just always seems to be there in the right position. I think he can do this because he reads the play so well and can take the shortest routes, thereby not exhausting himself with burst running. He just seems to jog from contest to contest. Star.

I thought Trav was great. His kicking was sweet - a couple of the points from difficult spots were very close. He was quite unlucky not to be 4:2.

 

[September Action]

Oh, and Daisy was great for us. You missed him Snoop Dog !

 

[jathanas]

Oh, and Daisy was great for us. You missed him Snoop Dog !

Quoted for razor sharpness.

 

[Cousin of Daicos]

Pendles definitely has a different role this year. He basically sets games up in the first half and then allows the others to take over.

If you look at the stats of our mids this year, they're getting less possessions per. Game but they seem to be more effective and doing more damage.

 

[FAIRANDBALANCED]

Regarding playing only one of Witts and Grundy when Reid returns, both guys are great together and are playing their best football as a combo. White should make way for Reid, not Witts or Grundy. Good write up, Snoop. Player review is my favourite after game thread.

Nah, White becomes the second ruckman. White forward is great because he can kick ground level goals. In fact he is more dangerous there than in the air. Witts goes out. Ben Reid is more comparable to Witts at chasing and tackling and being dangerous when the ball hits the deck than White.

 

[Quicky]

Even though Casboult is crap he is an absolute gorilla and right up there as one of the top contested marks in the comp imo. He's also a type player Keefe wouldn't have much experience playing on which I think showed in a few contests. Even though Waite is a better player than Casboult both he and Henderson are much better match ups for Keefe imo.

I still prefer Keefe over Brown on the basis he's near as good a defender (potentially better on account of his athleticism) and also provides greater rebound. I also think structurally he works better in that he and Frost as a combo work can work against almost any type of tall forward attack. An example would be versus Hawthron - who have two very quick forwards in Gunston and Roughhead but also have a ruck/forward in Hale. Frost is always going to get the quick guys and Keefe is always gonna work better than Brown on the 200cm + forward of which there are quite a few around atm. Sydney's another good example, with Tippet and Buddy up there, Frost and Keefe match up really well imo.

Providing he continues to play well the only way I see Keefe being dropped is if we decide to keep going with Grundy and Witts as a ruck combo which means Reid will return to CHB

I hope we don't drop him. I think we need to persist with him. He is an inexperienced key defender and will get better. But there seemed to be a lot of people who rated his game. I thought he was a bit at sea.

 

[forwardflanker]

I hope we don't drop him. I think we need to persist with him. He is an inexperienced key defender and will get better. But there seemed to be a lot of people who rated his game. I thought he was a bit at sea.

+1, I don't think it was his best game and he beaten a few time in the air when he shouldn't have been.

 

[forwardflanker]

Nah, White becomes the second ruckman. White forward is great because he can kick ground level goals. In fact he is more dangerous there than in the air. Witts goes out. Ben Reid is more comparable to Witts at chasing and tackling and being dangerous when the ball hits the deck than White.

The concern I've got about White being second ruck is if it completely screws up his game as a really hard running mobile tall forward. There's no doubt that a similar role really messed with Dawes who also relied on having a big engine. If it did screw up White then its kind of a double whammy because not only does he become less effective as a forward but there is an opportunity cost in clearances and hitouts of not having Witts in the ruck and also on Grundy's ability to carry a greater workload which would be inevitable if White were second ruck instead of Witts.