Players who looked like they'd become stars but who didn't reach them heights.

[grizzlym]

Alex McDonald... now, if memory serves me, and indeed if the rumour is true, we traded to get the number one spot to snare a P Sumich. But he was subsequently pre-selected by the Eagles and left us high and dry. Or something like that.

 

[Scrads]

Luke Brennan
Luke McCabe
Nick Stone
Matthew Ball

did we ever have a player with the surname 'Crane' ?

 

[Jane Doe]

What about Paul Dear? Had a fantastic 1991 final series. Seemed to struggle after that.

 

[Roger Rogerson]

Let's hope Max Bailey isn't a name that makes this thread in a few years.

 

[grizzlym]

What about Paul Dear? Had a fantastic 1991 final series. Seemed to struggle after that.

Defenders worked out how to play him. He only had a left foot, and he loved to wheel around onto it. They cut that space out.

Andy Gowers was one I had high hopes for. Saw him take a slips catch at Arctic Park very early on in his career - parallel to the ground at full stretch - and thought, 'we've got one here'. Sadly, that didn't eventuate either.

 

[burner1]

Brad lloyd - saw his first afl game and thought he'd be a gun
lance picone - wasted talent
adrian cox - as above
Brett Johnston - just never improved
muston - just never go close the the level of his first game
thorp - had talent to burn.
Ben Kane - just could never step up to afl level

 

[Adelaide Hawk]

Alex McDonald... now, if memory serves me, and indeed if the rumour is true, we traded to get the number one spot to snare a P Sumich. But he was subsequently pre-selected by the Eagles and left us high and dry. Or something like that.

You're telling me something I haven't heard before. I doubt it would have been Sumich because he started with the Eagles the year before we picked up McDonald, and beside .. why did we need Sumich when we had Dunstall?

I'm pretty sure it was McDonald that was targetted, and we swapped a number of players to secure the No.1 pick. If you know any more, I'd be interested to hear about it.

 

[grizzlym]

You're telling me something I haven't heard before. I doubt it would have been Sumich because he started with the Eagles the year before we picked up McDonald, and beside .. why did we need Sumich when we had Dunstall?

I'm pretty sure it was McDonald that was targetted, and we swapped a number of players to secure the No.1 pick. If you know any more, I'd be interested to hear about it.

Lost in the mists of time I'm afraid. My uncle was best mates with Alan Joyce, and I remember being told that story about Alex Macdonald. Sumich might be a name that's been mixed up with time, but I'm fairly certain we put ourselves in a position to grab the player we wanted but they were unavailable. I'll ask around and let you know.

 

[Hawk Dork]

My memory
Was he was going to be a star
It was the first ever no1 draft pick and the science hadn't been honed yet.
(still seems a bit hit and miss) insert sad face gif

 

[The Swert]

Every player from 1997-2006 with the exception of Crawford

 

[Hawk43]

There's a name I'd completely forgotten.. he made an awesome smother at Waverley (maybe) to win us a game. Maybe the only thing he ever did.. Definitely seemed to underperform

How could you forget the comeback of the century game against stkilda, the 80m chase and tackle to win a holding the ball decision, got a 50m penalty as a result and goaled to bring us back to i think 2 goals

 

[Great 2008]

Stephen Jurica..........when he came over from the Tigers I became deluded and thought he could automatically be the next Dunstall.

Must have been confused by his head.

 

[mark1234]

Good to see Adrian Cox in here.

Timmy Hargreaves was a favourite of mine also.


And then of course there was Brett O'farrell experiment.
What is it with us and ruckman?

these are the ones i was excited about Hargi and Cox looked really good players,

and O'Farrell the solution to our ruck problems were

and what about the dynamic forward line duo of Dunstall and Simon Minton Connell

 

[Dragz]

Harford is one for me. I remember going to a dinner with Johnny Platten and Darren Jarman and I asked the question as to who they thought was the most talented youngster coming through. They both specified Harf and thought he'd be the next big thing. Alas...no

 

[Frankston Rover]

Ben Allan. Saw him as a 200+ game Hawthorn champion, won a B&F and AA from memory (?) and played in the 91 flag, then left to Captain Freo.

From there it went pear shaped and I think he only ended up playing about 150 games.

Had the potential to be a champion of the game but injuries cruelled him...

 

[Number 24]

Here is a blast from the past....Michael Blood. A bloody good (pun intended) ruckman who was studying medcine and gave the game away because he was concerned he might injure his hands and ruin a career as a surgeon.

Alan Martello disappointed me. He was huge, played CHF, could kick the ball a country mile but was not a good mark. Was a useful player but did not dominate as much as his size suggested he should. Went to Richmond in the end.

Another one was Kevin Coverdale. Another CHF who was useful but never a dominant player.

What about Terry Gay. A bean ploe FB. And speaking of FB's, what about that bloke Chapman (??) we got from The Bears/Lions. Great kick but had difficulty fing the footy in contested situations. Ended up at Springvale I think

 

[GoBuddy]

Justin Crawford????

Aaron Lord, the biggest hog, who always loved a goal.

Brenden Krummel.

 

[arupist]

Alan Martello disappointed me. He was huge, played CHF, could kick the ball a country mile but was not a good mark. Was a useful player but did not dominate as much as his size suggested he should. Went to Richmond in the end.

I agree with you, here, mate. I was never taken with Big Al. Many, though, maintain he was a champ for us.

Another I was a little disappointed in was Gladys. Fair enough, he did get a few bags and played several good games. But nowhere near consistent enough for mine.

 

[mrcurly]

This thread is going to become a monster, it would be better to ask who looked like being a star and actually became one, that list would be pretty short.

Big Al - yep, i thought he was a bit of a slow moving roadblock for much of his career. Sure he could unload a 90 metre torpedo, but for every one that worked there were ten mongrels. Michael Tuck was the only (Hawthorn) consistent torpedo boomer i have seen, could ping it 80- 90 metres. Als body work was ok, but his marking attempts were pretty appalling at times, often would just give up and palm/flick the ball further forward.

I guess everybody can recall (or has seen) Big Als '71 GF heroics - getting his dislocated finger pulled back into position on the boundary, that game carried him through quite a few underperforming patches. Similar to John Hendrie after his great grand final performance.

 

[IBleedBrownNGold]

David Loats. Drafted from the Leopold Footy Club, he just couldn't get on the park for any length to develop at AFL level.

Why is it that our club has so much bad luck when it comes to ruckmen??

 

[grizzlym]

Off topic, but re the ruck curse, I reckon we need to all chip in and get a voodoo priestess to rid us of the curse.

 

[The Jet From Poowong]

Off topic, but re the ruck curse, I reckon we need to all chip in and get a voodoo priestess to rid us of the curse.

On the ruckman line of thinking, Stevie Lawrence was the biggest disappointment for mine. He was absolutely dominant during 1991 after a few years in the system I thought at least I'll get to see a seriously dominant ruck at he Hawks - marking in packs, running like a giraffe on speed, kicking goals, used as a link man, he was doing it all. Really dominant.

And then nothing. From champ to chump.

He was after all a teacher on sex outside of football wasn't he? Something like that.

 

[grizzlym]

On the ruckman line of thinking, Stevie Lawrence was the biggest disappointment for mine. He was absolutely dominant during 1991 after a few years in the system I thought at least I'll get to see a seriously dominant ruck at he Hawks - marking in packs, running like a giraffe on speed, kicking goals, used as a link man, he was doing it all. Really dominant.

And then nothing. From champ to chump.

He was after all a teacher on sex outside of football wasn't he? Something like that.

Yeah, I agree. We've drafted some rucks who have just been duds. Others have just got injured etc. But Lawrence had it all, as you so accurately articulated. And he displayed it on the biggest stage, then he just lost it. That's what irks me so much.

 

[arupist]

Yeah, I agree. We've drafted some rucks who have just been duds. Others have just got injured etc. But Lawrence had it all, as you so accurately articulated. And he displayed it on the biggest stage, then he just lost it. That's what irks me so much.

I reckon that suspension might have had something to do with it. 8 weeks wasn't it? I recall at the time thinking he should never have got rubbed out as it looked more accidental than anything else. In those days, the head wasn't so sacrosanct, so the penalty was pretty rough. Never did much afterwards.

 

[grizzlym]

Someone posted Daniel Harford a little earlier in the thread - I agree. I remember having high hopes that he'd become a star. I was also told by someone who I respect that, 'he's Brownlow material'. Sadly, it wasn't to be.