Pre-Season 2015/16

[stavro#4]

As I said earlier, Jack is an extremely unique player. I think last season he went at something like 66% uncontested possession which many find surprising. I maybe didn't get across what I was trying to say in my earlier post very well. What the coaches want is Jack to be in positions to be a better/more effective player on the outside. He has such pace that we really need him to use that more in the open when we are attacking.
I don't think anybody wants to change the way he plays his footy but no player is good enough that they don't have areas of their game they can improve to become better players.
Like Armo the year before I think we will see Steven's role fine tuned to both suit the player and the team, which I think will only help him to become a more damaging and better footballer.

Bingo! as i said earlier, we can change running patterns and turn good players like Jack into very damaging players who break lines.
You then get a dominoe affect with opposition breaking structures to close players like this down, creating space for our boys.

jesus imagine having billings with the ball in 5 meters of space after jack carried the ball through half back drew a few players,gave it off to billings who hits brucey on the chest.

 

[Ekomaira]

Bingo! as i said earlier, we can change running patterns and turn good players like Jack into very damaging players who break lines.
You then get a dominoe affect with opposition breaking structures to close players like this down, creating space for our boys.

jesus imagine having billings with the ball in 5 meters of space after jack carried the ball through half back drew a few players,gave it off to billings who hits brucey on the chest.

 

[Kildonan]

It isn't being negative wanting our best player to play his natural game and suggesting players not as good change their game. I don't even sightly get how that is negative. And I'm sure they said everything you said and more. Does that mean that is the way to go. Not IMO. Armo changed his game last year and improved by heaps. I would suggest its up to Dunstan and Ross to change their game, not our best player. Anyway I think you will find it could be on the back burner.

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

 

[plugger66]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

That is so much underrating Jacks ability. He won a B&F by about 40 votes 3 years ago when we had Hayes and Dal and Milney still in the side. And I'm sure Jack will continue to improve but I don't think a player with 66% outside or uncontested game needs to get more outside. That is the perfect balance for the type of player he is. As I said I believe that the club aren't going to change his game now. They have had a rethink. They just want him to continue to improve and take the game on. And you say others will go past him but as we get better players Jack will make better decisions as he wont try to take the game on as much. At the moment the club want him to do things that he probably is best not to do. That is how the club will improve him in coming years by making him do the things he is very capable of doing.

Finally of course the club would work with Jack on aspects of his game as they do with every player. He can still continue to improve. He needs to if he wants to elite. I like the balance of his in and out game and so do the club.

 

[stavro#4]

Here is a question for everyone, what do you think will be our biggest improvement as a team?

Mine is our skills, as we are starting to see some of our boys have match hardened bodies and there experience is increasing,I believe we will have better foot skills as we can now deal with the pace of the game and pressure better. Smarter decisions will be made with the ball

 

[Cornish]

The boys look very lean and hard bodied, pace and hardness at contest will be the improver along with awareness of where the other players are running to for link ups.

 

[gringo2011]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

Yeah I hate to agree with Plugger but Jack Steven was brilliant last year and 2013. If he was't injured in between he might have made AA. His stats stack up against any of the comps best mids.

 

[CALL ME SNAKE]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

Slightly harsh call there from the Wizard.

 

[Verdun]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

yep we need patience - kids including Gresham, McCartin, Lonie, Sinclair, Goddard, Acres, McKenzie even Savage is still a young un etc. The list is looking healthy - we need to be realistic I do not think this year we will see our list reach it's potential but from next year the pressure will be on. This year is still development / improvement

 

[Axcellence]

Here is a question for everyone, what do you think will be our biggest improvement as a team?

Contested possessions

 

[Jade Buddha]

Here is a question for everyone, what do you think will be our biggest improvement as a team?

Mine is our skills, as we are starting to see some of our boys have match hardened bodies and there experience is increasing,I believe we will have better foot skills as we can now deal with the pace of the game and pressure better. Smarter decisions will be made with the ball

It needs to be clearances whether it ends up being that is up to the likes of Ross, Dustan, Billings, Sinclair and Gresham. Steven and Armo will continue to do their bit but they can't do it all the time.

 

[aussierulesrules]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him.

I think that's pretty harsh as well as I really believe he still has a lot of scope for improvement in him and will really benefit from having a lot more support around him over the coming years.

As I've said a few times recently, I don't believe he hit the same heights last season as he did in his first B&F year (as backed up by almost all the stats, which showed he was more damaging in 2013 (kicked more goals, a lot less clangers, a lot more running bounces, more clearances and contested possessions, probably more metres gained, etc) and I think the injuries he had in between took a fair sized toll.

Prior to that I think he was actually tracking at least as well as Dane Swan was at the equivalent time in his career (they both really stepped it up at the age of 23 and here were their respective stats at that age: http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/...91&type=A&fid1=P&fopt1=2013&fid2=P&fopt2=2007) and we all saw how much Swan improved from there (after likewise initially having a less than ideal work ethic, etc and getting into a bit of off-field strife early doors) and I think they have a lot of similarities in their games- aside form the funny short-stepped running styles they share!- so it wouldn't completely shock me if Jack also really steps it up another notch or two if he's now fully over his injuries and has a good crack at it from now, and a lot more support around him.

I could definitely see him winning more B&F's and landing in some AA teams.

 

[gringo2011]

yep we need patience - kids including Gresham, McCartin, Lonie, Sinclair, Goddard, Acres, McKenzie even Savage is still a young un etc. The list is looking healthy - we need to be realistic I do not think this year we will see our list reach it's potential but from next year the pressure will be on. This year is still development / improvement

I reckon the only one that looks on track so far is Jack Billings. The others have shown lots of potential but so did Siposs, Murdoch, Wright and Saunders. Steven will have another 6 plus years of high level footy left and if any of our kids make him look like he was a lucky winner we will be flying.

 

[gringo2011]

Here is a question for everyone, what do you think will be our biggest improvement as a team?

Mine is our skills, as we are starting to see some of our boys have match hardened bodies and there experience is increasing,I believe we will have better foot skills as we can now deal with the pace of the game and pressure better. Smarter decisions will be made with the ball

I reckon it's the nous and poise you get from experience. The guys coming into the 50 to 100 games sort of stage should all be big improvers, Billings looks set to explode too. Hickey, Longer, Savage, Webster, Ross, Bruce, Mav, Dunstan and Newnes should be getting into that range and are set for big improvement. I reckon we saw a big lift from Roberton last year as he settled into that stage of his career. If we get 4 or 5 of the guys above take the next step we should make a massive jump in competitiveness.

 

[Jade Buddha]

The recruiting of players like Gresham will IMO be one of the reasons we start to improve over the next 2 preseasons. We've been waiting for good clearance players for some time now and with the focus of recruitment being on KPPs its been slow in coming. Even with the high profile player trade strategy which may or may not net us anything we need to focus on this now.

 

[Gangnam Saint]

Here is a question for everyone, what do you think will be our biggest improvement as a team?

Mine is our skills, as we are starting to see some of our boys have match hardened bodies and there experience is increasing,I believe we will have better foot skills as we can now deal with the pace of the game and pressure better. Smarter decisions will be made with the ball

Ball movement for mine which I expect will be quicker and cleaner but that also has elements of what you've suggested: skills & decision making etc.

 

[Kildonan]

He's our "best player" only because most of our list are kids. In 2 years' time we'll be wondering how Steven ever won a B&F because we'll have so many talented players going past him. Trust in the club that asking Steven to improve his outside game will be good for the team.

That is so much underrating Jacks ability...

Yeah I hate to agree with Plugger but Jack Steven was brilliant last year and 2013. If he was't injured in between he might have made AA. His stats stack up against any of the comps best mids.

Slightly harsh call there from the Wizard.

I think that's pretty harsh as well...

OK - I clearly struck a nerve there - don't get me wrong, I truly rate Jack Steven as a great player, but I think we have some gems coming through and I think we will need them to surpass Steven in importance in order for us to truly be a contender. Not only do I think we need them to, I think they will be the stars we need them to be. Specifically I think Billings and McCartin will shine, but so will others...

 

[Kilroy]

Ball movement for mine which I expect will be quicker and cleaner but that also has elements of what you've suggested: skills & decision making etc.

I hope so, ball movement often gets us into sticky situations

 

[aussierulesrules]

OK - I clearly struck a nerve there - don't get me wrong, I truly rate Jack Steven as a great player, but I think we have some gems coming through and I think we will need them to surpass Steven in importance in order for us to truly be a contender.

Fair enough.

 

[CALL ME SNAKE]

OK - I clearly struck a nerve there - don't get me wrong, I truly rate Jack Steven as a great player, but I think we have some gems coming through and I think we will need them to surpass Steven in importance in order for us to truly be a contender. Not only do I think we need them to, I think they will be the stars we need them to be. Specifically I think Billings and McCartin will shine, but so will others...

Very wise clarification from the Wizard.

 

[Persevering Saint]

However you can change a players running patterns in open play. We could easily see Jack becoming a line breaker after a chain of handballs and use his speed. Not necessarily taking away from the contests in the centre or at stoppages but more getting him open when we have possession. Infact I think that puts him closer to his best ala that night a few years back were we came within a whisker of knocking port off and he kicked 3 long range bombs

I think I might watch that game again tonight, just to see the role Jack played in that game. I suspect you're right, Stav.

So I watched that last night. Fascinating game. Debut game for Tom Curren, as sub, too - kicked the goal to snatch the lead from Port in the last (reminded me of some of the goal-square sneaky goals Jack Sinclair kicked last year, just quietly). We were absolutely shafted by the umps in the final quarter - utterly dispicable: soft frees, soft 50s, all to Port, and blatant dropping the ball by Port being utterly ignored. Without doubt, the umpiring cost us a win in the end. Also interesting because it was a tale of two halves - us being about 50 points down at half-time, then almost winning the whole thing. I remember hearing this was the game where the senior players were so ticked off at Watters' coaching in the first half, they basically took over and coached for him in the second - though how true that is, I don't know.

As for Jack - he was inside a fair bit, but his outside run was very, VERY impressive. So fast, so damaging. A bit of a breakout game in many ways. To a lesser extent, the same could be said for Armo, although he got a nasty knock midway through the last, and that pretty much took him out of being an effective part of the game (another reason we lost). Mind you, his knock wasn't as bad as Roberton, who was interviewed with a concussion by Lingy at half time, and was very, very out-of-it! Bob was subbed out after that.

Good game, even for a loss.

 

[gringo2011]

So I watched that last night. Fascinating game. Debut game for Tom Curren, as sub, too - kicked the goal to snatch the lead from Port in the last (reminded me of some of the goal-square sneaky goals Jack Sinclair kicked last year, just quietly). We were absolutely shafted by the umps in the final quarter - utterly dispicable: soft frees, soft 50s, all to Port, and blatant dropping the ball by Port being utterly ignored. Without doubt, the umpiring cost us a win in the end. Also interesting because it was a tale of two halves - us being about 50 points down at half-time, then almost winning the whole thing. I remember hearing this was the game where the senior players were so ticked off at Watters' coaching in the first half, they basically took over and coached for him in the second - though how true that is, I don't know.

As for Jack - he was inside a fair bit, but his outside run was very, VERY impressive. So fast, so damaging. A bit of a breakout game in many ways. To a lesser extent, the same could be said for Armo, although he got a nasty knock midway through the last, and that pretty much took him out of being an effective part of the game (another reason we lost). Mind you, his knock wasn't as bad as Roberton, who was interviewed with a concussion by Lingy at half time, and was very, very out-of-it! Bob was subbed out after that.

Good game, even for a loss.

That interview with Robbo was frightening. He was completely out of it.

 

[Ekomaira]

That interview with Robbo was frightening. He was completely out of it.

oh yeah I'd forgotten about that. completely out of it is right

 

[ebony_]

 

[Jackbenimble]

Like + infinity

MOIST!!!