Stefan Martin has arrived

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tap_my_scott

tap_my_scott

All Australian
Suspended
Mar 29, 2011
928
16
Mellbourne
AFL Club
Melbourne
There were a lot of worried supporters preseason questioning the Demons ruck stocks, and in particular who the hell will back up Mark Jamar.

Well, big Stef Martin has well and truly answered the call with a brilliant start to the season. Averaging 17 possessions 6 marks and 8 hitouts per game, and allowing Jamar to go forward and make an impact.

He is so versatile, athletic, fast and has added contested marking to his game. he can ruck or play at either end.

At tis rate he will be one of the teams most important players soon enough. Love this kid.
 
Thats what he showed in 09, 2010 had many worried but has has been great so far in 2011.

:thumbsu:
 

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I agree with all that's been said.

That summer in the gym has clearly given Stef confidence in his body, which has been reflected in his performances. Obviously he's been identified by the club as the ideal versitile second ruckman in this new age of the sub.

His athleticism, strength and agility for a man of his height is in the top echelon for ruckman in the league. Decision-making and "nous" can only improve.

I can't help but get excited whenever he goes near the pill. Good signs for MFC going forward.
 
I no longer feel as nervous when he has the ball in his hand. It's really exciting to see a bloke his height and size burn off other players too.
 
I always rated him and when I came online for the first time I was surprised to see how harshly he was rated amongst fans, so much so, it started to colour my opinion of him.

Glad to see him kicking arse.

On a side note: I was wondering how long it would take tap_my_scott to get a red card - Answer: Not very long.
 
Dr Opkick said:
That summer in the gym has clearly given Stef confidence in his body, which has been reflected in his performances. Obviously he's been identified by the club as the ideal versitile second ruckman in this new age of the sub.
Click to expand...
Which I think is a key to his performances so far. He looks comfortable out there with his role as a mobile tall player rather than having rediculous expectations of locking down CHB or being whisked up forward for a try when he had limited time as a footballer to begin with.

They should have drilled his ruck work from the start IMO which would have also built his confidence around the ground. Get that hardness and body contact he was lacking. No doubt his summer in the gym is paying dividends though on top of the role he is now playing.

For me, the best aspect of his play so far is that he has a good feel for the pace of the game. He doesn't panic with the ball and waits for the best option to present. Presents well in the air and has a go at ground level - much more reassuring than what PJ was. Not sure if he'll keep it up but generally when players are more comfortable with what they are doing you'd imagine they are more likely to be consistent.
 
It's funny, I always figured that the thing holding Stef back was that the club couldn't seem to find a role for him. But the making of him seems to be filling in every role as a spare parts man!
 
Klyntonius said:
It's funny, I always figured that the thing holding Stef back was that the club couldn't seem to find a role for him. But the making of him seems to be filling in every role as a spare parts man!
Click to expand...

i tend to agree personally i thought we held back his development by playing him all over the gorund then dropping him after one or two weeks... but now with his confidence up and some size on the kid he could easily fill in at FF FB OR RUCK at anystage of the game and id be reasonably confident.. i reckon he will be melbournes most improved winner at the end of the year
 
Yep, has been solid for the past 3 games. We have definitely found our back up ruckman. The thing I like most about Stef Martin's form is that we can rest Jamar in the F50 where he can clunk a couple of marks and take a tall defender with him.

The only thing Stef needs to work on at the moment is his contested marking. He does compete, but can't seem to take too many marks against another player his size. Hopefully that will come. But am really liking his improvement thus far...
 
I read that he was sick over the off season and dropped 8 kgs or so. Was playing at 109 last year and is sitting on 101 now. Says he's enjoying playing at this weight and is finding he's got more endurance.
 

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nickgrant69 said:
i tend to agree personally i thought we held back his development by playing him all over the gorund then dropping him after one or two weeks... but now with his confidence up and some size on the kid he could easily fill in at FF FB OR RUCK at anystage of the game and id be reasonably confident.. i reckon he will be melbournes most improved winner at the end of the year
Click to expand...

The reduced bench seems to have been a blessing for him.
 
One thing I've noticed is as he becomes more confident he is getting better and better in traffic.

A few times on the weekend you could see his basketball skills come to the fore with his lateral movement and decision making.

If he keeps improving he may be able to become Cox like in his ability to also play like a ruck rover around the ground. Will need another pre-season or two to build endurance if he wants to bring that to his game. Could be a great combination with the Russian.
 
The ability to rest as a key defender is unique amongst ruckmen these days and very useful. None of our other key defenders are very tall so to go back and play on tall opposition forwards, like Mitch Clark for example, is very useful. I don't like him as a key forward though.
 
I've always had time for Martin

His 2010 was ordinary, however he couldn't cement a spot as was thrown around too much

I've always said, he does intelligent things, he does things that only someone with a good football brain could do. Clearly, spending the summer in the gym has given him some confidence in his body and I reckon now he will start to put it all together
 
Stef, it turns out, excels as an athletic back up ruckman. 2nd rucks aren't expected to do too much really except not get smashed while no1 is resting. Now every stat is a bonus and he can show off his range of skills. Great reinvention by himself and the club in this role. Will grow and grow this year. Awesome find.
 
Thread is worthy of a bump. Jack Watts' last 2 months goet me thinking how much Stef has improved along with Watts, these two can pivotal to our side improving they are both, tall, agile and quick for their size with Wattsy hopefully putting on a few more kg's in the coming years. They are also versatile into the positions they can play on the ground.

Martin's last 6 weeks since Jamar's injury (note his start to year was promising in itself, but has now taken it to another level)

Kicks; 11.66
H/balls; 7
Disp; 18.66
Marks; 3.71
Tackles; 2.42
Goals; 0.5
Hit outs; 22.14

http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/pg-melbourne-demons--stefan-martin
 

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