Humble Minion
Team Captain
Went along to Pricefixer park today. Was tempted by the AIS/Bendigo game, but figured that a) Windy Hill is a bloody long drive from where I live, and b) I won't get to see much of the interstaters, particularly the Div 2 interstaters, later in the year so I might grab the chance when I can. Perfect day, but the quality of the footy was maybe down just a bit with everyone missing their AIS blokes and the Vic sides without their private schoolkids.
NSW/ACT vs Northern was a cracker actually. It looked like a case of how far the Knights at qtr time, but NSW rallied in the second to lead at half time. Second half was a repeat of the first, with the Knights gunning ahead in the 3rd qtr, but the Rams responded to the almighty bake they copped at 3/4 time, their talls got on top while Northern's runners slowed, and eventually the Rams brought it home by a couple of goals, despite the Knights getting one on the siren.
You could see the difference in experience between the two sides. Northern we better drilled and disciplined, while the Rams boys (particularly in the 1st and 3rd qtrs) continually got sucked towards a contest they couldn't influence, leaving their opponents free to take the handball and run away in numbers from the stoppage. Rams probably wanted it more - they were fielding a very tall side - 3 rucks, 6 players over 194cm and a few 190cm blokes playing midfield roles - and I was worried about their mobility, but the pressure they still managed to exert on the ballcarrier through the middle of the ground was probably the difference in the end. Rams were a bit sloppy by hand, too often missing the target or going to a flat-footed teammate, and too often their talls would spoil each other in the marking contest, but I reckon they've got some improvement in them once they're a bit more used to playing with each other. Promising signs for NSW footy, to be honest.
A few of the Rams players are probably scholarshipped to someone or other. I'm not sure which, except for Tweedale and Ryan at Essendon. And of course probably a bunch of both the Qlders and NSW guys are zoned to GC or GWS. I have no idea which, so I'll just call them as I see them.
For the Rams, Craig Moller was incredible. At 202cm and 77kg he makes Christian Bock look like Plugger, but jeez he's a talent. Not draftable til 2012, but he's got a big leap and is a superb, soft-handed mark and a beautiful judge of the ball coming in. Rotated through ruck and ff early, then stayed up forward as the game went on cos he was just so dangerous down there. Just outpositioned his opponents time and time again. Kicked 5, with a couple of behinds from tight angles. Tap work was pretty good, he has long arms and knows where his rovers are, though Longer has 20kg on him and manhandled him very easily at a few boundary throwins. If he can put (a lot of) weight on, he'll be a champ.
GWS have a good one with Adam Flagg. Mid-sized leadup fwd, fast on the lead and very sticky hands. Got NSW back into it in the 2nd qtr with a couple of goals, but in the third when things went pearshaped again he wore himself out presenting on deep leads, so he was less prominent, though still good, after that.
Jarrod Witts was part two if the three-pronged ruck combo the Rams rotated through to wear down Longer. 19yo but a monstrous kid, 207cm and 107kg. Huge. Didn't get all that far off the ground, but did ok in the taps, and his round-the-ground marking was very good. Generally preferred to handball when he could, but did manage to dob a reasonably long clutch goal late in the game, so even though they can be a bit up-and-under he can kick straight when he needs to.
Harry cunningham was arguably one of the most important blokes on the ground, simply because his sheer pace was able to open up the Knights through the middle and compensate for the Rams being a bit top-heavy. Ran hard, broke lines, hit forward targets. Really played well. Also kicked a spectacular long running goal after recieving from a kickout - end-to-end in a single possession - that would have been all over TV if his name rhymed with 'Flajak Baw'. At 181cm he's probably draftable if he keeps this up.
Potter and Caldwell both good through the middle. Potter nippy and good in close while Caldwell looked to get a bit less of it (watch the stats prove me wrong when they go up on Monday...) but his footskills were a feature.
Tweedale played a rather odd role - 194cm winger. Was opposed to genuine mids in Newnes and Storey at various times, but didn't seem to be playing an overly defensive role on them. Instead, he'd generally mosey around between the 50m arcs, dropping back into the defensive 50 to clog up space when the knights were trying to rebound, and running forward to take marks with the flight when the Rams were on the rebound. Did well, kicked 1 (maybe more, I arrive a few mins late and missed the rams first goal) and set up a couple with good foot skills. Also can handle himself in a pack situation - his hands are quite good. For some reason though, the Rams didn't look for him coming out of defence despite him normally being much bigger than his opponent. Not sure why. If there's anything I'd like to see him work on, it'd be his overhead work and his willingness to commit hard to a tackle or marking contest. I don't think he's soft - he took a couple of really good brave marks running back with the flight - but he just seems to be overthinking things or maybe lacking a bit of confidence. Promising type anyway. Looking forward to seeing more of him, but not sure if that'll happen next week - ankle injury late in the last, came off to have it iced.
Hartley, Mura, Head, and Lynch were, with Tweedale, absolute rocks down back. Really good defensive unit, the Rams had today. All of them big blokes, 190cm+, Hartley at 196 probably the genuine kpp of the group, but maybe a bit prone to being fumbly below his knees. Mura more of the semi-mid hbf type, got a lot of the ball. These guys kept NSW in the game during the 1st and 3rd qtrs when the Knight mids were really dominant.
Ryan the other Essendon kid and part three of Operation Wear Billy Longer Out. Didn't have much of a game for the first three qtrs - played up fwd early and was led to the ball, shifted down back and was burnt on the lead again. Just looked a bit slow, and when he finally clunked a big contested mark in the 3rd, it was ruled touched. One of those days. In the 4th, looking relatively fresh, he went into the ruck to try to run Longer around. Did pretty well. Tapwork was pretty much a nil-all draw, but we was able to provide a handy get out of jail marking target between chb and the centre circle when the Rams were coming out of defence. Footskills maybe weren't as precise as he'd like, but he did his bit, in the end.
For Northern, tough day. They were down a few players, but I think they were just outplayed in the end. Of the missing blokes, Vlastuin was a loss in the middle and Haynes would have been a handy fwd target when Longer was in the ruck, and Rintoul might have been nice just to help cover all the NSW marking talls, but Buckley has hardly been in devastating form.
Longer prominent, looked a few times like tearing the game apart, but just didn't quite manage to it happen. The NSW rucks nullified his centre-square work, but he looked horribly dangerous as a marking forward. Even late in the 4th he looked like he was ready to kick 4 in 5 mins and win the game. Big, physical contested marks all over the place. Worked hard around the ground - maybe too hard, since he was overambitious running with the ball quite a few times and got pinged for holding. But in the end there was only one of him, and whichever of Moller and Witt he wasn't on ripped the Knights apart.
Brandt and Totevski the pick of the Northern mids for mine. Both (especially Totevski) probably bordering on the doomy gloomy too-short-for-drafting regions, but both were quick and agile and not afraid to run with the ball. Generally used it well, but just ran out of petrol tickets towards the end.
Michael Mascoulis drifted in and out, but when he was in he was really really in. Turned it on for a few minutes at the start of the 3rd and was directly responsible for the Knights quickly turning a 2-goal deficit into a 3-goal lead. He's just so agile, is always in any one-on-one no matter how badly outpositioned he might be, and I've very rarely seen anyone to rival his ability to spot and hit a long, dangerous target when under a lot of pressure in heavy traffic. Just needs to find some consistency. Will get drafted, just a matter of whether he turns out to be a 100% bona fide gun or whether he's a frustrating type who's can look forward to a long career of being called 'the mercurial Michael Mascoulis' by Bruce Macavaney. Though to be fair to him, he was contributing well on a wing in the 3rd qtr before doing a hammy. Rams got on top after that, and in fact it may have decided the game.
Masaki Miki is a big, solid underage centreman type, a bit of pace, likes to hit hard. Worth keeping an eye on.
Sandringham vs Qld probably a bit lower standard game. Lots of scrummagey stoppages, problems finding a forward target at both ends. Sandy hurt badly by AIS/school footy - no Sharp, Paine, Viney or Darrou puts a pretty big hole in their 22. But they were good enough regardless. The Alex Woodward show in the first half was replaced by the Michael Barnes show in the 2nd half. Sandy kicked for goal with incredible accuracy (they were 12.3 at one stage before ending up 16.8) while Qld couldn't buy a goal for long periods of the game. Qld weren't disgraced around the ground, but they were outclassed. The final 10-goal margin was probably not a fair measure of the evenness of the contest in general, but the Dragons never looked like they were going to lose this one.
For the Dragons, Alex Woodward just did it all in the first half. Won contested ball at will, waltzed through multiple tacklers, took big marks, delivered accurately to whoever the hell he wanted to. Just had the ball on an absolute string and nobody could touch him. Tired a bit in the second half and spent more time up fwd, but still comfortably bog. 179cm and pretty well build, not lightning but has pace, nice change of direction, excellent by hand out of pressure.
Michael Barnes got a load of it. Just your consumate reader of the play and accumulator, with a brilliant ability to put himself where the ball is going to go next. Anticipation is his main weapon, hands come next, kicking lags behind the hands but is still respectable. Ended up with 4, just from being smarter than anyone else on the ground. Size would make people wonder about drafting him this year, especially since he's skinny, but as an underager he's got time to put some muscle on and give himself every chance for the 2012 draft.
Brede (prounounced 'Brady', apparently) Seccull is a big, chunky inside guy who won quite a lot of footy in the centre and in the f50. Attacks it hard, leaves nothing behind. Likes a goal - kicked 3 but probably could have gotten more. Stuffed up by foot a couple of times.
Anastasio is an angry little redhead with pace and good attacking instincts that allow him to compete with and beat much bigger blokes. Fast and aggressive, clean hands and hurts with disposal. Too short to be drafted, but a damn good player.
Travis la Rocca was good. Midfielder, bit of pace, worked well both around the packs and hitting a target in the open. Nice allrounder who was effective all game.
Jackson Coleman probably the dragons best tall man. He's actually a 1991 birthday, which I didn't think was permitted in the TAC, but whatever. Good size at 194cm and a bit of pace for his size, not bad on the ground ball, but just maybe let one or two too many overhead marks slip through his fingers. Played forward, back, and even in the ruck for a while since the Qld pair were comfortably on top. Didn't dominate, but kept them honest and was better than the alternatives.
For Qld, frustrating type of day. The two most eye-catching players were the ruckmen, Cabrera and Kolka. Both genuine 200cm+ and well built, useful tap work but around the ground work more of a feature. Cabrera probably started the stronger, but Kolka worked into it and was the pick of the two by the end of the game. Cabrera has a talent for getting the ball away when you'd swear he's been nailed in a tackle, Kolka probably ran harder and got more of the ball. Both can take a decent mark, though neither of them are Billy Longer or Craig Moller. The NSW vs Qld ruck clash at the champs will be really worth watching this year.
Clay Cameron (what is it with kids called Clay these days?) worked into it late in the game, and finally provided the marking f50 target that Queensland had been crying out for all game. Really showed off all the marking party tricks a bit actually - strong on a lead with a defender on his hammer, running back with the flight, judging it better over the back of a pack, even a one hander while holding the defender off with the other hand to protect the ball drop. Kicked 3, a bit undersized maybe for AFL kpp, but a talented kid.
Rolfe and Laskey both worked hard, nuggetty blond mids who don't mind the rough stuff. Not sure about pace or hurt factor from a drafting perspective, but both of them worked their guts out today.
Dalton Tucker is one I find hard to judge (though he didn't make it into the best on the TAC website, so I suppose the Qld coachihng staff find it easier!). Outside mid, got a load of ball simply by running harder and faster than anyone else. Bit of pace in close, not a bad sidestep. Can often turn a contested possession into an unpressured kick by wrongfooting and burning off his opponents. Unfortunately that unpressured kick isn't always as accurate as it could be, which is a bit of a mark against an outside mid who's going to be expected to deliver accurately. The longer the kick, the less accurate he was, generally. Pretty good by hand, though some longer and more aggressive handball would be nice rather than the short stuff. Didn't notice him doing a huge pile of tackling (though I wasn't particularly watching for it) so i'm not sure if he's as enthusiastic to run after an opponent as he is to run into space.
Peter Yagmoor very talented but just didn't get enough of it. Was hardly beaten when the ball came his way, but needed to present harder as an option. Massive boot on him though - took a shot at goal with the man on the mark standing on the 50, straight through the middle two thirds of the way up the post. At one stage bombed a clearing kick 60m from his defensive goalsquare off one step as well. Worth watching.
Bloody long report this week, i'm off to grab a steak.
NSW/ACT vs Northern was a cracker actually. It looked like a case of how far the Knights at qtr time, but NSW rallied in the second to lead at half time. Second half was a repeat of the first, with the Knights gunning ahead in the 3rd qtr, but the Rams responded to the almighty bake they copped at 3/4 time, their talls got on top while Northern's runners slowed, and eventually the Rams brought it home by a couple of goals, despite the Knights getting one on the siren.
You could see the difference in experience between the two sides. Northern we better drilled and disciplined, while the Rams boys (particularly in the 1st and 3rd qtrs) continually got sucked towards a contest they couldn't influence, leaving their opponents free to take the handball and run away in numbers from the stoppage. Rams probably wanted it more - they were fielding a very tall side - 3 rucks, 6 players over 194cm and a few 190cm blokes playing midfield roles - and I was worried about their mobility, but the pressure they still managed to exert on the ballcarrier through the middle of the ground was probably the difference in the end. Rams were a bit sloppy by hand, too often missing the target or going to a flat-footed teammate, and too often their talls would spoil each other in the marking contest, but I reckon they've got some improvement in them once they're a bit more used to playing with each other. Promising signs for NSW footy, to be honest.
A few of the Rams players are probably scholarshipped to someone or other. I'm not sure which, except for Tweedale and Ryan at Essendon. And of course probably a bunch of both the Qlders and NSW guys are zoned to GC or GWS. I have no idea which, so I'll just call them as I see them.
For the Rams, Craig Moller was incredible. At 202cm and 77kg he makes Christian Bock look like Plugger, but jeez he's a talent. Not draftable til 2012, but he's got a big leap and is a superb, soft-handed mark and a beautiful judge of the ball coming in. Rotated through ruck and ff early, then stayed up forward as the game went on cos he was just so dangerous down there. Just outpositioned his opponents time and time again. Kicked 5, with a couple of behinds from tight angles. Tap work was pretty good, he has long arms and knows where his rovers are, though Longer has 20kg on him and manhandled him very easily at a few boundary throwins. If he can put (a lot of) weight on, he'll be a champ.
GWS have a good one with Adam Flagg. Mid-sized leadup fwd, fast on the lead and very sticky hands. Got NSW back into it in the 2nd qtr with a couple of goals, but in the third when things went pearshaped again he wore himself out presenting on deep leads, so he was less prominent, though still good, after that.
Jarrod Witts was part two if the three-pronged ruck combo the Rams rotated through to wear down Longer. 19yo but a monstrous kid, 207cm and 107kg. Huge. Didn't get all that far off the ground, but did ok in the taps, and his round-the-ground marking was very good. Generally preferred to handball when he could, but did manage to dob a reasonably long clutch goal late in the game, so even though they can be a bit up-and-under he can kick straight when he needs to.
Harry cunningham was arguably one of the most important blokes on the ground, simply because his sheer pace was able to open up the Knights through the middle and compensate for the Rams being a bit top-heavy. Ran hard, broke lines, hit forward targets. Really played well. Also kicked a spectacular long running goal after recieving from a kickout - end-to-end in a single possession - that would have been all over TV if his name rhymed with 'Flajak Baw'. At 181cm he's probably draftable if he keeps this up.
Potter and Caldwell both good through the middle. Potter nippy and good in close while Caldwell looked to get a bit less of it (watch the stats prove me wrong when they go up on Monday...) but his footskills were a feature.
Tweedale played a rather odd role - 194cm winger. Was opposed to genuine mids in Newnes and Storey at various times, but didn't seem to be playing an overly defensive role on them. Instead, he'd generally mosey around between the 50m arcs, dropping back into the defensive 50 to clog up space when the knights were trying to rebound, and running forward to take marks with the flight when the Rams were on the rebound. Did well, kicked 1 (maybe more, I arrive a few mins late and missed the rams first goal) and set up a couple with good foot skills. Also can handle himself in a pack situation - his hands are quite good. For some reason though, the Rams didn't look for him coming out of defence despite him normally being much bigger than his opponent. Not sure why. If there's anything I'd like to see him work on, it'd be his overhead work and his willingness to commit hard to a tackle or marking contest. I don't think he's soft - he took a couple of really good brave marks running back with the flight - but he just seems to be overthinking things or maybe lacking a bit of confidence. Promising type anyway. Looking forward to seeing more of him, but not sure if that'll happen next week - ankle injury late in the last, came off to have it iced.
Hartley, Mura, Head, and Lynch were, with Tweedale, absolute rocks down back. Really good defensive unit, the Rams had today. All of them big blokes, 190cm+, Hartley at 196 probably the genuine kpp of the group, but maybe a bit prone to being fumbly below his knees. Mura more of the semi-mid hbf type, got a lot of the ball. These guys kept NSW in the game during the 1st and 3rd qtrs when the Knight mids were really dominant.
Ryan the other Essendon kid and part three of Operation Wear Billy Longer Out. Didn't have much of a game for the first three qtrs - played up fwd early and was led to the ball, shifted down back and was burnt on the lead again. Just looked a bit slow, and when he finally clunked a big contested mark in the 3rd, it was ruled touched. One of those days. In the 4th, looking relatively fresh, he went into the ruck to try to run Longer around. Did pretty well. Tapwork was pretty much a nil-all draw, but we was able to provide a handy get out of jail marking target between chb and the centre circle when the Rams were coming out of defence. Footskills maybe weren't as precise as he'd like, but he did his bit, in the end.
For Northern, tough day. They were down a few players, but I think they were just outplayed in the end. Of the missing blokes, Vlastuin was a loss in the middle and Haynes would have been a handy fwd target when Longer was in the ruck, and Rintoul might have been nice just to help cover all the NSW marking talls, but Buckley has hardly been in devastating form.
Longer prominent, looked a few times like tearing the game apart, but just didn't quite manage to it happen. The NSW rucks nullified his centre-square work, but he looked horribly dangerous as a marking forward. Even late in the 4th he looked like he was ready to kick 4 in 5 mins and win the game. Big, physical contested marks all over the place. Worked hard around the ground - maybe too hard, since he was overambitious running with the ball quite a few times and got pinged for holding. But in the end there was only one of him, and whichever of Moller and Witt he wasn't on ripped the Knights apart.
Brandt and Totevski the pick of the Northern mids for mine. Both (especially Totevski) probably bordering on the doomy gloomy too-short-for-drafting regions, but both were quick and agile and not afraid to run with the ball. Generally used it well, but just ran out of petrol tickets towards the end.
Michael Mascoulis drifted in and out, but when he was in he was really really in. Turned it on for a few minutes at the start of the 3rd and was directly responsible for the Knights quickly turning a 2-goal deficit into a 3-goal lead. He's just so agile, is always in any one-on-one no matter how badly outpositioned he might be, and I've very rarely seen anyone to rival his ability to spot and hit a long, dangerous target when under a lot of pressure in heavy traffic. Just needs to find some consistency. Will get drafted, just a matter of whether he turns out to be a 100% bona fide gun or whether he's a frustrating type who's can look forward to a long career of being called 'the mercurial Michael Mascoulis' by Bruce Macavaney. Though to be fair to him, he was contributing well on a wing in the 3rd qtr before doing a hammy. Rams got on top after that, and in fact it may have decided the game.
Masaki Miki is a big, solid underage centreman type, a bit of pace, likes to hit hard. Worth keeping an eye on.
Sandringham vs Qld probably a bit lower standard game. Lots of scrummagey stoppages, problems finding a forward target at both ends. Sandy hurt badly by AIS/school footy - no Sharp, Paine, Viney or Darrou puts a pretty big hole in their 22. But they were good enough regardless. The Alex Woodward show in the first half was replaced by the Michael Barnes show in the 2nd half. Sandy kicked for goal with incredible accuracy (they were 12.3 at one stage before ending up 16.8) while Qld couldn't buy a goal for long periods of the game. Qld weren't disgraced around the ground, but they were outclassed. The final 10-goal margin was probably not a fair measure of the evenness of the contest in general, but the Dragons never looked like they were going to lose this one.
For the Dragons, Alex Woodward just did it all in the first half. Won contested ball at will, waltzed through multiple tacklers, took big marks, delivered accurately to whoever the hell he wanted to. Just had the ball on an absolute string and nobody could touch him. Tired a bit in the second half and spent more time up fwd, but still comfortably bog. 179cm and pretty well build, not lightning but has pace, nice change of direction, excellent by hand out of pressure.
Michael Barnes got a load of it. Just your consumate reader of the play and accumulator, with a brilliant ability to put himself where the ball is going to go next. Anticipation is his main weapon, hands come next, kicking lags behind the hands but is still respectable. Ended up with 4, just from being smarter than anyone else on the ground. Size would make people wonder about drafting him this year, especially since he's skinny, but as an underager he's got time to put some muscle on and give himself every chance for the 2012 draft.
Brede (prounounced 'Brady', apparently) Seccull is a big, chunky inside guy who won quite a lot of footy in the centre and in the f50. Attacks it hard, leaves nothing behind. Likes a goal - kicked 3 but probably could have gotten more. Stuffed up by foot a couple of times.
Anastasio is an angry little redhead with pace and good attacking instincts that allow him to compete with and beat much bigger blokes. Fast and aggressive, clean hands and hurts with disposal. Too short to be drafted, but a damn good player.
Travis la Rocca was good. Midfielder, bit of pace, worked well both around the packs and hitting a target in the open. Nice allrounder who was effective all game.
Jackson Coleman probably the dragons best tall man. He's actually a 1991 birthday, which I didn't think was permitted in the TAC, but whatever. Good size at 194cm and a bit of pace for his size, not bad on the ground ball, but just maybe let one or two too many overhead marks slip through his fingers. Played forward, back, and even in the ruck for a while since the Qld pair were comfortably on top. Didn't dominate, but kept them honest and was better than the alternatives.
For Qld, frustrating type of day. The two most eye-catching players were the ruckmen, Cabrera and Kolka. Both genuine 200cm+ and well built, useful tap work but around the ground work more of a feature. Cabrera probably started the stronger, but Kolka worked into it and was the pick of the two by the end of the game. Cabrera has a talent for getting the ball away when you'd swear he's been nailed in a tackle, Kolka probably ran harder and got more of the ball. Both can take a decent mark, though neither of them are Billy Longer or Craig Moller. The NSW vs Qld ruck clash at the champs will be really worth watching this year.
Clay Cameron (what is it with kids called Clay these days?) worked into it late in the game, and finally provided the marking f50 target that Queensland had been crying out for all game. Really showed off all the marking party tricks a bit actually - strong on a lead with a defender on his hammer, running back with the flight, judging it better over the back of a pack, even a one hander while holding the defender off with the other hand to protect the ball drop. Kicked 3, a bit undersized maybe for AFL kpp, but a talented kid.
Rolfe and Laskey both worked hard, nuggetty blond mids who don't mind the rough stuff. Not sure about pace or hurt factor from a drafting perspective, but both of them worked their guts out today.
Dalton Tucker is one I find hard to judge (though he didn't make it into the best on the TAC website, so I suppose the Qld coachihng staff find it easier!). Outside mid, got a load of ball simply by running harder and faster than anyone else. Bit of pace in close, not a bad sidestep. Can often turn a contested possession into an unpressured kick by wrongfooting and burning off his opponents. Unfortunately that unpressured kick isn't always as accurate as it could be, which is a bit of a mark against an outside mid who's going to be expected to deliver accurately. The longer the kick, the less accurate he was, generally. Pretty good by hand, though some longer and more aggressive handball would be nice rather than the short stuff. Didn't notice him doing a huge pile of tackling (though I wasn't particularly watching for it) so i'm not sure if he's as enthusiastic to run after an opponent as he is to run into space.
Peter Yagmoor very talented but just didn't get enough of it. Was hardly beaten when the ball came his way, but needed to present harder as an option. Massive boot on him though - took a shot at goal with the man on the mark standing on the 50, straight through the middle two thirds of the way up the post. At one stage bombed a clearing kick 60m from his defensive goalsquare off one step as well. Worth watching.
Bloody long report this week, i'm off to grab a steak.
