Opinion THORP: The Good, The Bad and all the Unknowns in-between

Would you be happy to pick-up Thorp at #39 or #51


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    101
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As I have said before I went to school with Mitch, he dominated football at school level, he was literally to good for it. The school made an exception that he didn't have to play school football over club. This isn't Mitch's fault that as a junior he was a million times better than anyone else, it still takes a lot of effort and commitment to get drafted. Yes, he had an attitude problem, but he was easily the best Tassie player of his age. His head probably got pumped up by all those around him.

I know people who have also played under him and my Dad watched a few games this season. He wants to play AFL again, he's matured, sure he is probably still a bit of an ego, but so what. Daisy Thomas has a massive ego as would many others. We are crying out for a player of his type. Rowe and Levi are battlers but they're not game changers. Thorp has the potential to be so.
 
If we select Mitch with our last pick in the rookie draft and appoint him captain/coach of the Northern Blues, will his paypacket still fall within the salary cap? :rolleyes:
 
Different footballers , at least Nahas can get a kick at the AFL level and apply forward pressure . Thorp struggled to do this in his highlight packages playing against dwarfs at country football . The pace of the AFL will be his greatest handicap . Not his head .


So let me guess.....you have never seen Mitch play, you don't know anyone who has seen him play, the entire basis for you post is a 60 sec youtube reel? Thorpe is very mobile, has good pace, leads up and creates space on his opponent coming back in. He does take pack marks although he is not overly strong for a key forward but he is pretty good at forward pressure.

Suggest that you look a bit more widely before you make such strong statements based on no information.
 
Here is a link to the rundown on the NEAFL v TSL game played earlier on in the year.

http://preview.tinyurl.com/mhfczzu

and for the record I voted no. TSL is a fair way off VFL, and VFL is a big jump to AFL. No way he is good enough for AFL. If he was serious about an AFL comeback he would of taken the VFL or SANFL route.
 
Here is a link to the rundown on the NEAFL v TSL game played earlier on in the year.

http://preview.tinyurl.com/mhfczzu

and for the record I voted no. TSL is a fair way off VFL, and VFL is a big jump to AFL. No way he is good enough for AFL. If he was serious about an AFL comeback he would of taken the VFL or SANFL route.


Agree that TSL is a long way from AFL but it is also a well worn route with a number of players making a successful transition. Mitch Thorpe could not have done more on the filed to impress this year, other than, as you say, playing in a higher league. However, I would not hold the league against him. Many players have got to the AFL and performed well via the TSL route and I think that it is fair to say that in Mitch Thorpe's case, there were other considerations such as family that he also needed to get right.

Not saying we should draft him, just that it should be looked at with balance.
 
No way he is good enough for AFL. If he was serious about an AFL comeback he would of taken the VFL or SANFL route.
He came back due to constant injuries, his partner having a baby and his family is here. Also, apparently the money from South Launceston is decent.
 
Chances are, we won't take Thorp. He may just be a bit one-dimensional for MM, being a old-fashioned lead-up type player. He might even be a bit too old at 25.

But that said, it doesn't change a few simple and obvious facts of the matter:

1) He is a dickhead / has an ego / is a FIGJAM / won't play a role / won't do what he is told, etc, etc.

-- These arguments overlook the fact that he coached South Launceston to the premiership. He wasn't just the best player in the competition, and the third highest goal kicker. He was the Coach of the Year. The development coach, the mentor, the counsellor to the 16 and 17 year olds at the club. The lazy cry of FIGJAM doesn't explain this. Saying he is a dickhead doesn't explain this.

2) He has a bad attitude / he was delisted for being lazy / he would be poisonous for our culture etct, etc.

-- Again, Coach of the Year. As captain, he was also media spokesman for the club, and the face of the sponsorship as well. He took South Launceston from bottom to a premiership in 2 years. On top of this, he did it when he knew there was no hope going forward. The club was winding down. It would disappear at the end of the year. Saying he is poisonous, arrogant, and lazy doesn't explain this.

I don't care if we take Thorp or not. In fact, I doubt that we will.

But I do find it strange that so many posters on here want to label him as potentially bad for our culture. There is absolutely nothing in what he has achieved this year to suggest that. From any reasonable point of view, his record suggests the opposite -- that he would be great to have around the club. He is clearly a good teacher and good leader. I haven't heard anything on this board that contradicts this.
 

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Agree that TSL is a long way from AFL but it is also a well worn route with a number of players making a successful transition. Mitch Thorpe could not have done more on the filed to impress this year, other than, as you say, playing in a higher league. However, I would not hold the league against him. Many players have got to the AFL and performed well via the TSL route and I think that it is fair to say that in Mitch Thorpe's case, there were other considerations such as family that he also needed to get right.

Not saying we should draft him, just that it should be looked at with balance.

Who are these players that went through TSL to make AFL?
 
Theory

Sydney...." Thorp is a young coach of a premiership team. Demonstrates leadership, maturity and work ethic. Won the B & F by 16 votes as any good aspiring AFL player should in that type of competition. A former no.6, must have taly and now looks like he has matured. We have a role for him"

A few of the simple thinking, idiot Carlton supporters.." Thorp, no way, he failed at his last try, no worth ethic and and FIGJAM. Useless, don't want him".

Sydney win flags and we languish.
 
Sydney's "no dickheads" policy did go out the window when they recruited Tippett and Franklin - 2 players who would whore themselves to the highest bidder. ;)


Interesting, isn't it?

Geelong also said that they'll just sit and develop their own...........next minute...........McIntosh, Rivers and Caddy. Things change.
 
Sydney's "no dickheads" policy did go out the window when they recruited Tippett and Franklin - 2 players who would whore themselves to the highest bidder. ;)

We don't know that until we see what eventuates. Sydney turns dickheads into non-dickheads

Doesn't make them dickheads, makes them smart. Tippett did pretty well from the looks of things
 
he coached South Launceston to the premiership. He wasn't just the best player in the competition, and the third highest goal kicker. He was the Coach of the Year. The development coach, the mentor, the counsellor to the 16 and 17 year olds at the club. The lazy cry of FIGJAM doesn't explain this. Saying he is a dickhead doesn't explain this.

Being a captain coach and setting his own agenda, schedules, structures etc is a bit different from following orders. e.g. being an admiral in the navy vs being a lowly crewman.

Has he matured sufficiently that he's willing to sacrifice his own flair and instinct for the good of the team? Is he prepared to be 7th fiddle behind Casboult, Rowe, Waite, Henderson, Everitt and Kreuzer as a forward option? Will he carve it up in the VFL each week only to become petulant at AFL level when players overlook him on a lead? (the great Fev was guilty of that at times)

For me I'm a fence sitter, as I don't know the bloke. I just question whether a 25yo who has been out of the system so long and appears to be enjoying life in the backwoods of Tassie is worth the effort. In terms of whether being a star in a regional league will translate to footy's biggest stage. Talent will only get you so far and if, for a variety of reasons, he was unable to crack the big time first time round whether he truly has the drive to succeed this time.

Rookie pick at best.
 
Theory

Sydney...." Thorp is a young coach of a premiership team. Demonstrates leadership, maturity and work ethic. Won the B & F by 16 votes as any good aspiring AFL player should in that type of competition. A former no.6, must have taly and now looks like he has matured. We have a role for him"

A few of the simple thinking, idiot Carlton supporters.." Thorp, no way, he failed at his last try, no worth ethic and and FIGJAM. Useless, don't want him".

Sydney win flags and we languish.

Great post - very true.

Fact of the matter is nobody on here knows if Thorpe has matured. Only those around him would truly know. His family, friends, teammates, workmates.
Rumors and media speculation are nothing to go by, so no point getting excited.

I'd take him with pick 39 if he is still available.
Could fill a massive hole that wasn't filled during trade week.
 
Is he prepared to be 7th fiddle behind Casboult, Rowe, Waite, Henderson, Everitt and Kreuzer as a forward option?

God I hope not. I'd want him to believe he could or should be one of our 3 best tall forward options and wouldn't be coming over prepared to be 7th banana. Expecting to have to prove himself and earn a call up ... absolutely. What we are really saying is that he shouldn't have a sense of entitlement. Frankly none of our players should.
 
Great post - very true.

Fact of the matter is nobody on here knows if Thorpe has matured. Only those around him would truly know. His family, friends, teammates, workmates.
Rumors and media speculation are nothing to go by, so no point getting excited.

I'd take him with pick 39 if he is still available.
Could fill a massive hole that wasn't filled during trade week.
Yet one poster has posted information he is privy to from teammates of Thorp & got howled down for it. So it would seem those who are solidly in the Thorp camp don't want to hear information coming, albeit second hand, from those who do know him. Such information is irrelevant to them.
 
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