Pure_Ownage
TheBrownDog
1.Mitch Brown-didn’t have a lot of supply but was good with what we had. Took a couple of nice marks and a lovely ground level pickup and snap in the third. Very mobile and smart and has a good future.
15.Jordan Schroder-laid a couple of great tackles and worked hard but was generally quiet. Fitness needs to increase and then we’ll see his talent.
18. Josh Cowan-RR and I and others have questioned his hardness a little bit at times but boy was he hard at it today. One contest near the goals I feared he’d hurt himself because the thud was so loud. Worked in and under, disposal was good, and kicked a nice goal in the last. AFL debut can’t be too far away.
23. Marcus Drum-injured early, very sad, hope it’s not too serious. The kid has missed so much footy.
24. Mark Blake-big wrap to him, Stephenson is one of the best rucks in the VFL and Blake at least broke even with him. As others have mentioned they stood off him all day and he used the space, some reasonable kicks and even sidestepped a couple of blokes. Still can’t play in the same side with Ottens, but his effort is pleasing and most commendable.
25. Tom Gillies-worries me. Did a couple of nice things, including one massive 30 m handball which set Joffa free and ended up in a Brown goal, but he seems to lose his way in body contests a lot. Contrast that with what Lonergan does and you can see why I would be worried if he has to play any AFL footy this year.
29. Cam Guthrie-didn’t notice a lot of him, but what I did notice was very clean, on a day where a lot of his teammates weren’t.
32. Steven Motlop-good game. Still not consistent enough but did some lovely things. A couple of times broke through traffic in a Varcoe esque way, and while the end result wasn’t always a goal, the coaches will be pleased with his attacking mindset. Just such a smooth mover if he can do it more often. Unlike last week I thought he actually worked very hard defensively and laid a lot of tackles. Has so much talent, just needs time and confidence and bigger shoulders.
36. Nathan Vardy-didn’t do heaps but the delivery wasn’t great, worked well from limited opportunities. Was involved with second efforts when in the ruck. Coming along nicely.
38. Ben Johnson-presented all day, one thing I’ll give him is he’s a real workhorse. Marked well but needs to show more ability at ground level. Gives away silly free kicks at times which he needs to cut out of his game, but the commitment is there.
41. Jesse Stringer-don’t know if it’s because he’s starting to get fitness back but he looked much quicker today than last week. Like some of the others, laid some ripping tackles, and others that won’t be credited on the stats (i.e. chases that put on referred pressure).
42. Josh Walker-can really mark a footy, reads the play well, showing some nice signs. Noticed he was having issues with his groin in the last quarter so still developing the fitness to run out games
43. George Burbury-had a couple of touches that told me he’s a smart player, but was generally quiet.
46. Jonathan Simpkin-very pleased. Ran straight lines, was one of the few mids to take the game on, didn’t always come off but no doubt the coaches would have been pleased. Was inside and outside today, getting in packs and taking knocks and also using his speed on the outside. Repeat efforts to get to second and third contests are great, and it stands out in a sea of kids, but he’s the one that consistently flogs himself on the defensive spread when we turn it over, and saved some goals with such chases today. Some of the other young kids have more natural talent, but by geez if he got an AFL game he wouldn’t let you down, all toughness and consistent commitment. If he plays a few more games like today (which reminded me of his NAB games) he’ll be close to a senior elevation.
Of the VFL guys, Selwood showed plenty of courage, Barham showed manic chasing but butchered the footy, Firman is just such a calm and collected small defender, and Raidme looked like he'd regained a bit of his pre injury form from last year. McLean, despite having a few kicked on him, was quite useful, and Corrigan was just classy in everything he did.
15.Jordan Schroder-laid a couple of great tackles and worked hard but was generally quiet. Fitness needs to increase and then we’ll see his talent.
18. Josh Cowan-RR and I and others have questioned his hardness a little bit at times but boy was he hard at it today. One contest near the goals I feared he’d hurt himself because the thud was so loud. Worked in and under, disposal was good, and kicked a nice goal in the last. AFL debut can’t be too far away.
23. Marcus Drum-injured early, very sad, hope it’s not too serious. The kid has missed so much footy.
24. Mark Blake-big wrap to him, Stephenson is one of the best rucks in the VFL and Blake at least broke even with him. As others have mentioned they stood off him all day and he used the space, some reasonable kicks and even sidestepped a couple of blokes. Still can’t play in the same side with Ottens, but his effort is pleasing and most commendable.
25. Tom Gillies-worries me. Did a couple of nice things, including one massive 30 m handball which set Joffa free and ended up in a Brown goal, but he seems to lose his way in body contests a lot. Contrast that with what Lonergan does and you can see why I would be worried if he has to play any AFL footy this year.
29. Cam Guthrie-didn’t notice a lot of him, but what I did notice was very clean, on a day where a lot of his teammates weren’t.
32. Steven Motlop-good game. Still not consistent enough but did some lovely things. A couple of times broke through traffic in a Varcoe esque way, and while the end result wasn’t always a goal, the coaches will be pleased with his attacking mindset. Just such a smooth mover if he can do it more often. Unlike last week I thought he actually worked very hard defensively and laid a lot of tackles. Has so much talent, just needs time and confidence and bigger shoulders.
36. Nathan Vardy-didn’t do heaps but the delivery wasn’t great, worked well from limited opportunities. Was involved with second efforts when in the ruck. Coming along nicely.
38. Ben Johnson-presented all day, one thing I’ll give him is he’s a real workhorse. Marked well but needs to show more ability at ground level. Gives away silly free kicks at times which he needs to cut out of his game, but the commitment is there.
41. Jesse Stringer-don’t know if it’s because he’s starting to get fitness back but he looked much quicker today than last week. Like some of the others, laid some ripping tackles, and others that won’t be credited on the stats (i.e. chases that put on referred pressure).
42. Josh Walker-can really mark a footy, reads the play well, showing some nice signs. Noticed he was having issues with his groin in the last quarter so still developing the fitness to run out games
43. George Burbury-had a couple of touches that told me he’s a smart player, but was generally quiet.
46. Jonathan Simpkin-very pleased. Ran straight lines, was one of the few mids to take the game on, didn’t always come off but no doubt the coaches would have been pleased. Was inside and outside today, getting in packs and taking knocks and also using his speed on the outside. Repeat efforts to get to second and third contests are great, and it stands out in a sea of kids, but he’s the one that consistently flogs himself on the defensive spread when we turn it over, and saved some goals with such chases today. Some of the other young kids have more natural talent, but by geez if he got an AFL game he wouldn’t let you down, all toughness and consistent commitment. If he plays a few more games like today (which reminded me of his NAB games) he’ll be close to a senior elevation.
Of the VFL guys, Selwood showed plenty of courage, Barham showed manic chasing but butchered the footy, Firman is just such a calm and collected small defender, and Raidme looked like he'd regained a bit of his pre injury form from last year. McLean, despite having a few kicked on him, was quite useful, and Corrigan was just classy in everything he did.
