Was Luke Ball a Waste of a pick for Collingwood?

[Dominator_7]

It's understandable why Collingwood fans might be feeling a little dissapointed by Luke Ball at this early stage.
He came to the club under much fanfare, but hasnt really delivered what was expected.
I know the signs don't look that good, but it would be pretty stupid to totally write a player off after only two rounds. However, I'd be hoping for a massive improvement from Ball if I were a Pies fan.

 

[KissStephanie]

Wellingham is a gun. That the deal fell over, is a blessing. Sadly a poor reflection on our talent identification at a senior coaching level, that we'd look to move Wellers on. Malthouse seems to favour attitude over actual ability.

St.Kilda were offered first crack at Wellingham and pick #30, and thankfully their talent identification at senior coaching level was worse. North weren't much better when they were offered Wellingham and pick #30 for pick #21 in return, but they were only prepared to part with pick #25 which wasn't going to get the deal done.

 

[The Fireman]

The deal fell over because the Saints wanted more than Pick 25 and Goldsack!

Seriously... very funny stuff

The funny stuff is that your club is paying through the nose for a burnt out player, but hey ,your club has a track record for it.
We wanted more simply because just about everyone knows how dumb your club is the, fact that we didn't get it means little in the scheme of things.
You are paying too much for so little and we have sacrificed even less.
So it's all good. Both sides are happy and we are even a little bit amused by it.

 

[hilly]

St.Kilda were offered first crack at Wellingham and pick #30, and thankfully their talent identification at senior coaching level was worse. North weren't much better when they were offered Wellingham and pick #30 for pick #21 in return, but they were only prepared to part with pick #25 which wasn't going to get the deal done.

Why do you assume that pick 21 (Ryan Bastinac) will be inferior to Wellingham?

 

[Falchoon]

Rumours are just that around trade time. What is certain is that we offered Wellingham to Norf for pick 25 to on-trade for you with steak knives.

I don't care what the rumour was around trade time, all I've been reading for 6 months is that we were stupid not to take Goldsack, Goldsack can't get a game, Wellingham plays well and we're stupid for not taking Wellingham?

How the hell does that work, if Wellingham and Goldsack are both playing ressies in a months time who then will we have knocked back?

Wellingham is a gun. That the deal fell over, is a blessing. Sadly a poor reflection on our talent identification at a senior coaching level, that we'd look to move Wellers on. Malthouse seems to favour attitude over actual ability.

He should have kept Jason Cloke then.

As for your harping on about $500K per annum, it is far less than that and you know it. It's for all intents and purposes a front loaded contract.

500k per annum? Quote please.

I don't think you guys have yet got together and worked out whether he's on 3 or 4 years yet have you?

Here's the tip 500k is too much in year 1, 500k is too much in year 2, 250k is too much in year 3 and 250k is too much in year 4.

Jolly and Ball have been so-so (Jolly more ordinary than Ball), but it's a new club and they need a chance to find their feet. Still, we've been down Cam Wood and Shane O'Bree, and Jolly and Ball have been better replacements than whoever we'd have drafted with our first three picks.

We were told Ball had found his feet in the pre season

It's 2 games, give them 8 at least, I for example would prefer my team start slower than last year and wind it up for the run home.

 

[Warren Buckley]

Ball will be back and then we will have a Luke Ball - What a great draft choice thread.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

Well then they would have wasted a pick because nobody else rated Sinclair.

Well, they obviously thought he was a bigger threat to be taken by another club than Josh Thomas, because we were all expecting JT to be snapped up at that pick. Evidently our recruiters thought there was enough interest in him, and pre-season performances have indicated that any interest would have been well and truly warranted as he's been terrific despite being seriously undersized. He had glandular fever last year and so lost quite a bit of the season and quite a bit of weight, he's since put 5-6 kgs on.

Why do you assume that pick 21 (Ryan Bastinac) will be inferior to Wellingham?

I don't know that she did. At any rate, the equation would be;
#21 and #25 or
#25 and #30 and Wellingham
... and there's nothing to say that Bastinac wouldn't still have been available at #25, giving you both.

 

[kosifantutti]

Well, they obviously thought he was a bigger threat to be taken by another club than Josh Thomas, because we were all expecting JT to be snapped up at that pick. Evidently our recruiters thought there was enough interest in him,

Well they would have been wrong.

 

[charmer]

This thread is just an absolute joke. If Saints fans want to bash Luke Ball then do it on on the St. Kilda board and stop bothering everyone else with your trolling rubbish.

If Ball has a good game against the Saints then I'm sure there will be no threads mentioning Ball's name, but if he has a bad one there will be another one started. Everyone is sick of hearing this crap, he is no longer a Saints player so move on and leave it alone. But if you want to continue to watch every game Ball plays, then call 1300 MAGPIE and get yourself Collingwood membership, just to make it official.

 

[Snag Breac]

Difficult to say after only 2 rounds. Are you always so premature, Rough Edge?

 

[The Royal Sampler]

Well they would have been wrong.

Based on what information? You claim to know where he would have been taken if not selected at #61 by Collingwood?

Stupid post.

 

[Didak2Dawes]

Considering the Collingwood midfield consists of Beams, Pendlebury, Wellingham, Sidebottom and Thomas (all under 23yrs) he is the perfect pick up to do the bullocking work and protect their bodies while they mature, would also provide those kids with a stellar role model considering how he prepares and goes about the game, bargain.

Bingo.

 

[ManUp]

Is it too much for other St Kilda supporters to wish Luke Ball well? He gave
great service to our club, put his body on the line time and time again and, let's be honest, we loved him for it. He'll do the same for Collingwood, try his guts out. He won't be a gamebreaker, and he won't kick too many goals but I still believe there's few better at the bottom of the pack. He knew he was fast turning into a fringe player at the Saints - hard to cop that when you've been a former B&F and Captain. I know it's hard to swallow a player choosing to leave but I can understand why he did and in his position I would have done it too.
Let's not bag the bloke - it's not going to make one bit of difference to the Saints this year that he's gone, so let him go with a bit of grace. I think he deserves that much.

 

[kosifantutti]

Based on what information? You claim to know where he would have been taken if not selected at #61 by Collingwood?

Stupid post.

Malthouse claims they would have taken him at 30 if Ball wasn't available. None of the teams who had picks between 30 and 61 rated him so highly. So it would have been a waste to take him at 30 when you could have taken him at 61.

I never said that he was a waste at 61 but we KNOW that nobody else rated him at 30.

Is that too quick for you?

Edit: Reading back you have obviously been talking about Sinclair at pick 61. I was always talking about Malthouse's claim that they would have taken him at pick 30 if Ball was not available.

 

[HARKER]

Difficult to say after only 2 rounds. Are you always so premature, Rough Edge?

Much too early, isn't it?

We had enough bagging on our board re. McLean pick up after poor pre-season performances, also.
Things have turned around pretty quickly since.

Give the guy a break as 2 games doesn't make the season.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

Edit: Reading back you have obviously been talking about Sinclair at pick 61. I was always talking about Malthouse's claim that they would have taken him at pick 30 if Ball was not available.

Correct; in which case, carry on.

... with the caveat that if Sinclair turns out to be a good player, no recruiter in the country would consider having taken him even at #30 to be a "wasted pick". There will be players taken earlier than #30 who will fail to make it.

 

[grug]

Angry aints fans still trying to justify the loss of Ball for nothing, the thread.

 

[MarkT2]

When the going gets tough and Collingwood need grunt in the guts as the season wears on I will be happy we have Ball in the side.

Jolly and Ball haven't done much but nor have a few other players that people said were vital, including the tall forwards but the ledger is 2 - 0. Early days in a long season and we can't expect McCarthy, Wellingham, Sidebottom and Beams to carry too much of the load while O'Bree and Lockyer are near the end of their careers. At absolute worst Ball will fill a hole while Beams develops into the gun grunt midfielder he will be.

I'm pretty happy with the wost case scenario. As for the money, he's taking tens of thousands of dollars from players like Cloke that people think are hacks anyway.

 

[Stoddy]

lol wouldnt call him a "list clogger" just yet

 

[didaka]

Just basically needs to be switched on to his limitations and play to his strengths. If he can get this right he's going to be a fantastic player for us.

If I was his coach I would say to him, no more trying to hit up leading forwards from 20 meters away, if you have the pill, you feed it off to a player better by foot, and if that is not an option, force the footy forward. And I'd be telling the other players to get around Luke, and make sure you give him that option to feed the ball off by hand.

If Luke Ball can become a player who can find the footy 20 times a game (which he can) and use it 15 times by hand to bring other players into the game, get his 5-6 clearances, 5-6 tackles and force stoppages when needed then I think he'll be more than handy for our side.

He still thinks he's that player who can hit up leading targets, when he clearly isn't.

He needs to model his game on Daniel Cross and Sam Mitchell. If he can become this type of player, he will be a huge asset.

 

[Smoky]

The funny stuff is that your club is paying through the nose for a burnt out player, but hey ,your club has a track record for it.
We wanted more simply because just about everyone knows how dumb your club is the, fact that we didn't get it means little in the scheme of things.
You are paying too much for so little and we have sacrificed even less.
So it's all good. Both sides are happy and we are even a little bit amused by it.

So you have your laugh now after he had one average game...

And we'll judge Luke over the length of his contract.

Let us know how you go with the player you picked up for Luke Ball

 

[TradeDraft]

Chasing him so hard?

Collingwood were the only team interested.

What about Port,Bombers,Dees and Lions where doing then

 

[TradeDraft]

When are you just going to get over it? the only waste was your club getting nothing for him.

Oh and who wants to take the bet that Jason Tutt (pick 31) plays more games than Luke Ball does for Collingwood?

Any takers?

Didn't think so.

I am not a Betting Man and I have not seen much of Tutt so I don't know yet. Ball is ahead 2 games at the moment

 

[TradeDraft]

Is it too much for other St Kilda supporters to wish Luke Ball well? He gave
great service to our club, put his body on the line time and time again and, let's be honest, we loved him for it. He'll do the same for Collingwood, try his guts out. He won't be a gamebreaker, and he won't kick too many goals but I still believe there's few better at the bottom of the pack. He knew he was fast turning into a fringe player at the Saints - hard to cop that when you've been a former B&F and Captain. I know it's hard to swallow a player choosing to leave but I can understand why he did and in his position I would have done it too.
Let's not bag the bloke - it's not going to make one bit of difference to the Saints this year that he's gone, so let him go with a bit of grace. I think he deserves that much.

Finally a Saints fan who makes good Sense

 

[melbournemartin]

In the last quarter my Dad asked me, "who is number 12?"

I didn't know so I looked in the record and saw that it was Luke Ball and said, "It's Luke Ball...I didn't know that he was playing."

Neither did Dad.

I'm not exactly sure why Collingwood thought they needed him. With Swan, Tarks and O'Bree there should be plenty of leadership in the midfield. You'd also want to be getting Thomas, Pendlebury, Beames and Sidebottom in there as much as possible.