Player Watch Welcome to Hawthorn, James Worpel, pick #43 2017 - Peter Crimmins medalist 2019

[Death Cab]

We got him at pick 43. Be interesting to know where our recruiters actually ranked him.


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[Hawk_francais]

He's got heart, spunk and class.

 

[Davo-27]

ihe is having less influence on games because he is playing mostly forward pocket atm, whereas against Carlton he played mainly midfield which netted him 32 poss, i remember when Luke Hodge started and he was forced to play forward pocket, either because Schwabby had no confidence in him or they believed rightly/wrongly he had to work on his tank/endurance, and people were calling Hodge "Podge" and saying he wasnt worth pick 1, so try and have some perspective.

think of it this way, plays mid, gets 32 poss, plays forward pocket, averages 16 poss and 3-4 tackles with 1 goal..... have him rotate in the midfield more often and he will up his disposal stats imo..... but atm he would be happy just to get these experiences under his belt.

 

[detox]

I love when you pick up a kid and after seeing what he's got in a few games, you just know 100% that they're gonna make it.

Worps is that kid. Hes got it

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[MrPremiership]

Huge last quarter

 

[Topiary]

We got him at pick 43. Be interesting to know where our recruiters actually ranked him.


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I believe in the early twenties

 

[Topiary]

ihe is having less influence on games because he is playing mostly forward pocket atm, whereas against Carlton he played mainly midfield which netted him 32 poss, i remember when Luke Hodge started and he was forced to play forward pocket, either because Schwabby had no confidence in him or they believed rightly/wrongly he had to work on his tank/endurance, and people were calling Hodge "Podge" and saying he wasnt worth pick 1, so try and have some perspective.

think of it this way, plays mid, gets 32 poss, plays forward pocket, averages 16 poss and 3-4 tackles with 1 goal..... have him rotate in the midfield more often and he will up his disposal stats imo..... but atm he would be happy just to get these experiences under his belt.

Just being eased into it in typical HFC way.

 

[Simon_Nesbit]

As Tops said - no point only being able to play one position - even TOM has to play wing/flanks sometimes. We don't have 12-14 players to roll through the middle anymore, but Worpel has already proven his potential. Now it's about keeping him fresh and fit, whilst rounding out his game as a forward pocket/flank player in the senior side.

I'm confident he will be a primary onballer for us in a few years, but over the next 12-24 months it will be supporting roles slowly building his midfield minutes. With Shiels horrendous all day, Clarko turned to Burgoyne perhaps more than usual. Perhaps Burgoyne is just fresh enough to play onball from here onwards, or more likely Shaun will now be rotated back out of the square while others get their 'turn'.

 

[threesixpio]

Which one
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Holy Trinity of the future?

 

[madhawksfan]

His disposal, particularly his ability to laser passes into the F50 has stood out for me. His disposal was supposed to be the knock on him but he usually makes the right decision and executes it well.

Future gun mid if he continues to improve at the rate he currently is.

 

[MC_9]

His disposal, particularly his ability to laser passes into the F50 has stood out for me. His disposal was supposed to be the knock on him but he usually makes the right decision and executes it well.

Future gun mid if he continues to improve at the rate he currently is.

That's the most surprising thing, disposal was supposed to be a weakness. It has been his strength.

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[VandoHawk]

There are some players you watch and immediately know they’re going to be a superstar. In his first game, I watched Worpel ram into an opposition player to win the ball, pick it up cleanly, evade another two and then cleanly dish off to Mitchell. Later that game, I also saw him isolated 1 on 1 in the forward pocket. He beat his direct opponent, and then cleanly spotted Bruest on the chest. He only had 13 disposals playing as a pressure forward, but I saw signs that I hadn’t seen in a player since we drafted Cyril.

He has so many attributes that are difficult to teach. He doesn’t shirk the contest. He can find the ball. He can win a centre clearance and has both an offensive and defensive game. He isn't slow. He can be isolated 1 on 1 like a Martin/Dangerfield and cause havoc. Most surprisingly, he also has immaculate kicking into the forward 50. I was under the impression that the reason he slipped to pick 43 was that he couldn’t hit a target.

He still clearly doesn’t have a tank and spends a large majority of time on the bench or resting forward. But we unleashed him into the midfield against Carlton and he got 32 possessions (showing up Pick 3 and Pick 10 in the process). We unleashed him into the midfield against Essendon for most of the last quarter and he accumulated 8 disposals and the match winner. Once he builds that tank and gains confidence both in himself and his teammates he’s going to be a scary prospect.

 

[cryptor]

Expect we'll be hearing of a contract extension pretty soon. At least I hope so.

 

[SSSSSS]

That goal + the celebration with the fans makes him a Hawk for a life. Will play 200 games.

 

[MrPremiership]

Hopefully he gets a jumper number upgrade soon, and I want it on my next one.

Doubt he'll stick with 38

 

[Goody1971]

Hopefully he gets a jumper number upgrade soon, and I want it on my next one.

Doubt he'll stick with 38

Time for the #1?

 

[The German Hunter]

Hopefully he gets a jumper number upgrade soon, and I want it on my next one.

Doubt he'll stick with 38

Worthy of #2 or#9 st this stage

 

[KOLOKOTRONIS]

I love when you pick up a kid and after seeing what he's got in a few games, you just know 100% that they're gonna make it.

Worps is that kid. Hes got it

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Called it after his first possessions v st kilda. Has the body, poise, skill sets and mongrel. Future leader written all over him. Been calling for his inclusion for a long time.

The way he pushed the essendon bloke in the chest and he dropped like a bitch. There is so much to love about him.

KOLOKOTRONIS

 

[thejockey]

His biggest strength to me is he is just an all round natural footballer .

Not too many rookies win a defining 1-1 contest like he did on Saturday , just had a natural feel for that contest and held his nerve better then a seasoned veteran .

Tick for added quality midfield depth

 

[Roddy]

I’m starting to get the feeling that Mitch, Shiels, O’Meara and the Worpedo are the core of an absolute gun midfield moving forward for the next 5-6 years...

 

[Topiary]

I’m starting to get the feeling that Mitch, Shiels, O’Meara and the Worpedo are the core of an absolute gun midfield moving forward for the next 5-6 years...

Just add a Cogs, another big quality mid that we have our eye on, or even move Dimma or Burto; Hill, Scully and the like and we are very formidable with the perfect blend, not forgetting the freak running Irishmen.

 

[marklar]

Hopefully he gets a jumper number upgrade soon, and I want it on my next one.

Doubt he'll stick with 38

Might do a Cyril, win a grannie in it and decide to stick with it for the rest of his career!

 

[MrFujiMoto]

Great one on one win against Hurley. Big bodied, AA fey defender vs first year mid. Not many would pick the mid to be the one to win the contest, hold their feet and then hold their nerve to drill the sealer. 8 disposals and the clincher in the last quarter. You would almost have forgiven him for dropping the ball (so to speak) after the calamity that was the advantage decision, but he didn't just keep his head up, he willed himself to make amends. Competitive beast. you can't teach that.

 

[KermitJagger]

Great one on one win against Hurley. Big bodied, AA fey defender vs first year mid. Not many would pick the mid to be the one to win the contest, hold their feet and then hold their nerve to drill the sealer. 8 disposals and the clincher in the last quarter. You would almost have forgiven him for dropping the ball (so to speak) after the calamity that was the advantage decision, but he didn't just keep his head up, he willed himself to make amends. Competitive beast. you can't teach that.

I don't rate the Champion Data player ratings system that much, but they had him as one of the best rated players on the ground for that final quarter. Had a real impact.

 

[beta_condition]

Great one on one win against Hurley. Big bodied, AA fey defender vs first year mid. Not many would pick the mid to be the one to win the contest, hold their feet and then hold their nerve to drill the sealer. 8 disposals and the clincher in the last quarter. You would almost have forgiven him for dropping the ball (so to speak) after the calamity that was the advantage decision, but he didn't just keep his head up, he willed himself to make amends. Competitive beast. you can't teach that.

I watched his All star game highlights for the first time today(seen his Vic Country stuff before) I can't believe he slipped to out pick based on that game. One thing I noticed in his under 18 year he tried to break too many tackles with his big body size, taking the first option now at AFL level and his kicking has improved dramatically since he's not under the same pressure.