List Mgmt. Welcome to the Suns, Mabior Chol.

[The Kings Ransom]

Going off the highlights you would think he's a star.

He is capable of startling things and is a very smart player who contributes subtle one-percenters as well as being a lovely kick for goal. And he does it all with a languid grace that makes it appear so simple. However there is some sort of disconnect whereby he can't involve himself in the humdrum of a game - linking up with handball, trapping the ball in the area with a defensive tackle, standing in front of the pack where he can't mark but aims to bring the ball to ground.

He still might make into an AFL player but probably needs another 12 months of development. He really needs to nail down a position on the field because he's mostly a pinch-hitter in the ruck and only effective against non-physical opponents.

He'll have the opportunity to play 2nd or 3rd tall forward and chop out in the ruck, so his role will be consistent.
Had decent numbers this year when in the team as a forward with a recognised ruckman despite only ~55% TOG (6 goals in 4 games)
Under no illusions that he'll need to improve a number of areas to become a reliable and influential player, but hopeful that some foundations are there.

 

[Ron The Bear]

Had decent numbers this year when in the team as a forward with a recognised ruckman despite only ~55% TOG (6 goals in 4 games)
Under no illusions that he'll need to improve a number of areas to become a reliable and influential player, but hopeful that some foundations are there.

Yes, the 55% TOG touches on one of his shortcomings.

 

[The Kings Ransom]

Yes, the 55% TOG touches on one of his shortcomings.

But when he was played as the primary ruck, his game time was 70-75% so I think he has the capacity to play more, was mainly the role in that circumstance

 

[Ron The Bear]

But when he was played as the primary ruck, his game time was 70-75% so I think he has the capacity to play more, was mainly the role in that circumstance

Just don't expect his TOG to be at 100% of capacity! He has a short fuse as an athlete and is still developing the body and core strength he needs to compete, whether as KPP or ruck.

Richmond supporters in general wish him well while believing his contract is fairly lucrative in relation to his body of work.

 

[The Kings Ransom]

Just don't expect his TOG to be at 100% of capacity! He has a short fuse as an athlete and is still developing the body and core strength he needs to compete, whether as KPP or ruck.

Richmond supporters in general wish him well while believing his contract is fairly lucrative in relation to his body of work.

No, I recognise that.
Hoping for 75% TOG (80% of this as a forward) which hopefully give him the chance to have some impact up forward.

Lucky the contract is for the coming 4 years, rather than the past 4 years. Hopefully, for our sake he performs to that level.

 

[Ron The Bear]

No, I recognise that.
Hoping for 75% TOG (80% of this as a forward) which hopefully give him the chance to have some impact up forward.

Lucky the contract is for the coming 4 years, rather than the past 4 years. Hopefully, for our sake he performs to that level.

Yeah he is being paid on potential. Suspect Richmond might've retained him on minimal coin, but the offer was too good for Chol to refuse and for us to stand in the way of. We're content with the compo pick.

 

[GC2015]

This is potentially wishful thinking on my behalf but how great would it be if Chol turned into a star forward for us? Local guy heads to a traditional powerhouse Melbourne club and is there during an extremely successful period before returning home and becoming a star for us. Reminds me of the thoughts I was having about Kurt Tippett

Kurt Tippett

Age

37

Ht

202cm

Wt

106kg

Pos.

F/R

Career

Season

Last 5

D

10.8

3star

K

6.7

3star

HB

4.1

3star

M

3.9

4star

T

2.2

4star

G

1.8

5star

No current season stats available

D

6.6

2star

K

3.4

2star

HB

3.2

3star

M

2.4

3star

T

1.2

3star

G

1.0

4star

in 2012 when it looked certain that he was heading home to become our star key forward.

With the possible exception of Harbs, we've never really had a star player that was homegrown. It's about time we change that!

 

[SnusCG]

This is potentially wishful thinking on my behalf but how great would it be if Chol turned into a star forward for us? Local guy heads to a traditional powerhouse Melbourne club and is there during an extremely successful period before returning home and becoming a star for us. Reminds me of the thoughts I was having about Kurt Tippett in 2012 when it looked certain that he was heading home to become our star key forward.

With the possible exception of Harbs, we've never really had a star player that was homegrown. It's about time we change that!

If we finally played Bowes in the middle that might change

 

[GC2015]

If we finally played Bowes in the middle that might change

I love Bowesy just as much as the next Suns fan but there's no way he's getting in the midfield ahead of guys like Miller and Anderson. I just don't see how he can possibly get a consistent gig in our midfield going forward when you look at the depth we now possess.

We don't really have any other local guys that could take that next step. Will Ashcroft (likely number 1 pick next year) could have been that guy for us but we decided to sack Marcus at the wrong time and prevent any chance of us securing a born and bred Gold Coaster who will likely become a superstar. That's another Gold Coast star on his way to Brisbane due to our lack of foresight.

Anyway, hopefully Chol kicks on in the red & gold and we have a star local player to cheer on.

 

[SandyToes]

This is potentially wishful thinking on my behalf but how great would it be if Chol turned into a star forward for us? Local guy heads to a traditional powerhouse Melbourne club and is there during an extremely successful period before returning home and becoming a star for us. Reminds me of the thoughts I was having about Kurt Tippett in 2012 when it looked certain that he was heading home to become our star key forward.

With the possible exception of Harbs, we've never really had a star player that was homegrown. It's about time we change that!

Lachie Weller, Budarick, Zac Smith, Charlie Dixon Secco Bowes even Jesse Joyce
If he tops any of those players I'll call it a win
Long way to go

 

[GC2015]

Lachie Weller, Budarick, Zac Smith, Charlie Dixon Secco Bowes even Jesse Joyce
If he tops any of those players I'll call it a win
Long way to go

Jesse Joyce? Yeesh. Your expectations are very low...

 

[SandyToes]

Jesse Joyce? Yeesh. Your expectations are very low...

Yes they are
Jesse played 64 very serviceable games with us and I for one thought he was a retain not delist
Mabior might make 65 games for us
Hopes and prayers and all that

 

[Iva Bigun]

I think Bowes would be good in the middle but alas we will never know as Dew is incapable of seeing what a player may be able to develop into rather than what he wants him to be.

 

[GC2015]

I think Bowes would be good in the middle but alas we will never know as Dew is incapable of seeing what a player may be able to develop into rather than what he wants him to be.

Why are some of our fans perpetuating things that simply aren't true? You say Dew is incapable of seeing what a player may develop into yet last week we found out that he wants to move Luko into the forward line where he was so highly rated as a junior. We all knew Luko was too small physically to play as a key forward when we drafted him so Dew put him in a position where he could develop for a few years and now feels he's ready to fulfil his potential as a forward. What about Ben King? We drafted him as a key defender but Dew saw his potential as a forward and gave him a go. Now he's one of the best forwards to ever play for our club. What about Powell? He was initially tried as a skinny winger and has now become one of our best defenders and has a very bright future ahead of him. There are plenty of examples of our coaching staff identifying a path forward for our players to thrive.

Just because you don't like what they've done with Bowes, doesn't mean the coaching staff can't see what players can develop into.

 

[Iva Bigun]

Why are some of our fans perpetuating things that simply aren't true? You say Dew is incapable of seeing what a player may develop into yet last week we found out that he wants to move Luko into the forward line where he was so highly rated as a junior. We all knew Luko was too small physically to play as a key forward when we drafted him so Dew put him in a position where he could develop for a few years and now feels he's ready to fulfil his potential as a forward. What about Ben King? We drafted him as a key defender but Dew saw his potential as a forward and gave him a go. Now he's one of the best forwards to ever play for our club. What about Powell? He was initially tried as a skinny winger and has now become one of our best defenders and has a very bright future ahead of him. There are plenty of examples of our coaching staff identifying a path forward for our players to thrive.

Just because you don't like what they've done with Bowes, doesn't mean the coaching staff can't see what players can develop into.

Ben King was playing as a key forward after Max went down prior to us drafting him and he made it clear he wanted to play as a forward Barney rubble could’ve made that call

wil Powell is a gun, he was always going to be successful wherever he played he’s one of the most versatile kids at the club

I think we can agree that Luko was too small to play as a key forward at the start of his career so moving him back and on the wing made sense, good call by Dew in that case but has it seen him develop his forward craft

Rankin was brought in as a small forward as was Ben Ainsworth how well have they developed? Both very high draft picks

How did Brody develop over his five years was he ever tried as a medium forward?

How has Sexton progressed under Dews coaching, has Weller become the A grader we paid for, how’s Jez coming along after to traded up to get him?

Point I’m making is if you want to cherry pick examples I can do the same, at the end of the day the club has been extremely disappointing in both results and player development this is not an opinion it is fact and Dew has had 4 years to move the needle, these are not lies as you have insinuated above but facts the entire football world sees

I want nothing more than for the club to succeed and maybe i am too negative about the current state of our club but I have seen very little ACTUAL progress to be excited about

 

[The Kings Ransom]

My biggest problem with development has been players go back to the reserves and play a completely different role to how they will be played in the seniors.

Having better depth should allow our forward pockets to play forward pocket - rather than every AFL listed player running through the midfield in the 2's

 

[GC2015]

Ben King was playing as a key forward after Max went down prior to us drafting him and he made it clear he wanted to play as a forward Barney rubble could’ve made that call

wil Powell is a gun, he was always going to be successful wherever he played he’s one of the most versatile kids at the club

I think we can agree that Luko was too small to play as a key forward at the start of his career so moving him back and on the wing made sense, good call by Dew in that case but has it seen him develop his forward craft

Rankin was brought in as a small forward as was Ben Ainsworth how well have they developed? Both very high draft picks

How did Brody develop over his five years was he ever tried as a medium forward?

How has Sexton progressed under Dews coaching, has Weller become the A grader we paid for, how’s Jez coming along after to traded up to get him?

Point I’m making is if you want to cherry pick examples I can do the same, at the end of the day the club has been extremely disappointing in both results and player development this is not an opinion it is fact and Dew has had 4 years to move the needle, these are not lies as you have insinuated above but facts the entire football world sees

I want nothing more than for the club to succeed and maybe i am too negative about the current state of our club but I have seen very little ACTUAL progress to be excited about

Just because Ben spent one year playing as a key forward when his brother Max got hurt doesn't mean we drafted him with the intentions of playing him in the forward line. Keep in mind that our forward stocks at the time included a 26 year Sam Day, a 22 year old Peter Wright (who a lot of people felt wasn't getting the opportunities he deserved) and a 19 year old Brayden Crossley who had shown positive signs. Plus, we just drafted Luko who we intended to play as a key forward in the future as well. Who did we have as our key backs at the time? An injured Rory Thompson, a journeyman Jack Hombsch and an untried Sam Collins/Chris Burgess. Clearly we needed a key back more than a key forward at the time and we showed our intent for Ben by playing him as a key defender when the NEAFL season started that year. It wasn't until round 4 that we swung Ben forward and he began to thrive that the club realised they actually had an AFL quality key forward on their hands. To suggest that it was always a fait accompli that Ben would go forward for us is untrue IMO.

Powell was always going to be successful? Gee, people really do like to rewrite history sometimes. Many people really questioned our recruiting staff when we used pick 19 to draft a very skinny Powell that didn't even play in the national championships that year. He didn't exactly thrive on the wing when we played him there so again I think you're rewriting history to suit your narrative. There was absolutely no guarantee with Will Powell and it was a move into the backline that really saw him thrive.

I'll concede on Rankine. I thought he would be more developed than he is by now but I still hold out hopes that he'll be running through our midfield one day ala Cyril Rioli at his best.

My understanding was Ainsworth was more of a midfielder in his junior footy days at Gippsland and although we started playing him as a small forward (common practice for draftees as you know) he got plenty of midfield time in 2019. Then Rowell and Anderson came along and forced Ben back into the forward line. I actually feel Ainsworth was pretty good this season. I know he was dropped but once he found his way back into the AFL team, I felt he was a pretty solid contributor for us.

Yes, Brodie was tried as a medium forward for us. It didn't work.

Has Sexton actually declined or is he just getting less opportunity these days? 68 scoring shots in 2019 vs 35 scoring shots in 2021. 57% goal kicking accuracy in 2019 vs 60% goal kicking accuracy in 2021.

Weller hasn't become the player we hoped he would be but the high expectations really come from the pick 2 price tag. I doubt people would be complaining about Lachie if we had given up say pick 22 for him.

I watched Jez play well in the VFL a few times this year and felt he could be given an opportunity to debut for us but for whatever reason he didn't. I can't really comment on why he didn't make it into the AFL team this year because there were VFL games I felt he played well enough to be given a chance.

I agree we've been disappointing with our results but I feel the development of players at our club is better than people give us credit for. Let's just hope for our sanity that we've finally got it right and we kick on in 2022!

 

[The Kings Ransom]

Chol will get opportunities to play in his best position forward/ruck.
That’s the first step in developing him.
At Richmond he was played pretty sporadically and spent more time in the ruck than ideal.

I would be getting him to do daily wrestling sessions with Sam collins. Can’t leave until he wins. Need him bringing the same type of aggression and intensity that Collo does onfield.

 

[SandyToes]

I would be getting him to do daily wrestling sessions with Sam collins. Can’t leave until he wins.

 

[TheSunGod]

Just glad to get a Queenslander back. Watching this interview with Mabior and his dad makes you realise how lucky we are here and that footy isn’t the most important thing in life anyway.

 

[Marcel Proust]

Is there room for him in back 6?

And back up ruck

 

[Marcel Proust]

Wayne Carey like

Adam pattison tbh

 

[The Gotham Penguin]

This. There is zero sum gained to play a 1st team mid as a defender in the twos. A forward down back etc etc - unless the coaches see it as a permanent move.
Creates mayhem in the players mind.
They second guess their role, and lose the connection with teammates.

No better example than Conor Nash at Hawthorn.
Clarkson played him forward, whilst Mitchell played him as a big body mid at Box Hill. The kid had no idea what he was doing.

I watch a couple of Hawthorn games on TV post Clarksons exodus announcement - Nash was damn good in the guts - playing as Mitchell had coached him at Box Hill.

If we have a player dropped - they need to play the same role on the twos
Dropping Rankine to play as a ruck in the seconds would be absurd. So would playing a defender as a winger.
Kids get confused, so continuity is essential

My biggest problem with development has been players go back to the reserves and play a completely different role to how they will be played in the seniors.

Having better depth should allow our forward pockets to play forward pocket - rather than every AFL listed player running through the midfield in the 2's

 

[Party Gull]

how did he go on the weekend?

 

[The Kings Ransom]

how did he go on the weekend?

Had a pretty decent start to his Suns career I'd say.


Seems like he'll probably be getting more shots at goal than at Richmond where he played 2nd or 3rd fiddle.
I think we can hope for 25+ goals from him this season.

Is a really nice kick for goal which I didn't realise - quite accurate, although missed one I'd expect him to kick on the weekend.

Contesting quite well and not getting outmarked often.
Dropped a few marks he really should have taken.
Misjudged the flight of a few balls, but playing at Metricon at night would be a new experience for him.


Back up ruck work has probably been above average when considering other back ups in the competition.


Overall - I'm pretty happy. Although, if he could have held a few of these expected marks, he'd have kicked an extra couple of goals so far.