The elite pathway is what I call the hair that goes down from my belly button
Game Day West Coast v Port Adelaide Preseason Training Drill @ Lathlain 4.40pm
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Said it a few times already but really looking fwd to seeing the difference (if any) next week with the other blokes playing.
Feel a bit for Ginbey , blokes had some serious expectations laid on him!
Hope he kills it but will be more than happy if he shows a glimpse of what's to come further down the line.
Feel a bit for Ginbey , blokes had some serious expectations laid on him!
Hope he kills it but will be more than happy if he shows a glimpse of what's to come further down the line.
Manscape....
We're all prone to delusions of grandeur from time to time.
If he had the kicking skills and proven ballwinning to go with his athletic profile he would have been the number 1 draft pick. The ball winning i can definitely see coming on as he has developed rapidly in comparison to as a 14/15 year old. His kicking however I think people may be a little disappointed in and will likely at best be average for AFL level. His athletic and strength profile as an example however is better than Petracca's.
Also just in regards to my comments in regards to Culley and Redden, i'm not expecting or even hoping for 250+ games at this stage but I think he could play a very similar role to his more inside role at Brisbane but with more power and goal kicking. Talent wise he's not top tier but he will get every inch out of himself.
Would have been handy to know this before the game had started ffs
Hmmm.... maybe 'elite' is a bit optimistic.
- Jun 11, 2013
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For me, Hewett did more in 5 minutes than Culley did in eight quarters. Hopefully Culley gets more involved as the season goes on. Hope Hewett gets lots of games this year to show us what he can do.
bh90210fan
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Culley went off at half time and came back on for the second game.
Kicked a goal, was ferocious in some contests from what I saw on tv and apparently played well when he came back on.
I don’t think any coach would be pushing someone for 8 quarters in a preseason game.
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I flew down from Broome to watch the game, had family affairs to attend to as well, so went to the game with 3 mates, it was great lived it.
The highlight was Hewett, this kid seriously knows how to football,
Lowlight, Gaff attending numerous centre bouncers, it’s like when someone has made a mistake but refuses to admit that it was wrong, they just keep doing it over and over again trying to prove it was the right call.
Somehow managed to turn an all Australian wingman into a bog average midfielder, that’s a fail!
The highlight was Hewett, this kid seriously knows how to football,
Lowlight, Gaff attending numerous centre bouncers, it’s like when someone has made a mistake but refuses to admit that it was wrong, they just keep doing it over and over again trying to prove it was the right call.
Somehow managed to turn an all Australian wingman into a bog average midfielder, that’s a fail!
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Unless hes on a wing, gaff should be playing in the WAFL by round 6 if this clubs serious about the rebuild.
Hewett looks a completely different package. Was surprised how bulked he was, thought he still had the skinnies?
Early days but he looks to be that rare combo of IQ/instinct, skills and athleticism (without comparing him to Cuzz n'Judd).
Culley looks like an improved version of West, lots of mongrel, more polish.
Ginbey could be like a Yeo or Oliver, make a physical impact around the engine room and stoppages, but not as elite as Hewett (and without the pathways?).
Be like West > Culley > Ginbey > Hewett at this early stage.
Don't think Hewett has the fitness base yet to play full games, probably not round 1 or early rounds?
Keys
Looking for a cloud to yell at
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1) There’s no reason why a properly fit Gaff can’t play as a wing. It’s his best position
2) If he can’t play as wing, or there are better options, then there’s no place for him as an inside midfielder
Most decisions I’ll try to find the logic for but Gaff attending centre bounces I just can’t see the logic for. It doesn’t work - he doesn’t have the quick reaction time to ball hunt, isn’t a strong tackler and doesn’t have breakaway speed. His hands in close aren’t great either which is why he has a tendency to hack kick forward in congestion
Hopefully it’s just a practice game thing and they wanted to see how Clark and Chesser went on the wings instead since they know what Gaff can do out there
I think it comes down to the following:
-in 2019/2020 he had some success going on ball around stoppages. The club was then forced to play him at centre bounces when we got hit with an injury crisis in 2020 (ie the Saints game where he and Kelly were our two main mids). He did an alright job and the club figured he might be able to do more
-He is being paid the salary of a top 10 mid, and is the highest paid midfielder in our team (yes, more than Yeo and Kelly). I think the club is trying to get their money worth by forcing him to be an inside-outside player
It is starting to become farcical and frustrating, as Gaff just doesn't have the burst acceleration or one-touch reflexes required to be an onballer. The best he can do is a hack-kick around his body to claim a clearance stat.
I still hope he has value as a wing and he should be given the position to start the season. However, If the younger, quicker guys overtake him, then he should be put out to pasture. Unfortunately the game has changed and shuffling long distance runners like Gaff may not have a future.
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Sounds like Fyfe & P Cripps.
- Sep 28, 2009
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You usually have slow poor disposal guys as your inside mids Its the only reason I can think that he is being played there. But they need to be able to win the ball
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I just think after he chose us over Norf (and the money we're paying him as a result) that the club doesn't have the heart to play him in the WAFL, which is where he should be
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The problem is I dont think the WAFL is going to change him. Its not that he's out of form its just the game has gone past him. So if he gets dropped its basically for good. To have a bloke sit in the reserves for 2 years on about 800k a year isn't going to look great.
- Jun 29, 2014
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As opposed to how good looking he is currently tracking at….
He should have been told, find a club and we will trade you for nothing… let’s see if it happens this trade period.
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Ah, makes sense. Cheers
- Jun 11, 2013
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I didn’t see him do much at centre bounces or stoppages which is the main reason we have him in the guts. He looks slow, has the turning circle of the QE 2 and so far hasn’t got his hands on the footy much in there. Hopefully he gets a lot better to justify his spot in there. Otherwise maybe he can play forward with his height and strength?
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