Opinion Your 3 to watch - Season 2023

[Art Vandelay_]

So who at Geelong is your for next season. The criteria is yours. It could be a veteran you’re keen to see if the performances remain. It could be a VFL player set to announce himself or whatever other criteria you want.

1. Max Holmes. Has already broken into a strong side as established himself as best 22. I think 2023 could be the year he really breaks out and announces himself as a quality AFL player.

2. James Willis. Injured for parts of 2022, in the latter part of the season showed some traits that give hope he can make a good fist of an AFL career. Good speed and evasiveness in traffic. Keen to see if he can string consistent performances together and build towards earning a debut.

3. Amy McDonald. Freshly minted AFLW AA player with 3 successive Geelong Best and Fairest awards. Can she continue to improve and push for more league honours and further up the league medal tally. Another cats B&F would write an early chapter in the fledgling history book of the Cats women’s program. We shouldn’t undersell the effect these pioneers have on young girls, gives them players to idolise and aspire to become. Like a generation of 90s kids with Ablett’s no.5 on their backs.

 

[Catman]

Only 3?!!

You already took one of mine in Willis. Excited to see what he can produce as he's got all the attributes. Just hope he can string some footy together.

1. Jack Bowes. He has been told that he'll play, but where and who he replaces is the going to be the intriguing thing.

2. Shannon Neale. Showed some promising signs last year, made his debut and looks keen to improve further. Will he be a ruckman or a forward, does he replace Rhys in the future or is he our Hawk replacement?

3. Brad Close. Reckon he is on the edge of becoming elite. If he continues his improvement, he could become AA. I rate him that highly. The work rate and footy brain he has is off the charts.

 

[Warhorse]

So who at Geelong is your for next season. The criteria is yours. It could be a veteran you’re keen to see if the performances remain. It could be a VFL player set to announce himself or whatever other criteria you want.

1. Max Holmes. Has already broken into a strong side as established himself as best 22. I think 2023 could be the year he really breaks out and announces himself as a quality AFL player.

2. James Willis. Injured for parts of 2022, in the latter part of the season showed some traits that give hope he can make a good fist of an AFL career. Good speed and evasiveness in traffic. Keen to see if he can string consistent performances together and build towards earning a debut.

3. Amy McDonald. Freshly minted AFLW AA player with 3 successive Geelong Best and Fairest awards. Can she continue to improve and push for more league honours and further up the league medal tally. Another cats B&F would write an early chapter in the fledgling history book of the Cats women’s program. We shouldn’t undersell the effect these pioneers have on young girls, gives them players to idolise and aspire to become. Like a generation of 90s kids with Ablett’s no.5 on their backs.

Great thread. I'm picking three who can go in either direction - and am interested in how they are managed by the coaching staff. The fringe players are always more interesting than the first picked imo

1. Jack Bowes: Where does he play? Is he any good? Will have a lot of attention next year. Will enjoy the melts from the Hawthorn board if he becomes a good player.
2. Brendan Parfitt: Now finds himself on the fringe. Clearly a great player defensively but will likely be battling for a spot with Atkins.
3. Gary Rohan: Now has Henry breathing down his neck. Will be interesting to see what happens when he goes through a poor patch of form.

 

[BlakeyNoFlakey]

Jhye Clark. Top ten draft pick will be interesting to see how he develops over the next 12 months.

Sam Menegola. Can he get a spot back in the side with Bruhn, Bowes, Parfitt, Holmes, and possibly Clark competing for spots too?

Osin Mullins - The Irish recruit comes with big wraps, but can he transfer his skills to AFL and will he get a game in the ALF side this year?

 

[D BRIDGE]

I guess my list is based on wanting to see more of guys that could become valuable players but I'm unsure of and I want to see natural improvement from them / step up to the next level.


1 - Willis

2 - Bruhn

3 - Bowes/Neale


As much as I want to see Holmes go next level, I just feel he will do it and I don't need to see it to be swayed.

Also feel Henry, Conway, and Clark will be good players long-term (certainly hanging to see them aswell) but I'm confident enough about them to want to see others more.

So my list is based more on guys that I feel are important 50/50s for our list... If two or three of them can really become something, it'll be a real bonus for us.

 

[Sky]

Bowes, Parfitt, O. Henry

 

[goyoucatters]

Lots of intriguing names already mentioned. But for sheer 'What on earth will they bring?' potential (where the upside looks pretty astronomical), I can't go past:

1. Ollie Dempsey - a simply phenomenal talent, coming from a very long way back. Some of the moves conjure memories of the most exciting players the Cats have ever produced. Whatever his career finally becomes, I can see his highlights reel being pretty compelling.

2. Oisin Mullin - looks to be one of the most skilful and dynamic types to ever come via the Gaelic pathway. Given the two Irish boys on the list in 2022 are now premiership heroes, he has plenty of incentive and example to spur him on in his pursuit of a meaningful AFL career. And certainly doesn't look like he will fail to prosper in the game based on a lack of talent.

3. Sam Simpson - SOS was on the path to cementing an important role in the 22 at the end of the 2020 season. Concussion has cruelled his last two years, but there does appear to be some hope that he's through the worst of it all now. If he can string together some games with the Bankers as the season gets underway, I can definitely see him pushing for a role in the ones as the season goes on.

And the very fact that I could write this list at least three more times right now (with totally different players in each list) tells you everything you need to know about how bullish I still feel about the prospects of our playing group at this point. Looks to me like we could contend for some years yet.

Love this club...

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Great thread , taking a bit of licence with my response but :

As I believe we will prioritise midfield excellence very keen to see the new and next wave - Conway , Willis , Whyte, Bruhn, Bowes, Dempsey , Clark and Knevitt.

Very keen to see how Neale progresses this season , just something about him...............

 

[FredLeDeux]

Lots of intriguing names already mentioned. But for sheer 'What on earth will they bring?' potential (where the upside looks pretty astronomical), I can't go past:

1. Ollie Dempsey - a simply phenomenal talent, coming from a very long way back. Some of the moves conjure memories of the most exciting players the Cats have ever produced. Whatever his career finally becomes, I can see his highlights reel being pretty compelling.

2. Oisin Mullin - looks to be one of the most skilful and dynamic types to ever come via the Gaelic pathway. Given the two Irish boys on the list in 2022 are now premiership heroes, he has plenty of incentive and example to spur him on in his pursuit of a meaningful AFL career. And certainly doesn't look like he will fail to prosper in the game based on a lack of talent.

3. Sam Simpson - SOS was on the path to cementing an important role in the 22 at the end of the 2020 season. Concussion has cruelled his last two years, but there does appear to be some hope that he's through the worst of it all now. If he can string together some games with the Bankers as the season gets underway, I can definitely see him pushing for a role in the ones as the season goes on.

And the very fact that I could write this list at least three more times right now (with totally different players in each list) tells you everything you need to know about how bullish I still feel about the prospects of our playing group at this point. Looks to me like we could contend for some years yet.

Love this club...

Dempsey is the interesting one.
He made big steps last season but, as you said, he was coming from a long way back, so much of his improvement was just catching up.
The question is whether he can continue to improve at the same or a similar rate this season, or whether his rate of improvement will level out a bit.
If he does continue at the same rate, he'll be a 1sts player by the end of the season

 

[goyoucatters]

Dempsey is the interesting one.
He made big steps last season but, as you said, he was coming from a long way back, so much of his improvement was just catching up.
The question is whether he can continue to improve at the same or a similar rate this season, or whether his rate of improvement will level out a bit.
If he does continue at the same rate, he'll be a 1sts player by the end of the season

As long as he builds up his body and gives his footy everything, I think he's a guaranteed senior player for plenty of years to come. May not play stacks of senior games in 2023, given how stacked our list is at this point. But that doesn't change my conviction that he'll be locking down a senior spot for 2024 and beyond as his development continues.

Already does things few others can. And I don't see his trajectory of improvement plateauing anytime soon. Promises to be an exciting journey in the years ahead.

 

[Cursed Cat]

Esava Ratugolea - with little in the way of key position depth the club wouldn’t accommodate Esava’s desire to jump ship off season. With Tom Hawkins unavailable for the early rounds of 2023, will Esava get one last opportunity to establish himself as a senior regular, or will the likes of Shannon Neale overtake him in the KPP pecking order?

Jon Ceglar - the big ex-Hawk looked ok in his 2 2022 games and gave the club a different look in terms of clearances. Incumbent ruck Rhys Stanley usually misses a handful of games each season playing the most attritional position on the field - can Ceglar strike on these occasions and make himself difficult to omit? Or will Toby Conway put his hand up for a debut and subsequent opportunities?

Maddy McMahon - will the gun KD return to Geelong’s AFLW line-up after taking time out in AFLW7? If so, does she resume her defensive post, or does the club look to reinvent her role given the successful deployment of Claudia Gunjaca to Maddy’s old spot?

 

[Phipppppa]

Holmes, Neale and Dempsey/Knevitt.

 

[you pick one]

1: Jhye Clark
2 :Jack Bowes
3 :Oliver Henry

 

[STPer18]

Bruhn
Henry
Bowes

The three off-season recruits. We already had some unlucky players miss the GF as it was, so it'll be interesting to see if and how long it takes them to cement a spot in the best 22/23 for next year.

 

[bellpark]

1. Oscar Murdoch - Just looks like another mid defender from the Enright school of hard but skillful and can play on big or small - if he can grow into a regular in the best players in the VFL this year,* and I think we might have pinched another Rookie gem

2. Shannon Neale - saw him live Cats v Port in Adelaide this year and he has all the elements - running ability, size, athletissm, footy brain - was asked to play full forward, regular ruck and I think wing in that game. This year I look for him stepping up, and the coaching panell finding a role he can settle in and thrive.

3. Tanner Bruhn - has been a bit under the radar with all the others, etc but was on the cusp of stepping up to a new level at GWS. If he can in fact do that, then we have our Selwood midfield gap plugged OK immediately. If he does rise to a new level, then all the other recruiting will look even better in retrospect.

Honourable mention - Ted Clohesey - just some junkyard dog about this bloke I love

 

[My5t3r10u5]

My 3 are based on areas of need:

1. Esava Ratugolea - I posted this in another thread but I am really bullish about Sav stepping up to make CHB his own. I am hoping he can follow in the steps of Tom Lonergan who went from a mediocre key forward to a super dependable backman (the things that many posters on here say about Sav are reminiscent of what posters used to say about Tommy before he established himself). Sav has so many great attributes - amazing leap and good pair of hands with both marking and ground ball, super agility for a big man, fierce tackler. I think he can not only become a regular in our team but become a truly great back-man. I see this as probably our greatest need as I'm still not sold on Jack Henry/Jake Kolodjashnij as our CHB and think we were fortunate to not be exposed in this area in 2022.

2. Toby Conway - While I'm not as critical of Rhys Stanley as some, he is still not an A grade ruckman. The few glimpses I have had of Toby Conway make me think that we at last have a truly great ruckman on our list - his tapwork for a young kid is outstanding. The only question in my mind is how quickly he develops. With the 2022 season and this pre-season under his belt I have a feeling he will surprise and at least start pushing Stanley for the number 1 ruck mantle. I will watch his development with particular interest.

3. Jhye Clark (with James Willis a close second) - With Joel Selwood retiring, it goes without saying that we have lost a brilliant midfielder. While Guthrie, Atkins, Parfitt, Blicavs etc have been good, I don't think any will reach the level of Selwood (maybe a bit harsh on Blicavs as he is a very different player) and I'm looking at who might step up and fill that void. I could have gone for Jack Bowes here but he is much more of a known quantity so I'm much more interested in seeing how Jhye develops. From the limited footage I have seen of Jhye, he looks like the sort of workhorse midfielder that Joel was who can impose himself on a game through sheer willpower.

Get ready Cats fans - 2023 is going to be an exciting year watching our list develop. I'm almost as excited to watch the VFL games next year as I am the AFL ones.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Only 3?!!

You already took one of mine in Willis. Excited to see what he can produce as he's got all the attributes. Just hope he can string some footy together.

1. Jack Bowes. He has been told that he'll play, but where and who he replaces is the going to be the intriguing thing.

2. Shannon Neale. Showed some promising signs last year, made his debut and looks keen to improve further. Will he be a ruckman or a forward, does he replace Rhys in the future or is he our Hawk replacement?

3. Brad Close. Reckon he is on the edge of becoming elite. If he continues his improvement, he could become AA. I rate him that highly. The work rate and footy brain he has is off the charts.

I love Brad, would be in my top 3 favourite players at the minute, but I sense he'll never get the true recognition he deserves.

It's a dirty topic around here but bare with me folks. I feel like Close is the Puopolo to our Cyril in Stengle. Much like poppy, Close is a fan favourite and proven performer in big games, but might never get his true recognition because of just how good his partner in crime is.

If Stengle can stay on the straight and narrow and keep (or even exceed) his form, he'll go down with multiple AA blazers and as a great of the Geelong Football Club.

 

[Lana]

Patrick Dangerfield: After round 1 Chris Scott almost announced his return, what followed was an injured interrupted first half of the year. When he return he had his moments but was being more selective when using his superior burst. He was rested more on the bench when in previously years he would have rested forward. He had a low millage year, in effect he sacrificed his Home and Away season to peak in the last two games of the year turning back the clock for those to games. It proved that we both didn't need him to carry us during the year. But his dominance in the last two finals set the games on our terms in a way that our opposition's leading mid could. The safe choice for our next captain and a person already carrying a lot of off fields roles. Can we protect him through the year, another year older but if things start go against our way, he'll still be the one we turn to.

Tom Hawkins: With a broken foot the first two goals in the grand final could not have been kicked by anyone else. Late season his set shot radar seemed off, his left to right no longer reliable, you could see him wince after every mark on the lead. We can only imagine the pain of putting his 110 kg frame into movement. It is pure arrogance but we almost have to delaying his return to give him a traditional pre-season. At his age and unique build we simple shouldn't risk it, playing him under done could bring up a very rapid decline. But if we get it right his output, the more mobile he is the more options he has, scary thought for opposition defender. If defender can't stop him when his only option was to defend the drop zone of the ball what hope will they have when he get a bit of his movement back.

Mitch Duncan: Duncan had a disrupted pre-season last year with repeated soft tissue injuries, and it showed, he had trouble covering ground at pace, his chasing dropped off. It is a testament to how good of a footballer he is that he could make it work fighting through while under less than ideal prep. Like Tuohy's renaissance last year after recovering from a bout of knee soreness. If the medicos can weave their magic this summer, there is no reason why we can see more of the Duncan of old.

Honourable mention to Menegola, if he can get his knee soreness under control and get his fitness pack, it is like we traded in a new A grade recruit in the offseason. Crazily underrated

 

[Vdubs]

1. Sam Simpson- last chance to regain what he had- and if he does, will enrich our team with skill and class.

2. Flynn Kroeger- again, last chance to prove he was a worthwhile selection. I know he has it, but 2022 totally conspired against him showing us anything at all.

3. Esava Ratugolea- he has been kept by our MC and we all know he wanted out. I am so keen for him to make 2023 his year. Anywhere he is needed.

 

[supahoops]

Given our trade period I think

Henry
Bowes
Mullin

will be a fascinating watch.

 

[Stokey]

I see next year as being a bit of a holding pattern. There is two spots up for grabs with Selwood and the tactical sub. I think Bowes is first in line for Selwood's spot and maybe Parfitt or Bruhn as the tactical sub to start with. Neale probably has a start in Hawk's spot. Other than that I don't see much change. Injuries, form and our first half will dicate how it ends up though.

I'm looking forward to seeing Willis but he missed all this year and will have another apprenticeship year in the VFL. Clark would have to show a massive amount to crack the 23.

With the age of our list, the message has to be to the young guys. Work your arse off and your form might dicate that you are picked but don't be discouraged if not getting a game. Build a rapore with the other young guys in the VFL cos your time will come and you'll play a lot of AFL together.

I think they will play around with the ruck setup all year. Stanley, Ceglar and Conway will all get ample games.

The current premiership team didn't have the following players in it.
Holmes
Menegola
SavRat
Bowes
Bruhn
Henry
Neale
Conway
Simpson.

I don't envy the MC

But my 3 would be.

1. Holmes - hoping the drve for his flag pushes him to massive things.
2. Bowes - will be the pick of the new recruits.
3. Conway. We need him to come on.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

The 3 that i expect to see take massive strides this year are bruhn (rate him much more than a lot of this board does) holmes (he will be hungry and believes in himself at afl level now) and bowes who i think will be really good for us. Henry too but i think he needs time to develop. I think menegola will bounce back but it wont be a 'break out' year at his age.

List wise though the ones we need to show real promise this year are conway (because stanley and cegs are nearly at the end) and neale (hawkins 34) and seeing neale sign by mid season is critical. If rata comes on or if we could find a key defender for that last spot mid season that would really help too.

 

[CHAWKTS]

Thought this might be the right forum to post…younger crew seen walking the Main Street of Sorrento

The two Ollie’s, Toby, Tanner, SDK and Mitch.

Reckon there is 3 to watch out of that crew.

Let’s hope that is a core of the future of the club…

 

[CHAWKTS]

1. Sam Simpson- last chance to regain what he had- and if he does, will enrich our team with skill and class.

2. Flynn Kroeger- again, last chance to prove he was a worthwhile selection. I know he has it, but 2022 totally conspired against him showing us anything at all.

3. Esava Ratugolea- he has been kept by our MC and we all know he wanted out. I am so keen for him to make 2023 his year. Anywhere he is needed.

Understand poor Flynn hurt his hip again! Now bitten the bullet and gone in for surgery - won’t be seeing him until early rounds…. Joining Willis who has also had a tidy up around the hip. Hoping they both get a break to prove themselves…

 

[CatToTheFuture]

My 3:

1. Mark Corrigan. VFL cohesion is going to be a key component of any success. High turnover in line up, loss of senior players, large number of new kids looking for senior spots. We will need to balance expectations and develop talent.

2. Whoever our head of conditioning ends up being. Resting and rotation of older playersis another key plank. Rohan being out half the year made him a weapon at the end. Others could be Dangerfield, Duncan, Stanley. How this is handled will be very interesting.

3. Mackie. When will he sign Neale? Make it happen already. Seriously.