Rumour GFC 2017 Player Trading, Drafting, FA, Rumours, and Wish lists.

[Fyre]

Sorry to disagree D to D but with Smith, Ablett coming and Parfitt needing more midfield time as some suggest who could he displace?
It won't be SS, Sammy, Dunc or Guth will it.
He hasn't got the possessions to even look a possibility and that's at VFL level let's not forget.
On the other hand Thurlow is topping the stats and his versitility puts him way ahead of Lang imo. Others would rather even Jones over Lang sadly.

Lang is 21 years old. Bit early to be looking to chop him. Cowan has been on the list twice as long for about 1/3 of the games!.

Lang has played 42 games. If not for his broken leg against Freo, that could have been 50 by now. Has shown glimpses, played some good games in those 42 which means you continue to develop him. For me, I want to see what he is like in another 30 games before I make that decision.

Also, his 11 tackles in that Port game went a long way to Geelong winning the game, helping earn the top 2 finish. That has gotta count for something

 

[CatTricks]

If Motlop goes, Lang should stay. Gregson and Linc don't get on the park enough.

Fixed it for you.

 

[Ratcat]

This is probably going too far but I would've been more confident in keeping Billie Smedts for the Tuohy trade and handing over Darcy Lang.

Especially considering Carlton need mids and we need defensive forwards.

This is probably going too far but I would've been more confident in keeping Billie Smedts for the Tuohy trade and handing over Darcy Lang.

Especially considering Carlton need mids and we need defensive forwards.

Is it?
Don't apologize, those two wouldve had to be two of the poorest first rounders l've seen recently.
Lang has less than av speed for a small and can't mark.
The best he can do is to receive from others with an occasional goal out the back.
Doesn't get his own ball and really is a one trick pony. (low return defensive forward)
The current senior side is just to good for him, like Billy Smedts and Jordan Schroeder a good to ordinary VFL player.
Frye when will he play 30 more games, no time soon!

 

[Cezz The Catter]

Lang is 21 years old. Bit early to be looking to chop him. Cowan has been on the list twice as long for about 1/3 of the games!.

Lang has played 42 games. If not for his broken leg against Freo, that could have been 50 by now. Has shown glimpses, played some good games in those 42 which means you continue to develop him. For me, I want to see what he is like in another 30 games before I make that decision.

Also, his 11 tackles in that Port game went a long way to Geelong winning the game, helping earn the top 2 finish. That has gotta count for something

Is it?
Don't apologize, those two wouldve had to be two of the poorest first rounders l've seen recently.
Lang has less than av speed for a small and can't mark.
The best he can do is to receive from others with an occasional goal out the back.
Doesn't get his own ball and really is a one trick pony. (low return defensive forward)
The current senior side is just to good for him, like Billy Smedts and Jordan Schroeder a good to ordinary VFL player.
Frye when will he play 30 more games, no time soon!

Agree with you Fyre, he's worth keeping for a tad longer. Look at Bews he's shown why we have kept him this long. Lang has shown something, it's not much but it's something. He needs to play midfield, hes not a small forward or even a half forward for that matter. He really has no outstanding facets or skills, however he isn't absolutely tragic at anything either. This usually means you have to be ultra consistent, if your not elite at anything then you must be consistent, something Lang has not yet shown.

Ratcat, Lang was a poor selection in his draft, one that razed many eyebrows here and in the footy world from supporters to recruiters. I think Wells can sometimes get sucked in by local talent hoping for another Bartel discovery, I was surprised to see Jack Henry drafted by us as well, good luck to him though. Relaying back, looking at that 2013 Draft we really did miss out on some very good players, I would love to go back and see little Lewis Taylor in our forward half. Perhaps his attitude wouldn't have got in the way like it has at Brisbane presently.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Lang is 21 years old. Bit early to be looking to chop him. Cowan has been on the list twice as long for about 1/3 of the games!.

Lang has played 42 games. If not for his broken leg against Freo, that could have been 50 by now. Has shown glimpses, played some good games in those 42 which means you continue to develop him. For me, I want to see what he is like in another 30 games before I make that decision.

Also, his 11 tackles in that Port game went a long way to Geelong winning the game, helping earn the top 2 finish. That has gotta count for something

I wouldn't use Cowan as a reference point. No one should stay on a list that long with so little output.

I agree that Lang should be given more time, however.

 

[Ratcat]

With respect CTC l can't really relate the two players Lang and Bews, chalk and cheese would've thought.
One a lock 22 defender the other a reserves player.
So far they play like their opposites, one was a first rounder the other a pick 86 father son consolation pick.
Bews would eat Lang everyday imo.
Pity we didn't choose Matt Crouch or Zac Merrett who were there for the taking but Wells had to go left field.
If we can trade into another or a good pick we should.

 

[Johnny Cattery]

Happy to see Hopper re-signed by GWS. I would be happy to see Smith follow suit.

Having McCarthy and Gregson in rehab, Menzel being managed and Cockatoo faltering has jncreased the desire for attacking smallish forwards. Motlops patchy form exacerbates this. We really miss a fast muscle twitch, explosive over 5m, kick a goal from any angle small forward (like about 13 other clubs).
I would use one pick on a young genuine small forward. Bolton who played well in yesterdays VFL final was pick 29 in last years draft. They are there. I would list another mature small forward GAblett (at little cost) or if not a state leaguer .

On KPFs I think with no obvious FA (Casboult re-signed) we can afford to pass for one more year to see how Buzza, Esava, House and Henry develop. I reckon GFC would be thinking they as a group are now well ahead of where the club would have hoped at this point in time - all of them. Maybe add another speculative to that group.

In the ruck Abbott too has improved. However, I would like to see one more bigger bodied youngish state or local league ruck added to the rookie list or very late on the main list.

As things stand 20 and 34 are our good picks if we do not trade more than a third rounder for GAblett. Two good young kids there. Maybe another reasonable pick if we move on a couple of depth players.

In short I am saying we don't really need to trade much (getting Ablett for not much aside). We should use the early picks we have on kids and a late pick or two on state leaguers (and do some front loading ready for the following year).

Interesting post. Set me thinking - when we say we need a small forward do we mean
- a crumbing forward - although Harry, Hawk, and even Buzza tend to focus on marking the ball rather than bringing it to ground;
- a defensive forward who can help compensate for the lack of pressure from our talls - which is about positioning and technique, not just speed - (Buzza does this a bit, although tall)
- a goal sneak - a player who can bag a couple a game, from odd angles and congestion - Hyphen and Lang have had games in which they have done this;
- a high-speed high pressure small, who can win any race out the back and put pressure on running defenders. This we don't have?
- a player who helps our structure, who sets up others. Watching a game in canberra, McCarthy did this: it was a bizarre set up with a bunch of forwards way up the ground, and 80 or 90 percent of distribtion from the centre of the ground directed to Lincoln for him to do the inside fifty. (Frankly, it didn't seem to work that well. Meant to write about it at the time.)
- player with a great leap/great hands who gets small defenders very worried

Maybe it isn't hard to pick up a good small forward later in the draft, but it might be very hard to pick up one who can do more than one of these things. (Eddie, of course, can do all of them, but cloning is not yet up to standard.)

 

[supahoops]

Got to laugh at those so quick to write Lang, Thurlow off etc..

Guessing the same people would've shafted Kelly while playing magoos after a leg break.

Or Lonergan before he was transformed down back.

Buzza years away from having an impact on a game.

And Blicavs was never a chance of making it.

Bews was written off by most until his last 4 months.

Stewart. Do not waste a pick in the 40's on a VFL player.

Kolodjashnij isn't up to it. Oh, wait.

SSelwood can't get fit, and even if he does he's a Selwood in name only. Hmm.

Both Lang and Thurlow deserve a solid pre-season and a bit of faith. Lang could be the one to add to our midfield rotation and release Selwood and Danger forward more often. Thurlow is a quality ball user the modern game demands off half back/i50, a perfect Mackie replacement.

McCarthty has shown he has what it takes at the level. Gregson showed plenty.

All four will get at least another year to show what they can do and rightfully so..

 

[Daniel McL]

Devon Smith out of the Qualifying Final with knee soreness.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Devon Smith out of the Qualifying Final with knee soreness.

Seems the perfect Menzel replacement, dodgy knees built-in.

 

[Daniel McL]

Seems the perfect Menzel replacement, dodgy knees built-in.

Just without the strong hands & Goals yes.

 

[Spazz Cat]

Considering it's more than a 50% chance we'll lose Motlop and Menz we'd have to be absolutely Batshit Crazy to get rid of Lang.
Also considering he averages more in every single stat compared to Mcarthy, is younger and can get on the park at least half the time he's not the forward I'd be looking to offload.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Just without the strong hands & Goals yes.

Probably twice the salary too.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Considering it's more than a 50% chance we'll lose Motlop and Menz we'd have to be absolutely Batshit Crazy to get rid of Lang.
Also considering he averages more in every single stat compared to Mcarthy, is younger and can get on the park at least half the time he's not the forward I'd be looking to offload.

People also seem to have this idea that if a young player can't get into the best 22 now, there's no chance they ever could in the future.

 

[Spazz Cat]

People also seem to have this idea that if a young player can't get into the best 22 now, there's no chance they ever could in the future.

Unless they're always injured, then their talent seems to skyrocket.

 

[STPer18]

Lang will turn out to be a good player, he broke his leg pre-draft and broke it again at the back half of this year, just needs some more continuity. He's only 21 - we've stood by less talented players who've proven far more injury prone and for far longer, ie mid 20s.

 

[cats_09]

Devon Smith out of the Qualifying Final with knee soreness.

Gary has been in his ear and told him to fake an injury to ensure he does no harm before joining us for pre-season training

 

[cats_09]

Can anyone confirm Stanley's contact status - announcement that he is to be a father and his partner made the permanent move from WA to Geelong last year:

The 25-year-old model originally from country WA, moved permanently to Geelong last year to live with the Cats ruckman.

“Rhys has definitely proved to me that Geelong is quite a beautiful place,” Clemens told the Geelong Advertiser last year.

Can we hide him somewhere in the team until he hits 100 games as his offspring may be a valuable selection for our womens team in 20 years

 

[Stocks_go_Up]

Completely disagree - a players injury history is extremely relevant to their value and future output. Especially one involving a knee 'flaring up' meaning said player couldn't take his dog for a walk after training. Our club more than anyone should be well aware on how often lighting strikes twice when it comes to injuries in our squad. Did you all gasp and say OMG aren't we unlucky what a once off event every time Menzel did his knee? Go tell Hawthorn that a players injury history was irrelevant - mention O'Meara's knees as well and see what they say.

Regarding Smith...


So he managed only 16 games this year and 14 games in 2016 as a 24 year old both due to knee injuries and you aren't concerned this could cause issues in his ability to get on the park and output in the future should he come to us on a high salary + draft pick? Did you see him struggle to kick it 40m against us - was that just a bad kick or maybe he is under another injury cloud that is effecting his output? We need players who are durable and show up every week - our premiership squad from 2007-2011 was filled with players who managed to stay on the park for long periods of time - enough for them to build some great chemistry that ended up with premierships.. This current squad struggles massively in that area, every week we get changes and players missing for long periods.

Don't like tooting my own horn but those who had a go at me should think a bit more.

 

[Ratcat]

Considering it's more than a 50% chance we'll lose Motlop and Menz we'd have to be absolutely Batshit Crazy to get rid of Lang.
Also considering he averages more in every single stat compared to Mcarthy, is younger and can get on the park at least half the time he's not the forward I'd be looking to offload.

Lang to replace Mots and or Menzel, you must be joking.
No pace and no marking ability, he'd weaken the side. Wish they'd move the deadwood on.
Not overly excited about Smith if he comes with knee issues, are we buying trouble?
These smaller guys are hard to keep on the park it seems.
To replace Menzel we need a genuine medium marking player, Lang's not even in the picture.

 

[Deep]

Lang will turn out to be a good player, he broke his leg pre-draft and broke it again at the back half of this year, just needs some more continuity. He's only 21 - we've stood by less talented players who've proven far more injury prone and for far longer, ie mid 20s.

Yep.. if Cowan has been here this long then with the amount of games Lang has played he'll be here till at least 29

 

[ryzza11]

With respect CTC l can't really relate the two players Lang and Bews, chalk and cheese would've thought.
One a lock 22 defender the other a reserves player.
So far they play like their opposites, one was a first rounder the other a pick 86 father son consolation pick.
Bews would eat Lang everyday imo.
Pity we didn't choose Matt Crouch or Zac Merrett who were there for the taking but Wells had to go left field.
If we can trade into another or a good pick we should.

I think the point is that up until this year Bews wasn't a lock in defence, he was also a reserves player. Perseverance has allowed him to turn the corner. Lang is young, shouldn't he get that chance too?

 

[Spazz Cat]

Lang to replace Mots and or Menzel, you must be joking.
No pace and no marking ability, he'd weaken the side. Wish they'd move the deadwood on.
Not overly excited about Smith if he comes with knee issues, are we buying trouble?
These smaller guys are hard to keep on the park it seems.
To replace Menzel we need a genuine medium marking player, Lang's not even in the picture.

I think this year has shown more than most how valuable depth is.
If we lose Mots and Menz we seriously need depth up forward. He can actually get on the park too which is a bonus.
Anyway he's under 21 & under 50 games.
Not all players are Joel Selwood.
Look how long it's taken Murdoch to be half decent.

 

[CatRiot]

Lang to replace Mots and or Menzel, you must be joking.
No pace and no marking ability, he'd weaken the side. Wish they'd move the deadwood on.
Not overly excited about Smith if he comes with knee issues, are we buying trouble?
These smaller guys are hard to keep on the park it seems.
To replace Menzel we need a genuine medium marking player, Lang's not even in the picture.

Absolutely spot on regarding Menzel, we take him out of the side, then we need to replace him with equal marking power - that's why I liked McGovern (crows), but he's signed on with the Crows. I don't think Dobson from the VFL is anywhere near the same level as Menzel and was the best marking forward we had in the VFL, and his performances really tapered off at season end. The balance in the forward line will drop a bit if we remove Menzel and replace him with small crumbers like GAJ, Smith.

 

[Sticksman]

Absolutely spot on regarding Menzel, we take him out of the side, then we need to replace him with equal marking power - that's why I liked McGovern (crows), but he's signed on with the Crows. I don't think Dobson from the VFL is anywhere near the same level as Menzel and was the best marking forward we had in the VFL, and his performances really tapered off at season end. The balance in the forward line will drop a bit if we remove Menzel and replace him with small crumbers like GAJ, Smith.

Yes the dynamics will change if Menz leaves and GAJ plays forward. That change though will be a better setup with an equal number of personal goals but in addition a greater number of assists and far more defensive pressure; unfortunately only for one maybe two years at the most.

I'd still like to hold on to Menz and slot GAJ in as well. That's what we should be aiming for.