Rumour GFC 2022 Player Trading, Drafting FA, Rumours and Wish lists PT2

[ShaunWDT]

Phillipou is the youngest player in the draft pool if theres anyone that's going to mature a bit slower it would be him, has all the talent in the world and will dominate in the right environment.

 

[Phill Hendo]

I think Cooper Stephens choosing to leave is a sign that our list is close to the limit in terms of talent and opportunity. Given our midfeild depth, bring in another midfielder and they have to accept that senior opportunities will be rare. Maybe this changes as the older players retire but we hadded 2 mids in the trade period. The lack of opportunities would be an issue for the young guys. This is why I would like to see us go for a key position player like Busslinger.

I have said previously if we traded so we couldnt get Busslinger, then Phillipou would be my choice despite him being a mid. The figjam discussion is interesting and obviously the kid has some faith in his own ability. I think sitting around with a bunch of premiership players will provide a decent reality check for someone who is still very young.

 

[Two Planks]

I was told the club were fairly happy to see Cooper Stephens depart and he wasn't overly popular within the group.

Still think you can't go wrong stocking up on elite talented midfielders, they will be required in a couple of years. They will just get the standard Geelong 2 year apprenticeship in the VFL with a small taste of AFL action.

 

[Lana]

I was told the club were fairly happy to see Cooper Stephens depart and he wasn't overly popular within the group.

Still think you can't go wrong stocking up on elite talented midfielders, they will be required in a couple of years. They will just get the standard Geelong 2 year apprenticeship in the VFL with a small taste of AFL action.

I don't like this kind of chat... imo it is more likely a rational decision made by both parties.

We don't have any obvious spots for you and these people want you. It'd be best for your career if you move.

 

[supahoops]

Talk of Philippou being a FIGJAM I wouldn’t read too much into. I remember a SA kid who was on pretty good terms with himself, probably still is and rightly so, who was a bit of a reach as a top 10 pick and happened to turn out ok for us

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Personally I think Busslinger would be a bit of a silly selection for us. I think he is a great talent but I don't think there is a need to use 7 on him. Our aging players aren't key defenders and this pick gives us the best opportunity to replace one of these older players in the next few years. I also don't think he is going to compliment sdk that well. We want to enable sdk to intercept for the next 10 years but I think having busslinger in the team would inhibit his intercepting. I think we would want a really good 1v1 player to compliment sdk and that isn't Busslinger's strength. It still could work and I could look like an absolute baboon in a few years but I really just think we should draft one of these mids. Also I see it incredibly hard for Busslinger to break into the team the next few years which could make him a flight risk.

I've got all my fingers and toes crossed for Clark and if not McKenzie but at the end of the day I am just a bloke who has watched all the state u18 games and trust whatever decision Wellsy makes.

Also I get we drafted a bunch of mids last year but none of them would be as talented as the guy we draft at 7.

Also those interviews of Phillipou remind me a lot of Neale so I wouldn't say we wouldn't draft a guy that confident. I have no problem with him saying everyone should view themselves as the no. 1 pick. As a person who has studied a bit of sports psychology I think it is a great mindset to have. I don't believe it is him genuinely thinking he is better than everyone else but instead it is a mechanism to firstly feel confident in your ability and secondly to not think about ranking yourself among others which can be quite dangerous for your mental health.

I also think there is the possibility it wasn't really genuine, considering he is quite clearly the best SA prospect he doesn't really know any high pick players that well. There is always a possibility he didn't want to throw around a name who he doesn't really know and only versed once in the u18 games. Him saying everyone should think that way might've just been the first idea he had to rationalise what he was saying by avoiding saying someone else. The other option would be to say i don't care which probably comes across worse.

We 100 % need a key defender-if we didnt we would have let sav go to port (and i have no confidence in him making it anyway) so buss does fill a need. That said i can see your arguments about is his game too similar in type to sdk (i do think they would both fit together personally).on buss it sounds a bit like naughton in that he really wants to come to vic so i dont see him as a flight risk.

Also i like mckenzie, the way he lifted for metro and took over when ashcroft wasnt there is a good sign leadership wise and he just makes good decisions. Reminds me of a guthrie or a duncan in many ways.

Clark is still my preference but i wouldnt be unhappy with the other two.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

I don't like this kind of chat... imo it is more likely a rational decision made by both parties.

We don't have any obvious spots for you and these people want you. It'd be best for your career if you move.

Exactly. People are looking at things that dont exist.
Hawthorn will be bottom 4 and can offer gametime. We cant for cooper.
They also no doubt offered him more cash as with mitchell and jaeger gone they will struggle to pay the 95 % cap minimum.
We have no backup kpds, we have at least 5-6 non best 22 options in the mids.
This is why we fought to keep sav and why we rolled over on cooper.
2 years in the vfl and his career is gone so for his own sake he read the writing on the wall and made the move himself.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

I was told the club were fairly happy to see Cooper Stephens depart and he wasn't overly popular within the group.

Still think you can't go wrong stocking up on elite talented midfielders, they will be required in a couple of years. They will just get the standard Geelong 2 year apprenticeship in the VFL with a small taste of AFL action.

To be fair i doubt we would have done the trade with brisbane if we thought cooper would go we would have tried to shop him for currency and keep some of those picks.
I think its as simple as hawthorn put a truck of cash and gametime in front of him late once jaeger decided to go and that turned his head and we did the right thing and didnt stand in his way.

 

[D BRIDGE]

Exactly. People are looking at things that dont exist.
Hawthorn will be bottom 4 and can offer gametime. We cant for cooper.
They also no doubt offered him more cash as with mitchell and jaeger gone they will struggle to pay the 95 % cap minimum.
We have no backup kpds, we have at least 5-6 non best 22 options in the mids.
This is why we fought to keep sav and why we rolled over on cooper.
2 years in the vfl and his career is gone so for his own sake he read the writing on the wall and made the move himself.

Agreed, I was calling it weeks ago that he really should be trying to get out of Geelong (if he was serious).

Anyway, he did and good luck to him.

I think he was probably the most expendable of any of our younger players with any value at all.

Keeping Sav was more important due to the complete lack of key position depth.

Ben McKay could potentially be a Free Agent target at the end of the year, I think he would plug into Full Back wonderfully.

Plenty of clubs would be after him though.

Time will tell on who we take in the draft but if we think we are neck deep with McKay (and I'm completely speculating) then you'd think we would be more likely to take a mid with our first pick.

That's info us bigfooty folk don't have and will just have to wait and see what unfolds... But It could impact our drafting for sure.

 

[dont stop me meow]

Ablett Snr was one of the most 'one man band' footballers I've ever seen in my life. He was brilliant. He was a genius. He was the guy who made me start supporting the Cats when I was 5 years old...but he wasn't a guy who did things to bring his teammates into it - he just did it all himself and did the impossible.

If that's who Phillipou is modeling himself on, then that says he's all about the showmanship and doing it all himself- because that's what Senior did for most of his career. If he'd said Selwood, Hodge, Hawkins, N. Riewoldt etc. then you could probably take that as a sign the kid wants to be a leader and contribute to a club...but much like JHF last year, some of these kids think they're bigger than the club and make it all about them - and then get a rude shock when they're shown otherwise in the real stuff.

There's obviously people like yourself and a fair cohort in here who see things differently, so I'm happy to respect that - and I honestly hope I'm wrong as I don't want any kid to fail...but everything I've heard and seen thus far says to me this kid is just a big fish in a small pond, and he'll get a massive reality check once he hits the big leagues. It's why some clubs apparently don't rate him as a Top 10 pick, but then others rate him as a Top 5 pick- as he's easily the most divisive kid in the draft.

My point though from the beginning, is we just don't draft these type of kids anymore. Clubs like Essendon and Saints with their culture issues are happy to go for these guys, as they think it'll bring them the success they want...but don't realize that De Goey/Stringer types create a cancer within clubs and divide the group...and the prospect of success dies along with them. Not saying this will be the case, but Sam Flanders, another kid who was like this and had attitude issues during his draft year, will probably be delisted next year the way he's going - and he was in a similar draft position as Phillipou...and thought he was better than he was.

Anyway, all of us on this board obviously have our perspectives, and we won't know otherwise for a year or two, so I'll leave it there and we can revisit down the track when we know more/have a better idea of who he is.

Why does this kid give me JDG vibes?

 

[Vdubs]

Why does this kid give me JDG vibes?

Because we won't get him and you can dislike him at wherever he goes to?
If we had JDG, I'm sure we could grow to love him as a gun player, and we could "Stengle" him at Geelong

 

[Sire of Claude]

It never ceases to amaze me how some posters confidently make character assessments on the basis of tiny samples. Young people being interviewed for possibly the first time in their lives are not all going to sound like Pericles of Athens. Phillipou may or may not be a Figwhatever - I wouldn't have a clue - but I wouldn't write him off because of his answer to what was a question that didn't need to be asked, or anything else I've read or heard about him at this point.

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

It never ceases to amaze me how some posters confidently make character assessments on the basis of tiny samples. Young people being interviewed for possibly the first time in their lives are not all going to sound like Pericles of Athens. Phillipou may or may not be a Figwhatever - I wouldn't have a clue - but I wouldn't write him off because of his answer to what was a question that didn't need to be asked, or anything else I've read or heard about him at this point.

Well said SOC - IMO he came across as a confident and articulate young man with a healthy ego prepared to back himself.
To be honest the interviewers were a bit underwhelming yet he was polite and answered all questions , even the cringeworthy ones , patiently and thoughtfully. Big stretch to call him FIGJAM based on those interviews , I think he'll pass our character test

 

[Kobe Gryant]

I was told the club were fairly happy to see Cooper Stephens depart and he wasn't overly popular within the group.

Still think you can't go wrong stocking up on elite talented midfielders, they will be required in a couple of years. They will just get the standard Geelong 2 year apprenticeship in the VFL with a small taste of AFL action.

Pretty interesting if true, as one of his key characteristics was always his leadership and character.

 

[bombersboy]

I was told the club were fairly happy to see Cooper Stephens depart and he wasn't overly popular within the group.

Still think you can't go wrong stocking up on elite talented midfielders, they will be required in a couple of years. They will just get the standard Geelong 2 year apprenticeship in the VFL with a small taste of AFL action.

Don't think this one has any credence. He was one of the 14 or so that went to Ireland together. If your story had any legs then I think he would not have been part of that group. I suspect all the players in that group were mates.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Talk of Philippou being a FIGJAM I wouldn’t read too much into. I remember a SA kid who was on pretty good terms with himself, probably still is and rightly so, who was a bit of a reach as a top 10 pick and happened to turn out ok for us

Yeah but Mackie is handsome and cool and the reason we are able to get trades done!!!

Can Phillipou do that!?!

 

[FredLeDeux]

Pretty interesting if true, as one of his key characteristics was always his leadership and character.

I also read on here that throughout our finals drills he worked in the role of the opposition defensive inside mid, which couldn't have hurt his popularity within the club.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

The guy is 17, has a bit of confidence and you’re writing him off character wise?

Cmon mate. There were 2 or 3 other guys including Tsatas who said the same thing. I think you’re reading a bit too much into it.

I see a talented kid with a bit of confidence and that’s a good thing. The great thing about our club is our culture and getting the most out of our players, even if they are different. You can be confident and also have great character. In fact I think it’s a good thing. You compare it to someone like knevitt who sounds incredibly shy and timid and it shows in the way he plays. When the game is on the line I want the guy walking tall taking it by the scruff of the neck. In one of phillipous highlights he takes a guy on, runs to 55 and slots it home. That’s game changing. I want that in our side.

I’d be elated if we drafted phillipou or Clark. But I reckon phillipou will be the pick of this yrs draft

You make a good point, but you could've done without the drive-by on Knevitt. He just finished his first year mate.

Having said that, I do agree with your sentiment...but it does go both ways. For every Nathan Buckley, there's a Rhys 'The Barometer' Mathieson.

For every Knevitt as you mentioned, there's another bloke you'd love in the trenches of a big final, and he was as quiet and timid off the field as you'd find.....he goes by the name of Joel Corey.

Sam Walsh has the personality of wet cardboard....and yet I'd do anything to see him in a Geelong guernsey.

You could make examples for both personality types for days....the important thing is team focus and work ethic. That's what you want.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Because we won't get him and you can dislike him at wherever he goes to?
If we had JDG, I'm sure we could grow to love him as a gun player, and we could "Stengle" him at Geelong

I'm not a huge fan of that comparison personally. Stengle had some issues, but we need to stop pretending like the guy was the devil in footy boots.

He was an impressionable young kid with a troubled upbringing due to his family situation, and was hanging out with the senior players and took drugs. Not ideal by any stretch....but a victimless crime and a mistake that a lot of kids under the age of 25 have made, and will continue to make.

I'm not entirely caught up on the JDG saga, but every report you here makes Tyson look like a choir boy in comparison. Allegedly of course, the things JDG has been up to are that of a man with serious issues...not a very young man making a mistake.

 

[cats_09]

There's a bit of content over the past few pages that are leaning more towards innuendo & speculation about individuals that would be more suited to the main board footy rumour thread, rather than in here where discussion should be looking more at the upcoming draft & our wish lists for whom we'd like to see in the hoops

So how about we cease with the innuendo & character assassinations of 17 & 18 year old kids, and turn our focus back to the point of this thread

 

[Gee Class Loco]

Why does this kid give me JDG vibes?

The Great portion of JDG the player that can turn a game?? or the young bloke who loves life and lives for the moment but is still a great talent?

 

[Strange Cat]

You don’t make it to this level without a healthy ego, some may be more vocal about it thank others

I think it’s really pointless and disrespectful to be making character assessments based on that

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

I've been told that Simpson had a contract in front of him a while ago but no idea what's happening now.

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

Exact words were 'he had a contract on the table but haven't heard anything lately.'

 

[Shadow89]

I've been told that Simpson had a contract in front of him a while ago but no idea what's happening now.

Maybe he's retiring given all the concussion worries?