Team Mgmt. Makeup of our team II - Strengths & deficiencies, player development

[ScrappyCoCo]

We have Durham, Caldwell, Hobbs, Parish, Tsatas, Merret, Shiel, Parish and Setterfield as AFL standard midfielders and Perkins with the ability to go through there if needed. Duursma, Jones and Martin on the outside.

Not sure why on earth we would think we needed Redman in the middle. It makes one of our group have to play somewhere that they are not as suited to and hurts the team (like Shiel as a back). We drafted and recruited these players as mids and we should be giving them time to play together as a unit...they are young, we are young. Caldwell is hitting straps now after quite a few years in the system.

Play the younger ones together...in the middle as much as possible so they develop together and take over strong when Parish and Merret decline...lets be honest we are more likely to be in contention then, not now. If we don't win games as much so be it. It's better for our future. Hobbs and Tsatas TOG was pretty poor last night as well.

 

[Yoda_]

We have Durham, Caldwell, Hobbs, Parish, Tsatas, Merret, Shiel, Parish and Setterfield as AFL standard midfielders and Perkins with the ability to go through there if needed. Duursma, Jones and Martin on the outside.

Not sure why on earth we would think we needed Redman in the middle. It makes one of our group have to play somewhere that they are not as suited to and hurts the team (like Shiel as a back). We drafted and recruited these players as mids and we should be giving them time to play together as a unit...they are young, we are young. Caldwell is hitting straps now after quite a few years in the system.

Play the younger ones together...in the middle as much as possible so they develop together and take over strong when Parish and Merret decline...lets be honest we are more likely to be in contention then, not now. If we don't win games as much so be it. It's better for our future. Hobbs and Tsatas TOG was pretty poor last night as well.

If rumours are true they may find themselves elsewhere in 2026 if they dont kick on

 

[ant555]

If rumours are true they may find themselves elsewhere in 2026 if they dont kick on

Some will for sure. You can take that to the bank.

 

[Yoda_]

Some will for sure. You can take that to the bank.

** Looks at Cox, Perkins, Jones, Bryan, Reid even**

 

[ant555]

We have Durham, Caldwell, Hobbs, Parish, Tsatas, Merret, Shiel, Parish and Setterfield as AFL standard midfielders and Perkins with the ability to go through there if needed. Duursma, Jones and Martin on the outside.

Not sure why on earth we would think we needed Redman in the middle. It makes one of our group have to play somewhere that they are not as suited to and hurts the team (like Shiel as a back). We drafted and recruited these players as mids and we should be giving them time to play together as a unit...they are young, we are young. Caldwell is hitting straps now after quite a few years in the system.

Play the younger ones together...in the middle as much as possible so they develop together and take over strong when Parish and Merret decline...lets be honest we are more likely to be in contention then, not now. If we don't win games as much so be it. It's better for our future. Hobbs and Tsatas TOG was pretty poor last night as well.

Redman did not paly a full time midfield role. They used him more to be a stronger physical presence at clearance before he moved back to defence. It was similar to how they used Stringer and it was based around giving protection to the likes of Caldwell / Merrett / Tstats in the center bounce. He did not run around as a midfielder and personally I did not mind it. Probably would have looked better if Tsatas did not struggle big time in the first quarter. He made a few telling tackles that nullified the contest.

 

[Yoda_]

Redman did not paly a full time midfield role. They used him more to be a stronger physical presence at clearance before he moved back to defence. It was similar to how they used Stringer and it was based around giving protection to the likes of Caldwell / Merrett / Tstats in the center bounce. He did not run around as a midfielder and personally I did not mind it. Probably would have looked better if Tsatas di not struggle big time in the first quarter. He made a few telling tackles that nullified the contest.

Sad indictment on the list/team when this was even needed. Not saying on Scott but the fact we even had to try it shows how much is needed to move into the upper echelon of teams

 

[ant555]

** Looks at Cox, Perkins, Jones, Bryan, Reid even**

Reid just has to stay on the park. Yes a bit scratchy last night but he has played 10 games. Of course staying on the park could well still be an issue.

Cox looks like a departure for mine at this stage will take an extraordinary lift to change that.

Archie was okay last night. Struggled a little with the Scilly role but he put his head over the footy. His offensive game was sacrificed most of the night. Think he will stay but he is not the star some thought he would be.

Jones was also okay on the wing last night. Positioned himself pretty well and when he was on D'Ambrosio he did his job .Has to get better so the pressure is on him. I have question marks on him.

I had no issues with Bryan last night. I have knocked his lack of physical presence at times but in reality he is going okay for a 24 year old ruck with 20 games under his belt. He is not Max Gawn and will not be but he is now a year or so away from the point where rucks genuinely hit their stride. Think there is still a bit of premature expectation personally.

 

[ant555]

Sad indictment on the list/team when this was even needed. Not saying on Scott but the fact we even had to try it shows how much is needed to move into the upper echelon of teams

Yes and no. Teams like to throw in a different look at times but yes it exposes the fact that the list has had build issues. It is what it is now. Rosa is 1 year in. Just have to hold on and see what he can do.

 

[ScrappyCoCo]

Redman did not paly a full time midfield role. They used him more to be a stronger physical presence at clearance before he moved back to defence. It was similar to how they used Stringer and it was based around giving protection to the likes of Caldwell / Merrett / Tstats in the center bounce. He did not run around as a midfielder and personally I did not mind it. Probably would have looked better if Tsatas di not struggle big time in the first quarter. He made a few telling tackles that nullified the contest.

Ok so a bit how the cats do it with Stewart at times.

If we are not going to do it long term then I don't really see the point though...I guess it is something to look for going forward. We did win clearance which says they were going well in there...I just did not like that our backline was not great in that first when they got that run on. Especially with basically 3 new guys there in Reid, Prior and Shiel. Redman and Ridley would be our 2 best defenders at the club IMO. Even if he was there during that time...he should really be there running that area of the ground all the time I think. Those other guys should be in the middle laying tackles etc.

Also Hobbs and Tsatas took time to get into the game which is pretty dam hard if your TOG is 50% at half time (and some of that probably half forward or somewhere else).

 

[ant555]

Ok so a bit how the cats do it with Stewart at times.

If we are not going to do it long term then I don't really see the point though...I guess it is something to look for going forward. We did win clearance which says they were going well in there...I just did not like that our backline was not great in that first when they got that run on. Especially with basically 3 new guys there in Reid, Prior and Shiel. Redman and Ridley would be our 2 best defenders at the club IMO. Even if he was there during that time...he should really be there running that area of the ground all the time I think. Those other guys should be in the middle laying tackles etc.

Also Hobbs and Tsatas took time to get into the game which is pretty dam hard if your TOG is 50% at half time (and some of that probably half forward or somewhere else).

Tsatas had his chance early but yes limited time. Hobbs was used more as a pressure forward.

 

[Agronomus]

We have Durham, Caldwell, Hobbs, Parish, Tsatas, Merret, Shiel, Parish and Setterfield as AFL standard midfielders and Perkins with the ability to go through there if needed. Duursma, Jones and Martin on the outside.

Not sure why on earth we would think we needed Redman in the middle. It makes one of our group have to play somewhere that they are not as suited to and hurts the team (like Shiel as a back). We drafted and recruited these players as mids and we should be giving them time to play together as a unit...they are young, we are young. Caldwell is hitting straps now after quite a few years in the system.

Play the younger ones together...in the middle as much as possible so they develop together and take over strong when Parish and Merret decline...lets be honest we are more likely to be in contention then, not now. If we don't win games as much so be it. It's better for our future. Hobbs and Tsatas TOG was pretty poor last night as well.

Does Scott think Durham needs someone to do the heavy lifting for him?
Sheedy would have had him on Newcombe

 

[Yoda_]

Yes and no. Teams like to throw in a different look at times but yes it exposes the fact that the list has had build issues. It is what it is now. Rosa is 1 year in. Just have to hold on and see what he can do.

its round 1, not like we had 6 weeks of evidence and needed to throw a random dart. if we need to do that then maybe Brad is broken lol

 

[Yoda_]

Reid just has to stay on the park. Yes a bit scratchy last night but he has played 10 games. Of course staying on the park could well still be an issue.

Cox looks like a departure for mine at this stage will take an extraordinary lift to change that.

Archie was okay last night. Struggled a little with the Scilly role but he put his head over the footy. His offensive game was sacrificed most of the night. Think he will stay but he is not the star some thought he would be.

Jones was also okay on the wing last night. Positioned himself pretty well and when he was on D'Ambrosio he did his job .Has to get better so the pressure is on him. I have question marks on him.

I had no issues with Bryan last night. I have knocked his lack of physical presence at times but in reality he is going okay for a 24 year old ruck with 20 games under his belt. He is not Max Gawn and will not be but he is now a year or so away from the point where rucks genuinely hit their stride. Think there is still a bit of premature expectation personally.

to be fair, I didn't want to name the real ones in the gun. Tsatas, Hobbs, Davey Jnr. All should be on watch. I fear Elijah will meander through the year and we will be having the same conversations this time next year. (his off season was great, kicking won't be an issue, his bigger and won't be pushed off the ball).

Those 5 aforementioned either need to kick on and become top 10 players at the club or should be in line for upgrading via drafting imho. Ok is what has got us to here. I know we need serviceable players and. would be ok carrying 1 - 2 but not 6, 7, 8 in the one side.

 

[ant555]

to be fair, I didn't want to name the real ones in the gun. Tsatas, Hobbs, Davey Jnr. All should be on watch. I fear Elijah will meander through the year and we will be having the same conversations this time next year. (his off season was great, kicking won't be an issue, his bigger and won't be pushed off the ball).

Those 5 aforementioned either need to kick on and become top 10 players at the club or should be in line for upgrading via drafting imho. Ok is what has got us to here. I know we need serviceable players and. would be ok carrying 1 - 2 but not 6, 7, 8 in the one side.

Name them

For me the blokes who simply have to lift.
Cox. Not looking like he can.
Davey. Looked like he was better before he injured his knee but yes has to show it on the field.
Tsatas. Big first half of the season for him. Personally do not like he seems to play on his terms.
Hobbs. Can not keep hacking kicks like he does despite him being in the top few for effort / pressure / hardness.
Jones. Has shown no improvement as a forward so has to prove he can be a 16 to 18 possession wing.
Perkins. Think he will end up being a decent B grade player so probably stays.
Reid. Simply has to get through a season.

 

[Yoda_]

Name them

For me the blokes who simply have to lift.
Cox. Not looking like he can.
Davey. Looked like he was better before he injured his knee but yes has to show it on the field.
Tsatas. Big first half of the season for him. Personally do not like he seems to play on his terms.
Hobbs. Can not keep hacking kicks like he does despite him being in the top few for effort / pressure / hardness.
Jones. Has shown no improvement as a forward so has to prove he can be a 16 to 18 possession wing.
Perkins. Think he will end up being a decent B grade player so probably stays.
Reid. Simply has to get through a season.

Lual is in the bottom 3 - 5 for mine. Coming from a fair way back but looking forward to catching his VFL games this year. Some positive reviews from an old fella on BigFooty suggests he can see something

Lewis Hayes is close to my favourite non consistent AFL guy from last year. Young guys take time and here's hoping he can get his chance his year.


Tsatas is firmly on watch. Im almost at the point now where I dont care if a young fella ends up a star at another club, if we could get a first rounder then do it. Move on and rebalance our list.

Alwyn Davey is another firmly on watch for mine. Needs to be productive and actually participate in games.

Ben Hobbs is another on watch, feel for the kid. Square peg - round hole sorta player it seems.

Jye Menzie has seen Kako go past him like a bullet, am hoping we pick another small forward at end of year and we can move past him. Could be a long year for the former Tasweigan

Archie Perkins agreed that he ends up a solid B - grader. Anything more and it's a bonus.

Zac Reid needs to play. Fingers crossed its now moving forward

Nik Cox has some rumours that medically placed on the LTI list due to concessions is a very real possibilities. His actual output has not delivered on the unicorn name he was bestowed upon either.

Nick Bryan I think is still a watch. Draper is obviously pigeon holed to play FF alot. I want Nick to dominate games. He's getting that chance

Harrison Jones is another on watch. A failed fwd no a wing, run all day, needs to take 5 - 8 marks a week and if he can boot 1 goal a game that's an added advantage. I dont like it but id accept it.

 

[TheFrenchCut]

That 2020-2022 drafting period for us looks brutal. 5 first rounders, 4 of them in the top 10, and right now we have nothing really to show for it.

 

[Yoda_]

forget being able to kick, or handball or run to a spot my grievance has been for years now

our inability to be competitive. We have no batters, ones who stick up for there mates. Who was our last unsociable Don? Every good team has some swagger that can be backed up. We have nice pretty boys right now

Leadership is and will always be an ongoing issue. Go and get a Luke Parker, a Scott Pendlebury, a Travis Boak. Someone who knows how to prepare, who wins. show even our 'mature' guys what it looks like to win. What we are doing has not and will not work.

 

[Old Campaigner]

That 2020-2022 drafting period for us looks brutal. 5 first rounders, 4 of them in the top 10, and right now we have nothing really to show for it.

We have an unfair dismissal case courtesy of the architect to show for it

 

[boncer34]

Maybe we should try doping again

 

[thebigboy]

Maybe we should try doping again

We didn’t even dope properly. If you’re gunna dope at least win something

 

[Yoda_]

The thing that has concerned me for 20 years is the %

We have always been so easy to score against, even in the heydays of the Knights era when we regularly kicked decent scores, we had scores kicked against us.

I dont see who in 3 years will be kicking 35+ goals for us. Caddy, Kako + ?? (Langford maybe?, Perkins?)

Defence is a real work in progress but the inability to kick goals is still an issue as well

 

[revival_mode]

The thing that has concerned me for 20 years is the %

We have always been so easy to score against, even in the heydays of the Knights era when we regularly kicked decent scores, we had scores kicked against us.

I dont see who in 3 years will be kicking 35+ goals for us. Caddy, Kako + ?? (Langford maybe?, Perkins?)

Defence is a real work in progress but the inability to kick goals is still an issue as well

also a factor with the percentage is our general inability to play well against teams that should be easy beats. it always seems that games where it should be an easy win always end up in a shitfight and close win only. then you add those to the games we get pumped and we always, always have the worst percentage v other teams around the same section of the ladder.
i dont understand how a team with no success over such a long period can rock up to so many games just not mentally in it.

 

[ghostdog]

forget being able to kick, or handball or run to a spot my grievance has been for years now

our inability to be competitive. We have no batters, ones who stick up for there mates. Who was our last unsociable Don? Every good team has some swagger that can be backed up. We have nice pretty boys right now

Leadership is and will always be an ongoing issue. Go and get a Luke Parker, a Scott Pendlebury, a Travis Boak. Someone who knows how to prepare, who wins. show even our 'mature' guys what it looks like to win. What we are doing has not and will not work.

We went and got BJ. Dons culture under Heppell was the winner.

 

[Agronomus]

We went and got BJ. Dons culture under Heppell was the winner.

I only got a HJ

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Biggest issue that people need to realise (imo) is that when you have such a horrific run at the top end of the draft, it hurts you badly for many years to come.

Yes you can pull a few wins in from later picks, trades etc, but all teams need that core of elite talent from the draft. The other methods are always more hit and miss.

Langford
Laverde
Parish
Francis
McGrath
Cox
Perkins
Reid
Hobbs
Tsatas

That there is our Top 20 picks in a decade of drafts.

It is horrific. Absolutely horrific.

Parish had one big year.

Langford has come on but it took the club literally 8 years to realise that is he a forward.

A couple of others have time, but have started terribly.

There’s no coming back from it. We have completely blown elite draft picks and elite talent development for a decade.

We have years at the bottom to come.