Xavier ellis

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THEHIGHFLYINGHAWKER

THEHIGHFLYINGHAWKER

All Australian
Dec 28, 2008
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Is Ellis injured or just omitted? If it's due to omission then i think it's a good decision. X-man really needs to lift his game. Hopefully he can rediscover some form in the VFL and push for senior selection in the coming weeks. It did take Goddard a few years to develop. This is now X-man's fifth season so I'm hoping he is a late bloomer. Does Ellis have the tools in the bag? Discuss.
 
I personally don't see an elite player in him. At best Ladson circa 2008 type player for me. Just isn't big enough or quick enough.
 
Yeah, bit puzzled why we drafted him so high.

I know most recruiters rated him, but he doesn't seem to have the frame to put on weight and I doubt he was ever a greater sprinter or endurance athlete at school.

Has good footy smarts and shows a lot of leadership and courage, but is probably now the perfect sub and not in our best 21.
 

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I think we all under-estimate how much that sprinkler cost him.

Is still one of the quickest players at the club over 20m, but had the potential to be a real flyer. Not that you ever see it in a game unfortunately.

Is a very good judge of the ball in flight, probably second only to Hodge of all the smaller players. Doesn't have the size/strenght combo to mark however, and prefers to play off his opponent so he can get a leap at the ball.

Reads the play well and manages traffic superbly.

Better endurance than many of our midfielders.

It's actually hard to see why he hasn't developed into a very solid contributor. Indeed it could be his own flexibility that has limited him.

For mine the biggest thing by far with Ellis is he plays FAR too safe, and needs to take the game on consistently, instead of taking the easy option.
 
after the 2008 grand final, i thought he had turned a corner. obviously just a great performance on the day. at the time when we drafted him, it was applauded. since he was picked at 3, the boy has talent, but just hasn't stepped up. 2005/2006 drafts really have killed us.
 
Its definatly served as a wake up call for Xavier Ellis. I still believe he has the potential to be a very talented player for the club. But I think this season we have more depth in our team then we had in our grandfinal year, so positions are coming harder to grab. X has to find his niche in the team, or find him self another discarded high draft pick in the AFL.
 
If he had domibated every preseason game he'd be playing this week. The fact is that his contributions have been the same as what we're used to- some good things but no real influence on the game.

Good selection to have him in the 2s. Needs to get BOG for Box Hill this weekend. Anything less and he will stay where he is
 
Leather Poisoning said:
If he had domibated every preseason game he'd be playing this week. The fact is that his contributions have been the same as what we're used to- some good things but no real influence on the game.

Good selection to have him in the 2s. Needs to get BOG for Box Hill this weekend. Anything less and he will stay where he is
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He is listed as an emergency did he fly to adelaide?. If not its a shame i can't make it to box hill this week. I would have love to have had a closer eye on him down there. He should really dominate at BH level similar to what Swiss did last year (in the games he played) and i agree if he doesn't then others who do deserve their opportunities.
 
THEHIGHFLYINGHAWKER said:
after the 2008 grand final, i thought he had turned a corner. obviously just a great performance on the day. at the time when we drafted him, it was applauded. since he was picked at 3, the boy has talent, but just hasn't stepped up. 2005/2006 drafts really have killed us.
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2009 was a write off. Rarely had a game without a couple of injuries resulting. We never had the depth to cope with that sort of bad run.

If you look at it carefully, I feel the sudden change in 2010 game plan affected almost all of our running players except for Hodge.

- Bateman had a new negating role which affected his run
- Sewell, injured early and struggled to hurt teams with his run/link
- Mitchell wasn't as effective (still good, but not at his best)
- Burgoyne was good but his interrupted pre season (knee) affected him.
- Rioli was very good but again, groin issues affected his midfield rotations.
- Young was coming back from injury and lacked usual hurt factor
- Our Rucks were one tall down. Affected our clearances.
- Lewis stagnated. Had some good games but didn't step up a gear.


Ellis also had his share of injuries. If our movement of the ball is significantly improved then I think Ellis will be very important. Through the middle and half forward, there's no one I'd prefer kicking to a leading forward than Ellis. He can weight his kicks with precision. I for one think he can reproduce what he did during the 2008 grand final or close to it. He's a smart run/link player.

Think how hard it is for players to scrap what they trained for over the summer and change a game plan after 7 games in 2010. The above listed players, in my mind did well, but nearly ALL of the side lacked in cohesion and good ball movement.

Ellis can line up to play on Saturday, but is a little short on match practice.

It was also revealed that he had hip problems right through 2010 and from memory, was one of the few players that needed post season surgery. In my view, he will very important this year. All of the players know their roles and given time, he will fit in and be very effective.

I may be wrong, but I see Ellis playing a very important run/link role for us in 2010. If we need good ball movement (as the club says), we need guys who can read the play and hit a target.
 
I reckon Simon N is pretty right. He plays safe, too safe.

His skills are good, his pace is reasonable, he is courageous enough, gets to the right spots, is a team player but has got into his head that it is death to commit an error so he tries to commit no mistakes and as such he gves no rewards.

He is like a batsman who was taught that as long as you keep the ball on the ground you can never get caught.

He does this and is now unable to do anything about it. He is not a useless player by anymeans but he doesn't give us anything more than most any other good enough AFL standard player.

Can this change - unlikely
Can the Hawks live with these limitations - yes but only as a support player
 
Rioli magic said:
^Think you're overrating Ellis' kick. He has a terrible technique and is an average kick at best.
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His kicking lacks penetration. Even in the 08 GF he pops up so many 9 iron hospital balls - his GF performance actually proves why stats are overrated.

He is fantastic in traffic however and does have that rare quality where he can create time and space. He needs to smash a few games apart though and get himself going. With his frame he needs to be a running player not dissimilar to Daisy Thomas.
 

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The prospectus says he is very good at turning his inside 50s into goals and scoring shots. I wonder if this is because when kicking into the forward line he is not worried about turning it over and giving up a goal and so goes for broke a bit more . . .

I think as others have said he does need to take the game on a bit more and just work harder to get involved in the game. I think at his best he is in the 22 and as he is still quite young I have hope he will take his time at Box Hill as a challenge to lift his performance.
 
QuietB said:
His kicking lacks penetration. Even in the 08 GF he pops up so many 9 iron hospital balls - his GF performance actually proves why stats are overrated.
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He doesn't kick through the ball, amazing at this level really - hence the 9 irons with no penetration. It's very noticeable in that GF, and I think his game that day gets overrated. He was very good and one of our best players no doubt, but it wasn't quite as good as the stat sheet suggests.

QuietB said:
He is fantastic in traffic however and does have that rare quality where he can create time and space. He needs to smash a few games apart though and get himself going. With his frame he needs to be a running player not dissimilar to Daisy Thomas.
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He has some fantastic attributes, with his brain probably number 1, he dominated growing up. I still think he can become a quality AFL player, people underestimate how hard it is at this level to become your best when your preparation is disrupted, which Ellis has had his whole career. He's only now starting to get the hours needed IMO, and despite what others will say had his best season last year simply because he played every game. This to me is why it's disappointing that his pre-season form hasn't been great. Unlike Thomas, who last season took it up another notch as you'd expect the progression to go with his games played, Ellis hasn't been named for round 1.
 
Just think he is over rated. Now that we have debth, he has to work hard for a gig, like everyone on the list. About time!!!
 
Will go back to Box Hill and rack them up, cut above VFL football. Whilst I don't think he will ever be an absolute elite AFL player he is more than capable of becoming a very good player. Injuries have killed him, can't remember him ever having a preseason without some sort of niggle. Despite what some people say he was very good in the 08 grand final and in fact was very good for the whole second half of the 08 season. Looked set for a big 09 before injury ruined his year, came back last year and was once again very good towards the end of the season. He is a very important part of our teams future and I think by the end 2011 some on these boards will be eating their words.
 
He has the style of an inside Mid and the body of an outside Mid.

Average to poor pace and skinny, gets by on his superior footy smarts.
I don't think our game style the past couple of seasons suited him.
 
seems like he's one of those players who's too scared to take a risk and would rather play it safe by hand balling it to a team mate.

he'll find it hard being in our best 21.5 if he's still not willing to take the game on.
 
It's a shame cos he finished last year in great form. His game against Collingwood in R22 was probably his best so far. The injury from the Freo final impacted his off-season, so hopefully he'll get back in time.

If he ends up a depth player then we're going ok.
 
If Ellis is a "big part of our future", I'm not looking forward to watching that team. He really isn't that good. Why do people overate him so much? Pick 3?

I'll be honest, his GF day was very good, little bit of luck (his kicks bounced our way), at least he can perform on the big stage.
 
Agreed, his Round 22 game last year was excellent, he'll be playing next week and every week for the rest of the year up to and including October the 1st.
 
kick it to hodge said:
seems like he's one of those players who's too scared to take a risk and would rather play it safe by hand balling it to a team mate.
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That's exactly how I see it.

Skilled, but not willing to do anything but dispose of it quickly if there are numbers around him. His disposals are safe rather than creative.
 
Along with half a dozen others I reckon he's one of those mediocre players on our list who needs to step up a gear if we're to play in another grand final.

What I find most baffling about Ellis is why can't he ever seem to put on any muscle? You'd think a course of weight-gain supplements and long hours in the gym over the summer would work wonders for the kid, yet he seems incapable of building size on his scrawny physique.
Perhaps it's just my perception that his lack of strength is one of the reasons for his extremely cautious approach on the field, but I can't help but think that bulking up would give him some much needed confidence.

I also have my doubts that the midfield is really the best place to play him given his lack of speed. Maybe a forward or back flank would suit him better?
Whitecross is another who reminds me of Ellis. Plenty of smarts and decent skills but not quick or overly agile, or tall enough to be damaging to opposition teams. Modern day Lance Picioanes perhaps?
 
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