2008 Player Rankings

[BenDoolan]

For what it's worth....

#1. Jay Neagle (7 games, 10 goals) – has a good pair of hands, is a good shot at goal, and looks like a footballer. Just needs to get that fitness level to where it needs to be, and buy a new pair of feet. 4/10

#2. Ricky Dyson (15 games, 3 goals) – just isn’t able to take “the next step”. Doesn’t work hard enough, and should. 4/10

#3. Scott Gumbleton (0 games, 0 goals) – 2 incredibly wasted years. 0/10

#4. Jobe Watson (19 games, 4 goals) – another solid season. A very consistent footballer with an amazing knack of getting the ball and giving off with constructive / creative handball. Is getting better with his kicking, and is improving every year. All Jobe needs to do is deposit 20 goals a season and he would be dynamite. 8/10

#5. Brent Stanton (22 games, 18 goals) – becoming a well rounded footballer. Struggled earlier in the season with half efforts on defence but has since worked hard on that aspect of his game with good results. Has been consistently good, and is getting handy around goal. 7/10

#6. Angus Monfries (19 games, 18 goals) – sluggish start to the year but emerged with a top performance against Andrew McLeod. Continued on from there with a sensational performance against Carlton and has been quite good in the 2nd half of the season. 6/10

#7. Leroy Jetta (18 goals, 11 goals) – still a bit raw and struggles to get much of the ball. Can be electric in patches, but is still learning the game. 5/10

#8. Jason Winderlich (9 games, 5 goals) – crippled by injuries. Was hampered in the games he played, but put in some good performances on the forward line on occasion. 3/10

#9. Adam Ramanauskas (18 games, 7 goals) – battled hard and generally played well. Never the same player as he used to be, but did put in solid performances in defence and up forward on occasion. Farewell, and thanks. 5/10

#10. Mark McVeigh (14 games, 14 goals) – was absolutely red hot before he tore his hamstring against the Bulldogs. Is in the prime of his career and is showing great leadership both on and off the field. Quality player. 8/10

#11. Damien Peverill (10 games, 1 goal) – a true blue collar footballer who got the best out of himself. Played his last game as if it was his first which is typical of the way Pev played. Played well in all the games he played. 7/10

#12. Andrew Welsh (17 games, 9 goals) – re-born as an effective tagging midfielder who caused damage with career high possessions. Is always hard at the ball and now can be used in a variety of roles. 8/10

#13. Andrew Lovett (17 games, 14 goals) – despite his slackness at training, he has had his most consistent season at the club. Put in a couple of blinders and was also prepared to chase and tackle. If to be offloaded, the club needs to replace him with someone who has his attributes plus MORE. 7/10

#14. Jason Johnson (4 games, 2 goals) – he was finished last year. It is amazing how some player’s careers can end so quickly. Lost all his power as a midfield enforcer and struggled to keep up with the pace. Injuries (like many others) was to plague him all year. 1/10

#15. Courtenay Dempsey (4 games, 1 goal) – has huge talent, but 10 games in 3 years means he is becoming an annual list clogger. Played a top game against West Coast and then snapped like a piece of chalk the following week. 2/10

#16. Tayte Pears (5 games, 2 goals) – showed that he can handle AFL. Has composure and good awareness. Just needs the body to handle AFL. 2/10

#17. Jay Nash (21 games, 5 goals) – coming along nicely. Developing into a very good running half back with a rocket long kick. Needs to improve his attempts at spoiling, but has been improving as the season got longer. 6/10

#18. Matthew Lloyd (21 games, 62 goals) – was struggling earlier in the year with poor form and bad habits. Emerged as an up the ground leader at the half way mark of the year and has simply been sensational since. Has Mark of The Year in the bag. 8/10

#19. David Hille (20 games, 19 goals) – should win this year’s best & fairest. Has improved out of sight, and is the 2nd best ruckman in the competition. Has been a tower of strength all year with an enormous capacity to cover the entire ground – without much support from other ruckmen. 9/10

#20. Henry Slattery (20 games, 3 goals) – the back pocket plumber. Unfortunately struggled at times to stop the leaking goals from the smaller forwards. No doubting his courage or his endeavour. Needs more support around him to enable him to be more effective. 5/10

#21. Courtney Johns (2 games, 1 goal) – a project that never worked. Sad end to a young man’s dreams. 1/10

#22. Mal Michael (15 games, 3 goals) – was solid as usual. But was also shown up on fast leading forwards and the modern game seemed to pass him by. Still, he provided great relief for Fletcher and may have helped Paddy learn a thing or two. 5/10

#23. David Myers (8 games, 1 goal) – played well in a few games and showed that he is ready for AFL. Injury curse also stuck which cut down his season. 4/10

#24. John Williams (1 game, 0 goals) – debuted in round 22. Very raw and needs more time developing his strength and fitness. 1/10

#25. Scott Lucas (9 games, 18 goals) – Mr Durability was struck down in round 1 with a serious knee injury. Returned halfway through the year to kick a few more goals but disappeared again to the physio table. 4/10

#26. Cale Hooker (2 games, 0 goals) – another raw individual who still needs time to ripen. Probably needs another season at Bendigo developing his strength and fitness. 1/10

#27. Jason Laycock (16 games, 14 goals) – another frustrating year. Did well to kick 14 goals, but needs plenty of work on how to ruck. That’s his job. 3/10

#28. Darcy Daniher (3 games, 0 goals) – didn’t set the world on fire in 3 games, but needs time out there to gain valuable experience. Looks a footballer, and should be ready to make the team with a good pre-season under his belt. 2/10

#29. Alwyn Davey (5 games, 5 goals) – injury curse again. Hugely missed his presence on our forward line / midfield. He is our Cyril Rioli. 3/10

#30. Paddy Ryder (22 games, 5 goals) – started the season extremely well. Goes about his business with a minimum of fuss and reads the play extremely well. Can take a big grab and play at both ends of the ground. 6/10

#31. Dustin Fletcher (18 games, 2 goals) – not as good as last season, but still controls the back line. Solid for most of the year but did have some bags kicked on him. 7/10

#32. Andrew Lee (MIA) – List clogger. 0/10

#33. Adam McPhee (20 games, 18 goals) – a very consistent season between the two 50 metre arcs. Had his best year since his B & F contributing up forward and in defence. Good pair of hands. 7/10

#34. Rhys Magin (4 games, 2 goals) – did OK in his 4 games to suggest he knows the game. Needs to build his physique so that he doesn’t blow away in the wind, and work on his fitness. 3/10

#35. Tom Hislop (4 games, 1 goal) – see Courtenay Dempsey. 2/10

#36. Sam Lonergan (19 games, 9 goals) – a massive improver this year. Gives our midfield plenty of grunt and drive. He and Watson make a good combo. A very good year by Sammy. 7/10

#37. Kyle Reimers (15 games, 13 goals) – this kid can play. Another big improver for 2008, and will get better. Is tough and uncompromising with a bit of flair. 7/10

#38. Jarrod Atkinson (5 games, 2 goals) – mature aged rookie who looked good in the games he played. Not afraid to take a risk, and looked composed. 4/10

#39. Heath Hocking (3 games, 0 goals) – a hard nut who never had a real opportunity to show his talents because of …..I’m sick of mentioning it. 2/10

#40. Dean Dick (0 games, 0 goals) – given no opportunity. 0/10

#41. Danny Chartres (0 games, 0 goals) – given no opportunity. 0/10

#42. Nathan Lovett-Murray (20 games, 9 goals) – had some good games this year mixed in with some poor one’s. Started the season with 4 goals up forward but spent the rest of the year in defence. At the stage now where he needs to be more consistent. 6/10.

#43. Bachar Houli (10 games, 4 goals) – was having a fairly good season until he got….well….you know. The kid has all the skills and talent to make it a long career. 5/10

#44. Thomas Bellchambers (3 games, 0 goals) – still raw and not quite ready for AFL. Still competed well at the taps, but was shown up around the ground – especially in defence. 2/10.



Rank away....

[tonysoprano]

Ben Doolan - a fair judge, full of insightful comment. Regular poster with enomous passion for his beloved Dons. Needs to be more tolerant of the less educated and stupidly biased. Overall, outstanding season, only plagued by the odd dog-fight with Rosso and other posters he thinks have been smoking too much grass. 9/10.

[andrewb]

Exceptional post and agree with almost all of it. Some changes (but possibly because I'm basing my rankings on expectations coming in to the season - not necessarily on output).

For what it's worth....

#1. Jay Neagle (7 games, 10 goals) – has a good pair of hands, is a good shot at goal, and looks like a footballer. Just needs to get that fitness level to where it needs to be, and buy a new pair of feet. 4/10

2/10. Drafted 2005... Should be stringing together at least 15 games by now. Needed Jay to stand up in Scotty's absence but the body wouldn't hold up. When he did play he showed glimpses of talent but couldn't keep up the intensity due to lack of fitness.

#2. Ricky Dyson (15 games, 3 goals) – just isn’t able to take “the next step”. Doesn’t work hard enough, and should. 4/10

2/10. Drafted 2003... Should be producing consistently by now and most certainly is not. Not damaging enough by foot to be an outside midfielder and not committed enough to be an inside midfielder or tagger. I'll be very surprised if he comes up.

#6. Angus Monfries (19 games, 18 goals) – sluggish start to the year but emerged with a top performance against Andrew McLeod. Continued on from there with a sensational performance against Carlton and has been quite good in the 2nd half of the season. 6/10

8/10. Recovered from the shock of getting dropped for Dyson by his new coach in Rd 1 and 2 to produce his most consistent season in the red and black. One of the few youngsters who played nearly the whole season and had at least six games when he would feature in B&F voting considerations. Great season.

#20. Henry Slattery (20 games, 3 goals) – the back pocket plumber. Unfortunately struggled at times to stop the leaking goals from the smaller forwards. No doubting his courage or his endeavour. Needs more support around him to enable him to be more effective. 5/10

6.5/10. Tough as nails and stood tall under a rain of opposition I50s. Played injured a lot of games and had some really inspirational moments. Solid season after about R5.

#24. John Williams (1 game, 0 goals) – debuted in round 22. Very raw and needs more time developing his strength and fitness. 1/10

#26. Cale Hooker (2 games, 0 goals) – another raw individual who still needs time to ripen. Probably needs another season at Bendigo developing his strength and fitness. 1/10

#34. Rhys Magin (4 games, 2 goals) – did OK in his 4 games to suggest he knows the game. Needs to build his physique so that he doesn’t blow away in the wind, and work on his fitness. 3/10

#44. Thomas Bellchambers (3 games, 0 goals) – still raw and not quite ready for AFL. Still competed well at the taps, but was shown up around the ground – especially in defence. 2/10.

8/10 for Magin / Williams, 9/10 for Hooker and Bellchambers. PSD, Rookie or late Draft picks who weren't expected to play this year. Can't really do much better as a speculative pick in your first year than getting on the park. Hooker gets +1 because he managed to chair Mal Michael off and Bellchambers gets 10 for playing two games as first ruck at 18... great effort! Magin and Bellchambers definitely look like players, the others are wait and see.

#36. Sam Lonergan (19 games, 9 goals) – a massive improver this year. Gives our midfield plenty of grunt and drive. He and Watson make a good combo. A very good year by Sammy. 7/10

#37. Kyle Reimers (15 games, 13 goals) – this kid can play. Another big improver for 2008, and will get better. Is tough and uncompromising with a bit of flair. 7/10

9/10. I thought that Sammy and Kyle were awesome this year considering expectations coming in. Excellent work by both boys - look forward to long careers in the red and black.

Rank away....

[gringo]

Ha. Nice work Tony.

An excellent summary there Ben. Perhaps a few very minor adjustments that could be made but otherwise spot on. Reading through that list makes me realise how far away we still are and how much our young players need to come on for us to challenge.

Surely we can't have the same run with injuries next year as we did this year.

[BenDoolan]

Ben Doolan - a fair judge, full of insightful comment. Regular poster with enomous passion for his beloved Dons. Needs to be more tolerant of the less educated and stupidly biased. Overall, outstanding season, only plagued by the odd dog-fight with Rosso and other posters he thinks have been smoking too much grass. 9/10.

Classic work there Tony. You're a bit generous there though.....

[Madden]

BenDoolan (MIA) - list clogger. 0/10

[Mrs Mercuri]

Yep i pretty much agree with everything in your post. Rating the young kids 1/10 was perhaps a little harsh though.

Williams, Hooker and Bellchambers were very consistent for Bendigo this season and were really put in the side ahead of their time.

[Windy_Hill]

Hille, McPhee, Watson, Lloyd, McVeigh, Reimers, Lonergan, Ryder and Fletcher

Have a great off season - you've earned it

[pear]

Nice work BD, can't fault too much of what you've said.

[Rossoneri]

Hille, McPhee, Watson, Lloyd, McVeigh, Reimers, Lonergan, Ryder and Fletcher

Have a great off season - you've earned it

Didn't you say he has been the most disappointing of the season, that he just cruises along?

[Windy_Hill]

Hille, McPhee, Watson, Lloyd, McVeigh, Reimers, Lonergan, Ryder and Fletcher

Have a great off season - you've earned it

Didn't you say he has been the most disappointing of the season, that he just cruises along?

No, I said he has not been effective as a CHB and that he is being played out of position. Other than that I have always thought of him as being a real prospect. he has earned a break.

But just out of interest Rosso - are you on some "pick on everything I say" bandwagon because its starting to become just a little annoying.

Mate I dont always agree with your opinions but I am not going to go through every post you make to see if I can catch you out on a contradiction.

Give it a rest for a while hey.

[Rossoneri]

Hille, McPhee, Watson, Lloyd, McVeigh, Reimers, Lonergan, Ryder and Fletcher

Have a great off season - you've earned it

Didn't you say he has been the most disappointing of the season, that he just cruises along?

No, I said he has not been effective as a CHB and that he is being played out of position. Other than that I have always thought of him as being a real prospect. he has earned a break.

But just out of interest Rosso - are you on some "pick on everything I say" bandwagon because its starting to become just a little annoying.

Mate I dont always agree with your opinions but I am not going to go through every post you make to see if I can catch you out on a contradiction.

Give it a rest for a while hey.

Back up what you say. No, im not picking on you, but you have come out and made some interesting suggestions and arguements, so im just rebutting if I have a different opinion. If I agree, ill agree.

And its only been the Ryder point and the "one who got away", and I disagree with both.

[Sartorius]

Good stuff Ben. Just reading through the comments on each player makes you realise how many had their season derailed by injury. Hope McCormack knows what he is doing.

Only 2 players managed 22 games. Tut tut.

In regards to fans expectations at the start of the year Lonergan would get a 20/10. Has gone well beyond what anyone expected of him at the start of the year. Has become crucial in our midfield, and will be a key player for our next premiership tilt.

[j-mac31]

Pretty much agree. Good work BD.

Yep i pretty much agree with everything in your post. Rating the young kids 1/10 was perhaps a little harsh though.

Williams, Hooker and Bellchambers were very consistent for Bendigo this season and were really put in the side ahead of their time.

I think the point was to rate their performances for Essendon, which is what they are employed to do. Therefore 1 is fair, as they managed a few games between them, but did mostly f*** all.

[spikefan]

Great work BD , as usual it is always a pleasure to read your posts.

[rockhole]

Great summary, Benny. I just want to pump up Nash's tyres a bit more. Agree his defensive skills were a bit loose, but was obviously the go to man for placing a bullet like pass lace out.

Really enjoyed his foot skills and thought he produced a really solid season. Rarely wasted a kick

[BenDoolan]

Great summary, Benny. I just want to pump up Nash's tyres a bit more. Agree his defensive skills were a bit loose, but was obviously the go to man for placing a bullet like pass lace out.

Really enjoyed his foot skills and thought he produced a really solid season. Rarely wasted a kick

I'm a big rap for him. He's got so many good qualities - pace, height (188), skills, good footy brain, and a magnificent long kick. Perfect for a running half back flanker. He hit a flat spot earlier in the year where he was dropped for one game, but overall, it's his best season thus far. You're right, he could be ranked a bit higher.

[Rossoneri]

I'm a big rap for him. He's got so many good qualities - pace, height (188), skills, good footy brain, and a magnificent long kick. Perfect for a running half back flanker. He hit a flat spot earlier in the year where he was dropped for one game, but overall, it's his best season thus far. You're right, he could be ranked a bit higher.

Not so sure about this one just yet, but the rest you mention of Nash is spot on.

[j-mac31]

I'm a big rap for him. He's got so many good qualities - pace, height (188), skills, good footy brain, and a magnificent long kick. Perfect for a running half back flanker. He hit a flat spot earlier in the year where he was dropped for one game, but overall, it's his best season thus far. You're right, he could be ranked a bit higher.

Not so sure about this one just yet, but the rest you mention of Nash is spot on.

If he doesn't have a good footy brain yet, I reckon it is not too far away. Does he ever panic?