My summary of the game vs Bulldogs

Rossoneri · Post by **Rossoneri** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 5:18 pm

ok, ill give my run down of the match. I got there about 20 minutes into the first quarter and we were down 2.6 to 3.3, with Lloyd and Gumbleton kicking the goals.

Overall we were ok, we played in bursts alot but there were times when we made some basic fundemental mistakes.

Lloyd is back, make no mistake of it. Marking strongly and kicking truly. 5 of the 6 goals I saw the goal umpire didnt move a bit.

Davey is what we really need and him and Jetta have to play around 16-18 each this year. Davey is almost like "whispering death". The amount of times he catches players from behind without them even sensing him there was amazing.

in order

MJ - Dont know what worthless was crying about, thought he was ok for a bloke in his first hitout of the season. Did the little things in defence and then went up forward for a bit. Was sluggish, but still getting the rust off. Dont think he should play round 1 unless he plays in the weeks break after next week.

Dyson - for a left footer he needs to improve his skills. At Epping, he was sensational kick, just seems to be lacking a bit at the moment, but as it was his first hit out, he will get better (hopefully). Has speed and we know he has good skills so time will tell. Ran with the ball a bit today which was good to see.

Gumbleton - no where near ready for seniors but he will learn. Missed his goal in the first quarter and didnt do much after that, minimal game time also. Big lad, but I cant see him playing seniors this year

Hird - Can not believe this is his last season. The man is God himself

Gus - Played alot in the middle, used the ball well.

Jetta - smart player, good skills and has plenty of pace. But what separates him and Davey from others is that they run back in defence and tackle with tenacity

Winderlich - Think he may have gotten injured. Didnt do much, like most other games he plays. He may be quick but he is slow off the mark and doesnt do enough on the defensive side of things

McVeigh - Played ok, didnt give away any stupid frees but gave up the ball a fair bit. Was damiging at times off half back.

Pev - if he is our best 22 then we will finish second last. He must go back to be a stopper, thats it. Dont give him the ball, just make sure his opponent doesnt get the ball

Lovett - Loves to run which is what we need. Tackles well and backs himself. Played well again today, hope it continues into the season proper

Bradley - didnt do much, but tried hard. His best place is up forward as he always presents and makes a contest. Kicking is pathetic, why does he like to kick the ball so high? Worst kick in the league

Lloyd - He's back! Marked strongly, lead well and kicked beautifully. Takes longer than 30 seconds though but when you kick 7 straight, not many will complain

Hille - Thought he was good today. Only time we looked good in the center was when he was in the ruck. Won alot of hitouts and got the center clearances that started us in the 4th quarter and also the 3rd quarter

Slattery - What does this guy listen to before the game? He is like an angry Nobby Clarke. Hard tough defender but gives away a lot of undisciplined free kicks. Like the looks of him as a BP player.

Michael - Got beaten early by McDougall but lets face it, the next time we play the dgs, he wont play. He isnt needed, we only need him on Hall, Gehrig, Fevola and co.

Bolton - Presented well across half forward but that was it. Spent long times on the bench and like Pev, if he is in our best 22 then we are f*****.

Heffernan - Did ok, nothing special. Runs hard and tackles well, but doesnt hurt the opposition with his disposal.

Laycock - Hopefully will get better. Was ok in the ruck today, but has no idea at the center bounces how to re-direct the ball to his teammate if and when he manages to get a hand on the ball.

Davey - Whispering Death

McPhee - Lose the hairdo. Look like a girl and played like one as well. I wonder if he is still struggling with OP because his disposal today was poor and he barely got it over 35 meteres.

Neagle - Played aboit 10 minutes today, if that. Wasnt injured

NLM - Kicking and decision making is shocking. Even when he bounces the ball it doesnt come straight back to him. Provides plenty of run but needs to handball it more often.

Houli - This kids a player and a half. Backs himself, good skills and quite quick also. Hits the target 9 times out of ten and runs hard

Overall we played well considering the players out. Lucas, Johns, Fletch, Stanton, Watson, Welsh and JJ. Sheeds is encouraging the switch of play more often, but it would help if someone further up the ground ran to the opposite wing to receive the ball in two kicks time. Delivery to Lloyd was very good, 3 or 4 chanecs the FB couldnt do anything about.

Thats all form me, hope I didnt miss anyone.

Ill add that the 4th quarter siren went at the 20 minute mark, so it was a shortened quarter.

jimmyc1985 · Post by **jimmyc1985** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 7:10 pm

Sounds pretty good to me. Davey, Jetta and Lloyd appear the main positives. The Dogs had an extra 3 on the bench and were fielding a stronger team (speaking relatively), so it seems we've done pretty well. Also bear in mind we played in Perth last week, so to back up today in warm conditions must've been pretty hard on the players.

It seems guys like Dyson and Winderlich are getting seriously challenged for their spots in our best 22 by blokes like Davey, Jetta and Houli, and that can ony be a good thing. Furthermore, i can't see the logic in playing the genuine fringe guys like Bolts and Pev given how well the aforementioned three draftees have apparently performed. Perhaps later in the season when the young guys inevitably break down or lose form you'd replace them with more experienced but perhaps less talented players, but early in the season after finishing bottom four two years running, what have we to lose? Play the kids Sheeds.

Rossoneri · Post by **Rossoneri** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 7:21 pm

I have heard other people say that Winderlich played well, which is contrary to what I think. But no matter, I still think he isnt as quick as we ned him to be and he doesnt get back on defence enough.

jimmyc1985 · Post by **jimmyc1985** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 7:25 pm

Rossoneri wrote:I have heard other people say that Winderlich played well, which is contrary to what I think. But no matter, I still think he isnt as quick as we ned him to be and he doesnt get back on defence enough.

He's a two grab player. That's a really harsh assessment by me, but Winders always seems to require two bites at the cherry and that hurts big time. I think he's improved heaps and he's signed on until 2008 to continue improving, but the things i keep hearing about Jetta/Davey/Houli, he's going to need to improve to force his way into our best 22, particularly in the areas of grabbing the ball at his first attempt and not rushing his disposal.

Rossoneri · Post by **Rossoneri** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 7:40 pm

I hate it when Sheedy and others sa that player A reminds them of player B etc.

But Houli reminds me of Rama. Have the skill and pace and second eforts that he makes look easy. What Rama has is sensational hands and very well co-ordinated, not sure Houli has that yet.

There were a couple of times today when I got so excited I almost uncrossed my arms. Davey to lloyd then Hird to Lloyd, both bullett passes, both lace out, both goals.

DC · Post by DC » Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:58 am

thx rosso, nice report.

I have only seen Houli play twice so far, and it looks like he will be a player. Can find the ball well and isnt a bad kick.

Do you think he is ready for round 1 though?

And did Dempsey play?

Rossoneri · Post by **Rossoneri** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 12:20 pm

DC wrote:thx rosso, nice report.

I have only seen Houli play twice so far, and it looks like he will be a player. Can find the ball well and isnt a bad kick.

Do you think he is ready for round 1 though?

And did Dempsey play?

I reckon Houli is ready for round 1. Lets face it, we arent exactly busting at the seams of having a top quality list. He should be getting a game real soon as he seems far more capable than others. I hope Sheeds learns from his mistakes last year and doesnt play players who have had an interrupted pre-season straight away. JJ must play in the 2's for a few weeks.

Yeah Dempsey played, knew I missed a player. Didnt do much but with all the rotations, it was hard to keep up with who was playing well etc. When he got the ball his first instinct was to burn off his opponent which is a good thing. A couple of times he got stuck when looking for an option, but that was also due to teh dogs having two loose men back and the half forwards not providing a good enough target. Disposal was good though on most occassions.

Ramanama · Post by **Ramanama** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 9:12 pm

Sounds ok.... Bad news on Gumbleton though... really hoping to see him get in the side with eas...

F111 · Post by **F111** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:04 pm

Ramanama wrote:Sounds ok.... Bad news on Gumbleton though... really hoping to see him get in the side with eas...

He'll get there, no rush.
Hansen gets a go maybe at the 'roo's 'cause their list may not be quite up to it. Gumby has time to develop into whatever role the coaches decide for him.

Ramanama · Post by **Ramanama** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 11:45 am

F111 wrote:
Ramanama wrote:Sounds ok.... Bad news on Gumbleton though... really hoping to see him get in the side with eas...
He'll get there, no rush.
Hansen gets a go maybe at the 'roo's 'cause their list may not be quite up to it. Gumby has time to develop into whatever role the coaches decide for him.

Yeh i guess, where do you think he will play for us in the near future???

Rossoneri · Post by **Rossoneri** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 2:33 pm

F111 wrote:
Ramanama wrote:Sounds ok.... Bad news on Gumbleton though... really hoping to see him get in the side with eas...
He'll get there, no rush.
Hansen gets a go maybe at the 'roo's 'cause their list may not be quite up to it. Gumby has time to develop into whatever role the coaches decide for him.

I much prefer a young player be made to earn his time first. No point rushing the kid in if he aint ready. Let him play at least 16 games in the 2's, just to get his feet.
Alot of great players spent a heap of time in the 2's before getting a shot.

F111 · Post by **F111** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 8:29 pm

Rossoneri wrote:
F111 wrote:
Ramanama wrote:Sounds ok.... Bad news on Gumbleton though... really hoping to see him get in the side with eas...
He'll get there, no rush.
Hansen gets a go maybe at the 'roo's 'cause their list may not be quite up to it. Gumby has time to develop into whatever role the coaches decide for him.
I much prefer a young player be made to earn his time first. No point rushing the kid in if he aint ready. Let him play at least 16 games in the 2's, just to get his feet.
Alot of great players spent a heap of time in the 2's before getting a shot.

It will be interesting to compare Gumby and Hansen thru their careers. Hansen will play more games early. His development will be fast tracked. Gumby might get impatient, but he has plenty of time. Lucas and co will show him the ropes. It took Lucas 3-4 seasons to get a name for himself, which is still underestimated. He has been a great servant of the efc and if his development could be emulated by Gumby then great stuff.

As to where he plays??? I thought one advantage of him over Hansen was better options re: position, eg chb or chf...Hansen was touted more as a chb only.

Sol · Post by **Sol** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:40 am

Ironically, Hanson has been playing for the Roos mainly as a forward to date.