Jurrah set to return!

[Yencks 8]

A young leading midfielder at another club told my Brother that he didn't rate Strauss. This was just after we drafted Strauss and Blease. They played Vic Metro with each other and Strauss was the captain of Scotch. It was mentioned that he's "soft". Since then I've watched Strauss reasonably closely. I can't say that I disagree with the assessment.

Like Watts, maybe he needs to take up a non contact sport.

Firstly, he wasn't captain of Scotch but that is irrelevant.

Struass has performed will this year in the VFL. Everybody has bad games. He has been known to work extremely hard, is very fit and has great repeat sprints. Not to mention that he is up there with the best kicks in the club.

Not suggesting that you are doing it, but after so many fans, inlcuding myself, have being proven wrong with Frawley, Warnock, Jamar and many others, it surprises me that people have such great expectations from players at a young age.

He needs time, strength, practise and confindence just like any other young player. Being perceived as "soft" now does not neccarily equate to that trait in the future.

[Hannabal 4]

Not factoring in the circumstances around a player's performance is called "an uneducated opinion".

No, it's called describing what happened in the field of play.

I prefer not to spoon feed people. It was obvious that Jurrah hadn't played for 4 months, so why would I feel it necessary to state the bleeding obvious ? It was obvious to most that read here that it was Fitzpatrick's first senior game for Casey, so why would I feel the need to point that out to those reading here ?

After all, I can leave the platitudes for you.

[Hannabal 4]

Struass has performed will this year in the VFL. Everybody has bad games. He has been known to work extremely hard, is very fit and has great repeat sprints. Not to mention that he is up there with the best kicks in the club.

He didn't get picked up relatively early in the draft and put on an AFL list if he couldn't play. And I was particularly impressed with his Vic Metro game versus WA at the Dome in 08, so I know he can play. And I've seen him train and I've watched him at Casey, so any opinion being formed isn't on the back of "one bad game".

He's soft. And if he doesn't eradicate it from his game he'll have a limited career. I'm yet to be convinced he'll develop a yearning for the contest. Needless to say, I hope he can, as the ability is evident.

[Steamin Demon 370]

A young leading midfielder at another club told my Brother that he didn't rate Strauss. This was just after we drafted Strauss and Blease. They played Vic Metro with each other and Strauss was the captain of Scotch. It was mentioned that he's "soft". Since then I've watched Strauss reasonably closely. I can't say that I disagree with the assessment.

Like Watts, maybe he needs to take up a non contact sport.

Rubbish !!! Soft ?? Watts & Strauss are in what is really there first year of senior footy. Please keep that in mind. Hannabal & Enforcer25 how about some examples to back up your rubbish claims. Getting muscled off the ball by seasoned men is soft is it ? Give us a spell.

[Hannabal 4]

I assume from your insistence on the physicality of the players that you are approximately (using the old money) 6ft 6, and 17 stone, you can run 14km in two hours, crashing into the same size bodies, falling on rock hard grounds, having people fall on you, and not feel sore slightly afterwards and maybe have a couple of lingering niggles the next week..........and of course be 18 or 19.......my opinion Watts will be a superstar, but in a couple of years and Strauss will be a great rebounding defender in a couple of years....I can wait, and not meter out unwarranted criticism

You've graduated in a diploma for the irrelevent. Congratulations.

As for Watts being a superstar ? Let's hope so, as his natural ability is undeniable. He's not presently AFL ready, but I'm happy they're getting games into him. When he has another 7-8 kgs of muscle on his frame it may well give him the confidence that he's presently lacking.

I saw a 17 year old, skinny, Dermott Brereton play finals in his first year. From day one Brereton not only didn't avoid contests, he craved them. It's one thing to make allowances for Watts, it's another to not understand the player at your disposal. Physicality isn't a natural part of Watts' game. If he can develop it through confidence, maturity, development from his coaches, then there's no doubt we have a potential superstar on our hands. There's also a possibilty he'll be a Steven Smith and play 200 soft games. Let's hope things fall the right way. He couldn't possibly be as soft as David Cordner. Could he ?

[Carlos Danger 380]

Jurrah doesn't warrant selection against the Crows, he looked really out of touch on Saturday and I doubt a trip to SA is going to help anything. Let him find some form at Casey first.

[dee-luded 2,958]

There was no AFL game at the weekend, so no opporumity to tear poor ol Cam Bruce apart on the board.......but wait there was a VFL game and there is Strauss.......let's do just like we did with Chip Frawley a couple of years ago...see how right we were...........Strauss has been in Brad Gotch's best for the last few weeks......and he has one bad game, Gotch acknowledges this in his review and possible reasons why..........but let's not let facts get in the way...

Yeah, that bloody Strauss, he put the whole team off. He should be dropped to the Casey 2nds for the rest of the season.

[JW4 0]

well put

[JJJ 502]

You've graduated in a diploma for the irrelevent. Congratulations.

As for Watts being a superstar ? Let's hope so, as his natural ability is undeniable. He's not presently AFL ready, but I'm happy they're getting games into him. When he has another 7-8 kgs of muscle on his frame it may well give him the confidence that he's presently lacking.

Watts is a concern and the bar for this bloke seems to be set pretty low. As Hannabal states, his relative youth and inexperience cannot excuse his lack of physicality and hardness. Obviously he will never be of the ilk of Archer or Jono Brown but watching the kid hit the contests harder would be of more interest to me than seeing him slot a few goals from soft free kicks etc. Long term, a change in mindset will help him more than anything else as his body will develop over time.

I agree 100% on Strauss. He won't make it. He not only lacks the defensive instincts and the ability to consistently find the footy but he also lacks other footy intangibles. He struggles with his concentration, intensity levels and awareness. He kind of reminds me of Daniel Bell in that he has many tools to be a good player but no where near the full package. (Combine their relative strengths and you have a player.)

Fark I hope I am proven wrong. That draft looks like gold at the back end but very at the front end at this early stage.

[Yencks 8]

He didn't get picked up relatively early in the draft and put on an AFL list if he couldn't play. And I was particularly impressed with his Vic Metro game versus WA at the Dome in 08, so I know he can play. And I've seen him train and I've watched him at Casey, so any opinion being formed isn't on the back of "one bad game".

He's soft. And if he doesn't eradicate it from his game he'll have a limited career. I'm yet to be convinced he'll develop a yearning for the contest. Needless to say, I hope he can, as the ability is evident.

I'm yet to be convinced he is "soft". He had a limited year last year and is this year playing a full season against men for the first time in his life. This type of physicality doesn't come as easily to some as it does for others. I think it a bit harsh to lable him as soft, at this age.

People do the same for Cale Morton. There is a difference between getting outmuscled in the contest or not believing that you have the strength to compete in a particular way so trying to influence the contest from a different angle. A lot of this just comes with learning. I think it is probably best to give it a couple of years before making these type of judgement calls.

"Strauss: he's soft. Great kick, but he won't make it."

[e25 5]

There was no AFL game at the weekend, so no opporumity to tear poor ol Cam Bruce apart on the board.......but wait there was a VFL game and there is Strauss.......let's do just like we did with Chip Frawley a couple of years ago...see how right we were...........Strauss has been in Brad Gotch's best for the last few weeks......and he has one bad game, Gotch acknowledges this in his review and possible reasons why..........but let's not let facts get in the way...

I'd just like to point out that I have never said a bad word about Frawley and could see the promise in him from day one.

I like to give players a lot of time & the benefit of the doubt.

Strauss worries me, that is all. And usually my instincts are right with young players.

Good luck to the boy, though.

[e25 5]

I'm yet to be convinced he is "soft". He had a limited year last year and is this year playing a full season against men for the first time in his life. This type of physicality doesn't come as easily to some as it does for others. I think it a bit harsh to lable him as soft, at this age.

People do the same for Cale Morton. There is a difference between getting outmuscled in the contest or not believing that you have the strength to compete in a particular way so trying to influence the contest from a different angle. A lot of this just comes with learning. I think it is probably best to give it a couple of years before making these type of judgement calls.

"Strauss: he's soft. Great kick, but he won't make it."

Strauss is undoubtedly soft at present.

The issue is whether he has the capacity to develop the hard edge he'll need to succeed at AFL level.

I hope so, but I'm also concerned.

[Hannabal 4]

Rubbish !!! Soft ?? Watts & Strauss are in what is really there first year of senior footy. Please keep that in mind.

I know that Watts is a mate of yours, so it's understandable that you'd defend him to the hilt.

The only question mark in footy circles prior to Watts being drafted was whether he was soft.

I need to make this point though. Being soft doesn't necessarily mean one lacks courage, and it's an important distinction to make. Encouragingly, Watts put his body on the line in the Port game and doesn't pull out of contests. He lacks physicality and plays in a way that protects himself from certain situations, which is why he often plays from behind. He does this because he doesn't trust his strength in contests and it's not a natural part of his game. Right now, 'one-on-one' is his achilles heel.

The first question he asked Grant Thomas around at Thomas' house the day he was introduced to Nick Riewoldt was whether Riewoldt was as skinny as he was when drafted. His weight, or lack thereof, has played on his mind from the moment he joined AFL ranks. So, just to reiterate, I'm not saying that he lacks courage, in fact I don't think he does, but I am saying that he presently lacks the required physicality for AFL footy. Pack marking takes courage and Jack won a game for Vic Metro against Vic Country by taking a great pack mark with seconds to go. He also had the courage to kick the goal.

Morton is soft, but has improved in this area in 2010.

Jurrah is also soft, but gets away with it due to his type of game. There were many glaring examples at Casey last year where Jurrah avoided body contact in marking contests and if you do a search you'll note that I mentioned it at the time on this website. Jurrah is fine on a lead, or going for a high grab coming from behind, but noticably avoids situations that expose his front. Robbie Flower was skinny too, but he was also as brave as they come. Jurrah falls short in this department.

Other people may have different versions of what "soft" is to them.

[jabberwocky 2,301]

Agree with Hannabal's assesments as honest and accurate. Still I wouldn't draw a line through any second year player. I will add that Watts' intensity is what I believe needs to lift. I would like to see him want the footy more, get himself in positions to contest for it and demand it. getting in front of your opponent adn leading at the ball carrier doesn't take body strength, it takes speed, balance and good hands and most of all responsibility. All are in his tool kit already.

I was poleaxed by a few poster's when I started a thread last year suggesting that Watts had to make some mental adjustments. It is interesting to note a few of those critics are now making the same observations.

I would like to see some of these guys on the periphery start to lift thier intensity at the footy over the next season and a half. I just want to see that these young men are made of the right stuff and that our coaching staff are getting what it out of them.

I note with interest Enforcer's assessment of Strauss.

[Red Sox 2]

Hannibal and others here that are so quick to label kids as soft or lacking courage....how ever you like to distinguish between the two, how did you find your first seasons at AFL even VFL senior level?

Do you find the need to apply a certain label to a player that is far from warranted?

Would you make the same comments about the majority of Geelong players? Doubtful....would you have made the same comments about Geelong players in 2005/2006, going by your summations here most definitely!!

Today's football see's kids exposed into senior football a hell of a lot quicker than in days gone by where they could develop their game at reserve level, amongst men and play anywhere up to 50 or more games before they consistently played at senior level by which stage they had developed bodies capable of mixing it with seniors.

They are now thrown into the senior mix a lot quicker, before they are developed completely and with a much higher expectation to perform from day one in every aspect of the game and little signs of where they might not yet be ready are then written up, as proven right here in this thread, as glaring weaknesses and doubts cast against them.

Players such as Joel Selwood and Dustin Martin are rare examples of kids that have bodies ready for the cut and thrust from game 1 and in Selwoods case he had the advantage of coming into a fantastic group and he was able to compliment the others around him. Dustin Martin is getting the rave reviews he deserves because of the fact that very few kids are ready in every aspect of the game...he is some talent due to this fact and as much as I LOVE Scull and JT, Martin would be a certainty for Rising Star if not for his suspension, due to this fact, because it is rare!!!

As for other high draft picks you could go through so so many since 2001 onwards that have been marked so hard and called "soft" or "lacking courage" because they are exposed so early. Gibbs, Murphy, Pendlebury, Thomas, Goddard, Wells, Deledio, Griffen, Hansen, Gumbleton, even the great Buddy was given this and other unwarranted tags early on.

Strauss, Morton, Watts and the labels some are attempting to place on them so early may be accurate as you see it but the facts are far from that when you look at the big picture and the closing statements being applied.

How about giving them some time and at least hold some comment back until they reach 50 games? Or continue to stamp their papers after a few games (or 2 in Strauss case - crazy!).

Luckily none of you were on Hawthorns board at any stage or Luke Hodge would be suiting up with Fremantle right now......fair dinkum!!!!!!!

Edited June 24, 2010 by Demon Jack 16

[Hobbits's 17]

Hannibal and others here that are so quick to label kids as soft or lacking courage....how ever you like to distinguish between the two, how did you find your first seasons at AFL even VFL senior level?

Do you find the need to apply a certain label to a player that is far from warranted?

Strauss, Morton, Watts and the labels some are attempting to place on them so early may be accurate as you see it but the facts are far from that when you look at the big picture and the closing statements being applied.

i think the comments are based on what they currently see, not the bigger picture. Very premature -arguably silly - though to rule them out at such a young age.

Players mentioned - Age -- Games

Strauss ----------------- 20 -------- 2

Watts ------------------- 19 -------- 8

Morton ------------------ 20 -------- 44

Edited June 24, 2010 by Grimes to Watts

[jabberwocky 2,301]

Who ruled who out now?

Some of the kids need to work on thier hardness and intensity. If they do they might make it, if they don't they won't.

You may not like that assessment but the fact is the success of our club is dependent on some of these kids stepping up.

Edited June 24, 2010 by dandeeman

[Hobbits's 17]

the one's who were labelled soft, and "won't make it"

[jabberwocky 2,301]

the one's who were labelled soft, and "won't make it"

Fair enough, my take would be that they need to harden up or they won't make it. I hope they all do. The club needs to accept nothing less than full commitment.

Some players take time, ie Goddard and Hodge. Some players fall by the wayside forever ie Cupido, McMahon.

Lets hope our kids are in the former category.