Last night's performance of Moloney

[jayceebee31 697]

The papers had him as one of Melbourne's best- I thought he was lamentable- doesn't do enough,seems to be slow , second to the ball etc.. Your opinion on last nights effort please ?

[DeeZee 7,296]

The papers had him as one of Melbourne's best- I thought he was lamentable- doesn't do enough,seems to be slow , second to the ball etc.. Your opinion on last nights effort please ?

The thing about Moloney is, that he gets his hands on the footy often enough , back lacks the smarts or any kind of pace to dispose of the ball properly often getting caught.

If you watch him he roves the ball nicely but then tucks the ball under his arm stares at the ground and just trys to break a tackle.

He does this alot , so he seems to back his strength, and not side step, or keep his head up and shoot out a quick handball ala Scully or even Jordan Gysberts in the few games he has played.

He is a big kick of the ball and is probably better off pumping it into the forward line, as i doubt whther he can learn any new evasive tricks or gain pace at this stage.

[Longsufferingnomore 1,608]

I felt so sorry for him because despite how hard he tried he was continually caught with the ball. At least Nathan can claim lack of match fitness but Moloney well he can't. He looked slow and awareness of players around him was off. It would be just awful if he was dropped being a leader and mentor that he is around the club. I don't know how many games he can play like this before he would be looking at driving out to Casey.

[Lil_red_fire_engine 10,836]

The papers had him as one of Melbourne's best- I thought he was lamentable- doesn't do enough,seems to be slow , second to the ball etc.. Your opinion on last nights effort please ?

He was PANTS last night. The only way you could get him in our bests is by just looking at stats to pad out the once who deserved it.

He served a purpose the last couple of years as a larger bodied protector of our young midfield. However he is poor defensively, rarely gets a clean clearance, is slow by hand and has a penchant to get ball and kick long and high but to noone.

With Sylvia playing a more predominant midfield role I do not think this is required and would hope to see him out of our best 18 as soon as possible and more time given to Scully, Gysberts, Jordie etc.....

I am sure someone will say though that he is a top bloke, bleeds red and blue, is in our leadership group etc.....

[drdrake 3,117]

It would have been hard to pick our best players, the Journo would of grabbed the Stats 18 touches ok add him in. Moloney and Jones need to lose the Superman attitude and become in and under players that dish the ball out and not take on the world.

[H_T 3,032]

He wasn't in my best players tbh. He isn't the quickest by any stretch, gets caught sometimes and as I've mentioned on other threads will try and bulldoze his way through with three guys hanging off him before eventually going to ground and a pack forms. Occassionally he will get pinged for holding the ball as he did once last night. For the moment we still need him in the side as the youngsters mature.

If Gysberts, Tapscott, McKenzie get regular games he may find it a little tough and will need to perform to remain in the 22. I'm sure he can. As DA mentioned elsewhere I hope he isn't immune from playing at Casey because of his position in the leadership group. (I doubt it would anyway - Miller the example here). If form warrants it for the younger generation with the "nous", he may find himself on the cusp, or off the cusp so to speak. Love the guys committment on and off the field and the value he offers on the field, you can't question his love for the club..but if we're going to be on a 'straight line'..

[Demonator 93]

He was PANTS last night. The only way you could get him in our bests is by just looking at stats to pad out the once who deserved it.

He served a purpose the last couple of years as a larger bodied protector of our young midfield. However he is poor defensively, rarely gets a clean clearance, is slow by hand and has a penchant to get ball and kick long and high but to noone.

With Sylvia playing a more predominant midfield role I do not think this is required and would hope to see him out of our best 18 as soon as possible and more time given to Scully, Gysberts, Jordie etc.....

I am sure someone will say though that he is a top bloke, bleeds red and blue, is in our leadership group etc.....

Spot on. Seems to be in the Brock McLean mould where he could get enough of the ball in-and-under, but too slow to do anything else and always trying to bust through tackles and getting caught. His disposal is nothing short of ordinary where 99% of the time, it seems to go higher than it does longer?!

[1858 285]

The thing about Moloney is, that he gets his hands on the footy often enough , back lacks the smarts or any kind of pace to dispose of the ball properly often getting caught.

If you watch him he roves the ball nicely but then tucks the ball under his arm stares at the ground and just trys to break a tackle.

He does this alot , so he seems to back his strength, and not side step, or keep his head up and shoot out a quick handball ala Scully or even Jordan Gysberts in the few games he has played.

He is a big kick of the ball and is probably better off pumping it into the forward line, as i doubt whther he can learn any new evasive tricks or gain pace at this stage.

Bingo.

He does indeed get a fair bit of it and the problem is most definitely what he does with it. IMO part of the Moloney problem is that he is not very proficient at doing the run and carry and a lot of the things the younger players are instructed to do but he is in the situation where he has to set an example. Ironically Scully and McKenzie are probably better equipped to do this. It doesn't mean that Moloney can't be a very damaging player for us if we want him to be.

I agree wholeheartedly that he is one particular player who is more often than not better off (for all concerned) at roosting it out of the middle and it will make him less predictable to the opposition and put fellow mids under less pressure. The Collingwood gameplan IMO is very good at taking player limitations out of the equation and putting ball movement first. They clear the area and work harder down the ground to get to the ball first, this is most noticeable with their defensive set up admittedly.

It is a hard sell given that a lot of Moloney's kicks are still up and unders and it is an approach that wears the stigma of "lack of accountability" but I still prefer to see him clear the area more often one way or another than cough it up in the name of trying to be accountable. He genuinely has a Sam Mitchell like gift at getting the footy in the middle so why not capitalise on it a bit more even if it means giving him a slightly different role to some of the other mids. Obviously with faster mids around him he can dish off a quick handball no worries but when that option isn't there or he attacks the footy and tries to break the lines he should at least do so front on to goal which at least gives him a viable option to dispose by foot.

[rpfc 28,045]

He was very good last year before Sandilands corked him.

We shouldn't forget that, nor write him off over one NAB Cup game (f..k we give this comp to much creedence).

I have posted this before - it remains to be seen whehter he will be around for our flag tilt (or in the 21) but he is value in the interim while our midfield is filled with babies.

[Neita3000 37]

He was very good last year before Sandilands corked him.

We shouldn't forget that, nor write him off over one NAB Cup game (f..k we give this comp to much creedence).

I have posted this before - it remains to be seen whehter he will be around for our flag tilt (or in the 21) but he is value in the interim while our midfield is filled with babies.

People are really getting carried. Everyone calm down.

Essendon beat us by about 10 goals last year in a NAB challenge match. Interesting to see how the year panned out.

[warren dean 193]

The papers had him as one of Melbourne's best- I thought he was lamentable- doesn't do enough,seems to be slow , second to the ball etc.. Your opinion on last nights effort please ?

Last night he was one of many who was poor. In the overall scheme of things, I can't see him commanding a regular place going forward. He has been a solid servant and many have already pointed out his passion etc, but that doesn't compensate for his lack of footy smarts/pace. His delivery of the ball into the forward line is atrocious and if he is still in our best 22 this time next year then we are in trouble. It'll mean blokes like Gysberts, Blease, Tapscott have not come on (or that Scully has gone to GWS!!) I struggle to find room for both Moloney and Jones in the one side and I think Jones offers more at this stage.

[dee-luded 2,959]

The papers had him as one of Melbourne's best- I thought he was lamentable- doesn't do enough,seems to be slow , second to the ball etc.. Your opinion on last nights effort please ?

I didn't notice him all that much so was surprised to see him named in the best, so I can only assume I didn't watch hard enough for his work. Maybe he was in'n'under, so much I couldn't see his work amongst my socialising.

He has been named in the best in a couple of games this year?

Edited February 25, 2011 by dee-luded

[H_T 3,032]

People are really getting carried. Everyone calm down.

Essendon beat us by about 10 goals last year in a NAB challenge match. Interesting to see how the year panned out.

We've been asked about Moloney. Have you actually read the posts ?

edit: And rp who is "writing him off" ?

[Deestroy All 14,262]

I actually think his stupid long bombs would work if there was always someone inside 50, especially Jurrah or Green one on one - easier said than done I know.

But often times when he bombs it long there's no one inside 50 or the opposition has pushed back quicker.

But it ultimately falls on him, he should know better, he kicked over a good Watts lead last night, and bombed it twice in Adelaide. Without Jurrah under it to take MOTY, it's cringeworthy.

[sylvinator 96]

He was clearly running at half pace because it's only the nab cup.

Wouldn't be writing him off just yet. He played a few fantastic games last season and was critical in the clearances

[Akum 2,660]

Last night he was one of many who was poor. In the overall scheme of things, I can't see him commanding a regular place going forward. He has been a solid servant and many have already pointed out his passion etc, but that doesn't compensate for his lack of footy smarts/pace. His delivery of the ball into the forward line is atrocious and if he is still in our best 22 this time next year then we are in trouble. It'll mean blokes like Gysberts, Blease, Tapscott have not come on (or that Scully has gone to GWS!!) I struggle to find room for both Moloney and Jones in the one side and I think Jones offers more at this stage.

Last night showed up all his deficiencies, and explained why clubs don't bother tagging him. He just doesn't hurt them, no matter how much ball he gets. Yet he's our primary on-baller for something like 70% of the time. This needs to change.

But without him, we'd lose a lot of phsyical strength from the midfield; we'd simply get brushed aside. Perhaps Grimes into the midfield, with Trengove & McKenzie & perhaps Tapscott, would offset this in the future.

Could he play a more defensive role? Perhaps not as a tagger - he'd be too slow - but as a blocker, which IMO is something our young mids will really need. Or even as a small defender?

Or could we keep it simple for him, so that it's all worked out beforehand where he's going to put it if he gets his hands on the ball at a clearance. Like a quarterback perhaps - he calls the plays. He's got the pipes for it.

I think he's good enough for our best 22 somewhere, but not as our primary on-baller.

[dee-luded 2,959]

Last night showed up all his deficiencies, and explained why clubs don't bother tagging him. He just doesn't hurt them, no matter how much ball he gets. Yet he's our primary on-baller for something like 70% of the time. This needs to change.

But without him, we'd lose a lot of phsyical strength from the midfield; we'd simply get brushed aside. Perhaps Grimes into the midfield, with Trengove & McKenzie & perhaps Tapscott, would offset this in the future.

Could he play a more defensive role? Perhaps not as a tagger - he'd be too slow - but as a blocker, which IMO is something our young mids will really need. Or even as a small defender?

Or could we keep it simple for him, so that it's all worked out beforehand where he's going to put it if he gets his hands on the ball at a clearance. Like a quarterback perhaps - he calls the plays. He's got the pipes for it.

I think he's good enough for our best 22 somewhere, but not as our primary on-baller.

Yeah, I was wondering that last night & today, re Moloney. Last night re Jones, could he play a back pocket role in the future, & also could Moloney adapt to the small back pocket role as we move forward?

[Big Kev 340]

He was clearly running at half pace because it's only the nab cup.

Yeah, fair enough, we have had so much sucess the last three years we can just coast along and do things at half pace.

That was one of the issues, Essendon were desperate, we were not.

[DeeSpencer 24,683]

Yeah, I was wondering that last night & today, re Moloney. Last night re Jones, could he play a back pocket role in the future, & also could Moloney adapt to the small back pocket role as we move forward?

Hell no. Both too slow and too short. They don't have anywhere near the speed or prowess in the air of Bartram or Grimes.

They are hard bodied inside mids. That's where they should be played and if they are forced out by Trengove, Scully, Sylvia, McKenzie and Gysberts then so be it.

I didn't think Moloney was too bad, and getting your hands on the footy is still vital. For a preseason game I thought he was ok.

[titan_uranus 24,562]

The thing about Moloney is, that he gets his hands on the footy often enough , back lacks the smarts or any kind of pace to dispose of the ball properly often getting caught.

If you watch him he roves the ball nicely but then tucks the ball under his arm stares at the ground and just trys to break a tackle.

He does this alot , so he seems to back his strength, and not side step, or keep his head up and shoot out a quick handball ala Scully or even Jordan Gysberts in the few games he has played.

He is a big kick of the ball and is probably better off pumping it into the forward line, as i doubt whther he can learn any new evasive tricks or gain pace at this stage.

Good post.

When he plays at his best, though, he still dominates through the clearances, via that break the tackles kind of play.

But when he's even a little off, he can be a bit of a slow liability.

More talented than Jones, for example, but in a similar boat. If (hopefully when) the youth comes on his spot will be less certain.

[Weekends at Bernie's 64]

Moloney may do stuff that you wont notice. hes not the most polished footballer going around thats for sure.

but i think his problem last night was that he dived on the ball rather than keeping his feet.

personally i dont think he was in our best 5 or 6 last night.

[Jaded No More 67,619]

Yeah, fair enough, we have had so much sucess the last three years we can just coast along and do things at half pace.

That was one of the issues, Essendon were desperate, we were not.

I'm not saying it's right, but our senior players certainly looked to be taking it easy out there. Essendon probably had plenty of guys who are under the pump and needed to impress the new coach.

Of course we need to win everything and anything at the moment after years of being terrible, but to be honest I don't really blame players for not wanting to get seriously injured.

If given a choice, I'd take straight set losses in the NAB Cup over injuries. It's just not worth it. Grimes and Bartram flying backwards into packs made me seriously cringe, even though I'm the first person who gets stuck into a player if they don't go hard enough.

[jabberwocky 2,301]

He appeared to be one of a number of senior players going through the motions last night. Reading very little into his performance.

[DemonWA 3,883]

Molony didnt play well but as people have said its premeture to be calling for his head after one bad NAB cub game

Jones also frustrated me with his over zealous tackles (giving away free kicks) and his attempts to bust through takles and "take on the game" - he needs to play to his strengths which arent being superman / Judd

ALot of the guys sold others into trouble by overusing the handball too.

Thankfully round one isnt for a good few weeks yet!

[george_on_the_outer 7,426]

Two years ago we had no tall targets up forward. Kicking it long and deep was a guaranteed turnover.

Moloney ( and Jones) changed his style and concentrated on clean possession out of the centre, by seeking the 2nd option. Now ( and particularly against Essendon) we have targets, and we have targets who are tall, and who are surrounded by small crumbers.

It is time to revert back to type and "kick the bloody thing". Then watch Watts, Jurrah,Dunne,the resting ruck and the smalls take advantage.

Trying to barge through opposition players who have known for 2 years that is exactly what you are going to do, is playing straight into their hands.