Drafting Analysis: 2007 - 2009

[Hells Gates 505]

The call from the more intelligent supporter is to come back in 10 years.

Geelong is the classic example. Remember how their list was built?

http://afl.com.au/ne...80/default.aspx

In the fifth year after Ablett, Bartel, Kelly and Steve Johnson arrived at the club and in the seventh year after Mooney was traded for and Corey, Chapman, Ling and Enright were drafted Geelong finished 10th and Thompson almost lost his job. I don't need to remind anyone here what happened to Geelong in 2007 - 2011. How was Ablett rated after 3 years? Were Bartel, Kelly and Steve Johnson certain to emerge as superstars? Was Mooney considered a great trade option? The 1999 crew (Corey, Chapman, Ling and Enright) were entering their peak. At the end of 2006 did many anticipate they'd become multiple premiership and All-Australian players?

I'm not suggesting that Blease, Strauss, Watts, Grimes, Trengove, Tapscott, Bennell, McKenzie, Bail, Gawn and Morton will necessarily go on to match the Geelong players I've mentioned above but clearly coming back "in a few years" is still too soon.

People also forget Geelong:

2004 - 4th - pre lim finalists

2005 - 6th - pre lim finalists

2006 - NAB cup premiers, 10th in the season proper.

2007 onwards incredible.

[Ron Burgundy 8,584]

I have no doubt the list would look radically different had the current football department personnel been in charge from 2007.

We have wasted many great picks IMO.

As they say to young surgeons, if you hear hooves beating, think horses not zebras. In much the same way, the club seems to have ignored several obvious choices over the years and gambled on slightly left field players - a risky and potentially reckless strategy in the circumstances.

[Hells Gates 505]

I have no doubt the list would look radically different had the current football department personnel been in charge from 2007.

We have wasted many great picks IMO.

As they say to young surgeons, if you hear hooves beating, think horses not zebras. In much the same way, the club seems to have ignored several obvious choices over the years and gambled on slightly left field players - a risky and potentially reckless strategy in the circumstances.

If there was a nail anywhere, you have completely smashed it on its head. Good post.

[jumbo returns 6,741]

He was a Rookie, cost little to get him. Not saying he was a good player but it is in relation to what we spent to get him.

Fair enough - in watched him in one season opener and he just couldn't get into it.

[Ron Burgundy 8,584]

The call from the more intelligent supporter is to come back in 10 years.

Geelong is the classic example. Remember how their list was built?

http://afl.com.au/ne...80/default.aspx

In the fifth year after Ablett, Bartel, Kelly and Steve Johnson arrived at the club and in the seventh year after Mooney was traded for and Corey, Chapman, Ling and Enright were drafted Geelong finished 10th and Thompson almost lost his job. I don't need to remind anyone here what happened to Geelong in 2007 - 2011. How was Ablett rated after 3 years? Were Bartel, Kelly and Steve Johnson certain to emerge as superstars? Was Mooney considered a great trade option? The 1999 crew (Corey, Chapman, Ling and Enright) were entering their peak. At the end of 2006 did many anticipate they'd become multiple premiership and All-Australian players?

I'm not suggesting that Blease, Strauss, Watts, Grimes, Trengove, Tapscott, Bennell, McKenzie, Bail, Gawn and Morton will necessarily go on to match the Geelong players I've mentioned above but clearly coming back "in a few years" is still too soon.

You serious?!

Are you really saying it is not possible to assess the quality of our list? I reckon the new football department can, and has, and I don't reckon they think it is quite as good as many of the cheerleaders on this site think it is.

And that's why they've decided to get the best VFL players they can to bolster the list. A simply damning indictment on our recruiting over the past few years, given the number of top 20 picks we had over that period of time.

Edited March 17, 2012 by Ron Burgundy

[Goodvibes 3,596]

Rate the drafts from ten years ago then.

I've got no interest because lamenting over the players that won't play a role in our next premiership is a waste of time and energy. I haven't given up on the listed players above (Blease, Strauss, Watts, Grimes, Trengove, Tapscott, Bennell, McKenzie, Bail, Gawn and Morton) and if we're to win a premiership in the near to medium future many of those names will be wearing premiership medallions.

We lost a game to Port in the pre-season. No-one here saw it and the aftermath has been comical. I'm accustomed to being called a 'happy clapper' when it comes to trying to be positive about the fortunes of my footy club and am clearly setting myself up again for that here but the alternative to me is that you become jaded and cynical and start seeing the negative in everything. Two weeks ago Jack Trengove was the future of our premiership assault now after a couple of games back he's clearly being over-burdened by the captaincy. Neeld was a genius after the Collingwood game and now his gameplan is all wrong. As I've said before, people on Demonland always think in black and white terms and rarely see the grey. During the pre-season, there's more grey than ever.

[Goodvibes 3,596]

You serious?!

Are you really saying it is not possible to assess the quality of our list? I reckon the new football department can, and has, and I don't reckon they think it is quite as good as many of the cheerleaders on this site think it is.

So then why did they not trade Bate when the opportunity was there? Why did we not cash in our chips with our favourite whipping boys Morton or Bennell?

[Hells Gates 505]

I've got no interest because lamenting over the players that won't play a role in our next premiership is a waste of time and energy. I haven't given up on the listed players above (Blease, Strauss, Watts, Grimes, Trengove, Tapscott, Bennell, McKenzie, Bail, Gawn and Morton) and if we're to win a premiership in the near to medium future many of those names will be wearing premiership medallions.

We lost a game to Port in the pre-season. No-one here saw it and the aftermath has been comical. I'm accustomed to being called a 'happy clapper' when it comes to trying to be positive about the fortunes of my footy club and am clearly setting myself up again for that here but the alternative to me is that you become jaded and cynical and start seeing the negative in everything. Two weeks ago Jack Trengove was the future of our premiership assault now after a couple of games back he's clearly being over-burdened by the captaincy. Neeld was a genius after the Collingwood game and now his gameplan is all wrong. As I've said before, people on Demonland always think in black and white terms and rarely see the grey. During the pre-season, there's more grey than ever.

I was there and I saw it. And Im disgusted. Not in the gameplan or what Neeld is doing but the lack of improvement with our disposal and efficiency.

[Goodvibes 3,596]

I was there and I saw it. And Im disgusted. Not in the gameplan or what Neeld is doing but the lack of improvement with our disposal and efficiency.

Did you agree with the list of "bests" on the official site? What else can you tell us about the game? Was it, as Neeld suggests, the inability of a couple of players to adhere to our defensive structures or was it a lack of effort? Did any of the players from our last four drafts show anything? Did you see any examples of leadership? What was their body language like at the end of the game? Were Port Adelaide deserving of any credit or were they as terrible as they were last year? Some insight from someone who was actually there would be great!

[Sir Why You Little 37,038]

I was there and I saw it. And Im disgusted. Not in the gameplan or what Neeld is doing but the lack of improvement with our disposal and efficiency.

Aah. HG you were there. Good. So with the eyes was just as lamentable as 5AA.

[pantaloons 2,019]

Before I begin, Dr. Who, your point about looking at our player development is valid. It's been raised more than once on this site that, for a variety of reasons, we haven't brought players on as well as other clubs can. Would NicNat or Martin be the players they are currently if they had been drafted by Melbourne? Would Cale Morton, whose first two years were just about as good as I've seen from a Melbourne player, have had his career head towards the rubbish tip if he had been drafted by another club? There is however nothing wrong with Clint Bizkit taking a look at our draft picks, and I think it's a good exercise. We can all be hindsight heroes, but there's nothing wrong with accountability. Barry Prendergast had the easiest job in the country next to the person who tests the chocolate at the Cadbury's factory while he was at Melbourne. If I was being flippant, I could argue that Melbourne could have saved their money, and just looked up Burgan and Wisbey's phantom drafts and top picks list and come up with at least the equal of what we drafted, given we had the absolute prime seating from 2007-09. (But I won't). Just for giggles, here's how they saw the 2007-09 drafts (I couldn't find Wisbey's 2009 effort).

Burgan:

2007:

4. Morton

14. Dangerfield

21. Harry Taylor

(Had Grimes at 12, Maric at 20)

2008:

1. Watts

17. Schoenmakers

19. Beams

Had Blease at 16, Strauss at 34

2009:

1. Scully

2. Trengove

3. Talia

4. Gawn

Had Gysberts at 24, Tapscott at 19

Wisbey:

2007:

4. Masten

14. McNamara (LOL)

21. McEvoy

2008:

1. Naitanui

17. McKernan

19. Shuey

(Had Blease outside the top 40 and Strauss at 18)

I'd actually like to compare us to a couple of sides who put their lists together really well - Geelong and Hawthorn. Both sides had a few years in a row of excellent drafting which helped anchor flag sides. Here's Geelong's effort as I see it, with an asterisk next to premiership players:

1999:

8. Joel Corey *

15. David Spriggs

17. Ezra Bray

23. Daniel Foster

31. Paul Chapman *

38. Cameron Ling *

47. Corey Enright *

Traded for Cameron Mooney *

2000:

44. Josh Hunt *

71. Daniel Lowther

79. Hamish Simpson

(Traded a bunch of early picks to get Kingsley, Murphy and White). A poor year.

2001:

8. Jimmy Bartel *

17. James Kelly *

23. Charlie Gardiner

24. Steve Johnson *

40. Gary Ablett Jr (F/S) *

41. Henry Playfair

69. Matthew McCarthy

81. David Johnson *

2002:

7. Andrew Mackie *

23. Tom Lonergan *

36. Tim Callan

RD: Shannon Byrnes *

Rookie elevation: Max Rooke *

So in the space of four consecutive years, they dragged in 15 premiership players. Eight years after the first of those drafts and five years after the fourth (which if we're using 2007-09 as a template makes it 'target 2014' for Melbourne, for those of us scoring at home), they won their first flag in 43 years, and the first of three in five years and possibly more. Those 15 players during the flag era were also surrounded by some mature talent (Scarlett, Harley, Milburn, Ottens, Wojcinski) that they either drafted pre-1999 or traded in. Harry Taylor was a great pickup on the eve of the dynasty. Interestingly, and I'm not drawing any correlation here, their entire big back stocks do not come from the boom 1999-2002 drafting period.

Onto Hawthorn: (will get there in a second - my computer isn't churning this stuff the way I'm typing it!)

After spending ages at the keyboard to have gremlins reinterpret the data, I'll just add this on the Hawks. From 2004-07, they drafted 11 premiership players for the 08 side - Roughead, Franklin, Lewis, Young, Ellis, Birchall, Guerra, Gilham, Renouf, Rioli and Dew. They also had the likes of Crawford, Croad, Hodge, Sewell, Campbell, Brown, Bateman in their flag side.

Ultimately, if we pick a year out of the sky and say 2014 is meant to be our year (7 years after the start of the rebuild), then the experienced guys to go along with the 2007-09 draft class will be Frawley, Jamar, Jones, Garland, Sylvia and Clark. A few short there. The 07-09 group will need to step it up.

Edited March 17, 2012 by pantaloons

[Geddy Lee 582]

We can all be hindsight heroes, but there's nothing wrong with accountability. Barry Prendergast had the easiest job in the country next to the person who tests the chocolate at the Cadbury's factory while he was at Melbourne.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

It's not looking good, and that's being kind.

[Hells Gates 505]

Did you agree with the list of "bests" on the official site? What else can you tell us about the game? Was it, as Neeld suggests, the inability of a couple of players to adhere to our defensive structures or was it a lack of effort? Did any of the players from our last four drafts show anything? Did you see any examples of leadership? What was their body language like at the end of the game? Were Port Adelaide deserving of any credit or were they as terrible as they were last year? Some insight from someone who was actually there would be great!

My best were Jones, Jamar, Frawley & Clark who tried considering the entry.

It was obvious that we were trying a few things defensively but very obvious we are not up to it with our disposal.

Neeld would know alot more than me so I cant comment on players' inability to adhere to instructions, but also there was a noticeable lack of effort, Im not sure why.

Players from last 4 drafts is testing me out a bit, from memory maybe Blease, Davis, Tynan, Howe showed a little, not much and obviously Clark. There were a lot of senior players out there last night who have been around long enough.

Standouts for leadership were Jamar, Frawley and Jones, Trengove looked lost but is coming back from injury.

I didnt take any notice of their body language at the end sorry as we rushed off just before the siren to beat the traffic.

Port Adelaide actually looked very good, will give a few teams a rattle for sure. We had a few out but they had just as many, if not more. I liked the way they played and deserve a lot of credit.

Hope this helps mate, it is only brief but as Ive said on here 100 times already, Im happy with our direction and with our coaching just not our recruiting and definetley not our disposal. A lot of players out there have been around a while now and should have improved but unfortunately they havent and may never will

[RalphiusMaximus 6,053]

I think it's too soon to tell if they were wasted in a lot of cases. BP had a habit of taking very young players who had a lot of development left before they were AFL ready. As a result we have Jack Watts who is still not physically up to it, Blease and Strauss who have hardly played due to a combination of injury and slow development, Jack Fitzpatrick who, like Watts, is still not built for it. There was so much planning for the future that the present was forgotten.

2007

Cale Morton - Skinny kid who showed promise. Was badly mismanaged by Bailey and Co. Confidence shot. If he can find his mojo again under Neeld he can still be a good player.

Jack Grimes - Never had a break from his constant run of injuries. Should have 100+ games by now. Leadership shines through even with his terrible luck.

Addam Maric - Showed the odd flash of class but overall poor work ethic and inconsistency has shown him up.

Kyle Cheney - Tough player, but his disposal is some of the worst I've ever seen. Surprised anyone was willing to take him on.

Tom McNamara - Average bit-player. Never really showed anything to indicate he could make it at the top level.

Stefan Martin - Amazing athlete. It needs to click for him soon or he'll be past it. Needs to improve his hands and kicking to make the most of the opportunities he creates.

Trent Zomer ® - Did he ever play?

Austin Wonaeamirri ® - Was exciting, but never had the commitment. This is why we use the rookie list.

Jake Spencer ® - Jury still out. He has the frame to be an imposing big man, but his skills are dodgy.

Shane Valenti ® - Was a good in and under player when we needed him to be. I'm surprised that he isn't at another club

2008

Jack Watts - As mentioned above, he was taken very young and underdeveloped. The questions over his desire for the ball are valid. He needs to show that he has the mental tools to match the physical ones. Nik Nat says he'll be fine with a few more kilos on him.

Sam Blease - Young when drafted and has suffered injury setbacks. He's showing something but there are questions over his work ethic.

James Strauss - Was poor in contests early on. Has been improving this part of his game and showed good signs before breaking a leg. Kicking is as good as any.

Jamie Bennell - Drafted on potential as a freak athlete. Sadly soft and unable to win own ball. Will struggle more under Neeld.

Neville Jetta - A legitimate hard man with good body work and goal sense. He's worth keeping around. If things click for him he could be great.

Rohan Bail - Running machine. There are questions over his skills and decision making.

Liam Jurrah - A freak. Totally worth the use of a PSD pick. We have seen in the last year or so that his work ethic is in need of work. Hopefully with a better fitness base he'll put in more effort off the ball and become a more rounded player.

Jordie McKenzie ® - Came good for us. He is a tackling machine who can win the contested ball. Needs better kicking, but he suits the new gameplan perfectly.

Rhys Healey ® - NA

Daniel Hughes ® - Had a bit of potential but never really produced when he was given a chance. Superseded by Howe.

2009

Tom Scully - I'm not entirely sure why he was rated so highly. He is a running machine and can rack up clearances with good service, but his kicking is a real weakness. He's a good player, especially if he can play the game on his terms, but in hindsight I don't know if he warranted the no. 1.

Jack Trengove - Early days. He is a more well-rounded player than Scully. Had a reputation as a junior for match-winning efforts when his team needed them.

Jordan Gysberts - Showed early on that he can rack up disposals and can hold his own with clearances. Another one who was underdeveloped when drafted and will need more time to get his body into AFL shape.

Luke Tapscott - Like Grimes, has had a shocking run with injury. Early signs have been good. Has a good kick and is tough as nails.

Max Gawn - Showed something in the few games he played. Questions over whether his knees can hold up are the only worry.

Jack Fitzpatrick - Yet another development project. Still far too skinny and his development was hampered by his CFS. He is showing signs that he could turn into a fair player.

Joel Macdonald - Was taken as a top-up to add a little muscle to the team. He played the role he needed to play, but is being rapidly overtaken.

To me it looks like there is still a lot of potential there, but we really need to see them start to show some ability. BP's habit (no doubt under instructio from the coaches) of taking undersized outside players with good boots has hurt us in the contested game. We need those players to develop an appetite for the contest and start winning their own ball. If they can do that then there is a chance that we will look at these drafts in a few years and say they were actually pretty good pick-ups.

I also note that while there are questions over the ability of our recruiters to nail the early picks that should have been slam-dunks, they seem to have had a gift for plucking good value players late in the draft.

Edited March 17, 2012 by RalphiusMaximus

[Ron Burgundy 8,584]

So then why did they not trade Bate when the opportunity was there? Why did we not cash in our chips with our favourite whipping boys Morton or Bennell?

I suspect because the new football department recognised that Bate was a good, honest, hard at it "footballer" - a rare commodity on our list, and they didn't want to see him traded.

IMO we have picked too many good "athletes" rather than good "footballers" in recent times. For instance, I reckon we'd have Zaharakis or Shuey on our list rather than Strauss, and Darling rather than Cook, had the current football department been in charge at the relevant time. Pure speculation of course, but it seems to me that they now like decent, hard at it "footballers". I often feel that Bailey (whom I like and respect) and Prendergast got too clever about it all and seemed almost determined not to select the obvious choices.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Good analysis pantaloons. The interesting thing with Geelong (as mentioned by Hells Gates) was that they were playing finals well before the flag in 2007. Yes, 2006 was a bit of a dud year for them but from memory going into the year they were one of the flag favourites.

[jumbo returns 6,741]

So then why did they not trade Bate when the opportunity was there? Why did we not cash in our chips with our favourite whipping boys Morton or Bennell?

Because nobody wanted them....you've got to trade quality to get quality.

[Hells Gates 505]

Aah. HG you were there. Good. So with the eyes was just as lamentable as 5AA.

Yeah mate I was and thats why its so frustrating to get my point across to people who werent there!!! People that make up the same excuses without even watching it is beyond me. Im happy with the direction just not our recruiting or improvement with disposal. Its a worry.

[pantaloons 2,019]

Good analysis pantaloons. The interesting thing with Geelong (as mentioned by Hells Gates) was that they were playing finals well before the flag in 2007. Yes, 2006 was a bit of a dud year for them but from memory going into the year they were one of the flag favourites.

Oh yes - I'd forgotten/neglected that they made a prelim in 04 and were some Nick Davis magic away from the prelim in 2005.

Because nobody wanted them....you've got to trade quality to get quality.

The Dogs offered us pick 39 for Bate.

[Bay Riffin 1,474]

Yes, hindsight is wonderful and makes drafting look easy a few years on (which it isn't). The point is, I would be happier if we did interview Martin and still didn't take him, at least we know he was more seriously considered then.

hinsight? they thought they were the two best footballers and interviewed well. Why would we bother doing something where no further acton was needed or could be taken.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

hinsight? they thought they were the two best footballers and interviewed well. Why would we bother doing something where no further acton was needed or could be taken.

Because it shows that not all options were fully explored.

[Sir Why You Little 37,038]

hinsight? they thought they were the two best footballers and interviewed well. Why would we bother doing something where no further acton was needed or could be taken.

Action could have been taken though. They didn't do it. We pay whilst they have left.

[Lil_red_fire_engine 11,177]

The best exercise is to look at the 10 players picked after ours and realistically judge which you would pick over who we took. People seem to focus on who we missed without considering the flipside of those others that were chosen around the mark. It is reasonable to start judging 2007 and maybe 2008 but 2009 is still way too early to guess and even if I did this exercise next year I am sure my views would change across all 3 years. Based on the 150 players chosen after our picks, 43 of them I would have picked ahead of who we chose. To me this is a pretty mediocre effort but it would look a whole lot better if we had landed a clear star in that period.

4. Morton, 5. Jarrad Grant, 6. David Myers, 7. Rhys Palmer, 8. Lachie Henderson, 9. Ben McEvoy, 10. Patrick Dangerfield, 11. Patrick Vezspremi, 12, Cyril Rioli, 13. Brad Ebert, 14. Jack Grimes. (4 of 10)

14. Grimes, 15. Robbie Tarrant, 16. Matthew Lobbe, 17. Harry Taylor, 18. Alex Rance, 19. Callan Ward, 20. Tony Notte, 21. Addam Maric, 22. Scott Selwood, 23. Tayte Pears, 24. Clayton Hinkley (2 of 10)

21. Addam Maric, 22. Scott Selwood, 23. Tayte Pears, 24. Clayton Hinkley, 25. Brett Meredith, 26. Andy Otten, 27. Marlon Motlop, 28. Brendan Whitecross, 29. Jarran Jacky, 30. John McCarthy, 31 Levi Greenwood (6 of 10)

53. Kyle Cheney, 54. Cale Hooker, 55. Mark Johnson, 56. Matt Austin, 57. Fraser Gerhig, 58. Tony Armstrong, 59 Craig Bird, 60. Jaxson Barham, 61. Adam Donohue, 62 Josh Smith. 63 Guy Okeefe (3 of 10)

1. Jack Watts, 2. Nick Natanui, 3. Stephen Hill, 4. Hamish Hartlett, 5. Michael Hurley, 6. Chris Yarran, 7. Daniel Rich, 8. Tyrone Vickery, 9. Jack Ziebell, 10. Phil Davis, 11. Steel Sidebottom. (3 of 10)

17. Sam Blease, 18. Luke Shuey, 19 James Strauss, 20 Tom Swift, 21 Haydn Ballantyne, 22, Jackson Trengove, 23, David Zaharakis, 24 Nick Suban, 25 Jack Redden, 26, Jayden Post, 27 Sam Wright, (4 of 10)

19 James Strauss, 20 Tom Swift, 21 Haydn Ballantyne, 22, Jackson Trengove, 23, David Zarakis, 24 Nick Suban, 25 Jack Redden, 26, Jayden Post, 27 Sam Wright, 28 Shaun McKernan, 29 Dayne Beams, (6 of 10)

35. Jamie Bennell, 36 Ashley Smith, 37 Zac Clarke, 38 Matt Broadbent, 39 Steven Motlop, 40 Mitch Robinson, 41 Todd Banfield, 42 Mitch banner, 43 Liam Anthony, 44 Rory Sloane, 45 Jarrad Blight.(3 of 10)

51. Nev Jetta, 52 Jordon Jones, 53 Michael Walters, 54 Jarrad Redden, 55 Michael Still, 56 Ben Bucovacz, 57 Aaron Cornelius, 58 Tom Hislop, 59 Tom Lee, 60 Cambell Heath, 61 Alistair Smith (1 of 10)

1. Tom Scully, 2. Jack Trengove, 3. Dustin Martin, 4. Anthony Morabito, 5 Ben Cunnington, 6. Gary Rohan, 7, Brad Sheppherd, 8. John Butcher, 9. Andrew Moore, 10. Jake Melksham, 11 Jordan Gysberts (3 of 10)

2. Jack Trengove, 3. Dustin Martin, 4. Anthony Morabito, 5 Ben Cunnington, 6. Gary Rohan, 7, Brad Sheppherd,8. John Butcher, 9. Andrew Moore, 10. Jake Melksham, 11 Jordan Gysberts, 12. Kane Lucas (1 of 10)

11. Jordan Gysberts, 12 Kane Lucas, 13. Daniel Talia, 14 Lewis Jetta, 15 Christian Howard, 16 Jasper Pittard, 17. Daniel Menzel, 18 Luke Tapscott, 19 Ben Griffiths, 20 Nathan Fyfe, 21 Ryan Bastinac (2 of 10)

18. Luke Tapscott, 19 Ben Griffiths, 20 Nathan Fyfe, 21 Ryan Bastinac, 22 Gerrick Wheedon, 23 Koby Stevens, 24 Jake Carlisle, 25 Aaron Black. 26 Travis Colyer, 27 Callum Bartlett, 28 Mitch Duncan (3 of 10)

34 Max Gawn, 35 David Astbury, 36 Joel Houghton, 37. Jamie McMillan, 38, Sam Reid, 39. Sam Grimley, 40 Allen Christensen, 41 Ayden Kennedy, 42 Nathan Vardy, 43 Marcus Davies, 44 Matthew Dea, (2 of 10)

50. Jack Fitzpatrick, 51. Troy Taylor, 52 Justin Bollenhagen, 53 Brayden Norris, 54 Byron Sumner, 55 Trent Dennis Lane, 56 Josh Cowan, 57 Jordan Williams, 58 Rhan Hooper, 59 Rohan Kerr, 60 Jesse Smith, 61, James Craig (0 of 10)

Edited March 17, 2012 by big_red_fire_engine

[Goodvibes 3,596]

My best were Jones, Jamar, Frawley & Clark who tried considering the entry.

It was obvious that we were trying a few things defensively but very obvious we are not up to it with our disposal.

Neeld would know alot more than me so I cant comment on players' inability to adhere to instructions, but also there was a noticeable lack of effort, Im not sure why.

Players from last 4 drafts is testing me out a bit, from memory maybe Blease, Davis, Tynan, Howe showed a little, not much and obviously Clark. There were a lot of senior players out there last night who have been around long enough.

Standouts for leadership were Jamar, Frawley and Jones, Trengove looked lost but is coming back from injury.

I didnt take any notice of their body language at the end sorry as we rushed off just before the siren to beat the traffic.

Port Adelaide actually looked very good, will give a few teams a rattle for sure. We had a few out but they had just as many, if not more. I liked the way they played and deserve a lot of credit.

Hope this helps mate, it is only brief but as Ive said on here 100 times already, Im happy with our direction and with our coaching just not our recruiting and definetley not our disposal. A lot of players out there have been around a while now and should have improved but unfortunately they havent and may never will

Thanks for the report!

One of my concerns going into the game and indeed the season is our lack of pace. If Blease and Davey are playing forward we don't appear to have much line-breaking run from the backline or through the middle. Did Port look considerably quicker than us?

[Hells Gates 505]

Couldn't have said it better myself.

It's not looking good, and that's being kind.

Yep. Exactly my point in the other thread also.