Barometer points for 2013

[rufus 1,047]

Was thinking about the things I really wanted to see from the Demons in 2013...below is my list of the 5 biggest things I want to see...

- Our former All-Australian full back to show genuine intent
in matches and IMPROVE his football as he approaches his peak years, rather
than going backwards. I'm not saying he was our worst last year, but watching
him closely at the games I just feel they he could be doing so much more.

- Improved ball handling AT SPEED around stoppages.
Seriously some of the fumbling in recent seasons has been completely amateur
(and it's rumoured that it was suggested we did it deliberately in 2009!), and
it costs us massively in terms of being able to move quickly away from
stoppages.

- More willingness to play through the centre. You can beat
teams that are more experienced, stronger and even better than you in the AFL,
but I don't believe you can do it without hurting them through the middle.

- Jack Watts to show some real individual COMPETITIVENESS.
One of the more vivid bits of play that sticks in my mind from 2012 was when
Dane Swan out marked Watts in the goal square to pretty much snuff us out in
our match vs. Collingwood. After Swan kicked the goal he gave Watts a thumbs up
which would have made my blood boil. Obviously Swan is a good player but I
would love to see Watts take those situations as a challenge and be desperate
to beat these guys. Maybe he is and it's is demeanour to look low key but I'd love
to see that amped up a bit. Not everyone that plays football is inherently
courageous but you find that players whose intensity and desire is highest
often find themselves in contests at high speed where they look courageous and
they are actually less likely to get hurt because of the momentum they are
carrying.

- Similar to my first point, I just want to see our younger
players actually IMPROVE this year rather than stagnating or going backwards
(which I believe so many have done over the last few years). I hope they take
Nathan Jones as an example as his improvement last year was amazing and a
credit to how hard I hear he works to get better.

What does everyone else want to see from our team in 2013?

[bush demon 1,989]

Some heart when we cross the border. Beat a second Victorian team.

[Toast 77]

It's interesting (read worrying) that the Five things I want are all fundamentals of footy:

- Leadership: Not just from our co-captains but from our established players and experienced recruits. There has been a serious leadership vacuum at our club since JMac's awkward sacking.

- Hunger: A simple hunger for the ball and therefore the contest. Sadly lacking during the Bailey era and yet to appear on the field under Neeld.

- Skills: Our lack of skills is what separates us from the top half of the ladder. The question is: have we drafted unskilled players and, if so, can we work on the skills they have?

- Spread: It's the buzz word, but it's the buzz word for a reason. It seems we recruited players with this in mind which is what I'll be looking for tonight.

-Delivery into the forward 50: Surely with targets there the duty falls upon our mid-fielders to delivery effectively into our forward half.

Edited February 22, 2013 by Toast

[diesel 420]

It Starts tonight. I'll be looking for some structures (they need to be sustainable regardless of who is in or out such as occasions like tonight) and also for improvements in individuals i.e. skills, second efforts, defensive pressure, 1%ers applied to each player based on their previous performance (or lack thereof).

Need to get these fundamentals right and the rest such as consecutive wins and wins on the road will take care of itself.

[13thFlagIsComing 542]

I'm looking forward to seeing if we have figured out how to hit a player on the chest rather than kicking at their ankles!

[La Dee-vina Comedia 16,644]

Was thinking about the things I really wanted to see from the Demons in 2013...below is my list of the 5 biggest things I want to see...

...

- Jack Watts to show some real individual COMPETITIVENESS.

One of the more vivid bits of play that sticks in my mind from 2012 was when

Dane Swan out marked Watts in the goal square to pretty much snuff us out in

our match vs. Collingwood. After Swan kicked the goal he gave Watts a thumbs up

which would have made my blood boil. Obviously Swan is a good player but I

would love to see Watts take those situations as a challenge and be desperate

to beat these guys. Maybe he is and it's is demeanour to look low key but I'd love

to see that amped up a bit. Not everyone that plays football is inherently

courageous but you find that players whose intensity and desire is highest

often find themselves in contests at high speed where they look courageous and

they are actually less likely to get hurt because of the momentum they are

carrying.

I disagree. I think all players are inherently courageous. Some are just more courageous than others and some to the extent of foolhardiness (eg, Jonathan Brown). I think it takes serious courage that most people don't have to play this high impact, body contact game. And that's just the physical side. I think they also need an element of courage to put up with the criticism which the media and we as supporters also heap on them.

Having said that, I like your five points.