Fair enough, but the fact that I'm surprised he touched it that often speaks to the fact that he had no impact on the contest.

I was the same with our skippers to be honest, they were both in our top 3 rated players today, and I wouldn't have thought that.

With that quarter/win/confidence today and with the possibility of Clark out, this could be an opportunity to put Watts forward and tell him it's make or break the next 2-3 weeks.

Were you at the game Stuie ? Forget the stats, he was very ordinary

19 touches today, 9 contested, 84% efficiency... Some perspective please.

Not saying he was great, but wasn't as bad as people are TRYING to make out.

Jack was hesitant and just didn't put in today, he was hanging back, he handballed to players putting them under pressure and his kicking was nothing special.

I though he was very ordinary today and if his efficiency was good it just meant that the poor bugger who copped his handball got it before being crunched.

He has to be dropped.

Watts = Cale Morton

The similarities are definitely there.

Embarrassing. Sad. He shirked it today. Cheap inconsequential possessions many uncontested off the half back line that did little to hurt the opposition.

Needs to go back to the VFL and actually show that he wants to make it in the AFL.

He is faking it badly at the moment.

He wasn't great. Neither was Frawley. Garland made mistakes. But they all did some good things and helped Terlich and Jetta and McDonald as less experienced players.

It really is on the midfielders.

The reason these 'experts' want Watts to go to a decent club is because he will have a good midfield in front of him and able to keep the amount and quality of footy down and for him to play a damaging HBF role.

If you are picking him out for today, you are being unfair. If you have already made your mind up, that is fine.

But don't feign that today was The Straw.

It wasn't.

His intensity and courage just weren't there today. Not AFL standard.

I'm not sure what dropping him to the VFL does for him, though. The intensity of the VFL is so far below AFL standard that he won't learn much from going down there. He'll most likely cruise around half back, rack up 30+ disposals, get confident again, but upon returning still won't have the requisite intensity.

I wonder if leaving him in the AFL side and keeping the heat on him might produce results more readily than dropping him.

Certainly, though, there's no avoiding the fact that his efforts were really, really not good today. He does himself no favours by not chasing hard enough and not going hard into contests. It's just not good enough.

He doesn't go hard enough which is not good enough.

It has nothing to do with confidence either, which he is horribly lacking. It doesn't take self belief to bend down and lay a tackle.

I question whether he wants to play in the AFL.

Would not be surprised at all if he went back to basketball.

Morton is terrible disposal, Watts is elite disposal

Watts will always hit a target, and he makes smart plays with the footy in hand that usually opens up the game for us

But yes, he is soft soft soft

I agree that Watts is a much better kick.

But both are soft and living off their high draft number, not their form.

You can't teach what Watts is lacking.

Remember what M. Neeld said not long ago - draft position is irrelevant when considering list management. If Neeld is still there at the end of the year I reckon Watts might be in some trouble.

I've been behind Watts all the way, but he seems to have completely lost all his confidence. He got caught out lagging behind his man numerous times on centre clearances today. I think it's time to drop him and let him dominate some VFL and get that confidence back. Worked last year...

He often plays from behind and that's his basketballing background. It sometimes works beautifully in the AFL, but it can also make him look soft and at times a little stupid.

His intensity and courage just weren't there today. Not AFL standard.

I'm not sure what dropping him to the VFL does for him, though. The intensity of the VFL is so far below AFL standard that he won't learn much from going down there. He'll most likely cruise around half back, rack up 30+ disposals, get confident again, but upon returning still won't have the requisite intensity.

I wonder if leaving him in the AFL side and keeping the heat on him might produce results more readily than dropping him.

Certainly, though, there's no avoiding the fact that his efforts were really, really not good today. He does himself no favours by not chasing hard enough and not going hard into contests. It's just not good enough.

The only thing we can do for Jack Watts is remind him that he is not necessarily guaranteed a spot on an AFL list. Putting him in the VFL for a little while might remind him of that fact.

He wasn't great. Neither was Frawley. Garland made mistakes. But they all did some good things and helped Terlich and Jetta and McDonald as less experienced players.

It really is on the midfielders.

The reason these 'experts' want Watts to go to a decent club is because he will have a good midfield in front of him and able to keep the amount and quality of footy down and for him to play a damaging HBF role.

If you are picking him out for today, you are being unfair. If you have already made your mind up, that is fine.

But don't feign that today was The Straw.

It wasn't.

ahhh.... didn't cameron have like 1 touch?

He was really bad. But Colin hospital handball Garland and James what the hell is going on Frawley give him no confidence. McDonald was getting beaten and jetta and terlich and new to the backline. Pretty much he's confused and hesitant and his team mates are no better.

Now in the last quarter frawley and garland start taking the game on, taking marks and moving the ball. End result is you don't notice anything bad from watts. Pretty much he's not doing the basics well at all but until he gets someone who does around him how's he going to learn. On the back of today I keep him in but he's a massive work in progress. Garland first 3/4 on notice as well. Strauss in form and Dunn to resume soon!

Watts soft efforts throughout the game had nothing at all to do with the way Frawley or Garland were playing.

Now in the last quarter frawley and garland start taking the game on, taking marks and moving the ball. End result is you don't notice anything bad from watts.

Face it, Watts is not a backman, makes he wrong decisions when being accountable for a player and is not in the right spots when he doesn't have one.

Frawley looked more disinterested from where I sat. Cameron was rubbish for sure but Frawley didn't help his teammates and didn't put in when he had to. Similar criticisms to another bloke in the backline with him.

He wasn't great. Neither was Frawley. Garland made mistakes. But they all did some good things and helped Terlich and Jetta and McDonald as less experienced players.

It really is on the midfielders.

The reason these 'experts' want Watts to go to a decent club is because he will have a good midfield in front of him and able to keep the amount and quality of footy down and for him to play a damaging HBF role.

If you are picking him out for today, you are being unfair. If you have already made your mind up, that is fine.

But don't feign that today was The Straw.

It wasn't.

For most of today Frawley was atrocious and he is, at the moment, a shadow of what he once was. Not sure if it's confidence but on his first three quarters today he should be playing at casey next week with Jack.

I've never sen Jack as soft as he was today, he shirked many contests both in the air and on the ground and was embarrassing. You could see it all, the slip rather that the tackle, the turn and bump instead of attacking the ball, the half hearted attempt to fly for a mark from behind.

Cheap inconsequential possessions many uncontested off the half back line that did little to hurt the opposition.

The stats don't back you up RR, but don't let the facts get in the way of a good old fashioned 'Land scapegoat lynching...

The stats don't back you up RR, but don't let the facts get in the way of a good old fashioned 'Land scapegoat lynching...

Who's scapegoating; didn't you see how bad he was today? Did you go to the game?

Couple of good passes on the backline when he was under no pressure don't add up to a good game.

I have been one of JW's biggest apologists for some time but .....

Last game they said he was ill. This week some of his half hearted efforts made me ill.

Pull your finger out son or get us a decent trade.

He's got no confidence at all and it's really not surprising.

Drop him to the VFL and don't even bring his name up at team meetings until he is Dominating games,

No more mismanaging the poor bloke.

I watched Watts and Frawley today, I watched them closely. Both appear very disinterested in the contest and both look like they want to be elsewhere. If this is true then drop them both into the VFL.

I cannot stand players getting a game who appear they don't want to be there. If this is their position they should have the guts to tell the club.

They were very ordinary today.

He is pretty soft at times, but his kicking out from behinds today was very good and he had a couple of good kicks when switching play to free players