I want peoples opinions on this group of players, and who will take the next step under Roos and become a regular consistent player in 2014, not fading in and out of games.

Sam Blease

Rohan Bail

Michael Evans

James Strauss

Dan Nicholson

Neville Jetta

I could have added a few more but the microscope will be on these players. Who do you think steps up?

If I am not mistaken many are on the final year of contracts and will be pushing to play good footy.

I reckon Evans will be a very good player personally if he stays on the park

I also reckon that Evans is the pick of that bunch, but his body is a constant problem to the extent that I believe that if he doesn't get it right this season he will be, reluctantly, delisted.

They all have the job in front of them.

IMO they all need Good years to survive, the odd good game will not do it.

The jury is out for me on all of them.

However my bias says Probably only Evans is good enough with an outside chance for Blease.

Bail and Nicholson are serious short of the required kicking skill level.

Jetta is VFL standard

and Strauss is a reasonable support when injuries mount.

blease is one type of the players that roos enjoys getting the best out of.

his biggest coaching mantra=less mistakes when you have the pill and do you have pace?.

SB fits the bill and will have to concentrate for 100 minutes to achieve this.

i think hes capable,i hope the coach also thinks this.

Might not be C graders as you put it but the initial focus will be on Dunn, McDonald, Trengove, Watts, Michie and Toumpas establishing themselves as consistent players.

The team is going to take a while to settle down which i hope it does eventually and then we will see who out of Georgiou, Terlich, Strauss or Clisby is preferred down back.

Same up forward with Bail, Blease, Byrnes and Tapscott.

I still think it's early days with Evans. He looks a lot stronger this preseason and being out there the whole preseason will have boosted his fitness. I think he'll work in to the season nicely and I'm not too fussed about him. Yeah he might not have a heap of upside but I think he'll make a handy reliable player who can do bits and pieces forward and back. I'm keen to see him play in a settled and competitive side.

I want peoples opinions on this group of players, and who will take the next step under Roos and become a regular consistent player in 2014, not fading in and out of games.

Sam Blease

Rohan Bail

Michael Evans

James Strauss

Dan Nicholson

Neville Jetta

I could have added a few more but the microscope will be on these players. Who do you think steps up?

If I am not mistaken many are on the final year of contracts and will be pushing to play good footy.

Of that group I would have Blease and Evans as having the most chance to improve.

Blease needs to get his fitness level well up. Evans needs luck with injuries.

I wrote Bail off last year

So far He has shown great improvement this year His disposal has improved and he has cut down his mistakes

Blease has real dash and the ability to take on the game. However, this type of player has hardly been suitable for the shite our team has been in recent years. In a team that actually can win and hold the ball, as hopefully we are learning to do, Blease may be able to use his particular abilities freely. It will be interesting to see if gets the opportunity.

I'd like them all to succeed under Roos.. But out of that list, i think Bail and Blease have shown the most in the preseason games.... Who knows if thats just down to good form or improvement?

Its truly amazing the transformation our team has taken under Roos... This guys should be running our country!!!

Strauss is entrenched in the 22 as far as I'm concerned.

Blease is borderline, but he will figure it out soon enough and Roos will be incapable of leaving him out of the side.

Bail. I have a feeling he's going to play a lot this year.

Tapscott would fit this category too I reckon as would burned and Maybe pederson

Evans was a huge positive from a crap season. If he stays fit he has a huge upside. Blease is interesting. Roos is giving him every chance to show his stuff. I think he is far off from finding any consistency though.

.......

I still think it's early days with Evans. He looks a lot stronger this preseason and being out there the whole preseason will have boosted his fitness. I think he'll work in to the season nicely and I'm not too fussed about him. Yeah he might not have a heap of upside but I think he'll make a handy reliable player who can do bits and pieces forward and back. I'm keen to see him play in a settled and competitive side.

...but he didn't appear in either of the NAB games, did he? So what is going on??

I also have always liked the look of him on his rare appearances.

Evans was a huge positive from a crap season. If he stays fit he has a huge upside. Blease is interesting. Roos is giving him every chance to show his stuff. I think he is far off from finding any consistency though.

I'd take inconsistent but his best being good with Blease. I don't mind a few games of not many touches and only the odd good play if he back its up with 20+ touches a few goals and a few blistering runs.

...but he didn't appear in either of the NAB games, did he? So what is going on??

I also have always liked the look of him on his rare appearances.

Not sure he's the smartest player and might be taking a while to adapt to the game plan. Plus Michie, Tyson, Vince, Cross were always going to be picked first as you don't bring a guy over and not give him game time. Same for Trengove and Watts. It's McKenzie and Matt Jones who have been preferred to Evans and that's ok they aren't the worst players. I'm willing to give him a few VFL games and see where he is at then.

Blease and Bail will survive out of that crew.maybe nicholson will be reinvented.

With cross, Michie, vince and tyson in the side the others have to show something special which i dont think they have.

Strauss is a good kick but poor defender.

Nicholson a poor kick.

Jetta just goes alright but not good enough.

Evans is a good depth player

There looks like more x factor in the new bunch of kids , like , Hunt ,Harmes, Salem JKH and King.

I think georgiou has already shown up strauss.

I could be wrong and would love to give these guys this year and the benefit of doubt to prove themselves under a new coach.

Blease and Bail will survive out of that crew.maybe nicholson will be reinvented.

With cross, Michie, vince and tyson in the side the others have to show something special which i dont think they have.

Strauss is a good kick but poor defender.

Nicholson a poor kick.

Jetta just goes alright but not good enough.

Evans is a good depth player

There looks like more x factor in the new bunch of kids , like , Hunt ,Harmes, Salem JKH and King.

I think georgiou has already shown up strauss.

I could be wrong and would love to give these guys this year and the benefit of doubt to prove themselves under a new coach.

Different players though. You can't have a backline full of either. Ideally you have guys who can defend and use the ball well and attack like a bunch of the Hawthorn guys. But without that you need a balance and to put them in the right spots to perform. Georgiou might knock Strauss out of the best 6 defenders but I don't think they are exactly competing. Most important thing with Strauss, Terlich, Clisby and same with all the forwards is they are knocking down the door in the VFL. Especially if we are at least competitive in the AFL we can get some proper order in selection instead of just shuffling in random names at random times.

Nicholson:

Blease is the only one of that group that I believe can take a game apart and be a match winner. He showed this when he kicked 5 in a game a couple of yrs ago. Can he be consistent? Surely Roos would be just the coach to get that out of him if it is possible.

Can't recall the last time another MFC player kicked 5 in a game.....

Blease is the only one of that group that I believe can take a game apart and be a match winner. He showed this when he kicked 5 in a game a couple of yrs ago. Can he be consistent? Surely Roos would be just the coach to get that out of him if it is possible.

Can't recall the last time another MFC player kicked 5 in a game.....

One game in five years can hardly be considered a wonderful tally Moonshadow.

Puts his highlights reel right up there with Pedersen.

I hope you are right because we have invested a lot in a guy who so far has a few good games beside his name.

He has 2014 to prove that he is more than the "occasional Player" IMO

Evans is being underestimated here. I believe he has considerable upside should he get a free run from injury. He showed glimpses last year. Im looking forward to seeing him come on under Paul Roos

Come to think of it would gifting Strauss and Blease the first 5 games of the season hurt us that much? The upside of a skilled player from half back and fast game breaker at half forward is huge. The down side is the difference between Strauss and Clisby/Terlich in terms of defending/hardness/ability to rack up the ball and that really can't be too much. And the difference between Blease and Bail/Byrnes etc at half forward is pretty negligible.

I look at Geelong last year where Caddy looked awful for most of the first half of the season as he struggled to adapt to regular AFL and the team. But the second half of the year he looked a great pick up. I think we need to give guys a long chance at it even if we are tearing our hair out at selection each week.

Evans has the talent to be as good as any of our current mids imo, he is the safest on that list on that alone