I saw more of a Nick Riewoldt type. I saw someone who could impact the scoreboard. I was wrong.

Btw, there's been a comment or two about how long it can take for players to come on, which is true, but don't forget that the best key forwards the game has ever seen have virtually all been either very very good by the age of 21/22 or out and out stars.

People will mention Hawkins as the example of a slow burn, but they are few and far between and he's a rung below the greats anyway.

I never wanted him to be a power forward.

I always wanted him to use his mobility as a forward, who pushed up field. like a 3rd tall. so really the Dawes role, or what Dawes should be. Dawes sisn't a 2nd tall, he can't mark & doesn't smash bodies. this is watts role IMO.

a sort of Warren Dean. but more goals from jack & more midfield linking.

I saw more of a Nick Riewoldt type. I saw someone who could impact the scoreboard. I was wrong.

Btw, there's been a comment or two about how long it can take for players to come on, which is true, but don't forget that the best key forwards the game has ever seen have virtually all been either very very good by the age of 21/22 or out and out stars.

People will mention Hawkins as the example of a slow burn, but they are few and far between and he's a rung below the greats anyway.

I doubt Watts will be great and I agree with the Riewoldt type. But I don't think you can underestimate how bad we were and how badly managed he was. The Neeld years but him back significantly IMO at a time where he would normally have blossomed.

Having said that it's taken longer than I thought for Watts to improve under Roos. I gave up.

I doubt Watts will be great. But I don't think you can underestimate how bad we were and how badly managed he was. The Neeld years but him back significantly IMO at a time where he would normally have blossomed.

Having said that it's taken longer than I thought for Watts to improve under Roos. I gave up.

Me too BB

However he has turned out way better than all the other high draftees we took during that period.

I doubt Watts will be great and I agree with the Riewoldt type. But I don't think you can underestimate how bad we were and how badly managed he was. The Neeld years but him back significantly IMO at a time where he would normally have blossomed.

Having said that it's taken longer than I thought for Watts to improve under Roos. I gave up.

I would say the neeld years caused him to be irate, & to get his back up... the first step to fighting back, or getting out if your a loser.

maybe just maybe the criticism of him then, got into his soul & got him angry, & started him to fire up slowly.

........ enter the 'good cop', with the soft but firm approach, who then coerced the better side of this newly born man out of himself ?????

The other intangible you can add is how the young supporters seem to love him.

Which is related to how he seems to be of the highest quality character as a person. These types are valuable to footy clubs.

this is watts been happening at our club & is a strong trend for decades..... WE are ALL mates at Melbourne !

............. this IS the issue, where we stop winning games, but have a great social life/footy enjoyment, for the 'players', great career opportunities !!!

but watts missing in this equation ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

........... the supporters; they miss out on these 'enjoyments', these mates are having, & those career opp's as well.

this is a massive part of our past & recurring, 'cultural history' .

Pardon?

Perhaps games like last weekend are his ceiling but it isn't hard to believe that he will get a fair bit better. If Jack can consistently get hold of the ball 25-30 times a week he will single handedly make us a far better team

This is the key. Yes improved intensity, tackling and attack on the ball is important. But to an extent they have masked the key issue, given the role he is best suited to (ie the utility role he now plays) - over his career he doesn't get the ball enough. As you say he needs to average low to mid twenties for disposals, which he has in the last few weeks (or close anyway).

With his skill and calmness under pressure if he can get the ball more often he will be vital to our chances of going to the next level as a team.

I can honestly say i have always been a huge fan (though not blind to his weaknesses) and still believe he will make AA, perhaps even next year.

Which is related to how he seems to be of the highest quality character as a person. These types are valuable to footy clubs.

hmmn, & the Michael Longs aren't, the Breretons, the Roger Merretts, & the Ray Biffins.

hmmn, & the Michael Longs aren't, the Breretons, the Roger Merretts, & the Ray Biffins.

I wasn't aware of there being multiple entities of any of those players. Why don't you just say 'players such as...' and then name them. Unless Bretreton had a brother or two I'm not aware of

and wtf are you talking about anyway, is this comment supposed to be some sort of discussion?

small handful of posters are starting to wreck this site with absolute drivel in every thread

The other intangible with Watts is how loyal he's been to the club, how much he loves playing with his team mates and how much the other players enjoy having him around. Without performance that is meaningless but it's valuable if he commands a spot in the team based on output.

This is an often under rated factor. He clearly is a great club man and his team mates love him. That's clear. In a team sport it is critical to have blokes like Vince and Watts around the club. He's also a solid citizen with his head on straight and seemingly good values. On top of all that he seems like a ripper bloke. Roos (and all coaches) talk about how critical good culture is and Watts is one of those blokes who brings people together and connects them.

His team mates also now trust him onfield and the pattern him being ignored on leads seems to be long gone (and perhaps was a symptom of the culture problems at the club?). A related factor is he rarely misses through injury which suggest a high level of professionalism in his preparation and training. In short he is reliable.

Crucially we are more likely to win when he plays well. If you look at our wins in the 3 years he has been a vital element in almost all of those games (the win over the bullies this year being perhaps the once exception this year). He is involved in so many of our scoring chains, either through direct assists or scoring involvements (eg def taps, handballs to space, accurate kicks to the corridor etc etc) that it could be argued he is our most influential player in terms of our chances of winning and losing.

It dumbfounds me how anyone could argue that a 23 year old 100 game player that is the best user of the ball in the team, has the best footy brain and helps us win is a dud selection.

On an unrelated point another area he is becoming important is going third man up and hitting it to advantage (reflecting his basketball background perhaps). I have lost count of the times he has gone third man up and hit to straight to a running player to set up a scoring chance.

I wasn't aware of there being multiple entities of any of those players. Why don't you just say 'players such as...' and then name them. Unless Bretreton had a brother or two I'm not aware of

and wtf are you talking about anyway, is this comment supposed to be some sort of discussion?

small handful of posters are starting to wreck this site with absolute drivel in every thread

Players drafted during the Bailey era came to an unprofessional club with a largely unaccountable game plan.

For most the damage was never able to be undone.

I would say the neeld years caused him to be irate, & to get his back up... the first step to fighting back, or getting out if your a loser.

maybe just maybe the criticism of him then, got into his soul & got him angry, & started him to fire up slowly.

........ enter the 'good cop', with the soft but firm approach, who then coerced the better side of this newly born man out of himself ?????

Mark? You are indeed deluded

The guy (Mark, you?) nearly destroyed our club. No interpersonal skills.

I can't wait for Watts to become a bonafide star of the AFL. The guy is gonna turn into the most loved Demon when he starts consistently tearing games apart. It'll be the feel-good turnaround of the decade. Go Watts!

A lot of people tend to forget, correct me if I am wrong, that he didn't get a chance to come through the TAC Levels. He pretty much went straight from school boys footy to draft, then to the AFL. He was always going to take more time to develop than most.

6-7 years development was stated just prior to being drafted.

I'll post the article if I can find it.

I can't wait for Watts to become a bonafide star of the AFL. The guy is gonna turn into the most loved Demon when he starts consistently tearing games apart. It'll be the feel-good turnaround of the decade. Go Watts!

Yeah I agree. I've always thought Watts would come good. He dominated under 18 kids, but struggled in the AFL.

To me, that can sometimes be a sign that he needed to mature - both mentally and physically, and that if he does - he'll replicate his under 18 form.

He holds so many advantages over other players. He is very athletic, co-ordinated, and a great decision maker/ball user.

I can't wait for Watts to become a bonafide star of the AFL. The guy is gonna turn into the most loved Demon when he starts consistently tearing games apart. It'll be the feel-good turnaround of the decade. Go Watts!

I hope he'll have a bit of competition/partners in crime to the crown, but it's great to see him playing consistent footy. He really is starting to look like he has more time with the ball in hand.

hmmn, & the Michael Longs aren't, the Breretons, the Roger Merretts, & the Ray Biffins.

Um.. what?

Yeah I agree. I've always thought Watts would come good. He dominated under 18 kids, but struggled in the AFL.

To me, that can sometimes be a sign that he needed to mature - both mentally and physically, and that if he does - he'll replicate his under 18 form.

He holds so many advantages over other players. He is very athletic, co-ordinated, and a great decision maker/ball user.

That's what I've always said, there's 4 major attributes/qualities of a good player: 1. Skills 2. Athleticism 3. Brains and 4. Guts/Hardness/Toughness/Balls whatever you want to call it. Number 4 is the one he has lacked up until this point but he's making inroads

I wasn't aware of there being multiple entities of any of those players. Why don't you just say 'players such as...' and then name them. Unless Bretreton had a brother or two I'm not aware of

and wtf are you talking about anyway, is this comment supposed to be some sort of discussion?

small handful of posters are starting to wreck this site with absolute drivel in every thread

what are you talking about cb

Michael Long is high character. was a catalyst to winning Premierships & is loved by kids.

Roger Merrett was popular amongst the kids. & was a multi Premiership player, not just well liked.

Dermie is a multi Premiership winning player, & has huge character,

Mark? You are indeed deluded

The guy (Mark, you?) nearly destroyed our club. No interpersonal skills.

your wrong mono, he pulled apart the sick bits & unsettled the place, started the routing of the soft players, & sent the ones packing who would have kept the virus within.

& Roosy has continued what Neeld started, but in a more diplomatic manner. even if you choose to not see it, because of blind loyalty & passion.

& for a doctor to resort to insults, shows you've lost your sense of humor, & your better judgement.

Um.. what?

of great character, & also loved by kids, but whilst still playing hard physical premiership winning footy. not just pretty boys playing what was wide receiver.

of great character, & also loved by kids, but whilst still playing hard physical premiership winning footy. not just pretty boys playing what was wide receiver.

Jack Watts took a dump earlier his evening, and the tiniest fraction of it made it's way to a gutter, where it fermented for a while, and then it turned into Roger Merret

posted a while back that his brain had to catch up with his feet,now it appears to be happening doubt we will see the best of him until 2017 then he will go on and be a champ.Body size has increased ,confidence in his own ability to impact games ,support from inside the club,all the things he never got as skinny 6.5 kid thrown to the wolves during the bailey and neeld eras.Sure he is on the right path

Unfortunately, JW will never please everyone, all of the time....nor should he.

The haters, those calling for him to be traded, need to stop.

We have an exceptional player on our list.

AND he will be a one club player.

Fin.