Why do our players REFUSE to give the ball to Jack Watts... He works his a$$ off to get free and create space and time & time again our players ignore him.. I've noticed it for a couple of weeks but today was as bad as its been. His our best user of the football especially going inside 50 and 9/10 times he will hit a target inside 50 and will kick 9/10 set shots. Just give him the freakin ball when he's open!!!!

There isn't a big conspiracy, they took the wrong option a few times. They will learn from it

I have criticized Jack in the past (and in a lot of cases, he bloody deserved it).

Can't knock him today for just getting the one goal. I would have been filthy if I were him.

Today, Derwayne of all people said 'Here is Watts again, working his backside off as usual.'

Imagine that quote being said a few years ago! I remember that game against Brissy at Etihad (which I had the misfortune of attending) where I was almost physically ill watching him float from pack to pack like he was having a leisurely afternoon jog.

Today, he leads back hard, pressures his man and what happens? He is ignored. 

We get told that Jack is one of the blokes that a lot of our players look up to. That didn't seem to be the case today (and it was grossly unfair).

2 minutes ago, Colin B. Flaubert said:

I have criticized Jack in the past (and in a lot of cases, he bloody deserved it).

Can't knock him today for just getting the one goal. I would have been filthy if I were him.

Today, Derwayne of all people said 'Here is Watts again, working his backside off as usual.'

Imagine that quote being said a few years ago! I remember that game against Brissy at Etihad (which I had the misfortune of attending) where I was almost physically ill watching him float from pack to pack like he was having a leisurely afternoon jog.

Today, he leads back hard, pressures his man and what happens? He is ignored. 

We get told that Jack is one of the blokes that a lot of our players look up to. That didn't seem to be the case today (and it was grossly unfair).

I am very certain Jack is a well liked and respected player and person. Just watch the reactions of Hogan and Jeffy when Jack sends a perfect pass or kicks a goal. He feeds Hogan and others beautifully. Now it is time for Jack's teammates to do the same.

They found him leading up to space quite a bit, and his last quarter he had it on a string on the far wing after great leads.

They are likely reluctant to kick it long and high to him for the exact reasons he showed when they did kick it long and high to him.

6 minutes ago, JV7 said:

Why do our players REFUSE to give the ball to Jack Watts... He works his a$$ off to get free and create space and time & time again our players ignore him.. I've noticed it for a couple of weeks but today was as bad as its been. His our best user of the football especially going inside 50 and 9/10 times he will hit a target inside 50 and will kick 9/10 set shots. Just give him the freakin ball when he's open!!!!

I can't work it out. In the first half today he made space on the members wing several times but our backs kept looking inboard or to switch to the southern wing often with minimal success. One kick to him in space forward of the wing and he will set up an easy shot for one of the forwards. It should not be a matter of Watts Ellington loud enough to be noticed, it should be part of the game plan. Half backs should be looking automatically for where Watts should be on the flanks, if he isn't free, next option is Hogan who is usually being double teamed. Get the ball to Watts 6 times a match inside 50 and you get 5.1 on the board and he will set others up as he did today. SEN commentators kept mentioning today how many times he was burnt, could have had 5 goals himself. 

Has been happening to him his entire career. In all seriousness. They've ignored him forever and it beggars belief.

12 minutes ago, Undeeterred said:

Has been happening to him his entire career. In all seriousness. They've ignored him forever and it beggars belief.

You're not wrong but I feel in the past he lost a bit of trust with his teammates that he'll take the mark and use it well. Most certainly can't say that now, Hogan has commented that Watts is the one he wants with the ball delivering it to him. I noticed it in the Dogs game as well, people were commenting that he hadn't done anything but I was watching him and he lead hard all day for very little reward until the game was done and dusted.

Pettacca missed Garlett, Oliver missed Viney, it happens. 

Probably lowering our eyes too much after bombing it like idiots for a couple of weeks. 

8 minutes ago, Deestroy All said:

Pettacca missed Garlett, Oliver missed Viney, it happens. 

Probably lowering our eyes too much after bombing it like idiots for a couple of weeks. 

Those incidents were mere blips in the game. It was embarrassing to watch one particular piece of play where Watts was on his own in space directly in front of goal and was completely ignored. Not sure what the agenda was but it made the MFC look stupid!

I've noticed Watts sometimes leads too early for the ball carrier to really set and deliver which then either finds him too close to the kicker, out of position or cut off by defenders who have covered him

its just as important for the forward to pick and time their leads as it is for the other player to deliver.

that said there were a lot of stupid decisions made today all over the ground

I think Watts has really started to run hard and make space for himself over the last few weeks which is something I can't recall he has done often which is perhaps why it has become really noticeable all of a sudden. I believe his endurance has always been a bit of a problem. But now after his pre-season, he can really get the miles in. 

In regards to being burnt by his team mates, perhaps part of the problem is some of the players don't believe they have the skill to pull-off the pass. The Hogan one for example, although Watts was completely free, Hogan had been running 50-60m full of steam and to kick an accurate kick down Watts' throat may have been a bit too much for him which is why he opted for the handball. 

Watts has every right to be filthy today. The one when he was in the square by himself and Oliver had a shot from 30m out was plain selfish and i know coaches will just pull him up in that. When the simple option is there you give.

The hogan one where he was outside 50 with watts in the square alone was unbelievable.  Then hogan handballs it?

i guess he somehow didn't see watts. 

23 minutes ago, CBDees said:

Those incidents were mere blips in the game. It was embarrassing to watch one particular piece of play where Watts was on his own in space directly in front of goal and was completely ignored. Not sure what the agenda was but it made the MFC look stupid!

I bet it is a hellovalot easier to see who is where from the grandstand or the couch at home than on the ground in the heat of the moment with an opponent up your backside. Just saying. 

If Jack is getting frustrated, then my advice is to SCREAM AND DEMAND THE BALL LOUDER!

Worked for me during my career... Only downside was the amount I had to spend on Strepsils and Throaties 

1 hour ago, Earl Hood said:

I can't work it out. In the first half today he made space on the members wing several times but our backs kept looking inboard or to switch to the southern wing often with minimal success. One kick to him in space forward of the wing and he will set up an easy shot for one of the forwards. It should not be a matter of Watts Ellington loud enough to be noticed, it should be part of the game plan. Half backs should be looking automatically for where Watts should be on the flanks, if he isn't free, next option is Hogan who is usually being double teamed. Get the ball to Watts 6 times a match inside 50 and you get 5.1 on the board and he will set others up as he did today. SEN commentators kept mentioning today how many times he was burnt, could have had 5 goals himself. 

Any relation to Duke Ellington, Earl? Is Watts Ellington the blonde-haired jazz muso that everyone likes but wishes that he would play harder? 

I'm glad people are speaking about this now.  I've noticed it for years, even in our rotten Etihad game against Brissy in 2013.  He's always given the best delivery to our players, yet when he leads to space where he could take an uncontested grab he usually gets burned/ignored.  

If coaches pulled players up for burning Watts, they'd quickly learn. 

In the past, players seemed to fear kicking it to him in a contest because invariably he'd lose that one-on-one. It seems they're still not confident, but I feel today was more a case of poor decision making. They should have used him, but failed to get their head up.

I think what we saw today may be a confidence issue.  We repeatedly messed up attacking moves by taking one extra hand pass when the ball carrier was already in space and had a clear target to kick to.  I can't believe that it would be an instruction from the coaches to keep running the ball once you have created the space and have a target. 

We also saw several times players simply took the wrong option.  I hate to say it, but Petracca was one of the worst culprits in that respect.  He repeatedly ignored an open man to pass to someone under pressure instead.  I think this is something that only time and more games playing together can fix.  We need to remember that many of these kids have only played a few games together.  As promising as they look, it's going to take time for them to gel completely. 

9 hours ago, Colin B. Flaubert said:

 

Today, Derwayne of all people said 'Here is Watts again, working his backside off as usual.'

 

Crazy isn't it. In fact MMM and the TV crowd kept tsk tsking the inaccuracy and how poor we were at times. Derwayne actually disagreed... "I reckon they've been a little better than the scoreline suggests. They've been awe-inspiring at times."

The world has gone topsy turvy.

1 hour ago, Dappa Dan said:

Crazy isn't it. In fact MMM and the TV crowd kept tsk tsking the inaccuracy and how poor we were at times. Derwayne actually disagreed... "I reckon they've been a little better than the scoreline suggests. They've been awe-inspiring at times."

The world has gone topsy turvy.

We were experimenting and playing in second gear I thought. Still pumped them and would have won by 100+ had the wind not been as crazy as it was. It was tough going out there. I thought we were quite good even with Gawn, Jones, Viney, Vince not being particularly useful.

The SEN boys have Watts on and said to Jack you need to go to the AFL and ask permission to wear a high vis vest so your team mates can see you.

He laughed it off. 

Would have to be yellow, GWS already wear the orange ones!

 

 

That's what you deserve when you abandon your forward mates and go and hob-nob it in the ruck.