Jump to content


Recommended Posts

Posted
1 hour ago, Bring Back Barassi said:

Pros: Fast, tough

Cons: Brain freeze under pressure, unreliable in front of goal

 

Depth player at best, needs to make room for others

That's the essence of it I think. I had high hopes for Dean a couple of years ago, as he has a combination of skills that could be very damaging - pace, booming left boot, solid body and (occasional these days) hardness at the contest. Just never seems to put it together. He'll be eclipsed unless he can find some kind of consistency.

Posted
42 minutes ago, Rafiki said:

I don't think tackles is the best representation of pressure applied overall. Kent doesn't apply anywhere close to the defensive pressure needed in the forward half. I feel like Hannan is setting the benchmark for the forwards (Garlett has been good as well)

Good point. I reckon I've seen Hannan smother the ball off the opposition boot at least 5 times in the past 2 weeks. He also corrals the opposition when they have the ball, which forces them to kick to a certain area of the ground. These things don't show up on Champion Data stats.

As for Kent, I was a fan, but have come to the realisation that he's a downhill skier. Has currency, so would look to trade.

 

  • Like 1

Posted

I once had high hopes for Kent, based on a few cameos and what I perceived as a fair bit of upside and potential.  Not anymore!  He completely lost me against Norf, with his miserable work rate, and blatent 'softness' when the team needed him to put his body on the line.  Missing a chunk of the pre season is not an alibi for having no desire.  

  • Like 1
Posted

Like him but would drop him purely on not running through the line of the ball a couple of times on the weekend. Both times the North player did, got the ball, and bang, it was back in their forward line.

If he can't take the hit when it is his turn then he has no place in the team. Fix that and it will bring a bit of mungral to his game and he will be fine as his other attributes are OK.

  • Like 2
Posted

Think unless he pulls a rabbit out of a hat and finds some serious form he'll be looking for a new home.

If the case ,so be it.

Posted
3 hours ago, A F said:

Given IMO every other player in our 22 has improved in the last year, I'd say the problem is with Kent and not our development coaches.

Fair call.

  • Like 1
Posted
4 hours ago, Luther said:

That's the essence of it I think. I had high hopes for Dean a couple of years ago, as he has a combination of skills that could be very damaging - pace, booming left boot, solid body and (occasional these days) hardness at the contest. Just never seems to put it together. He'll be eclipsed unless he can find some kind of consistency.

A consistent inconsistency, just does not do enough. 

A successful team needs every player playing his role.  

Kent's role is to create opportunities, make the most of opportunities, kick goals and apply defensive pressure. All these things are missing.

Unfortunately, there is now an established pattern to his game that has not changed. 

You need more than potential to succeed at this level.

  • Like 3
Posted
1 minute ago, hemingway said:

A consistent inconsistency, just does not do enough. 

A successful team needs every player playing his role.  

Kent's role is to create opportunities, make the most of opportunities, kick goals and apply defensive pressure. All these things are missing.

Unfortunately, there is now an established pattern to his game that has not changed. 

You need more than potential to succeed at this level.

Im reluctantly off the Kent bandwagon. Had hopes for him but seems ....well.....incapable  or uninterested  in playing to abilities/potential

Keep this up and he'll be encouraged to look around for a future. The bright side Dean, you won't be alone :rolleyes:

  • Like 1

Posted

Kent killed us multiple times in the first 10 minutes with kicks that were cut off by North players. I’ve been a fan of Kent’s, but I’ve seen enough now to know he needs some serious attitude adjustment to be any good.

  • Like 4
Posted
7 hours ago, america de cali said:

He doesn't do anything for the reputation and image of sleeve tat wearers. Compensating for what I wonder? 

What reputation is that? Most sleeve tat wearers are trendy cream puffs?

Posted (edited)
6 minutes ago, Billy said:

What reputation is that? Most sleeve tat wearers are trendy cream puffs?

Knowing a few old school tat wearers, those who wear tats are like soup and there are two kinds. The first are like a bag of rough bones boiled for hours and make a hearty stock. The other kind are water added to instant noodles.

Edited by america de cali
  • Like 2
Posted (edited)

Are we judging Kent predominantly on the back of his performances this season?

I agree he was poor on the weekend, especially his disposal and lack of pressure. Did not perform well at all.

But I feel like we're over analysing a pretty small sample of four games. I just don't think he's worked into form yet. Same could be said for a few players I think. His tackling is down this year, his inside 50's are OK.

Anyway I think his position is a hard one to play at the moment with our forward structure fairly out of whack.

Keen to see how he performs over the next few weeks to see if we can get the player of last year back .

Edited by mongrel
  • Like 3
Posted
9 hours ago, ox_5 said:

Also noticed he didn't put his body behind the ball on a couple of occasions, which resulted in North taking clean possession.  Pre-seasons don't teach that. All mental with this one. 

I remember Lenny Hayes coming back from his ACL after a year out, and said it took time and practice (bump-bags) to get used to physical contact again.  If it applies to Lenny, it can apply to anyone.

For me he looks like his tank is half-empty and/or he is slightly overweight.

 

Many are writing him off.  I aint, but not with supreme confidence.  Kent really is a Jake Stringer type.  In the past 18 months, Stringer has gone missing quite a bit...and bobbed up.  Bevo uses the raging bull behind the ball as well.  I hope we don't type-cast Kent into a HFF.  His speed and mass will allow him to not only break a line, but smash it.

 

 

Something aint quite right.  He will be dropped this week I reckon.  First, he needs to look at himself; second fill the tank; and down the track, coaching staff need to explore his potential as more than a HFFker.

 

 

I'm sticking fat for now, but Clark, FFS get out of that take away store and swap those crystals.

 

 

 

pTGR

  • Like 4
Posted

Dean Kent running for the ball, Scott Thompson coming the other way, Kent takes a sidestep and sticks out a speculative hand, Thompson gathers the ball and keeps going straight ahead.

Very bad look.

  • Like 4

Posted

Kent looks good running towards our goal, but has no idea what to do when he has to come up to meet the ball, then turn towards goal with an opponent between him and the goal.

No tricks.

  • Like 1
Posted

He's had a disappointing season. He was alright last year and clearly has some attributes that could make him dangerous. It's just not working for him at the moment. His attitude appears poor and he's clearly down on confidence. Last year he was smashing that nuggety frame into everything, this year he's not committing to contests. Even with his poor form he's still provided more than JKH did IMO. Definitely think he should be dropped and replaced by ANB. ANB, while not the most skilful player, was laying a heap of tackles and helping lock the ball into our forward 50. No-one else is doing that at present. 

Not sure on the form of Kennedy or Harmes, but they'd be next in line after ANB. Reckon Stretch should be back in the team also and might be the logical replacement for Salem this week.


Posted

To be fair, outside of Garlett, all our other small forwards have been average at best.  Kent, JKH, ANB (when they played him there), Harmes.  Ben Kennedy can't even get a game at the moment either, even though his form at Casey has been decent so far.

Saying we should bring one of the other is just like deck chairs to me, although I was hoping the pressure of having a few would force at least one like Kent to stand out from the pack.  It just hasn't happened.

The weekend's game, to me, isn't much of a guide.  Our small forwards need the ball hitting the deck, and Thompson, Tarrant and Hansen were able to mark the ball too often for them to do that on the weekend.  It's why Garlett couldn't get near it and why they weren't able to apply their usual pressure because as soon as the ball was marked it took them out of the game.  

At the moment Kent is our best hope down there, but I'm not as confident in him as I used to be.

  • Like 1

Posted
4 minutes ago, Wiseblood said:

Thompson, Tarrant and Hansen were able to mark the ball too often

It would help if we stopped kicking it down their throats. We have to find alternative ways to goal. Bombing it to the hot spot won't cut it for long; especially without a viable marking target.

  • Like 4
Posted
Just now, Tony Tea said:

It would help if we stopped kicking it down their throats. We have to find alternative ways to goal. Bombing it to the hot spot won't cut it for long; especially without a viable marking target.

Can't argue with that, Tony.  Weideman and Watts aren't power forwards and they were pushed off the ball (sometimes illegally, but that's not the point) too easily and they were able to mark the footy.

We need to move the ball quickly to have a chance, and North were able to stifle that enough that we played into their hands.  We need to improve in that area.

I'm certainly not excusing the performance of some of our small forwards on the weekend, but they feed off the talls when the ball hits the deck and do their best work there, either by kicking goals or hounding the opposition.  They weren't given a whole lot of opportunities to do that on the weekend and it showed.

  • Like 2
Posted
1 hour ago, Wiseblood said:

To be fair, outside of Garlett, all our other small forwards have been average at best.  Kent, JKH, ANB (when they played him there), Harmes.  Ben Kennedy can't even get a game at the moment either, even though his form at Casey has been decent so far.

Saying we should bring one of the other is just like deck chairs to me.  

The thrust of your broader post re. delivery is fair, but maybe we should de-clump the deck-chairs and examine more closely? The 'smaller' but big-bodied HF role has been consistently problematic with no one able to step-up, and the sense that they're all going missing. AVB, Brayshaw, Kent. A problem with the set-up rather than personnel?

I thought Harmes showed a bit when stationed there this year, but his kicking on goal has let him down. Bugg seems to be stepping up his contested marking up forward but is also unreliable on goal. ANB probably plays a bit smaller in the forward line but is lacking the finishing touch around goals (while JKH is sadly unsuitable for either role). All three however have offered more in other parts of the ground than Kent, and Kent simply isn't tackling or doing enough to help trap it in.

But maybe it's time we experimented without trying to plug the gap, and brought in Kennedy as a second 'true' small closer to goal? He's a good finisher, and can run for bursts in the middle as well. Probably another victim of our intended set-up, but perhaps time to give it a tweak (although admittedly a poor time if we've got no-one to bring it to ground).  

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)
13 hours ago, Wiseblood said:

To be fair, outside of Garlett, all our other small forwards have been average at best.  Kent, JKH, ANB (when they played him there), Harmes.  Ben Kennedy can't even get a game at the moment either, even though his form at Casey has been decent so far.

Saying we should bring one of the other is just like deck chairs to me, although I was hoping the pressure of having a few would force at least one like Kent to stand out from the pack.  It just hasn't happened.

The weekend's game, to me, isn't much of a guide.  Our small forwards need the ball hitting the deck, and Thompson, Tarrant and Hansen were able to mark the ball too often for them to do that on the weekend.  It's why Garlett couldn't get near it and why they weren't able to apply their usual pressure because as soon as the ball was marked it took them out of the game.  

At the moment Kent is our best hope down there, but I'm not as confident in him as I used to be.

I generally like your work Wise, but I reckon you are being very generous to Dean on this one.  He's teased with the odd cameo, but I can't remember a decent contribution from him when we've been down.  The weekend's game was the last straw for me.  It will take a string of very good games for me to climb back on his bandwagon, and I don't think he's got that in him. 

Edited by Deeoldfart
Typo
  • Like 3

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Demonland Forums  

  • Match Previews, Reports & Articles  

    2024 Player Reviews: #7 Jack Viney

    The tough on baller won his second Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Trophy in a narrow battle with skipper Max Gawn and Alex Neal-Bullen and battled on manfully in the face of a number of injury niggles. Date of Birth: 13 April 1994 Height: 178cm Games MFC 2024: 23 Career Total: 219 Goals MFC 2024: 10 Career Total: 66 Brownlow Medal Votes: 8

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 2

    TRAINING: Wednesday 13th November 2024

    A couple of Demonland Trackwatchers braved the rain and headed down to Gosch's paddock to bring you their observations from the second day of Preseason training for the 1st to 4th Year players. DITCHA'S PRESEASON TRAINING OBSERVATIONS I attended some of the training today. Richo spoke to me and said not to believe what is in the media, as we will good this year. Jefferson and Kentfield looked big and strong.  Petty was doing all the training. Adams looked like he was in rehab.  KE

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Training Reports

    2024 Player Reviews: #15 Ed Langdon

    The Demon running machine came back with a vengeance after a leaner than usual year in 2023.  Date of Birth: 1 February 1996 Height: 182cm Games MFC 2024: 22 Career Total: 179 Goals MFC 2024: 9 Career Total: 76 Brownlow Medal Votes: 5 Melbourne Football Club: 5th Best & Fairest: 352 votes

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 6

    2024 Player Reviews: #24 Trent Rivers

    The premiership defender had his best year yet as he was given the opportunity to move into the midfield and made a good fist of it. Date of Birth: 30 July 2001 Games MFC 2024: 23 Career Total: 100 Goals MFC 2024: 2 Career Total:  9 Brownlow Medal Votes: 7 Melbourne Football Club: 6th Best & Fairest: 350 votes

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 2

    TRAINING: Monday 11th November 2024

    Veteran Demonland Trackwatchers Kev Martin, Slartibartfast & Demon Wheels were on hand at Gosch's Paddock to kick off the official first training session for the 1st to 4th year players with a few elder statesmen in attendance as well. KEV MARTIN'S PRESEASON TRAINING OBSERVATIONS Beautiful morning. Joy all round, they look like they want to be there.  21 in the squad. Looks like the leadership group is TMac, Viney Chandler and Petty. They look like they have sli

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Training Reports 2

    2024 Player Reviews: #1 Steven May

    The years are rolling by but May continued to be rock solid in a key defensive position despite some injury concerns. He showed great resilience in coming back from a nasty rib injury and is expected to continue in that role for another couple of seasons. Date of Birth: 10 January 1992 Height: 193cm Games MFC 2024: 19 Career Total: 235 Goals MFC 2024: 1 Career Total: 24 Melbourne Football Club: 9th Best & Fairest: 316 votes

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons

    2024 Player Reviews: #4 Judd McVee

    It was another strong season from McVee who spent most of his time mainly at half back but he also looked at home on a few occasions when he was moved into the midfield. There could be more of that in 2025. Date of Birth: 7 August 2003 Height: 185cm Games MFC 2024: 23 Career Total: 48 Goals MFC 2024: 1 Career Total: 1 Brownlow Medal Votes: 1 Melbourne Football Club: 7th Best & Fairest: 347 votes

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 5

    2024 Player Reviews: #31 Bayley Fritsch

    Once again the club’s top goal scorer but he had a few uncharacteristic flat spots during the season and the club will be looking for much better from him in 2025. Date of Birth: 6 December 1996 Height: 188cm Games MFC 2024: 23 Career Total: 149 Goals MFC 2024: 41 Career Total: 252 Brownlow Medal Votes: 4

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 9

    2024 Player Reviews: #18 Jake Melksham

    After sustaining a torn ACL in the final match of the 2023 season Jake added a bit to the attack late in the 2024 season upon his return. He has re-signed on to the Demons for 1 more season in 2025. Date of Birth: 12 August 1991 Height: 186cm Games MFC 2024: 8 Career Total: 229 Goals MFC 2024: 8 Career Total: 188

    Demonland
    Demonland |
    Melbourne Demons 7
  • Tell a friend

    Love Demonland? Tell a friend!

×
×
  • Create New...