Christian Petracca - Under The Radar

[Vogon Poetry 2,095]

I've had a bit of time lately and have watched a lot of our games again - admittedly the one's we've won - and I've marvelled at the skill and effectiveness of this kid.  And yet not many are talking about him, here or in the media.

His hands are elite in tight, rarely does he fumble, his vision and decision making are elite - so often making not only good decisions but the best decisions. His skills by foot and hand are terrific, he rarely make a mistake.  And his contested ball work is excellent as evidenced by 18 contested possessions on Sunday.

In the latest MFC website article Rawlings talks about McDonald, Wagner and Oliver but there is no mention of Trac and yet he's been equally impressive.  When he was recruited I was expecting "freak" like moments but we haven't had many.  What we've had is a player who does all the ordinary things very well and then just teases us with some really good things - long goals, contested marks and slick handballs.

Everyone, including me, loves Clarry but in my mind Trac is level pegging and vitally important to us.  He just doesn't seem to get as much recognition, hence this thread.

[Whispering_Jack 27,981]

I tend to agree with you that Trac is on track to be a special player except on the matter of one score and that is his tank which is not yet quite developed enough for him to take centre stage and I mean literally - in the midfield where at some stage in the future I reckon he will be A+ grade elite.

Another year or two of preseason work should hopefully get him there.

[praha 10,281]

He is very highly rated by opposition supporters. He tends to be a high impact player and he stands out when collecting and delivering the ball.

[drdrake 3,038]

I think we have had so much go on as side issues that a number of our player performances have been under rated.  Just hope his draft buddy Brayshaw can get right he is a very good player also.

[DeeMfc 621]

Happy for him to be flying under the radar. The first few posts sum it up perfectly. 

I think 'total possession' count is the reason he is flying under the radar. There are many players that achieve very high possessions but have far less impact on a game than Petracca.

Edited July 13, 2017 by DeeMfc

[Ozymandias Greenblerg 12]

I see him playing a similar role for us as Robbie Gray does for Port

[What 18,810]

Hes a gun and will soon be a superstar.  We needed him to step up with three of our our best contested mids including our two captains out, and he has walked into the midfield and taken charge.

A special player.

[Gator 16,893]

I completely agree with the OP and Petracca ranks 2nd in the AFL since round 12 for improvement in his player rating (behind only Dustin Martin).  TMac is 6th and Oliver 20 for the same criteria.

 

[Wrecker45 3,378]

He is our x-factor in the finals. I really liked his workman like game again Carlton on Sunday. He needs to get the little things right and the rest will come.

The one thing that will frustrate over his career is the high speed his foot travels when he kicks the ball but at an odd angle. When he sprays he will really spray but for the most part he will be brilliant.

[Gorgoroth 12,321]

When this kid puts together a tank and 4 quarter game they will have a 30 page spread about it.

The only player who will rival the Ox pre knee.

Wait til finals.

[Gorgoroth 12,321]

When we make the grand final and he wins the Norm Smith, his performance will be so good he will win the next two. The memory of his game will better than any players those years. 

[Lord Travis 10,167]

He's definitely a gun in the making, only reason he isn't getting more attention is because we have lots of young talent producing at the moment. Young guys like Oliver, Hunt, Hogan etc take some of the limelight. Trac's so clean with his hands, is a great contested mark and beautiful short field kick. He's a decent long bomb for goal too! His best bits of play this year have been when he gets the ball, and hits up a target inside 50 with a short kick. He loves score assists and excels with these kicks, similar to Watts. Once he builds his tank up further and can play through the midfield for longer he is going to be a weapon!

[Uncle Fester 2,835]

Just seems a millimeter away from putting together the perfect game. You just know that one day soon it will all come together and the world will go wow! (and the few Saints that aren't crying yet will begin to). A young Darren Jarman IMO

[TeamPlayedFine39 8,154]

Is he flying under their radar..?

I thought he is quite frequently referred to as one of the up and coming superstars of the game.  If anything, his press vs output makes slightly overrated by the press at this stage.

 

I agree though- he's coming along very, very nicely and when it all comes together, look out world!

[DEE fence 4,471]

Trac reminds me of the truck ramming the armoured car in the opening heist sequence of the movie HEAT, huge devastating impact. Every time he runs into a contest.

[Meggs 569]

He reminds of Chappy.  Able to score those clutch goals when your team most needs it.

[DistrACTION Jackson 6,418]

He often takes a contested mark and I find myself thinking 'how did he do that?'

The quality of our young talent is superior to everyone I believe, including GWS.

 

[whatwhat say what 18,977]

What I have been super impressed by is how, particularly in the last three weeks, he's gone from impact player across half forward to genuine contested ball winning midfielder

Its not an easy adjustment to make and whilst it's been by necesssity he hasn't missed a best

Super young player 

Edited July 13, 2017 by DemonAndrew

[Stretch Johnson 2,568]

I think his game Sunday flew under the radar,  He didn't do the sexy stuff or kick the goals.

His effort in the midfield in the second half was workmanlike, effective and as match-winning as Jetta and McDonald's effort.

I wonder (without looking again)  if Goody held him back a little in the first half to have him finish strongly.

[dee-eee 231]

1 hour ago, DaisyDeeciple said:

Trac reminds me of the truck ramming the armoured car in the opening heist sequence of the movie HEAT, huge devastating impact. Every time he runs into a contest.

Those who remember the 80's may see a comparison with  Russell "Rhino" Richards .

On second thoughts , Trac will be twice the player .

[Sideshow Bob 2,156]

he's a chunkier Kouta for me. Moves in that Mediterranean kinda way. just needs Kouta's tank and we will have a bona fide top 3 player in the league

[Pennant St Dee 11,279]

He makes things look easy. I anticipate something beneficial will happen every time he gets the ball. Nibblers mark last week in the last minute was just an example.

I was confident when he gathered the ball he would not blaze away and turn it over.

I often overlook him in player votes because I just expect it from him. We certainly gained an absolute gun in that draft which after the u18 championships I didn't expect St Kilda to overlook 

[adsy 135]

Have a mate who's a Dockers fan, who played wafl, so knows his footy.

He watches the dees every week, just to watch Trac. Thinks he's a gun already and going to be best in the comp in a few years... 

[Skuit 9,177]

4 hours ago, Vogon Poetry said:

In the latest MFC website article Rawlings talks about McDonald, Wagner and Oliver but there is no mention of Trac and yet he's been equally impressive. 

Perhaps it's a deliberate ploy from Rawlings and the coaching staff as a strategy to manage Petracca's 'excitable' personality traits?

[Stretch Johnson 2,568]

11 minutes ago, Skuit said:

Perhaps it's a deliberate ploy from Rawlings and the coaching staff as a strategy to manage Petracca's 'excitable' personality traits?

I think that may be fair enough, but as a coach I would be highlighting the grunt team first footy he played on Sunday and asking for more.