I think his best feature is that he can stop on a dime, swivel and kick accurately off a step. He also gets to where the ball is, very very well.

If Im remembering it right we got in 2 late picks as steak knives when we traded pick 25 (?)  to GWS for Frost. Those steak knives got us O mac and ANB. So, Frost, ANB and O mac for pick 25 looks pretty frikn good to me. 

 

2 hours ago, big_red_fire_engine said:

ANB reminds me of a young Lenny Hayes. The difference between ANB and Stretch is one is playing on instinct and with confidence the other appears to be overthinking every move and worried to make an error so takes safe options. He comes across as very robotic at present and may just need to relax and take some chances. Hopefully it al comes together for him soon. 

well said and nailed it. We also may be underestimating Nibblers natural ability. Stretch was better early on playing on instinct and maybe is 'too' professional. i think he will stick at it like Harmes and find a way soon enough.

33 minutes ago, Wells 11 said:

If Im remembering it right we got in 2 late picks as steak knives when we traded pick 25 (?)  to GWS for Frost. Those steak knives got us O mac and ANB. So, Frost, ANB and O mac for pick 25 looks pretty frikn good to me. 

 

It was pick 23 who GWS used for Pat McKenna who we traded in for swaps in the 50s.

I always earmarked this kid to be a good footballer, always read the play well, from the start he knew how to get on the end of a few.

3 hours ago, big_red_fire_engine said:

ANB reminds me of a young Lenny Hayes. The difference between ANB and Stretch is one is playing on instinct and with confidence the other appears to be overthinking every move and worried to make an error so takes safe options. He comes across as very robotic at present and may just need to relax and take some chances. Hopefully it al comes together for him soon. 

Think you’ve nailed Stretch there BRFE.

I actually think he looks like Andrew Leoncelli.

I said to my mate Maynard looks like Bizzarro Petracca.

When he was recruited he came to the club as a clearance specialist. Over the last two years he has been training with the forwards, but now seems ready to be the complete player. Had six clearances against North and will end up being a mainstay in the middle completing our midfield along with Viney, Oliver, Jones, Brayshaw, Tyson and Petracca

16 hours ago, big_red_fire_engine said:

ANB reminds me of a young Lenny Hayes.

Same haircut?

1 hour ago, Clint Bizkit said:

Same haircut?

Hard runners who while not quick have smart lateral movement which gets them into space.

Both pokey right footers who look naturally untidy by foot but are surprisingly effective.

Hard at it inside with good hands into space. 

18 hours ago, big_red_fire_engine said:

ANB reminds me of a young Lenny Hayes. The difference between ANB and Stretch is one is playing on instinct and with confidence the other appears to be overthinking every move and worried to make an error so takes safe options. He comes across as very robotic at present and may just need to relax and take some chances. Hopefully it al comes together for him soon. 

This stood out in one piece of play on sat. Stretch took a mark in space on the HBF. Instead of turning and going and using his pace down the wing, he stopped, back peddled, looked inside, looked long and chipped it side ways to the boundary. He had the chance to take the game on, make something happen, get some overlap run. But he didn't have the confidence to go and see what happens. He took the safe option.

18 minutes ago, Grimes Times said:

This stood out in one piece of play on sat. Stretch took a mark in space on the HBF. Instead of turning and going and using his pace down the wing, he stopped, back peddled, looked inside, looked long and chipped it side ways to the boundary. He had the chance to take the game on, make something happen, get some overlap run. But he didn't have the confidence to go and see what happens. He took the safe option.

I noticed this bit of play too. He’s clearly overthinking the game at the moment, hopefully that changes with time. I actually think he hasn’t been poorly coached by Goodwin and co. In his first year under Roos he excelled as a runner and outside option. When Goodwin took over, his coaching panel may have taken the “contested team” thing a bit too far. They specifically played Billy in the VFL to work on his inside game. He was played as an inside midfielder. He’s not an inside midfielder, and he never should be. It’s a waste of one of the few decent outside runners we have. I understand needing to develop multiple aspects to your game, but it has done nothing positive for Stretch. He’s not strong enough or quick enough mentally to play inside, and his lack of confidence in an assigned role he can perform has now caused his outside game to deteriorate. Hopefully the coaches recognize the mistake they made and let Billy get back to doing what he does best without having to overthink everything. We need quality outside run and Billy is one of the few on the list who can provide it.

Nibbler just keeps on improving though. He’s developing nicely and is very versatile. Definite best 22 moving forward and a real barometer for our team IMO.

19 hours ago, big_red_fire_engine said:

ANB reminds me of a young Lenny Hayes. The difference between ANB and Stretch is one is playing on instinct and with confidence the other appears to be overthinking every move and worried to make an error so takes safe options. He comes across as very robotic at present and may just need to relax and take some chances. Hopefully it al comes together for him soon. 

You may have hit the nail on the head. Losing confidence, leads to panic that a mistake will see you dropped.If he can get past that, if it is in fact the case, then he has the skills to make it. His passing to other players is a weapon. He needs more ball and a bit of confidence.

55 minutes ago, Grimes Times said:

This stood out in one piece of play on sat. Stretch took a mark in space on the HBF. Instead of turning and going and using his pace down the wing, he stopped, back peddled, looked inside, looked long and chipped it side ways to the boundary. He had the chance to take the game on, make something happen, get some overlap run. But he didn't have the confidence to go and see what happens. He took the safe option.

This was my knock on him last year too.

Has been nibbling away at his career but finally looks ready to take a big bite

On 2/26/2018 at 2:47 PM, Rodney (Balls) Grinter said:

Agree.  I think Billy has most of the same wepons, skill set and personal trays - speed, attack on the football, work rate and proffesionalisim.  Watched him closely on Saturday and it just doesn't seem to be clicking for him at the moment.  If there is perhaps one key thing he might lack in comparison to Nibbler it's vision and decision making with the football.

Agree about work rate, attack on the footy and professionalism but he lacks agility, strength and that awkward kicking technique, where he takes an eternity to get the ball to boot affect his decisions and vision because they limit what he can do, he needs clear space to be effective by foot and unfortunately he's a total liability one on one

On 26/02/2018 at 6:41 AM, Mazer Rackham said:

Thing about ANB is he doesn't have anything stamped on him to say what kind of player he is. No neon light like there is on Trac, "beast with X factor", or Oliver "extractor par excellence", or Hunt "dasher".

He looks pretty nondescript as a player. But there he is ... just getting in the right spot again and again, doing handy things and kicking goals. He just keeps doing it. West Coast had an entire team of ANBs in the 90's. (and one Jakovich)

You think "what is his best position?" Doesn't really matter ... the kid can play football. Just get him out on the park. Compare with "athlete" types like Majak Daw or Mason Cox who do the occasional good thing but mostly just look lost.

'Running Machine' wouldn't be out of place, just saying, and agree with the thrust of your post.

Think people need to calm down on his kicking and decision making. He'll have plenty of down games there. Not much of a left side, not a super long kick, doesn't snap the ball well and can sometimes miss a target over their head. Even last year I'd tear my hair out watching Nibbler miss a kick or take a silly option. He was always bobbing up getting the ball in good spots though, so if he keeps that up he can iron out the decision making.

He's not afraid to win contested footy and he's great at running in to space and keeping the ball moving. Solid enough in the air and solid enough as a tackler - has really improved in those areas. Combined with elite endurance that's why he makes a lot of sense as a high half forward. He makes defenders accountable and creates space for the goal kickers, that's an impressive team attribute.

In terms of comparison he's similar to Kane Lambert who was great for the Tigers, and a little bit like a poor mans Toby Greene who's stronger one on one and more dangerous near goals but otherwise finds the ball across half forward. 

If there's a player I'd be giving ANB tapes to watch or having him sit down for a chat with (given our connections) it would be Paul Chapman. He's about as good a half forward as there's been this century. Never missed a snap, a brilliant kick inside 50 and racked up the ball moving in around the midfield and also leading or crumbing as a forward. 

Nibs is a guy who can still develop his game. His footy smarts should only increase with experience, and that could lead to him being a very tough matchup for opposing defenders. He doesn't waste it much, and has a good goal sense and is fantastic at finding higher conversion opportunities for the team.

As for the Billy talk, I have not given up on him yet. I'm just unsure of why he isn't progressing.

16 hours ago, Grimes Times said:

This stood out in one piece of play on sat. Stretch took a mark in space on the HBF. Instead of turning and going and using his pace down the wing, he stopped, back peddled, looked inside, looked long and chipped it side ways to the boundary. He had the chance to take the game on, make something happen, get some overlap run. But he didn't have the confidence to go and see what happens. He took the safe option.

I reckon that was after he got caught htb after playing on earlier. 

Definitely there is a between the ears element,  but he also lacks penetration in his kicking which closes down a few options for him. 

Edited February 27, 20187 yr by Guest

Might need to start a Billy Stretch thread as well, I’m getting confused as to who we’re talking about. 

I need a coffee.

11 hours ago, xiss said:

Agree about work rate, attack on the footy and professionalism but he lacks agility, strength and that awkward kicking technique, where he takes an eternity to get the ball to boot affect his decisions and vision because they limit what he can do, he needs clear space to be effective by foot and unfortunately he's a total liability one on one

You could well be right about his kicking style inhibiting his ability to cleanly dispose of the ball during play, it certainly does look a bit propy at times.  That said, he can be a reliable set shot on goal under pressure.  Remember well the goals he kicked against Geelong in our victory against them in 2015 and Hawthorn in 2016.  He looked pretty good against the Hawks that day and looked like he was about to break out into a quality, regular player, but instead has somewhat plateaued and been overtaken for his place in the side by the likes of Nibbler.  Incidentally, Nibbler also looked like a real prospect of a player right from the start in that 2015 game againt the Cats, think he kicked 3 goals or something and did some other pretty good stuff, then wasn't quite at the right level or make enough impact at the senior level in 2016.

You could well be right about Billy's other inherent limitations and perhaps they might ultimately inhibit him from being a regular senior player at the MFC, but I haven't given up hope on him just yet. A big part of me really likes the loyalty and romance that he, Viney, Smith and Maynard bring to the table and motivated, determined players can find ways around their weaknesses and develop a role for themselves.  If I had to sum up where I think the two are at right now, I'd say Billy has potential, but Nibbler is delivering.  I do realize though, that with limited list spots in modern AFL teams, at age 22 and 5 years or so in the system, Billy's time to deliver on his potential is fast running out.

I have always liked Nibbler from his first interview, he came across as pretty confidant and I remember thinking that for a young fella he could talk the talk and I really hoped that he would be able to walk the walk for the Dee's. Last year he really stepped up and I am thinking that maybe he could be our Leoncelli Mk11 or even better.

Go ANB, Go Dee's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our recruitment is seriously good these days. It has been for a while now.

I’ve always thought ANB, Harmes, Bugg, Stretch, Salem, Melksham, Oscar Mac etc we’re going to be very good players for us.

What I find a little disappointing/annoying in these threads however is that, if you expressed this view prior to any of these players consistently performing for the club, you were seen by some here to be an uncritical cheerleader.

Yet now some (or all) of these players are consistently performing well for the club, those very same posters feel free, unabashedly so, to laud praise on these guys without ever taking ownership or accountability for their previous statements about them.

It’s really not that cool. Just sayin’.

56 minutes ago, Ron Burgundy said:

Our recruitment is seriously good these days. It has been for a while now.

I’ve always thought ANB, Harmes, Bugg, Stretch, Salem, Melksham, Oscar Mac etc we’re going to be very good players for us.

I'd argue that none of the players' you've listed are 'very good' for us just yet, Ron.