2 hours ago, Altona-demon said:

Diasgree 100% Martin was outstanding and the main reason that the Dogs were in the game for so long was their ruck dominance.  The Adelaide game the Dees played also was an example of no ruck creating a huge headache for us - even though we sharked well. 

My comment was about the act of rucking and was meant to draw attention to how easily two comparatively experienced ruckmen were imo relatively negated by a novice.  

My following comment re the worth of Jackson was meant to underscore the belief of many that a ruckman who cannot also impose himself around the ground has a limited career in AFL.

Perhaps you saw worth in the ruck work that I didn't.

Anyway each to his own 

2 hours ago, binman said:

Sorry, I'm confused.

Why do you think we should draft him?

Sarcasm

Deezone suggested I comment further on Bell.

Bell played for Sandy dragons and Vic Metro and was taken pick 5 in the 2019 rookie draft by st Kilda. Didn't get a senior game and was delisted. Picked up by Casey for the 2021 covid season debacle.

202cm. Don't know his weight but no Mick Nolan.

9 hours ago, mo64 said:

Baker played well against the Dogs, and was clearly in the best. But his stat line was inflated by junk time disposals in the last qtr.

My assessment of Baker is based on both this season and last. I thought he was a prospect when he first arrived. But now I can understand why he's not in contention for senior selection. Yes he provides an outlet, but his decision making is poor.

Baker was clearly the best player on the ground all day, he used the ball better than most going inside 50, and was pretty much our leading possession gatherer after every quarter, how you can conflate that to junk time stats is mystifying.

At one stage in the second quarter, he turned it over, was dragged, got on the headphones with Corrigan and hit his next 3 targets lace out, it was the best game I've seen him play all year at this level. He probably won't get a game next week and will be delisted at years end, but is really putting in some great efforts this year.

Of the others:

Woewodin continues to show his footy smarts, once he gets some more physical conditioning in he'll be a fringe player, possibly as soon as the pre-season matches next year.  Got ran ragged by Lachie Hunter at times but still contributed well.

Howes played on the city wing, and was ok given how much footy he's missed. He has a nice size to him for a mid and moves well, needs some more size to him muscle wise  still gets pushed off it a bit too easily.

Chandler had very few touches early on, then flashed into the game with aplomb kicking two quick superb goals, some games he struggles to find the footy yet still impacts the scoreboard, surely due another look at senior level.

Bowey was a slow starter also, but really found the tempo of the game after quarter time. Is probably behind Hibberd and Rivers at the moment but his composure stands out at this level.

JVR - From standing close to the action on Saturday, he hits the contests hard, still struggles to find ways to get involved at times, but all the signs are he will be our next key position forward. Was a pretty good contest between himself and Tim O Brien.

Dunstan was always at the coalface, but I thought would dominate more than he did considering the conditions suited his lack of pace. He and Munro were certainly up for a fight with their Dogs opponents, there were multiple spot-fires instigated by these two.

Hunt still drifts out of games too easily, even at this level, didn't see him after the last change so he may have been held over, but at one stage went on one of his mazy runs that makes you remember the sort of impact he can have on games.

Turner - Was given the task of rotating between all of the Dogs talls, Schache, Sweet/Martin when resting and Darcy. So had plenty of opponents to keep his hands full, was ok and started getting his eye in with some reading of the play, still needs another run at VFL before being considered again.

Brown - Not a great day for forwards, see also JVR, he got on the end of a tonne of leads, but it kept slipping through his fingers frustratingly all day, cant fault his workrate but got little reward.

Laurie - A poor day after his last start at Geelong. Struggled to get up and down the ground looked slower than usual, not sure if he was carrying an injury? 

McVee - Like Deakyn Smith, just flies under the radar and isn't noticed very often for mine, cant see any attributes that stand out, but then again others may, just an average half back flanker for mine. 

We certainly very rarely kicked into gear in this game, conditions were always going to be a great leveller, and the Dogs had quite a lot of experienced and/or premiership players in this side, so we'll take the win and move on.

 

On 7/23/2022 at 8:19 AM, Sydney_Demon said:

Yes, almost exactly half. 2 NSW teams, 3 Queensland teams, 16 Victorian. 

Alright yes I was OTT about saying almost half but it still stands to reason, it should not be called the VFL. 5 teams in a competition that's aren't in Victoria, it's simply false to called it VFL.