Jump to content

James Leake

FrothiesLiam
FrothiesLiam
in Melbourne Demons

Featured Replies

12 hours ago, whatwhat say what said:

i wonder whether this says more about the quality of tasmanian kids emerging or the lack of quality coming out of victoria, in particular

It was probably easier for aspiring footballers who lived outside of the most locked down city in the world in the years leading up to the draft

  • Quote
    • Like 3
    • Clap 3
     
    12 hours ago, whatwhat say what said:

    i wonder whether this says more about the quality of tasmanian kids emerging or the lack of quality coming out of victoria, in particular

    It's interesting, I'd say maybe both.  The allies were very strong in the national championships, so they beat not just the vic players but WA and SA pretty handily too.  The Tassie Devils in the Coates league were very well placed there too, so that possibly goes to suggest that the quality in Vic could be a little lighter this year.

    It also sounds like this year has a fairly shallow draft overall, and that they don't expect a lot of players to be selected overall.

  • Quote
    • Like 1
     
    On 26/10/2023 at 17:49, dazzledavey36 said:

    Leake is class and skill above Sanders.

    Sanders is a ball winning machine and is one dimensional in terms of hes pigeon-holed to play one position only.

    Leake is athletically far more gifted then Sander and has genuine versatility and X factor.


    I’m on Leake for 6.

    Finally figured out who Sanders reminds me of. Sorry Colonel, probably a bit unfair but it’s another chicken-related moniker - Brock McLean.

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    • Haha 1

    I know this is the Leake thread, but I’ll add - my fear with Sanders is that he’s like McLean, or Dom Tyson, or Darcy Parish, or any number of others... players that if they’re not in the midfield, they don’t have the tools to fit anywhere else.

    And if he’s with us, he ain’t unseating Viney, Oliver or Petracca.

  • Quote
    • Like 3
    • Thanks 1

    24 minutes ago, Mach5 said:

    I know this is the Leake thread, but I’ll add - my fear with Sanders is that he’s like McLean, or Dom Tyson, or Darcy Parish, or any number of others... players that if they’re not in the midfield, they don’t have the tools to fit anywhere else.

    And if he’s with us, he ain’t unseating Viney, Oliver or Petracca.

    Very good post. I remember those sort of guys in junior footy too. Always got to play on the ball but could not mark or kick properly. Often get set in midfield on personality and get enough kicks to stay there and get noticed. Prime example. Bailey Smith

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    I will place my trust in JT. He has the skill to see past who will become an AFL player, particularly with pick 6 and 11. If it’s Sanders I’ll trust he is the man. As long as he is given the free rein to pick best available. 
     

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    • Clap 1
     
    1 hour ago, Mach5 said:

    I know this is the Leake thread, but I’ll add - my fear with Sanders is that he’s like McLean, or Dom Tyson, or Darcy Parish, or any number of others... players that if they’re not in the midfield, they don’t have the tools to fit anywhere else.

    And if he’s with us, he ain’t unseating Viney, Oliver or Petracca.

    Viney will be 30 next season, Petracca will be a forward sooner than later IMO and Oliver I’m not allowed to post about.

    And even with all that I don’t see why Sanders would be a very handy half forward or wing rotation early in his career with the way he accumulates and moves the ball on quickly.

    Im just not sure how good he is or more importantly if he’ll be there at our pick, but I’m not worried about positional overlap. 

  • Quote
    • Like 3
    33 minutes ago, DeeSpencer said:

    Viney will be 30 next season, Petracca will be a forward sooner than later IMO and Oliver I’m not allowed to post about.

    And even with all that I don’t see why Sanders would be a very handy half forward or wing rotation early in his career with the way he accumulates and moves the ball on quickly.

    Im just not sure how good he is or more importantly if he’ll be there at our pick, but I’m not worried about positional overlap. 


    I am. I’m very wary of any player that can’t have an impact unless placed in a primary midfielder role. This is exactly why I’d choose Leake over Sanders - Leake has demonstrated an ability to have a critical impact wherever he has been positioned on the field. Just pure footy ability.

  • Quote
    • Like 6
    • Clap 1

    I'm very sold on Leake at 6 and Windsor at 11. i think that's a great outcome

  • Quote
    • Like 4
    1 hour ago, Mach5 said:


    I am. I’m very wary of any player that can’t have an impact unless placed in a primary midfielder role. This is exactly why I’d choose Leake over Sanders - Leake has demonstrated an ability to have a critical impact wherever he has been positioned on the field. Just pure footy ability.

    Clayton Oliver no good then? How about two time brownlow medalist Lachie Neale? Or brownlow medalist Cripps? Versatility is nice to have, but if you're a gun midfielder then why would you ever play any other position.

    Talk about impact, Sanders is the best performed midfielder in this 2023 draft class. He won the Larke medal for best player in the national championships. He's a ball winner, he's got burst of pace, classy agile mover, good kicking skills, strong overhead, hits the scoreboard, leadership qualities. There's no reason why he won't make it as a good AFL midfielder. He's probably the safest bet in this whole draft class and looks to me like hell carve out a Joel Selwood type career.

    If JT and the recruiters decide Leake is our guy, then we'll all support him and hope he's a star. At this point in time, he's a lesser player than Sanders and hasn't shown much as a midfielder yet. Pick 6 is a lot to spend on a flanker sized intercept defender when there's potentially a superb midfielder on offer.

  • Quote
    • Like 7
    • Haha 1
    1 hour ago, Lord Travis said:

    Pick 6 is a lot to spend on a flanker sized intercept defender when there's potentially a superb midfielder on offer.

    Well, I guess we'll either look like geniuses or just plain stupid...

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    I think JT has done a great job so far, as we haven’t a clue who we are taking, or even what picks we might end up with.

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    I think the MFC has Leake-d the information as a distraction from the player they want. 

    Edited by durango

  • Quote
    • Like 1
    • Haha 1

    • Author

    Giants rumored to be into Leake and Windsor with their first pick so if we want leake then we'd have to take him with 6 

    Edited by FrothiesLiam

  • Quote
    2 hours ago, FrothiesLiam said:

    Giants rumored to be into Leake and Windsor with their first pick so if we want leake then we'd have to take him with 6 

    Source?

  • Quote
    5 hours ago, FrothiesLiam said:

    Giants rumored to be into Leake and Windsor with their first pick so if we want leake then we'd have to take him with 6 


    Makes sense. Caruso at GWS appears to be a shrewd operator in the Lamb/Taylor vein.

    On the Gettable podcast it was proposed to him that GWS would be keen on a few of these, pretty sure it included Leake & Windsor, maybe Caddy. The interviewers pointed out that some of the names elicited a visible response from Caruso, without any specifics.

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    10 minutes ago, Mach5 said:


    Makes sense. Caruso at GWS appears to be a shrewd operator in the Lamb/Taylor vein.

    On the Gettable podcast it was proposed to him that GWS would be keen on a few of these, pretty sure it included Leake & Windsor, maybe Caddy. The interviewers pointed out that some of the names elicited a visible response from Caruso, without any specifics.

    Caruso seems a very astute operator

  • Quote
    • Like 1

    They maybe playing ducks and drakes to get Curtin et al, JT will know who is fair dinkum. Lol.!!

  • Quote
    On 31/10/2023 at 05:23, The Jackson FIX said:

    We’d have to be looking at him as a mid/frwd option - no way Lexer and May would welcome a Leake in the backline 

    Why is that ? Pray tell. 

  • Quote
    • Haha 1
    • Clap 1
     
    On 30/10/2023 at 20:40, durango said:

    I have watched some highlights and I don't think he is worthy of a pick 6.

    He uses his strength to win the ball but that will not work in the AFL against bigger and stronger bodies.

    Players develop with weight programs. Don’t be so naive most 18yo recruits start out needing physical development.

    They are not all freaks like Clarry.

  • Quote
    • Like 2

    This was the game in which James Leake transformed himself from a solid defender into contender for the top 10 as a dynamic forward. He was swung forward at half time with his Devils team trailing and he went on a tear in the third quarter, clunking every mark in his area with clean hands and slotting three goals for the term.

     

     

  • Quote
    • Like 2
    • Thanks 4

    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...
    Go to topic listing

    Featured Content

    • GAMEDAY: West Coast

      It's Game Day and the Demons have a chance to notch up their third consecutive win — something they haven’t done since Round 5, 2024. But to do it, they’ll need to exorcise the Demons of last year’s disastrous trip out West. Can the Dees continue their momentum, right the wrongs of that fateful clash, and take another step up the ladder on the road to redemption?

        • Like
      • 38 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • FEATURE: 1925

      A hundred years ago today, on 2 May 1925, Melbourne kicked off the new season with a 47 point victory over St Kilda to take top place on the VFL ladder after the opening round of the new season.  Top place was a relatively unknown position for the team then known as the “Fuchsias.” They had finished last in 1923 and rose by only one place in the following year although the final home and away round heralded a promise of things to come when they surprised the eventual premiers Essendon. That victory set the stage for more improvement and it came rapidly. In this series, I will tell the story of how the 1925 season unfolded for the Melbourne Football Club and how it made the VFL finals for the first time in a decade on the way to the ultimate triumph a year later.

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREVIEW: West Coast

      Saturday’s election night game in Perth between the West Coast Eagles and Melbourne represents 18th vs 15th which makes it a tough decision as to which party to favour. The Eagles have yet to break the ice under their new coach in Andrew McQualter who is the second understudy in a row to confront Demon Coach Simon Goodwin who was also winless until a fortnight ago. On that basis, many punters might be considering to go with the donkey vote but I’ve been assigned with the task of helping readers to come to a considered opinion on this matter of vital importance across the nation. It was almost a year ago that I wrote a preview here of the Demons’ away game against the Eagles (under the name William from Waalitj because it was Indigenous Round).  I issued a warning that it was a danger game, based on my local knowledge that the home team were no longer easybeats and that they possessed a wunderkind generational player in Harley Reid who was capable of producing stellar performances playing among men a decade and more older than he.  At the time, the Eagles already had two wins off the back of a couple of the young man’s masterclasses and they had recently given the Bombers a scare straight after their Anzac Day blockbuster draw against the then reigning premiers.

      • 1 reply
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • NON-MFC: Round 08

      Round 08 of the 2025 AFL Season kicks off on Thursday with a must-win game for the Bombers to stay in touch with the top eight, while the struggling Roos seek a morale-boosting upset. Friday sees the Saints desperate for a win as well if they are to stay in finals contention and their opponents the Dockers will be eager to crack in to the Top 8 with a win on the road. Saturday kicks off with a pivotal clash for both sides asthe Bulldogs look to solidify their top-eight spot, while Port seeks to shake their pretender tag. Then the Crows will be looking to steady their topsy turvy season against a resurgent Blues looking to make it 4 wins on the trot. On Election Night a Blockbuster will see the ladder-leading Pies take on the Cats, who are keen to bounce back after a narrow loss. On Sunday the Sydney Derby promises fireworks as the Giants aim to cement their top-eight status, while the Swans fight to keep their season alive. The Hawks, celebrating their centenary, will be looking to easily account for the Tigers who are desperate to halt their slide. The Round concludes on Sunday Night with a top end of the table QClash with significant ladder implications; both Queensland teams are in scintillating form. Who are you tipping this week and what are the best results for the Demons?

      • 159 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • PREGAME: West Coast

      The Demons hit the road in Round 8, heading to Perth to face the West Coast Eagles at Optus Stadium. With momentum building, the Dees will be aiming for a third straight victory to keep their season revival on course. Who comes in and who goes out?

        • Like
      • 563 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland

    • REPORT: Richmond

      The fans who turned up to the MCG for Melbourne’s Anzac Day Eve clash against Richmond would have been disappointed if they turned up to see a great spectacle. As much as this was a night for the 71,635 in attendance to commemorate heroes of the nation’s past wars, it was also a time for the Melbourne Football Club to consolidate upon its first win after a horrific start to the 2025 season. On this basis, despite the fact that it was an uninspiring and dour struggle for most of its 100 minutes, the night will be one for the fans to remember. They certainly got value out of the pre match activity honouring those who fought for their country. The MCG and the lights of the city as backdrop was made for nights such as these and, in my view, we received a more inspirational ceremony of Anzac culture than others both here and elsewhere around the country. 

      • 0 replies
      Demonland
      Demonland
    View All