Sandy Game 1/3/08

[Paul Gardner 6]

For the record, from a previous post, http://demonland.ugbox.net/forum/index.php...c=8591&st=0.

Bailey said the selection of Martin was all about grooming long-term future key position players for the club.

"Stefan fitted our needs more than Ashley did," Bailey told Sportal on Tuesday.

"He is a tall (198cm) key position player with an enormous leap."

Bailey said he believes Martin could develop into a future key position player at either end of the ground.

"He can play down back or go up forward," he said.

Bailey seems to think he can play in the Back line aswell as up forward i think he was an exelent choice...i think in the Future(when developed more) with his size,mobility and "enourmous" leap along with a good set of hands he could be a very hard forward to stop......

Left hand / right hand?????

Are you following me yet?...............sounds like your a tossing which way to go! the footy dept are coordinated with the development of these kids & do know what the're doing.

And i hardly believe you!

It might be too hard for you but be patient, it will happen.

[DemonDave 1,089]

So who were they supposed to play in the ruck on the weekend then Haydo, you seem to have all the answers. Tom McNamara? Ezra Poyas? Tommi Johnston?

Fact is he'll play the role he's needed for when at Sandy. Last year he played a mixture of key forward and ruckman. He seems quite adaptable, the more footy he plays at this developing stage of his career the better, position for mine is not that important, as he's still very much learning the game. Get him close to the action so he can get as much of the footy as he can, to build the skills and confidence up. No point playing Centre-Half Back if we're kicking with a 10 goal win, the ball would hardly come down there...

[Tex 68]

So who were they supposed to play in the ruck on the weekend then Haydo, you seem to have all the answers. Tom McNamara? Ezra Poyas? Tommi Johnston?

Fact is he'll play the role he's needed for when at Sandy. Last year he played a mixture of key forward and ruckman. He seems quite adaptable, the more footy he plays at this developing stage of his career the better, position for mine is not that important, as he's still very much learning the game. Get him close to the action so he can get as much of the footy as he can, to build the skills and confidence up. No point playing Centre-Half Back if we're kicking with a 10 goal win, the ball would hardly come down there...

I don't care who they play in the ruck.

How about a ruckman? Don't Sandy have any of their own on their list?

I do care about where they play Martin.

He is supposed to be being developed as a key tall, either forward or back.

He is late to the football caper.

So he needs to be fast tracked into learning how to play as a forward or backman.

To spell it out for you, as a forward he needs to learn where and when to lead, to time his runs and jumps, to take marks out in front of him whilst running at full pace with a defender on his tail, to take pack marks from the goal square up to CHF, to learn goal sense, how to snap kick a goal under pressure or alternatviely dish off a handball, etc, etc etc...

As a backman he needs to learn how to stand man to man with his opponent, block his opponents' runs, time his runs, spoil from behind at full pace without chopping or giving away free kicks, to be able to out body opponents when the ball is coming in high, to be able to know when to leave an opponent to help out a teammate under pressure, when to spoil or go for the mark, to learn how to link up with and mold with fellow defender, to develop a defenders mindset, etc etc etc.

A lot of motor skills need to be learnt for someone who is relatively new to the game. A lot of our senior more experienced players still haven't mastered these skills.

So how in the hell does putting him in the ruck, help him when there is so many more important areas that he needs to learn?

Whe need to efficiently manage his game time and development in the correct positions that will hardwire his motor skills into an AFL key position player.

So by your reckoning, it would be ok to play Frawley, Garland, Miller, Zomer, Newton and Dunn in the ruck if there was no one else available, because it gives them "game time".

Absolute rubbish. I would call it inefficient game time.

Martin and these players need to be focused on learning the roles most suited to them, to hone and perfect a required and specific skill set.

Playing Martin in the ruck is only going to delay his development.

If you are trying to learn how to speak French, you wouldn't go to live in Japan and start reading Japanese books, on the reckoning that at least your learning to speak another language in another environment. You should be focussing on mastering the first language, by reading French books and living in France.

And that's what Martin should be doing, learning to play as a key tall, forward or back. That's two positions to learn, isn't that enough?

I have been saying it for years, the development of our players at Sandringham is rarely a priority and often takes a back seat for Sandringham's alterior objectives.

Haven't they won enough premierships of late off our bat?

Time we were given a fair lick of the lollipop.