stevethemanjordan

Saw that as well. Kev is exactly right. He deserves his chance after the year he's had. Seems to have learnt his lesson. I reckon he'll go in the 30's. If we land him I'll be over the moon.

I'm of the view, (and some may say this is obvious) that it's much easier to develop a player's inside game than to develop skills such as kicking, marking and decision making. Salem has elite kicking, marking and decision making and it's known that he is not afraid of putting his head over the ball when it's his turn, yet he's most damaging as an outside player. With Roos and Stone at the helm, one of the things that I'm going to enjoy watching is how they improve the inside work and combative work of our mids. Especially players such as Watts and Toumpas, who we know are mostly give-to players at present. Listening to Salem talk in his interview gives a great insight into the kind of attitude he has and how much he'll want to work on those areas of his game. The Hawks strategy of drafting players who displayed both inside and outside strengths has done wonders for their team. Salem is exactly that kind of player. Once his body is a bit bigger and he learns how to use his body in congested situations he could be in the same mould as Jordan Lewis/Luke Hodge etc. Of course, he could also become another Grigg or a Houli. From my speculative judgement, I think he has the capacity to be a ripper. Salem, Sheed or Scharenberg for me. Freeman is a bit too risky.

We'll know by about 8 30 tonight. Will post about it then. Hopefully celebrating us taking him.. Hopefully.

Yes.. neither did I... (Sarcasm) They know about us much as the rest of us if we're being honest Machsy. He will be picked up, I'm sure of it.

Attitude and mentality are big factors that determine how far one will go. Personality, which club you're picked up by, the leaders, culture and environment the club has is significant for the development of a player also. Whilst Freeman and Dangerfield do have some similarities, it doesn't mean that Freeman will be the next Dangerfield. And if it does, then I could say that Salem will be the next Hodge, because he also shares some similar qualities as a player.. As for kicking to bad leads, what does that say about his decision making? I think it's foolish to suggest that Freeman's perceived lack of hitting targets comes down to bad leads. They're highlight tapes. There'll be misses. There'll be hits. There'll be bad leads and there'll be bad decisions. You or I do not know which one is more likely, but what you can see is that Salem appears to be a better kick of the football if we're comparing those highlight tapes. All of this is so very entertaining. And exciting. We are due to unearth a star though. Surely?

Yes, Sheed caught my eye early on also. No standout attributes as such but does everything so well. This blurb really tells a lot. "Sheed was the Larke Medallist for the best player of the National Champs this season, and that result only confirmed things for me. He averaged 28 disposals (11 contested) at 74% efficiency to go with 6 clearances, 3 tackles and 4 inside 50’s. Sheed was the only 17 year old to play in the WAFL seniors last season where he played three matches and averaged 17 disposals and 5 marks. He capped off a great season in the Colts playing 12 games and averaging 23 disposals, 6 marks and 4 inside 50’s. Sheed showed he was legitimate at last year’s National Champs averaging 15 disposals, 4 marks and 3 inside 50’s per game. He only managed the three senior WAFL games this season due to Champs commitments and injury, where he averaged 15 disposals and 4 marks."

Fair enough. Do you mind explaining why? Is it something about his game you don't like? He seems a more 'complete' player than Freeman in my eyes. The one thing that excites me is that he can win his own ball and doesn't seem too frightened. Any player with sublime footy skills such as kicking, marking and decision making coupled with a bit of aggression is a big tick. I'm frustrating myself with the constant comparisons and who is edging out who. All I know is that it's obvious there are a handful of mids that seem very hard to separate. Each will respond, develop and grow differently at each respective club they go to. I just hope that the player we pick has a similar attitude and mentality to Jack Viney in that they are confident, self driven and have the desire to do all they can to get the best out of themselves and help the MFC rise again. I'm confident that will be a priority for Paul Roos and co.

I want to see the entire list playing team first, hard nosed and functional football. I want to see them playing for each other. And I want to see Jesse Hogan tearing the competition a new one, sending a msg to the AFL that the MFC have finally hit the jackpot with a young star. No pressure of course.. Jesse.

Appreciate all efforts with reports. I want this 'end of November' feeling to hang around a bit longer going into next year... Fingers crossed.

But Dangerfield himself was picked at number 10 in his draft or thereabouts I believe... That doesn't make sense.

Or your drawing the short bow. The title of the thread tells the story alone.

It's just bitter Melbourne supporters wanting to see thriving teams fail. I get it.

Lols, unpredictable?He's had the same personality from day one at the Hawks and his contribution to the team over the past decade or thereabouts has been monumental. They have two flags. Going by that alone, it's hardly unpredictable. Franklin and Garlett... I see a pattern emerging here with you and those two.

Franklin won't do a thing to tarnish Sydney's brand. As much as most on this thread are predicting him to.

Master, developing and understanding work ethic at AFL level is not something players are exposed to until they're at a club. Rioli I know for a fact was never as amazing defensively as he is now. He was a freak who who could do anything with the ball in hands but wasn't so interested in running players down and being a pressure specialist. As PSD has said, Garlett has all the skills in the world. It's about developing the other areas of his game once at an AFL club. As it is with all players.

Touché ... It's close enough.

Interesting. Makes me think the chance of landing Chris Cain is now pretty slim.

Agree, there is a difference. For the contests where Watts NEEDS to make an impact by either winning the ball in the air or on the ground, to date he's been poor, and that's completely mental/psychological. He's got to overcome it. For the contests where he positions himself well and in space to become the receiver, he does a great job and obviously his ball use is top notch. Sometimes, the contests he 'chooses' not to impact are not so much a conscious choice, but a subconscious one. A pattern that I'm sure has developed throughout his footballing life because of this lack of desire to have that 'see ball, get ball' attitude. Other contests there's no doubt that he's positioned himself well and believes his team mate/mates can win the ball and get it to him. It's definitely not so black and white though. And this will be the major challenge or hurdle for him to overcome in his footballing career. How muh can he develop and overcome this lack of urgency.

I apologise for my comment, it sounded more malicious than intended. Can you go into detail on the limited information you've provided?

Care to share? I don't like these ego feeding snippets of detail. Nobody knows who you are so why don't you share what it is you've heard?

I'm just going off what I've read in articles, draft profiles and from the limited footage/games I've seen. He's obviously not going to go at pick 9 because of his history RP. He had a couple of hiccups building up to the draft last year which is why he wasn't picked up. It's also obvious that clubs would have had a close eye on him this year in the WAFL and he certainly made inroads. No hiccups, and a decent season in my view and the view of 'those in the know'. If we're talking about 'footballing ability' alone, the kid is said to be a rare talent and would be top 10 - 20 in the draft this year no doubt. Last year he was also rated top 10 on ability alone. We all know the importance of getting your first and second round draft picks 'right' so one can understand the perceived risks involved if a club were to pick him inside the top 10 - 20, (based on his naughty boy antics). As for anything outside the top 30, the chances of bringing 'talent' into your club aren't so high as we know so picking up Garlett would be a steal in that sense, the only question marks are then about development as a human being. And, basing of what we've seen this year in the WAFL and from what we've heard about his off-field behaviour, he's been an angel. Again, he will be picked up. You can see why it won't be top 10. Unlikely 10 - 20. Somewhere in the 20 to 40 range and hopefully closer to the tail end. Hopefully.

Might have something to do with our form as a side over the past three or four years. Just a guess though...

You're being a silly boy RP. I don't think I've read a poster saying we should take him at pick 9. If he's there at pick 40, we'd be foolish not to take him. Pick 40 guarantees you nothing in the draft. But if there's a player there whos footballing ability is rated amongst the top 10 of last years draft then you'd take him wouldn't you? Especially with Paul Roos and George Stone at the helm. They've got money in the bank wen it comes to the development of young players. I've a feeling he'll be gone by 40 though.

Interesting points. Stats aside, the trends suggest that ruckmen of Jamar's type will slowly die out as the game becomes faster. Nic Nat will is like having an extra midfielder after the ball is bounced or thrown up so I imagine teams will place more importance on bringing in athletic players who can still be fantastic tap ruckman, but can also contribute greatly to the team when te pill is in dispute. As for now, clearly it's not a major issue.

C'mon Machsy, it's clear you have a serious distaste for Garlett. When you're saying things like 'barely made an impression' it's clear you're holding on to something else. The guy has made every right step to be drafted this year. He will be drafted, and I hope to god he slips to 40. People are crazy if they think the MFC aren't ready to handle him or some sort of nonsense. It's an AFL environment. How many times do you see players go completely off the rails within an AFL club?