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I haven't been able to follow much our progress over pre-season.
Gardiner is named as our starting ruckman for round 1
Just curious if there have been clear signs of improvement for him over the process of the off-season?
After last season, I thought it would be almost a no-brainer for the club to delist him.
I really hope the club have got it right in hanging on to him and he can recapture at least some of the form he had back in the West all those seasons ago.
Curb your enthusiasm - you’re a St.Kilda supporter!!
I wouldn't read too much into Gardy being named ahead of Kingy. I would think that they will share the ruck duties equally. It could be as simple as G coming before K !!
The rest of Australia can wander mask-free, socialise, eat out, no curfews, no zoning, no police rings of steel, no illogical inconsistent rules.
They can even WATCH LIVE FOOTY!
Against a quality opponent tonight we will get to see where he is at.
Since he joined us he has some games where you think yes he will be good. But he has also had some shockers too.
Evidently he is now the fittest and least restricted he has been since he joined us....so lets hope that tonight is the stat of a useful season for him.
Flying the World in comfort thanks to FF Points....
My thoughts were that he started 2008 as you would expect after his absence from the game - useful performances including good ground positioning and with aggression. His tap work was very good.
From there his form lifted despite interruptions with injury and in the Sydney game in Sydney he threatened to be the difference as we came back, including going forward and kicking a goal - then he was injured.
Came back for 1 game against WCE over there and was out injured again, re-appearing late at VFL level and contributing but not quite forcing his way back into the AFL side - in hindsight probably a mistake to have only got back to an emergency.
I was most encouraged by what I saw in 2008 - and I trust that with a full pre-season in 2009 he will bring his class, movement and, most importantly, aggression to the park - and WITH King give us an influential ruck division - which is where the game starts.
Eastern wrote:I wouldn't read too much into Gardy being named ahead of Kingy. I would think that they will share the ruck duties equally. It could be as simple as G coming before K !!
exactly.
anyone who takes a second's notice of starting lineups is a fool. It's irrelevant.
Gardi up and firing will make a huge difference to our structure and ball movement forward - we want first possesion and he can give it to us. If that is all he does all season we are already ahead.
I've never seen a bad St.Kilda player - that's just how they are.
Looked fit, focused and like he wanted to play footy. I thought he was definitely in our best players for the night. He rucked the majority of the second and third quarters with Kosi, with King only being used sparingly.
Looked fit, focused and like he wanted to play footy. I thought he was definitely in our best players for the night. He rucked the majority of the second and third quarters with Kosi, with King only being used sparingly.
Outstanding game. His best for the club.
Agreed. Was outstanding tonight. Was well praised by the media. Definatly on the rise. If he continues with form like that and better, he and Kingy will be the force to beat.
