Max must go...

[saintjake]

i will hunt down anyone calling for maxies head
still our best, and one of the best full backs going around
OUR WHOLE BACKLINE DOESNT HAVE TO CREATE RUN
let max do what he does, stop the other teams chances of winning.
superstar

[vacuous space]

I can't see how we can play all three delivery-klutzes -- Max, Blake and Raph -- in our backline at the same time.

Raph has been pretty reliable by hand and foot recently. He's had two disposal clangers in the last 4 weeks. I don't see how he rates a klutz at all, or what he has to do with Blake and Max.

[saintly_safes]

I can't see how we can play all three delivery-klutzes -- Max, Blake and Raph -- in our backline at the same time.

Raph has been pretty reliable by hand and foot recently. He's had two disposal clangers in the last 4 weeks. I don't see how he rates a klutz at all, or what he has to do with Blake and Max.

Im not knocking Raph but where did you get your stats from? In the game against the Eagles he made 4 clangers in one quarter.

[saintsRrising]

Max to take on Buddy this week.

Limit Buddy and the Hawks cannot win.

Zac for Roughhead.

[Iceman234]

Expected the opening line of the OP to be "...on"



Max to give Lance a bath this week.

[PJ]

I'd say he's even more of must have come finals time. He'll be used on S Johnson should we face the cats (seriously important role).

[degruch]

Max to take on Buddy this week.

Limit Buddy and the Hawks cannot win.

Except for the last time they beat us.

Max to Buddy, as always. I can't see that changing m'self.

[maverick]

Max to take on Buddy this week.

Limit Buddy and the Hawks cannot win.

Zac for Roughhead.

So who does Blake take, this is the problem for mine.....

[TassieJones]

Max to take on Buddy this week.

Limit Buddy and the Hawks cannot win.

Zac for Roughhead.

So who does Blake take, this is the problem for mine.....

Williams if he plays, or Brown

[maverick]

Max to take on Buddy this week.

Limit Buddy and the Hawks cannot win.

Zac for Roughhead.

So who does Blake take, this is the problem for mine.....

Williams if he plays, or Brown

Williams won't play and Brown will probably play back....

[vacuous space]

Im not knocking Raph but where did you get your stats from? In the game against the Eagles he made 4 clangers in one quarter.

The official stats.

http://www.saints.com.au/TheClub/Player ... 1&typeid=2

[TassieJones]

Williams if he plays, or Brown

Williams won't play and Brown will probably play back....

brown's played forward the last couple of weeks, was very good there vs the cats and brown himself doesn't really have matchup in our forward line.

even if he doesn't play forward you'd reckon Blake would find someone to pick up and leave Fisher or Gilbo as loose man. Failing that, well he can play just about anywhere else

[degruch]

Williams if he plays, or Brown

Williams won't play and Brown will probably play back....

brown's played forward the last couple of weeks, was very good there vs the cats and brown himself doesn't really have matchup in our forward line.

even if he doesn't play forward you'd reckon Blake would find someone to pick up and leave Fisher or Gilbo as loose man. Failing that, well he can play just about anywhere else

Brown's their swingman, Blake's ours...would be an interesting match. Who picks up Brown normally? Would have thought Blake is too tall.

[TassieJones]

Brown plays taller than he is, and isn't exactly too fast or agile for Blake so it would work

Last time we played them in the prelim I'm pretty sure he played forward for a lot of the match, dunno who was on him but it wasn't Fish, Max or Gilbo so it could have been Blake (I don't think I'll be re-watching the tape to check any time soon though)

[Sobraz]

I'd say he's even more of must have come finals time. He'll be used on S Johnson should we face the cats (seriously important role).

He will be no hope to play on Johnson... Even less so this season than in seasons past as Johnson pushes further up the ground...

Even deep forward, i'd be seriously stressed if it came down to current day Max v's Stevie J...

[degruch]

I'd say he's even more of must have come finals time. He'll be used on S Johnson should we face the cats (seriously important role).

He will be no hope to play on Johnson... Even less so this season than in seasons past as Johnson pushes further up the ground...

Even deep forward, i'd be seriously stressed if it came down to current day Max v's Stevie J...

Tend to agree...whould have thought (preferrably) Gilbert or Fisher all the way, Max to one of the big forwards (if he's in the team).

[matrix]

klutz lol
the threads not about blake but he is second in the league for marks up to last week i think
not bad for a klutz...contested or uncontested.

and maxs kicking isnt actually as shocking as everyone seems to think it is.
blimey rated in the top 2 for full backs in the last 12 years (richo)
hardest opponent (by fev)

and whats he done wrong this year??
not much really
if zac wasnt about it would not be even mentioned.
if there is a slight doubt on injury...then as much as i love him, sorry dude its a team game.
if he is cherry ripe.......then
FULL BACK
FULL STOP

[avid]

Gosh, I'm not saying Blake is a marking klutz. Far from it. he's probably not even such a bad kick. But when it comes to thinking about what to do with the ball when he's got it, he is heart-in-the-mouth dreadful.
What Max and Raph and Blake have in common is the slow, looping, lollypop passes they do, and their even feebler hospital handballing, which seems to come off somewhere near the wrist. They get us into trouble time and again. Max alone made 5 clangers in the backline on Saturday.
I've got no problem with the rest of Blake and Raph's games. Max is more monodimensional.
I can't believe the coaching staff can't compel them all to kick / handball more sharply and directly. Can't that be yet another KPI?

[groupie1]

what kind of fuckwitting twat would start such a thread as this? You monkey... I won't repeat what everyone else said about how good Max is as a footballer, because it would be adding nothing. But another thought: Zac Dawson has been good compared to what we expected of him. If you look closely at the footage from this year, which you obviously won't because you're a muppet and a tosser, Zac, while showing he may mature into a good full-back over the next couple of years, has clearly shown he is NOWHERE NEAR Max Hudghton in terms of technique, reading play, tactics, balance during closing, defensive timing, and just all that freakish defensive talent Max Hudghton has been displaying for 10 years. Max has been written off many times before by dickheads like you. Robert Walls described him last year as being on his last legs, only a month before calling him the best defender in the game. MORONS and TOOLS like you and Robert Walls who dominate the AFL discourse with mindless soundbites wouldn't know your arses from your elbows. This one poor game ain't nothin. And you're a f****** twit. Stop talking. Pull your head in. Your opinions are stupid, your ideas are derivative and reactive and NOT WORTH MY TIME READING. The only reason I decided to respond to this post was to make sure, beyond all doubt, that you knew how f****** stupid you were.

[plugger66]

Luckily our coaching staff will pick our best side and will not waoory about sentiment. Surely we want to win a flag whoever is in the side and if they select Max good on him and if they dont well bad luck but unlike some on here we will not just pick a guy who was a champion. Good luck Max and better luck saints.

[SainterK]

Our backline is so dominant because of a team effort, not any one individual player. Personally I think it's been very unsettled in recent weeks, and I am looking forward to Gilbert and Dawson coming back in to give some stability and settle it down come finals time.

Don't really think it's a case of "my max is better than your dawson"

[AnythingsPossibleSaints]

I'm not worried at all. Max did an excellent job against the Bulldogs last week (including on nimble guys like Brad Johnson) and in the finals we may play them again.
We're also likely to play Geelong. They'll probably have Ottens up forward (with Zac on him), leaving Max to play on Mooney, Hawkins, or S Johnson (if he plays deep forward). No dramas there.
We may also play Collingwood, and he's the absolutely ideal match-up for Jack Anthony, apart from anyone else.
We may also get to play Adelaide again (lets hope so) and whoever plays down back for us will hopefully get to twiddle their thumbs, like they did a couple of weeks ago against them (with the ball almost permanently in our forward half).
Another way to juggle all the bigger guys in our back half would be to play 7 of them down there. With Gilbert playing that loose-man-in-the-hole role he plays so brilliantly. That would create an incredible "marking wall" for us down there, that would be extremely hard for any opposition team to get through, over, or around. They would probably counter that by putting someone in the same role in our forward line, but would they do it as well as Gilbo? I doubt it. And I'd back Roo and Kosi to handle it better that the opposition forwards would. It may create an ugly game, but I'd fully expect us to win it.

[max#8]

His time is up.... Last night Max was clearly our worst, making horrible mistake after horrible mistake, and his disposal is just so bad that it will hurt us in the pressure of finals...

We have looked at our best down back throughout the year when he has not been in the side... Nearly every game he has played in, our defensive results have not been as efficient..

Zac is miles ahead of him...

He cannot be in our finals side for us to be at our best... All of Zac, Gilbo, Chips, and Blake are far better as tall backs... They are all now his equal when it comes to spoiling ability, but are all miles ahead when it comes to ball use and decision making... Maxs footy brain is mulch...

When the ball is in his hands, it is like watching a car crash in slo-mo, and increasingly his strength of spoiling and contesting is diminshing fast...

It will be a hard and unpopular call for Ross to make, but it must be done if we are to hold this years cup aloft...

you must feel like a clown now

[Sobraz]

His time is up.... Last night Max was clearly our worst, making horrible mistake after horrible mistake, and his disposal is just so bad that it will hurt us in the pressure of finals...

We have looked at our best down back throughout the year when he has not been in the side... Nearly every game he has played in, our defensive results have not been as efficient..

Zac is miles ahead of him...

He cannot be in our finals side for us to be at our best... All of Zac, Gilbo, Chips, and Blake are far better as tall backs... They are all now his equal when it comes to spoiling ability, but are all miles ahead when it comes to ball use and decision making... Maxs footy brain is mulch...

When the ball is in his hands, it is like watching a car crash in slo-mo, and increasingly his strength of spoiling and contesting is diminshing fast...

It will be a hard and unpopular call for Ross to make, but it must be done if we are to hold this years cup aloft...

you must feel like a clown now

Not at all Mrs. Hudghton...

Whilst I have never doubted his spoiling ability and commitment, I still believe coming into the finals that we look at our best without him in the side...

With so many inclusions to be welcomed back over the next week or 3, he may well be the unlucky one...

Max's decision making and disposal wasnt much better on the weekend... and if it is a battle between him and Zac come finals, he should miss...

Zac is one of the first picked now IMO....

[St Fidelius]

His time is up.... Last night Max was clearly our worst, making horrible mistake after horrible mistake, and his disposal is just so bad that it will hurt us in the pressure of finals...

We have looked at our best down back throughout the year when he has not been in the side... Nearly every game he has played in, our defensive results have not been as efficient..

Zac is miles ahead of him...

He cannot be in our finals side for us to be at our best... All of Zac, Gilbo, Chips, and Blake are far better as tall backs... They are all now his equal when it comes to spoiling ability, but are all miles ahead when it comes to ball use and decision making... Maxs footy brain is mulch...

When the ball is in his hands, it is like watching a car crash in slo-mo, and increasingly his strength of spoiling and contesting is diminshing fast...

It will be a hard and unpopular call for Ross to make, but it must be done if we are to hold this years cup aloft...

you must feel like a clown now

Not at all Mrs. Hudghton...

Whilst I have never doubted his spoiling ability and commitment, I still believe coming into the finals that we look at our best without him in the side...

With so many inclusions to be welcomed back over the next week or 3, he may well be the unlucky one...

Max's decision making and disposal wasnt much better on the weekend... and if it is a battle between him and Zac come finals, he should miss...

Zac is one of the first picked now IMO....

Both Max and Zac have played together before whilst Gilbert and Fisher also played.

I really don't see it as a battle between Zac and Max