Player by Player: NAB Cup Semi-Final

[bergholt]

Horrible opposition but a win is a win. Here's a run through each player, having just watched the replay, for those who didn't get to see it:

1: Gram always looks pretty dangerous in that running outside role in midfield, he's really important to the side for mine.
2: Not much happened for Kingy but he was OK.
4: About a million touches for Jones, and more importantly lots of clearances and tackles. Could well be a seriously good midfielder in years to come at this rate.
5: McEvoy once again very solid in the ruck with some good things around the ground. He's definitely in the side for mine, and has heaps of improvement in him also.
6: Not a bad game from Zac, but Hall next week will be more of a challenge. Needs to get his confidence up again this year - the kid really seems to doubt himself.
7: Hayes was quiet and then injured, let's hope he's got a couple more good seasons in him, but the old fella's getting on now.
10: Really solid Stevie Baker game, gave no quarter and looked very reliable on the ball - I'm just so comfortable when he's near it!
11: Joey was quietish and gave away a few frees but he's only going at about three-quarter pace, so nothing really to worry about.
13: Another good midfield performance from Schneider, he's going to be a very valuable contributor in there this year.
14: Great game from Geary, given a bit more responsibility in the midfield and really stood up. Looks like a solid sixth or seventh midfielder for this year.
19: Solid Gilbert game without being excellent, but solid for him is still integral to the team.
20: Armo worked his way into it and eventually looked pretty good. If he keeps improving his workrate like this he'll never get dropped.
22: Another quiet game for Fazza, not sure what his role is at the moment and looks like he isn't either. No worry yet but he might start to get squeezed for a spot before long.
23: Kosi got near it a bit and then nothing went right for him, shoulda probably had three or four, but Tarrant played well on him. Really important for structure though, especially in the first half.
25: Probably the best in our defence when it mattered, Chips was solid until subbed off, going at about three-quarter pace.
26: Dal was also below full pace and still looked great, once he warms up to the season he'll be as good as always.
28: Rhys was thereabouts a lot but showed that he still has a long way to go before he'll be a primary target, with some marks dropped and mistakes. OK in the ruck as well.
29: Useful game from Tommy Lynch without standing out (except for his hair). Obviously a couple of years from being a regular senior player, but showed plenty of signs.
30: Mistakes aplenty for Peake and I'm still not at all convinced by him. At this rate won't be in the round one side.
32: McQualter didn't get heaps of it but played his role, will be extra important as a small forward this year if Schneider goes to midfield.
33: Solid across half back, Gwilty, and looks much more composed back there - I reckon he could develop into a good player there with a little persistence.
38: Will Johnson actually showed some pretty good signs, looks a good size and speed, and went hard when he was on - but he's still a long way from a spot.
41: Didn't see very much Cahill at all, but he'll be happy to get the jumper on and get the first one out of his system.
44: Classic Stevie Milne game, better than last week for mine. Made things happen when they needed to and took his opportunities. There's no way he'll be out of the side this year.
45: Another quiet one from Miles, I'm less and less convinced that he's the answer as a small defender, but in fairness I have no idea who he was playing on.
49: Gaertner had a fair bit of the ball actually, and his disposal was more or less OK. Seemed to have no opponent for a lot of the night. Looks an interesting project but impossible to tell at this point where he'll actually end up.

[Beno88]

Good review.

Just on King, I think he's harshly judged. His ruckwork in the middle is second to none. He gets clean hands on the ball about 80% of the time and usually hits a target with the tap. Seven shots on goal on Saturday night came directly from his ruckwork.

First clean hands on the footy in the middle is so valuable these days, and King ensures we're never worse than 50-50 in this area when he's on.

He could do more around the ground, but I'd rather him have 15 effective hit outs than 15 possessions.

[Moods]

I agree Beno. Never been a huge Kingy fan and wished he'd take a few grabs around the ground. However watching him closely you see what a superb tap ruckman he actually is. A couple of tap outs not only resulted in clean take away possession for us, but goals as well. He's not just going to roll over and hand big Ben his spot - which I'm happy about.

Apart from that good summary Bergholt.

[bergholt]

I agree Beno. Never been a huge Kingy fan and wished he'd take a few grabs around the ground. However watching him closely you see what a superb tap ruckman he actually is. A couple of tap outs not only resulted in clean take away possession for us, but goals as well. He's not just going to roll over and hand big Ben his spot - which I'm happy about.

i guess you guys are seeing something i'm not, then. my feeling is that once in a while there's a ruck contest with a clean takeaway, and that comes maybe half from the ruckman, so there's only a small percentage of contests different. but the around the ground stuff more than makes up for it, so the ruck contests just don't matter.

i'd have mcevoy ahead of king, but i'm not unhappy when king's in the side.

[Moods]

Don't get me wrong Bergholt - I'm happy when McEvoy plays as well. I'm just glad that Kingy is going to make him earn his spot.

[PJ]

so the ruck contests just don't matter

You wouldn't be Grant Thomas would you?

[bergholt]

so the ruck contests just don't matter

You wouldn't be Grant Thomas would you?

heh. definitely sounds like it, doesn't it? i reckon there's as many opinions on the role of the ruckman as there are supporters, partly because it depends heaps on game style. i reckon our style is tough enough that we're a bit insulated to it.

but tonight we'll get some more data. hudson's better than king, and minson's better than mcevoy (at this stage) so they have a pretty solid ruck advantage. if we lose then i might have to change my tune.