Luke Ball

[MC Gusto]

if the coach continually played robert eddy ahead of you and you were of the calibre of luke ball would you continue to play at the club or would you look for other options?

just sayin

[kosifantutti]

if the coach continually played robert eddy ahead of you and you were of the calibre of luke ball would you continue to play at the club or would you look for other options?

just sayin

Bail played 20 games in 2009, Eddy played 10.

just saying.

[oldie60]

Stick a fork in him, he's done !

[gringo]

Yeah na. Like bringing in Hitler to the ethics committee. We would rather have Lenny around the place not Benedict Arnold. No hard feelings but he can get %$$#@ed and stay at the Pies .

[70s sainter]

Not welcome back in my book.

May be harsh but he had a3 year deal on table and walked to scum and wins a flag against us.

Should have worked hard to regain respect of coach and earn spot back in team.

Agree 100%

[Megamaguire]

Agree with Junction's reminder to keep focusing on the future.
I think our club is still in a situation where every pick has to be a genuine attempt to bring on board a 'young' up and coming player that could conceivably play 200 games. We have done it before with Sam Fischer as a very late pick.
Future focus will be how the Pelican and friends will be approaching itI believe.


G O S A I N T S!

[Enrico_Misso]

Ball not welcome at StKilda.
Never will.
That was of his choosing.

[Sainternist]

Yeah great. Let's have Ball back. He can show us all his premiership medal. And whilst he's at it, he can bring along a few pillars of salt. Not only that he can grace the field with his speed and show the young lads how to kick cover off the ball with a 25 meter drop punt.

[SainterK]

I like Luke, just never comprehended his training in the pies high altitude rooms while still on our list preparing for Arizona

[Goose is king]

No chance underpants on Luke Ball
I wouldn't mind Tom Lynch back.
And of course Goose (still king)

[spert]

I reckon Ball was one of those players who don't do well under certain coaches, but OK with others, and obviously never took to Lyon and wanted out, and Collingwood got a sniff and off he went.

[SainterK]

No chance underpants on Luke Ball
I wouldn't mind Tom Lynch back.
And of course Goose (still king)

Like his mark?

[samuraisaint]

What we really need to do moving forward is recruit two teenage key forwards with the first two picks we get. Now that Lenny is hanging up the boots we must retain Roo and Monty for at least next season - and you could add Dempster to that list.
I think Schneider and Fisher may retire or be retired if they receive another injury in the final six rounds, so this will mean that Gilbert must be retained too. Not sure about Gwilt.

Ray and Jones have to be on shakey ground. One, if not both, will be gone at the end of the year I should think.

With this loss of experience expect another bottom finish in 2015. The number 1 six foot two gun outside midfielder in the country would be what we require then.

Forget recruiting old men - it's not 1987 anymore.

[samuraisaint]

Ball not welcome at StKilda.
Never will.
That was of his choosing.

What about Lockett? Was he welcome? What about Frawley? He copped criticism when he talked about us when he was the Richmond coach but he still came back to the club and gave an inspirational speech before Loewe's 300th game.

[skeptic]

Ball not welcome at StKilda.
Never will.
That was of his choosing.

Gotta go with plugs on this one (the stars have aligned)

He was very clearly pushed out of the Saints

The best thing he could have done for his career was leave, he saw a good offer from a club/coach that valued his worth and took it and it was the right call.

I don't like it... I don't want him back now... But i don't blame him for leaving

[lewdogs]

IIRC Ball wasn't happy with the contract he was offered. Felt it was disrespectful considering his achievements. I don't blame him to be honest.

Got offered a lot more by the Pies and proved to be a bloody good player there.

Lyon didn't rate him for some odd reason.

[Moods]

IIRC Ball wasn't happy with the contract he was offered. Felt it was disrespectful considering his achievements. I don't blame him to be honest.

Got offered a lot more by the Pies and proved to be a bloody good player there.

Lyon didn't rate him for some odd reason.

Was it the fact that he had no impact in 07/09? 08 was much better year for him I think.

Let's be honest, since ripping his groin or getting OP in the opening round against the eagles in 06 he was never the same player. His 04/05 years compared to the rest of his career were incomparable. A bit like Judd after 06. Lyon wanted players who could spread from the contest. Ball simply couldn't. I was annoyed as most when he left us at the end of 09 ensuring we had FA compensation. But over time my stance has softened. They're all just guys trying to get the best they can out of their careers. Ball, probably for good reason, could no longer see a future and a career at the saints. He probably thought he would be on the scrap heap by the end of 2011 and wanted to go to a club that really wanted him. I can see that now and I too thought his days were numbered. He managed to play until he was 30 which is a good effort and I expect him to retire this year. Those who blame Lyon for not playing him in 09 do so through rose coloured glasses I reckon. Yeah he got a few possessions that day, but he never really hurt the opposition. He never set much up. He just scrapped away and was serviceable. In hindsight maybe he should have got a run in the last 1/4 some time, but I NEVER thought at the time that not having Ball on the ground in the last 1/4 cost us the game. The fact that Bally was able to rejuvenate his career at the pies says wonders about him. I thought the first few games he played for the pies would be typical of his time there. I recall him kicking the ball about 30 metres straight to the opposition a few times in a game against Melbourne and thinking to myself, 'this is why we let you leave.' It wasn't though. Suddenly he was covering the ground again and he looked like he was running on top of the ground rather than through it. He never regained his kicking though. Not fully. His speed to run down tackles also deserted him. Ppl forget that he was a state sprinter apparently as a teenager, and we recruited him on that basis - that he was quick. He will ALWAYS be remembered as being slow, but his first few years he wasn't.

The irony of the O.P. is why would Ball want to come back and play a year or 2 with us. He's achieved a flag with another club. Why do we assume that he still loves us more than the pies? Ball is a highly educated young man, he's not one of these blokes who has to keep playing until he drops. He can go do whatever he wants after his retirement. Playing in a team that would be lucky to win a game next year, whilst he struggles around the ground himself, playing in front of 15-20k ppl would hardly be high on his to do list I would imagine. I also highly doubt that he believes that he owes the saints anything.

[ralphsmith]

Not welcome back in my book.

May be harsh but he had a3 year deal on table and walked to scum and wins a flag against us.

Should have worked hard to regain respect of coach and earn spot back in team.

This time inifinity.

In terms of being a filthy traitor, nothing defines that more than going to collingwood and beating us in a grand final.

Luke Ball represents the opposite of everything a true stkilda person like Nick Riewoldt represents.

No goddamn way would i let him 10 km near our club again.

[thejiggingsaint]

I was disappointed to see Luke Ball leave us, and bitterly disappointed both in the manner of his departure, and his "club of choice" but I could never bring myself to boo him, or in fact to waste energy on hating him. He is now clearly identified as a " Collingwood person" and as such rates nowhere on my horizon at the minute.

[whiskers3614]

Not welcome back in my book.

May be harsh but he had a3 year deal on table and walked to scum and wins a flag against us.

Should have worked hard to regain respect of coach and earn spot back in team.

This time inifinity.

In terms of being a filthy traitor, nothing defines that more than going to collingwood and beating us in a grand final.

Luke Ball represents the opposite of everything a true stkilda person like Nick Riewoldt represents.

No goddamn way would i let him 10 km near our club again.

Crap coach couldn't get the best out of him, and couldn't handle blokes of higher intelligence.
Luke Ball will leave a much bigger legacy in the AFL than GF choker Lyon!

[SydneySainter]

Even if the offer was on the table, whose to say Ball would want to come back anyway?

[plugger66]

Not welcome back in my book.

May be harsh but he had a3 year deal on table and walked to scum and wins a flag against us.

Should have worked hard to regain respect of coach and earn spot back in team.

This time inifinity.

In terms of being a filthy traitor, nothing defines that more than going to collingwood and beating us in a grand final.

Luke Ball represents the opposite of everything a true stkilda person like Nick Riewoldt represents.

No goddamn way would i let him 10 km near our club again.

Crap coach couldn't get the best out of him, and couldn't handle blokes of higher intelligence.
Luke Ball will leave a much bigger legacy in the AFL than GF choker Lyon!

Excellent credibility.

[Scollop]

Crap coach couldn't get the best out of him, and couldn't handle blokes of higher intelligence.
Luke Ball will leave a much bigger legacy in the AFL than GF choker Lyon!

Excellent summation

Evidence regarding the first part of your observation was definitely how Bally played in 2010 under Micky Sh1thouse. Luke also backed up with a couple of outstanding years post 2010 under FigJam.

Not sure about their IQ's and not sure about any legacy either - both certainly have given it their all. I think if Lyon doesn't win a flag maybe his leagacy will be a valuable lesson that others don't want to repeat.

[SaintPav]

Maybe Ross and Con Gorozidis have something in common about their belief on private schools and self entitlement. Well that's what I heard anyway.

[plugger66]

Crap coach couldn't get the best out of him, and couldn't handle blokes of higher intelligence.
Luke Ball will leave a much bigger legacy in the AFL than GF choker Lyon!

Excellent summation

Evidence regarding the first part of your observation was definitely how Bally played in 2010 under Micky Sh1thouse. Luke also backed up with a couple of outstanding years post 2010 under FigJam.

Not sure about their IQ's and not sure about any legacy either - both certainly have given it their all. I think if Lyon doesn't win a flag maybe his leagacy will be a valuable lesson that others don't want to repeat.

Wow. I think we can see all the IQ in a couple of posts.