Where does Geary fit into the puzzle?

[skeptic]

He's a bit of a conundrum is our boy Jarryn...

The club seems to rate him... He's in the starting 22, in the leadership group and reportedly in contention for the captaincy having acted in the role on a few occasions throughout the last season.

On this forum he's a bit of a polarising figure... Some rate him highly, some feel like he's barely in the starting 22, some think that his disposal is too much of a liability to have him in the team and that talk of him as captain reflects how weak a team we are.

He is tough, he's hard working, reasonably paced...
Clearly he's a leader, his preparation off field is second to none and has been almost since he arrived

He's generally more of a stopping player though he can get his hands on the ball, he's generally not very damaging with it. His disposal seems to range from competent to liability.

Lets look at our back 6

It's a combination of Delaney, Fisher, Lee, & Goddard, for the tall posts with Carlisle regrettably in the back ground...
Then you have Dempster, Roberton, Newton, Gilbert, Geary, Webster, Wright... And potentially a few recruits coming through

Now not all of those players will be on the list for long... Some will retire, some just plain aren't going to make it

Where does Geary fit though?

Love to hear ppl's thoughts

[Gershwin]

Good post.
Geary ticks many boxes. Great clubman, leader, respected, fit, hard, strong, resolute, hard-nosed etc. But clearly he lacks a touch of class and his disposal is average at best.

Ideally I would prefer a small defender who is more damaging with the ball. I would like to think that players such as Wright, Rice, McKenzie and even O'Kearney could be earmarked for that position.

However in saying that I think that the club values him highly (5th in B&F) and he will be in the 22 for the forseeable future.

[ripplug66]

Geary plays because he is a small defender who runs and locks down. Very important. The only other plyer we have close to him is Wright. Geary kicks like Mark Bayes compered to Wright. I'm sure he will eventually be replaced but that's a few years away as we don't seem to have recruited his replacement yet. Lets see what Rice is like.

[quidnunc]

I think he is a very good HBF with great run and poor disposal. I think his position would be better filled by Savage.

[saynta]

http://www.saints.com.au/news/2016-02-0 ... -defenders


"St Kilda has stockpiled medium-sized defenders in recent years, acquiring a handful of rebounding types who have a tendency to break the game open coming out of the back half of the ground.

Shane Savage, Dylan Roberton and Jimmy Webster all played a large chunk of 2015 as the Saints’ back six continued its evolution under Alan Richardson.

While the return of Sam Gilbert in the second half of the season not only provided another key asset in defence, but also added some more experience to a seasoned collection of key defenders down back.

The ultra-reliable Jarryn Geary has become a vital cog of Alan Richardson's side in recent years, and the recently re-signed defender is coming off one of the best seasons of his career having finished fifth in the Trevor Barker Award.

Former Hawk Savage produced a career-best season last year, becoming a damaging weapon running off half-back, with his run-and-carry ability cutting opposition sides apart.

After a frustrating 2014, Roberton bounced back in style last year to construct the most consistent season of his short career. The 23-year-old played all but two games in 2015, finishing sixth in the Trevor Barker Award to firmly establish himself as a key component in St Kilda’s defensive setup.

In a similar vein to both Savage and Roberton, versatile defender Webster also made his mark last season to suggest he is a long-term option inside the Saints’ defensive 50. Across 17 games, the Tasmanian handled a variety of roles with aplomb, playing as a lockdown defender at times, as well as being let off the leash to generate drive at other times.

Cameron Shenton started 2015 inside Richardson’s defensive set-up, where he remained for the bulk of the first half of the season, before losing his spot in the second half of the year.

The Saints blooded 2014 second-round draftee Daniel McKenzie last year, with the athletic defender playing seven games in his debut season to show glimpses of his potential.

Brodie Murdoch and Nathan Wright were both used sparingly last season with the pair spending a large portion of the year at Sandringham in the VFL.

In last year’s National Draft, the Saints acquired two medium-sized defenders in Brandon White (pick No. 40) and father-son selection Bailey Rice (pick No. 49), with the latter nominating St Kilda over Carlton as his preferred destination after being eligible

[Bluthy]

• It's easy to focus on the negatives with Gears but I can identify the positives:
• Geary won the 3k time trial so he's got elite endurance now and that lets him track his man up the field but then get back to provide cover defence with second or third man up. You often see him sprinting back at full pace to help out defence and I think Richo loves that extra cover. He's got long enough arms to be a pretty good spoiler and is fearless in backing into packs.
• With Carlisle missing and Goddard not having played many games and will be up and down (could even have 2nd year blues), we need that experience and extra cover. Fish and Dempster are going to have their hands full. Geary can be that guy directing traffic especially for Goddard and maybe Lee screaming at them where to be and driving them hard.
• He's in that age-experience bracket that we have few of once the oldies go. With Armo and Steven, we want those experienced, big tank players when we first challenge for a flag.
• All our other smaller backs are very inexperienced and need more development time before deciding on who becomes a lock in the firsts
• He provides a bit of niggle and toughness
• There has been a lot of talk of him being a possible captain so obviously he is a leader and respected by the players. Watching the camp vids he seems to have a good sense of humour playing pranks and that is valuable to lighten things up in what can be monotonous days at the club doing the same things over and over
• Can do an effective blanketing role on key small forward or a midfielder with his endurance
• We don't really know exactly what the backline tactics are, only those in the inner sanctum do. Geary may play a role that is vital to that but not necessarily obvious to us
• It could be a lack of tall backs, but the fact that Geary doesn't do a lot of streaming out of defence with the footy the way he used to, maybe indicates that the club thinks his average disposal means he can't do that role anymore and he's more valuable doing a blanketing role on a small defender and providing extra cover down back. That frees up the likes of Savage to be that rebounding player. Likewise guys like Rice, Mckenzie and White will be free to be quite aggressive from the back.

I have to be honest and if Geary has the ball in his hand in a Grand final, I will be very, very, very nervous. But I don't doubt that Richo picks players on merit. If the time comes that Richo thinks the team is strengthened by leaving Geary out and another player in, I don't doubt he would do it. So if Geary is there on Grand Final day you have to say that Richo genuinely believes he's a vital part of the team particularly our defence.

[dragit]

Just needs to flatten out his kicking.

[Con Gorozidis]

I think we still need Geary for the next few years.
If someone needs to jump in front of an oncoming pack - it is probably going to be Geary.
Even if we end up settling on Carlisle-Goddard-Roberton-Webster as our four core defenders that still leaves two spots up for grabs.
Is Newnes a defender or a wingman? What about Savage?
From all reports Rice and White are quite a way off being regular AFL players.
The real mystery for me in the next few years is Savage.

[BigMart]

Clearly best 22, probably best 10.

Underrated by many (except the coaches and team mates, who actually know his worth)

He is an effective small defender, and has performed that role consistently for years. Possibly the second best leader at the club too...

[Griggsy]

He turns 28 this year, this is as good as he will ever be, good enough to be in the 22 this year and probably next. But if he is there after that, the rebuild isn't complete. We have an assortment of young talent and hopefully a card to play in FA, his spot should well and truly gone by then.

[joeyjohnw]

I'd be very happy to have Geary as our next captain. It's fairly common to have small, nuggety and hard working defenders become great leaders- Nick Maxwell is known to have been a great captain despite being a less great player. Kevin Sheedy, Mick Malthouse, Tom Harley- also all backmen, and lesser known players than they were leaders. If Geary is know to be a great leader and know what he's talking about I'd think it could be a great decision for the club. Who knows, he could captain us to our next premiership. One can dream

[saintsRrising]

Where does Geary fit though?

Love to hear ppl's thoughts

It depends on how good our "puzzle" is. Right now it is not very good, and so he is solidly in the 22 due to his good characteristics, some of which are "elite". His work ethic is one that the coach would love others to emulate.

However if and when we have a "puzzle" good enough to be playing off in the GF our overall team will need to be a lot lot better. That will mean that some will get squeezed out and Geary may be one of those. Gear's good charectistics may still keep him in though.

[Con Gorozidis]

Clearly best 22, probably best 10.

Underrated by many (except the coaches and team mates, who actually know his worth)

He is an effective small defender, and has performed that role consistently for years. Possibly the second best leader at the club too...

I would argue he is over-rated internally at the club. Coaches tend to fall in love with certain players. Geary is one of them. We are a bottom 5 side and have been for four years now. Let's not over indulge ourselves about some of our players qualities. I would suggest that no other AFL club would have any interest in recruiting Geary.

[mightysainters]

Hard at the ball and contest but his disposal is one of the worst in the team..
Saints need to focus on getting games into players with good kicks. The game has moved away from players who have average disposal and very very rarely will a good team have a bad user of the footy coming out of the backline (unless they're a tall).

Hopefully for Saints future by years end he is depth.. just my two cents..

[Myron Gaines]

Clearly best 22, probably best 10.

Underrated by many (except the coaches and team mates, who actually know his worth)

He is an effective small defender, and has performed that role consistently for years. Possibly the second best leader at the club too...

& this sums up where we are as a team. Geary best 10 is an indictment on where we are at as a club.

[BigMart]

Yes

We are a bottom 6 team

Do you think otherwise??

When we are a top 6 team.... Jarryn will be fighting to retain his spot

GOPs
Weller, Geary, Savage, Roberton
Still not sold on
Webster, Membrey, Ross, Acres, Hickey, Longer
Many are not even GOPs at this stage
Minch, Curren, Lee, Delaney, Shenton, Murdoch, Wright
Plenty of kids showing a bit
Lonie, Billings, Sinclair, Dunstan
Players better than GOP
Newnes, Armitage, Gilbert, Bruce
Ageing stars
Riewoldt, Montagna, Chips and Sean... Limping to the line

We are not a great team

A lot rides on
Goddard, McCartin, Gresham, Next Years to pick, Carlisle, Freeman
We need at least 5 more players to join our only current gun
J. Steven
And he has his flaws

[Myron Gaines]

Yes

We are a bottom 6 team

Do you think otherwise??

When we are a top 6 team.... Jarryn will be fighting to retain his spot

GOPs
Weller, Geary, Savage, Roberton
Still not sold on
Webster, Membrey, Ross, Acres, Hickey, Longer
Many are not even GOPs at this stage
Minch, Curren, Lee, Delaney, Shenton, Murdoch, Wright
Plenty of kids showing a bit
Lonie, Billings, Sinclair, Dunstan
Players better than GOP
Newnes, Armitage, Gilbert, Bruce
Ageing stars
Riewoldt, Montagna, Chips and Sean... Limping to the line

We are not a great team

A lot rides on
Goddard, McCartin, Gresham, Next Years to pick, Carlisle, Freeman
We need at least 5 more players to join our only current gun
J. Steven
And he has his flaws

Bottom 6 is being generous. We were bottom 5 last year & ive got no reason to believe a couple of teams below us won't overtake us especially if age finally catches up with St Nick. When was the last time we won a game without him? We should have the Bombers & Blues covered...possibly the Lions too.

Our talls look in good shape. Most are young & they take time. The glaring issue is our midfield. Steven & Armo are solid B - B+ mids...Ross I'm confident becomes a solid B grader. Possibly Dunstan. Acres has all kinds of talent but scope to flop. Aside from Billings I'm not seeing another potential A grade mid on our list. Lonie, Sinc & Gresham classy smalls, hopefully they stand up.

[BigMart]

A realist

Not the norm on SS?!

[8856brother]

He was taken as a rookie for a good reason. He has his limitations.

[lefty]

I think Geary should move into the midfield.

Guys like Newness, Webster and Wright should be playing in the back line, alongside Fisher, Dempster, Roberton, Gilbert, Lee

As far as I'm aware Geary has a massive tank, and he works hard, so he should play in the middle or on the wing imo.

[Con Gorozidis]

Geary is in our current best 22 - But I am going on record that giving him a contract through until 2018 makes me genuinely question the judgment and nous of the coaching team. I am puzzled by this decision. Makes me really wonder about the football dept and raises some ??? marks about the key decision makers. Geary is no Bob Murphy and the club is kidding itself if it thinks he is even close. Geary is not even a Chris Newman. Not even close. There is simply no need to contract him through 2018.

[Con Gorozidis]

Yes

We are a bottom 6 team

Do you think otherwise??

When we are a top 6 team.... Jarryn will be fighting to retain his spot

GOPs
Weller, Geary, Savage, Roberton
Still not sold on
Webster, Membrey, Ross, Acres, Hickey, Longer
Many are not even GOPs at this stage
Minch, Curren, Lee, Delaney, Shenton, Murdoch, Wright
Plenty of kids showing a bit
Lonie, Billings, Sinclair, Dunstan
Players better than GOP
Newnes, Armitage, Gilbert, Bruce
Ageing stars
Riewoldt, Montagna, Chips and Sean... Limping to the line

We are not a great team

A lot rides on
Goddard, McCartin, Gresham, Next Years to pick, Carlisle, Freeman
We need at least 5 more players to join our only current gun
J. Steven
And he has his flaws

Pretty much agree with all of that.

[Con Gorozidis]

I think Geary should move into the midfield.

Guys like Newness, Webster and Wright should be playing in the back line, alongside Fisher, Dempster, Roberton, Gilbert, Lee

As far as I'm aware Geary has a massive tank, and he works hard, so he should play in the middle or on the wing imo.

You have to ask - has our 'rebuild' been too timid?
The club has been talking a lot of talk about the rebuild and running a non-stop PR/Media campaign on it. But lets look at the actual facts.
We still have a backline with Fisher, Dempster, Gilbert and Geary in it. There is nothing young or 'rebuild' about this.

Meanwhile Collingwood have a backline something like:

Toovey (29) Langdon (21) Marsh (20)
Williams (22) Frost (24) Sinclair (24)

Should we be pumping a few games into McKenzie this season? Should we have Webster, Savage, Newnes, Roberton down back with Fisher and Dempster?

[matrix]

You can have all the running ability hardn3ss and leadership you want....if you cant dispose of a footy correctly, let alone under pressure then you are going to cost your side goals.

[dragit]

I think Geary should move into the midfield.

Guys like Newness, Webster and Wright should be playing in the back line, alongside Fisher, Dempster, Roberton, Gilbert, Lee

As far as I'm aware Geary has a massive tank, and he works hard, so he should play in the middle or on the wing imo.

You have to ask - has our 'rebuild' been too timid?
The club has been talking a lot of talk about the rebuild and running a non-stop PR/Media campaign on it. But lets look at the actual facts.
We still have a backline with Fisher, Dempster, Gilbert and Geary in it. There is nothing young or 'rebuild' about this.

Meanwhile Collingwood have a backline something like:

Toovey (29) Langdon (21) Marsh (20)
Williams (22) Frost (24) Sinclair (24)

Should we be pumping a few games into McKenzie this season? Should we have Webster, Savage, Newnes, Roberton down back with Fisher and Dempster?

Agree in principle, but Collingwood could easily still have Brown (27), Goldsack (28), Varcoe (27) & Reid (26) running through their backline… the big difference is that their vets are still pretty young compared to ours and could still easily play in their next finals tilt.