Michael Gardiner ..... terrific game

yipper · Post: # 539897Post **yipper** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 10:08am

The thing I like about Gardner is he knows where and when to run. He has steadily improved with each game - and the Carlton game was the best one yet. He is a thumping kick, strong mark and has a big leap. He uses the body well. But that ability to run to the right spots is still there - he knows how to play the game, Gardi. I also like how he instructs the mid-field group at each ball up, he seems eager to get better and better. He is combining well with King and looks set to have a huge impact for us.

rodgerfox · Post: # 539901Post **rodgerfox** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 10:11am

milney044 wrote:Wait a minute so we have one ruckman kicking 2 goals, the other some speculate was best on ground? but these guys are RUCKMEN..they're meant to have no impact..HAH say goodbye to THAT!

Huh??

nicko016 · Post: # 539941Post **nicko016** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 10:49am

With Gardy getting better and better and his fitness improving he is going to be able to play more minutes per game. He played 61% on Saturday which is probably slightly more than he has been playing and he'll soon be able to play 75%. However, this meant King only played 48% of which he is capable of playing much more. They are both two good to be only playing around 50% once fit and firing. So to get maximum out of them one or both have them well need to be able to play some other role. THe obvious solution would be for probably Gardiner or King to go forward but our forward line is still finding its feet with three talls, let alone four.

It will be interesting to see what unfolds. However, this is a good problem to have and much better than having no ruckmen at all.

gO.SainTs · Post: # 539979Post **gO.SainTs** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 11:54am

If I can remember coming home from the game, I'm pretty sure that on the radio it said that Gardiner/King had 38 hit-outs combined, while the 2 Carlton ruckman only had 16..

yipper · Post: # 540056Post **yipper** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 2:12pm

All up combined:

22 dispoals, 11 marks, 41 hit-outs, and 2 goals.

Good figures - shows their not just running up and down on the spot!!

Armoooo · Post: # 540089Post **Armoooo** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 3:10pm

yipper wrote:All up combined:

22 dispoals, 11 marks, 41 hit-outs, and 2 goals.

Good figures - shows their not just running up and down on the spot!!

Just to show how they did relatively...
Cloke and Hampson had combined
25 disposals, 13 marks, 2 tackles, 16 hitouts and 1 goal.

SB10 · Post: # 540092Post **SB10** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 3:13pm

Honestly believe King and Gardner are the keys to us going deep into September. With about 4-5 games under their belt each (incl pre season) just watch their improvement in the coming weeks.

Went to a training session pre season last year (prior to 2007 season) and I've never seen a bloke of Gardi's size run as fast and for as long as he did that day. Was shattered when he broke down and failed to play a game.

Some of his tap work on Sat night was brilliant. You can see the mids are still working out his style but once it clicks watch out.

If we can win the centre breaks on Friday, good night Doggies. Noticed Lenny had a lazy 10 clearances against Blues. (He must be as happy as a pig in sh%$ having a couple of ruckman who know what they're doing)

Hate looking too far ahead but can't wait for a crack at the Cats in Round 4. (especially King v Blake)

Armoooo · Post: # 540102Post **Armoooo** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 3:27pm

That is a good point with Lenny's 10 clearences...
While thinking of which saints players have a chance at the brownlow this year I kept thinking Dal and Monty because they are brilliant outside mids, I didn't even think about how much better our inside mids would be with two good ruckmen, after all inside mids are the only ones directly effected by ruck work...

Lenny '08 perhaps??

st_Trav_ofWA · Mon 31 Mar 2008 3:41pm

a ruckmans dominance is only as good as his midfeilders around him look at Sandilands this weekend he won every single tap but freo were simply to slow/dumb/usless to get to it firstso he inturn was a non dominant dominant ruckman

Eastern · Post: # 540131Post **Eastern** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 4:19pm

yipper wrote:The thing I like about Gardner is he knows where and when to run. He has steadily improved with each game - and the Carlton game was the best one yet. He is a thumping kick, strong mark and has a big leap. He uses the body well. But that ability to run to the right spots is still there - he knows how to play the game, Gardi. I also like how he instructs the mid-field group at each ball up, he seems eager to get better and better. He is combining well with King and looks set to have a huge impact for us.

The arguements re who/how many of our midfield group were amongst the best last week suggest that a lot of people agree with you. Mark me down as one !!

stinger · Post: # 540150Post **stinger** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 4:51pm

SaintBot wrote:id like to know the last time we finished with 40+ hitouts

i can tell you the names of the two ruckman............brian mynott and carl ditterich....not sure the last year they played together.....

st.byron · Post: # 540160Post **st.byron** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 5:09pm

I've bagged the shyte out of Gardiner on here and I'm happy to have egg on my face. Am very very happy to see him and King running around in St.Kilda jumpers. Apart from the impact on clearances I'm so pleased to have their physical presence around the ground and in close. It must be a real boost to our mids to have a big influential unit around each stoppage.
Am still holding my breath slightly and have my fingers firmly crossed re injury, esp. to Gardi, but have to say am mighty impressed with the way he's being managed back to match fitness.
The signs are good aren't they? And as other posters have said, give them a few more matches to work with our mids and develop match hardening and King and Gardi could be really huge plusses for us.

mad saint guy · Mon 31 Mar 2008 5:24pm

SaintBot wrote:id like to know the last time we finished with 40+ hitouts

It would have been in the 2004 fnals series when Knobel was getting 40+ hitouts every game. It's a shame he didn't get a possession in his last 3-4 games with us. We all hate him here, but he wasn't too bad a tap ruckman.

ark · Post: # 540183Post **ark** » Mon 31 Mar 2008 6:07pm

yeah he was great last nite.

just wondering why we didnt have a ruckman at two boundary throw ins tho....thats unacceptable really

While agreeing the ruck combo was great I did notice this - on two (?or more) occasions. Were they interchanging or just not there? I'm sure it will have been noted, though.

supersaints · Mon 31 Mar 2008 10:12pm

getting better and better, certainly looking the goods.....

mad saint guy · Mon 31 Mar 2008 10:16pm

ark wrote:While agreeing the ruck combo was great I did notice this - on two (?or more) occasions. Were they interchanging or just not there? I'm sure it will have been noted, though.

I'm pretty sure Gardiner was the ruckman both times and he just didn't get to the contest.

Although one time it was pretty deep in the forward line and I would've thought Kosi, Gehrig or Roo would take it.

Saints94 · Post: # 540395Post **Saints94** » Tue 01 Apr 2008 9:18am

yeah well done Gards well respected around the club cheers

aussiejones · Tue 01 Apr 2008 9:51am

"At the moment we are just feeling our way through and to win playing at 70% efficiency is a good sign "

saints are playing like a car on 3 cylinders ....

Just watch out when it all clicks .....we are just seeing glimpses. ATM

Sydney Game .. sh#t style
Carlscum Gamw ... Good training run against bottom side.

can we get it all together against a Geelong ????