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Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Shane O'Bree was their worst mid.
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
No doubt about that in my mind.
And not only will Ball get better as he continues to learn more about his teammates' habits but Swan, Didak, Pendlebury will only benefit from him being in their side as last season he was the one type of player they really lacked in midfield.
Yes Ball probably stood out the least....but when u talk midfields in this day and age any number of 10 players can rotate thru there. He has his role...stood Higgins for part of the game. O'Bree wasnt our worst mid. How do u rate mids? O'Bree's extraction and in and under stuff was highly praised by the coaching staff after the game.
I'm sure RL would rate his mids on workload too not necessarily kicks and handballs.
johnpeterbudgefanclub wrote:O'Bree wasnt our worst mid. How do u rate mids? O'Bree's extraction and in and under stuff was highly praised by the coaching staff after the game.
Beej wrote:Can I see a link to the Collingwood coaching staff's high praise of O'Bree?
Funny that O'Bree was dropped this week after he was "highly praised by the coaching staff after the game".
Nothing like using a blatant lie to prove a point, eh?
Last edited by Beej on Tue 06 Apr 2010 12:27am, edited 1 time in total.
Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Now apparently some had Ball being repressed by the Lyon Ogre...but all I saw in Ball today was what I saw at the Saints the last two seasons. Now I am sure in some games he will go better...and in some worse. But he will not be the star that many of the Pie's fans were thinking.
I will have a guess and say they will not give a stuff if they continue to play as well as they did today. Why do people continue to care what Ball does or doesnt do?
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
.
Not sure I want him to perform badly..though I certiainly do not wish him to star
As to good...your definition of good may be different mine. His game today I would by my definition to be average to below average on the basis of comparing AFL players.
However from what I have seen of him so far with the Pies I see similar as what he contributed to the saints the last two seasons. On that basis he will remain part of the Pies 22 and makea sold contribution. Some days will be good...and some days not good. Mostly he will be average.
Right here and now yes he is probably still on front of Armo.
By seasons end whether he is still better than one of Armo, Steven or Geary we will have to wait and see.
Flying the World in comfort thanks to FF Points....
If there's one thing the R1 should start to make clear in the inevitable Armitage-Ball comparisons, it's that for all the similarities, they are NOT a 1:1 replacement.
It is to be considered in such a comparison that the game the Saints played on Saturday would have suited Luke Ball down to the ground. Hit the contest, tackle the opposition, and feed it out to runners.
It might also be noteworthy that the game the Pies played on Sunday may well have suited Armo better as he seems to be more intent on using the footy than Ball. In a shootout like that, Luke Ball is not in his element.
Interestingly, what probably brought Armo undone vs. Ball in the same scenario was largely experience - he kept costing himself and the Saints with clangers. Luke Ball in his game kept it simple and was effective.
There aren't many midfielders who are going to thrive in Saturday's game conditions on a regular basis. The fact that Luke Ball in one is part of why Collingwood wanted him... what we should take as a positive on Armitage is that his skillset means he ought to be okay in those kind of games.
Armitage may well never be the tank that Ball is in close. Provided he can be pretty good (which he is) in the trenches, the way he makes this come out as a positive is to be better around the ground.
"Everything comes to he who hustles while he waits"
- Henry Ford
What was clear to me yesterday was that - regardless of what they offered him relative to what we offered him - Ball is currently worth more to the Pies than he is to us.
The Pies have desperately needed an in-and-under player with Ball's courage and work ethic. Regardless of his limitations, Ball is absolutely this sort of a player and he filled the role well yesterday. I guess I was watching out for him, but I noticed his contributions quite a bit: especially in helping to snuff out dangerous attacking moves up the middle by the Dogs.
Obviously, one round isn't enough to judge how we are going to perform without Ball. But I can't say that I felt strongly that his absence was any sort of a problem on Saturday night.
So Ball's move to the Pies could be a win/win outcome for both clubs. Time will tell.
"It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into."
- Jonathan Swift
Beej wrote:Watching Ball's form in this Collingwood Melbourne game, he is absolutely no loss at all.
Just a nothing game from him.
Pretty unfair just to look at a game or two. He is a loss because he probably would be in the 22 at the moment but he certainly isnt a star these days.
Beej wrote:Watching Ball's form in this Collingwood Melbourne game, he is absolutely no loss at all.
Just a nothing game from him.
Pretty unfair just to look at a game or two. He is a loss because he probably would be in the 22 at the moment but he certainly isnt a star these days.
Judging by this game, he is no loss at all.
No need to read more into that comment.
I'm not suggesting we should write him off, just that he's been below average in this particular game.
Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Shane O'Bree was their worst mid.
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
No doubt about that in my mind.
And not only will Ball get better as he continues to learn more about his teammates' habits but Swan, Didak, Pendlebury will only benefit from him being in their side as last season he was the one type of player they really lacked in midfield.
Beej wrote:Watching Ball's form in this Collingwood Melbourne game, he is absolutely no loss at all.
Just a nothing game from him.
cant run and his kicking has imho gotten worse if thats possible
I listened to the game on ABC radio today they made comments that Ball can't kick over 45 metres & 1 made the comment that he kicked the ball 12.5 metres which was his longest for the game.
St Kilda's 2 premiership captains are Tassie born. The Doc & Roo.
Beej wrote:Watching Ball's form in this Collingwood Melbourne game, he is absolutely no loss at all.
Just a nothing game from him.
cant run and his kicking has imho gotten worse if thats possible
I listened to the game on ABC radio today they made comments that Ball can't kick over 45 metres & 1 made the comment that he kicked the ball 12.5 metres which was his longest for the game.
thats true..i was watching the game and three of his kicks went no longer than 30 metres and were all turnovers which cost them 2 goals...has no penetration whats so ever..
"Heroes are never forgotten, but legends never die"
Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Shane O'Bree was their worst mid.
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
No doubt about that in my mind.
And not only will Ball get better as he continues to learn more about his teammates' habits but Swan, Didak, Pendlebury will only benefit from him being in their side as last season he was the one type of player they really lacked in midfield.
Go easy on O'Bree he didnt even play today!
lol Maybe good ol' Beej still thinks it's Round 1.
Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Shane O'Bree was their worst mid.
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
No doubt about that in my mind.
And not only will Ball get better as he continues to learn more about his teammates' habits but Swan, Didak, Pendlebury will only benefit from him being in their side as last season he was the one type of player they really lacked in midfield.
Go easy on O'Bree he didnt even play today!
lol Maybe good ol' Beej still thinks it's Round 1.
I think you will find that it was when he posted it.
Ball did ok. Has done maybe 4-5 good things in packs but really haven't noticed him for large periods of the game.
Tackling has been first rate as usual.
I can get why Pies fans would be happy to have him with his in and under work but dare I say it, he didn't really influence the game. I wonder how C'wood fans will respond to him when the teams under the pump coz he doesn't really play well against momentum.
I'd be pretty surprised if he'd had more than 15 possessions
Would be interesting to see who his opponents were and the influence they had.
I'd call this round either a nil all draw or maybe a slight win to Ball but certainly nothing i'd be happy with if i was either player.
Ball was about the bottom ranked Pie Mid today...which is pretty much where he was at the Saints in 2009.
Shane O'Bree was their worst mid.
As much as we wanted him to perform badly, Ball was good, and it made me realise that we would still be a much better side with him in it.
No doubt about that in my mind.
And not only will Ball get better as he continues to learn more about his teammates' habits but Swan, Didak, Pendlebury will only benefit from him being in their side as last season he was the one type of player they really lacked in midfield.
Go easy on O'Bree he didnt even play today!
lol Maybe good ol' Beej still thinks it's Round 1.
I think you will find that it was when he posted it.
Yes, my apologies then to Beej as it was posted last week but geez it gave me a good laugh anyway.
Apparently Mark McLure said he would have a good hard look at Ball before selecting him against the Saints next week. 20% kicking efficiency and in McLure's words "couldn't kick over a tin of jam".
My vote: Armo. Younger, better in the forward line, goal kicker, better kicker and ... more importantly... still a Saint!
I was sitting right up the top of the dome and only really noticed armo on about 5-6 occassions... but it was one of those games where I couldn't tell all the brunettes and dark haired players apart
I was sitting right up the top of the dome and only really noticed armo on about 5-6 occassions... but it was one of those games where I couldn't tell all the brunettes and dark haired players apart
Gee i was getting armo confused with Dal....Being so high up on the wing 20 looks extremely close to 26!
