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Spinner wrote:Blake is untouchable according to St Kilda supporters.....along with the other 21 players that play each week we win.
They are all stars, no one should ever get dropped.
Players should be dropped if their form is poor and there is better options for them in the seconds. No point in dropping Blake for McEvoy. They need to be replaced by similar players. Also there is ahuge difference between grades of footy. Raph didnt exactly set the worls alight this week so playing well in the seconds doesnt guarentee you will be better than the player you replace.
No one is saying that they are all stars. Some people just don't rate the 'non stars' as they don't do the obvious things that the superficial observers see. Some don't see the blocks, shepherds, tap ons, spoils that Blake, Gwilt, etc do because they're blinded by the flashy play of others.
I've posted about a great team needing role players before & Blake is the quintessential role player. As Joffaboy said, he is a key utility that has become a very reliable and solid part of a quality team. Gwilt makes some blues but so do the stars that are beyond criticism on this forum. On Sunday the amount of times some tosser whined about Gwilt or Raph was ridiculous. Another player makes the exact same mistake & it's silence.
I've been a very harsh critic of Blake, Gwilt & Raph in the past (& numerous others) but you have to give credit to blokes who have not had it come easy or natural to them & are now important parts of the team.
Spinner wrote:Blake is untouchable according to St Kilda supporters.....along with the other 21 players that play each week we win.
They are all stars, no one should ever get dropped.
Players should be dropped if their form is poor and there is better options for them in the seconds. No point in dropping Blake for McEvoy. They need to be replaced by similar players. Also there is ahuge difference between grades of footy. Raph didnt exactly set the worls alight this week so playing well in the seconds doesnt guarentee you will be better than the player you replace.
No one is saying that they are all stars. Some people just don't rate the 'non stars' as they don't do the obvious things that the superficial observers see. Some don't see the blocks, shepherds, tap ons, spoils that Blake, Gwilt, etc do because they're blinded by the flashy play of others.
I've posted about a great team needing role players before & Blake is the quintessential role player. As Joffaboy said, he is a key utility that has become a very reliable and solid part of a quality team. Gwilt makes some blues but so do the stars that are beyond criticism on this forum. On Sunday the amount of times some tosser whined about Gwilt or Raph was ridiculous. Another player makes the exact same mistake & it's silence.
I've been a very harsh critic of Blake, Gwilt & Raph in the past (& numerous others) but you have to give credit to blokes who have not had it come easy or natural to them & are now important parts of the team.
I suppose that's where we all see things differently. You see Blake, Raph and Gwilt as a very reliable and solid part of a quality team and I see them as bottom 4 players just holding their position because we don't have anyone better.
As far as the criticism thing it's always going to be easier to criticise a player that gets 10 possessions making a couple of good spoils and taps but does some poor skill error turn overs that result in goals.
As opposed to a highly skilled player dominating with 25 damaging possessions and spraying another 2 or 3.
As far as I'm concerned It's all good to pump these battlers up when we're playing teams we are good enough to beat and no harm is done but in the end the standard of our bottom 4 is where the difference will be in the most important game.
I have all the confidence in the world in the ability of the top 17 players when the bar is raised and we have to play at a super level against Geelong, but the concern Is whether these guys are going to be up to it.
We know how strong Geelong are to the full 22 so I'm glad you think so highly of them cause these guys IMO are going to make or brake us when it really counts.
Blake is certainly under pressure for his spot right now. However I'd hate to see how many players this forum will condemn when the side actually loses a game! How many goals does Reiwoldt have to miss in a game for him to be pushed out of the side based on one ordinary performance?
Blake has not been in career best form but we dont have another player that is as versatile as Blake. He can help out in the ruck , he can play a key position , he can be a tagger , he can do the run with because he has a huge engine , courageous & will give you all hes got for 4 quarters. Granted he is an unreliable kick & at times his decision making is poor but at his price tag he is worth his weight in gold imo.
Spinner wrote:Blake is untouchable according to St Kilda supporters.....along with the other 21 players that play each week we win.
They are all stars, no one should ever get dropped.
Players should be dropped if their form is poor and there is better options for them in the seconds. No point in dropping Blake for McEvoy. They need to be replaced by similar players. Also there is ahuge difference between grades of footy. Raph didnt exactly set the worls alight this week so playing well in the seconds doesnt guarentee you will be better than the player you replace.
No one is saying that they are all stars. Some people just don't rate the 'non stars' as they don't do the obvious things that the superficial observers see. Some don't see the blocks, shepherds, tap ons, spoils that Blake, Gwilt, etc do because they're blinded by the flashy play of others.
I've posted about a great team needing role players before & Blake is the quintessential role player. As Joffaboy said, he is a key utility that has become a very reliable and solid part of a quality team. Gwilt makes some blues but so do the stars that are beyond criticism on this forum. On Sunday the amount of times some tosser whined about Gwilt or Raph was ridiculous. Another player makes the exact same mistake & it's silence.
I've been a very harsh critic of Blake, Gwilt & Raph in the past (& numerous others) but you have to give credit to blokes who have not had it come easy or natural to them & are now important parts of the team.
I suppose that's where we all see things differently. You see Blake, Raph and Gwilt as a very reliable and solid part of a quality team and I see them as bottom 4 players just holding their position because we don't have anyone better.
As far as the criticism thing it's always going to be easier to criticise a player that gets 10 possessions making a couple of good spoils and taps but does some poor skill error turn overs that result in goals.
As opposed to a highly skilled player dominating with 25 damaging possessions and spraying another 2 or 3.
As far as I'm concerned It's all good to pump these battlers up when we're playing teams we are good enough to beat and no harm is done but in the end the standard of our bottom 4 is where the difference will be in the most important game.
I have all the confidence in the world in the ability of the top 17 players when the bar is raised and we have to play at a super level against Geelong, but the concern Is whether these guys are going to be up to it.
We know how strong Geelong are to the full 22 so I'm glad you think so highly of them cause these guys IMO are going to make or brake us when it really counts.
I agree Winmar 7. It's all about deciding who our worst players are and replacing them when they have been overtaken by our less worst players. They have to be LIKE players though ie a ruckman replaces a ruckman, a midfielder replaces a midfielder etc etc. Blake has the ability to fit into a number of different positions (ie utility) so he is far more valuable than players such as Gwilt. Bring in Max & Maguire & I think we'll be pretty close to Geelong in the talent stakes.
I once spent a year in Adelaide, I think it was on a Sunday.
