Welcome to the Western Bulldogs - Aaron Naughton

[Bullies]

Actually:

Curnow 78.41 from 127 shots on goal @ 61.4% (plus 18 goal assists)

Naughton 44.33 from 88 shots on goal @ 50% (plus 22 goal assists)

Curnow has improved his accuracy this year (54.7% last year) whilst Naughton was slightly down (52.6% last year). Naughts maybe just below the mark for key forwards but not as bad as people make out.

I don't think Naughton should be judged solely on goals kicked. I don't think he needs to kick +70 either. 50-60 as part of a well functioning forward line will be fine if he's doing the other things he's so good at.

Would like to see Naughton get looked after in the same way Curnow does by the umps.

[Bullies]

Agreed. The number of times the ball was kicked on top of his head when he had space in front of him was frustrating. We've never had a key forward who works as hard as Astro does when he doesn't have the ball. Lots of repeat leads and efforts. Goal kicking an issue. Still only 23.

In an interview they asked Naughton where he prefers to play and he said without doubt up forward. He said he was an ex backman.

[Rocco Jones]

Maybe Naughton is a pretty limited player who hit his ceiling early. Not too bad a player if we have just about seen his peak but it goes for like 8-10 more years.

His foot skills are poor and he doesn't seem to have a great footy brain. Plenty of assets though.

[bornadog]

Maybe Naughton is a pretty limited player who hit his ceiling early. Not too bad a player if we have just about seen his peak but it goes for like 8-10 more years.

His foot skills are poor and he doesn't seem to have a great footy brain. Plenty of assets though.

Can't agree he has hit his ceiling. 88 scoring shots and 22 Goal assists tells me there is alot there. What the stats don't show is his second efforts, plus he is ranked 11th in AFL for tackles inside 50. The ten guys above him are all less than 190cm.

[jeemak]

Here's a comparison of the two at the same age:

https://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/...&fid1=O&fid2=O

Disposal efficiency is the big one that stands out to me.

Naughton's had more continuity than Curnow, though has had to learn to be a forward which probably balances things. Anyway, Naughton is tracking quite well and while I don't think he's going to reach Curnow's heights in our current set up, and also because he's not as skilled by foot, he's still got plenty of improvement in him.

People are harsh/ have high expectations, he's only 24 (or soon to be). His best footy is 2-3 years ahead of him and as is the case with most forwards, the big contracts are usually speculative.

[josie]

His pressure and ground level abilities are terrific for a tall. I love watching him play, even with his occasional dodgy goal kicking. Would be very sad to see him in other colours. Area for improvement, apart from goal kicking, is to play well or break even against the best key backs. I reckon he’ll continue to improve.

[Topdog]

Maybe our mids can look before they kick it into the F50, would probably lead to better entries

[EasternWest]

Maybe our mids can look before they kick it into the F50, would probably lead to better entries

Garbage post. We've been bombing it in in hope for over twenty years without any meaningful improvement in the area.

Why would we want to change that?

We've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas.

[Mofra]

Curnow kicked 78.41 66% conversion

Naughton kicked 44.33 57% conversion

I'd like to see that filtered for difficulty as some of Curnow's goals were low-percentage shots that many other forwards would miss

[HOSE B ROMERO]

He must have a strong pain threshold for the number of knocks he gets and rarely misses games. Has been in the leadership group for 2-3 years which shouldn't be undervalued come negotiation time. He may never have the accuracy of Curnow but then again I may never have the looks of George Clooney.

[Twodogs]

Did Naughton kick at least 1 goal in each game this year?

[dalek]

Did Naughton kick at least 1 goal in each game this year?

I believe he did.

[angelopetraglia]

I believe he did.

In every game except Hawthorn game in Tasmania and he had his chances but some errant kicking cost him a goal and probably us the game in the end.

[Bumper Bulldogs]

I’m thinking we need Naughton more than he needs us. He is a huge body that dominates the the F50. JUH, Weightman and Co are all better because is on the park. We can’t and shouldn’t lose him. Pay him what he is worth on a 2 or 3 year term. Get him a kicking coach and leave him at FF. We need stability and the right culture down at the club. Losing any of our top end talent will be the end on any chance we have of climbing the mountain during our remaining Bont years.

Let’s keep the spine and trust Power to go get a replacement for a tired MaCrae or a fast winger to replace Pouter. Both must want to tackle and have speed.

[bornadog]

I’m thinking we need Naughton more than he needs us. He is a huge body that dominates the the F50. JUH, Weightman and Co are all better because is on the park. We can’t and shouldn’t lose him. Pay him what he is worth on a 2 or 3 year term. Get him a kicking coach and leave him at FF. We need stability and the right culture down at the club. Losing any of our top end talent will be the end on any chance we have of climbing the mountain during our remaining Bont years.

Let’s keep the spine and trust Power to go get a replacement for a tired MaCrae or a fast winger to replace Pouter. Both must want to tackle and have speed.

Whilst I agree with most of your post, can you explain what happens to Poulter