Depth in 2008

[Twodogs]

Cracker of a final kick - not sure his kicking is as bad as some suggest

It wasnt just the fact that he had the goolies to go back and slot it that impressed me, as good as it was. That day for the last half of the last quarter he had "I am NOT going to play in the losing team" written across his forehead and proceeded to pick his teammates up and deposit them over the line.



Lot's of players get that look in their eyes but not many have the determination to back it up. Reid has and that's why I love him-there I said it. I love you Sam Reid!!!

[Bulldog Revolution]

Kicking or handballing?

I would say from what I have seen he would be in the best 5 handballers at the club. He also has great vision which allows him to spot a free man from a congested area as evidenced by a few of his handballs in the game against Geelong which has already been mentioned in this thread.

His kicking is ok in that it is atleast on par with like players. (Cross & Boyd)

I'm a fan of reid but I don't think his kicking is anywhere near the standard of Boyd who is really a pretty good kick these days.

Crossy gets a fair bit of stick for his kicking, and its clearly not the strongest part of his game. However, whilst it doesn't seem unlikely that he will ever have greater depth in his kicking, he has also improved it considerably - his left foot in particular, and provided he is not in the indecisive moods that do strike him, he actually makes reasonable decisions and kicks it well to position up to that 40m mark.

Reid seems both unsure when making decisions to kick at AFL level - which I guess we'd perhaps hope he'd learn with more experiece at the level, but I'm also not convinced he has left foot either?

He's clearly got good hands, physicality, great size, athleticism, and he's v.good overhead. I'd like to see him knuckle down on the kicking - I'm not convinced he has the Boyd/Cross character to really work at it dilligently, and I've got a feeling that whilst we all see the potential, he could well become a supporter target in a few years if he doesn't address it. I'd like to see him become a regular goal kicking midfielder.

[w3design]

Have to agree with BI Die, our 'AFL ready now depth' pretty much consists of Reid, Callan, Addison and Tiller on 09 form [ hopefully that list will grow after this pre season]. Very close are perhaps Woodsy and Roughy, and potentially perhaps Stacky. Sorry all you Everitt fans out there, I am afraid I am yet to be convinced as to his much hyped potential. He is athletic [ when he wants to make an effort], his kicking skills are good if he is not under any pressure at all, and is concentrating, but very much not otherwise.
As I said earlier, I think Reid is far better with his hands than by foot, but am hopeful he will continue to work on his kicking. Still that should not limit his senior opportunities. For heavens sake Westy [ one of my all time heros] could not kick over an empty jam tin, but he was still an absolute champion. Each player has certain limitations, its just that the good players either overcome them or find strengths that can compensate for them. I am not sufficiently privy to how Reid is with his training attitude, the "dilligence" that B Rev. refered to above, but given the courage and determination he shows on the feild it is difficult to imagine he would be much different on the training track re attitude. Few players show the level of detirmination and character that Cross and Boyd display, but could the kids coming through have two better role models to emulate?

[LostDoggy]

Is anybody of the view that Reid's pace may be limiting his promotion possibilities?

[comrade]

Is anybody of the view that Reid's pace may be limiting his promotion possibilities?

His pace off the mark is actually quite good. Watching the pre-season and early home and away games at Willy last year, I was impressed with his ability to explode away from packs (I think I may have even likened it as Judd-like in one report – I’m not one for hyperbole am I?). It was only later in the year as his groin issues became apparent that he lost some pace.

Once those are resolved I think we’ll find his pace will be more than adequate at AFL level.

[Mofra]

It wasnt just the fact that he had the goolies to go back and slot it that impressed me, as good as it was. That day for the last half of the last quarter he had "I am NOT going to play in the losing team" written across his forehead and proceeded to pick his teammates up and deposit them over the line.

He actually had "Tenacity" written in big black texta on his arm for one game.

The guy looks like an upside triangle so has a bit of intimidation factor about him already - you wouldn't want to front him when he's breathing fire with "Tenacity" written on his arm.

[Dazza]

I think Roughead might get a bit of a run with Minsons injury still troubling him.

[LostDoggy]

I think Roughead might get a bit of a run with Minsons injury still troubling him.

Could be a long shot at this stage as he is coming of a shoulder reco. In the the future I have know doubt he will leave Minson behind

[Swoop]

Could be a long shot at this stage as he is coming of a shoulder reco. In the the future I have know doubt he will leave Minson behind

The timing/transition should work well with regards to Hudson stepping out and Roughead stepping in as a major contributor. Minson won't really need to worry or compete until Cordy comes on which could really be from anytime next year onwards. At this stage both Roughead & Cordy have going forward as strings to their bow moreso than Minson but we'll have to wait and see whether Roughead imparticular can have the same impact at AFL level or whether he'll turn into a pure ruckman, both however should compliment each other nicely in years to come.

[hujsh]

Could be a long shot at this stage as he is coming of a shoulder reco. In the the future I have know doubt he will leave Minson behind

Minson's been playing good football for the past 2 years and Roughead's not got a regular VFL gig yet so let's not jump the gun here.

[w3design]

Have to agree with Swoop. I would see Roughy as Hudson's logical sucessor, and injury aside the timing could be about right. He is likely to be a year away yet from being a regular top 22 player, still some development to do yet. But I would still love to see him get a few games this season to aid that development.
And hujsh is also correct, big Will has been a solid contributor over the last couple of seasons. I think a lot of fans have a preconception about his worth that the coaches and his team mates don't seem to share. I just love his GRUNT. Yeah he makes the odd mistake, and pushes the boundry a bit some times, but sh.t, so did EJ! When Will is on song he makes a lot of our guys run taller, and I think his contribution is increasing and improving each season. And isn't that what you would hope for and expect of a big guy?

[Dazza]

I didn't mean Roughead will replace Minson this year. Just was saying Minson has seemingly not gotten over his toe injury yet and theres a chance Roughead might get a few games into him this year.

I actually rate Minson as a player. (happens to be my favourite)

[alwaysadog]

With up to 8 regulars reported to miss at least the early rounds, the preseason fiasco with its extended interchange bench, should provide plenty of opportunities for the "pretenders" to advance their claims.

I'd be surprised if a dark curly haired rookie didn't get a run at some stage.

[Greystache]

With up to 8 regulars reported to miss at least the early rounds, the preseason fiasco with its extended interchange bench, should provide plenty of opportunities for the "pretenders" to advance their claims.

I'd be surprised if a dark curly haired rookie didn't get a run at some stage.

Agreed, only seen him play a couple of times but have really liked the look of what I saw. He's another who's quick yet still hard at it. I'd need to see more before I could make my mind up about his skills.

[Go_Dogs]

Agreed, only seen him play a couple of times but have really liked the look of what I saw. He's another who's quick yet still hard at it. I'd need to see more before I could make my mind up about his skills.

I've only seen him in action live during the pre-season last year, he had a bit of a strange running style, but is a fairly powerful looking build and a likely type. Will be interesting to see how he fairs this pre-season.

Competition amongst the rookie listed players will certainly be interesting over the Nab Cup.