Cleary - He is a curiousity!

[mjp]

The kid's injured now - bit of a bummer really - but just wanted to talk a little bit about his 'style' of play.

I have seen a few negative comments about his overall performance on the weekend - implying he would have been lucky to retain his spot etc. I think overall he was fine but he is certainly an interesting player.

When the ball is in dispute he has an unusual style - essentially he plays (to my eyes) as if he is determined that ONE THING MUST NOT HAPPEN...what is that thing? The ball getting past him. As you would have witnessed during the 100000 replays of his injury, ball down low or bouncing consistency he really does attack it strongly. Ball in the air or bouncing erratically? Nope - hold, cover, better a half than risk a miss. There was a moment in the Essendon game where he essentially stood up and jumped straight up to cover the footy vs come forward to attack and I remember thinking it was 'interesting'...watching him again it certainly seems to be something he 'does'...it looks a bit un-natural to me but it is certainly effective (defensively speaking).

Has anyone else noticed anything about the way he is focussed more on controlling the footy in a contest rather than looking to win it/exit it?

I would say it's a bit of a throwback 'thing' to do but I think back in the day players - in one-v-one situations more frequently - were even more determined to take front spot and move through the line of the footy...Cleary seems to move into the path of the footy and cover it vs accelerate through it. It seems a bit 'odd' to watch but has been effective...

[Mofra]

I wonder how much of that is coaching in his junior days? It got him onto an AFL list and fans absolutely scream about goals 'over the back' (which to be fair are frustrating as hell).
He's certainly not 'anti-ball' as he seems more than willing to be the 'next' player in a disposal chain out of the back half which I like because he does have poise and his kicking is quite good, even if he never seems to take a long option.

Sometimes a 'neat' player is preferable to a better but 'scrappy' player int he back half. Gag's kicking is certainly an interesting counter point here as a guy who is the opposite to Cleary in that he attacks the ball at every opportunity.

[Mofra]

I wonder how much of that is coaching in his junior days? It got him onto an AFL list and fans absolutely scream about goals 'over the back' (which to be fair are frustrating as hell).
He's certainly not 'anti-ball' as he seems more than willing to be the 'next' player in a disposal chain out of the back half which I like because he does have poise and his kicking is quite good, even if he never seems to take a long option.

Sometimes a 'neat' player is preferable to a better but 'scrappy' player int he back half. Gag's kicking is certainly an interesting counter point here as a guy who is the opposite to Cleary in that he attacks the ball at every opportunity.

[lemmon]

Absolutely - great observation - I watched him closely in the practice match down in Launceston and there was a piece of play that struck me as very odd and 'old fashioned'.

There was a point where the ball had been kicked into our D50 and kind of pitched and bounced vertically so that it was at a grabbable height.

Cleary was the closest player to the footy and was coming towards it - he would've got there before anyone else but had a Hawthorn forward trailing in (it might've been Watson).

Rather then running into the footy and taking possession as you'd expect pretty much all AFL players to do, Cleary stopped, propped and chose to body Watson who was tailing in behind him - effectively shepherding him off the footy and leaving the ball in dispute.

It struck me as a very noughties footy play - the back pocket more worried about his opponent then going and winning the ball when it was there to be won.

Right decision or wrong decision from Cleary, I don't really know, but it just stuck out as a decision I don't think anyone else on the list would make.

I've said before that I actually rate Cleary and think he's one of the best pure defenders on the list. I get the idea that he doesn't really have an obvious 'bankable' skill, but I think that skill is actually his ability to stop an opponent. It's a real shame he was injured this week - I think he could've proved his worth on an Elliot or a Hill.

[Aidan7557]

I would have liked to see him get a run at it as I have never been a huge fan. Seems a great kid and very professional so lets hope he can get healthy soon. Not sure he is best 22 quality in the grand picture, good depth though. He isn't fast, isn't big and strong or small and quick. Just in the middle. Not many AFL attributed but maybe he could become a pure lockdown defender somehow? He is a safe reliable kick but not aggressive at all. He is 23 so now is the time to prove himself so praying he can get back on the field very soon!

[Pedro Sanchez]

I was really surprised he was even picked for the game in round 1. My view remains the same, he's neat, goes hard enough at the ball, can do most things pretty well but just seems a touch too slow for the pace of AFL. Which was evident when he got caught holding the ball in the D-50 against the Roos.

[lemmon]

Was that pace or indecision? It feels like he had the easy return handball to Duryea but either delayed or didn't give because he thought Duryea was running into traffic himself. I thought that was more a case of being slow in his decision making than anything else

[Bornadog]

I was really surprised he was even picked for the game in round 1. My view remains the same, he's neat, goes hard enough at the ball, can do most things pretty well but just seems a touch too slow for the pace of AFL. Which was evident when he got caught holding the ball in the D-50 against the Roos.

To be fair to him, that was a stupid handball by Duryea. He was already surrounded. Agree, he is a touch slow though

[The bulldog tragician]

I felt at the time that Doc might have been expecting Cleary to be charging through rather than standing in a static position. That is my thought on Cleary, he doesn’t demand the ball and seems unsure of his role. Perhaps lack of confidence/ continuity, but you can already see a newer guy in JF wanting to be involved whereas I think Cleary might just be hoping to not stuff up.

[FrediKanoute]

To be fair to him, that was a stupid handball by Duryea. He was already surrounded. Agree, he is a touch slow though

I agree. Poor from an experienced player.

[jeemak]

Duryea cooked him, badly. Happy to move on from it given Cleary is usually composed.

He's a bit of a procrastinator maybe, someone who thinks let's sort the prime directive out (stop my man) and see what happens next. He'd be good in international diplomacy I reckon.

Honestly, he's just so raw and lacking in confidence still. But there's something there and it will be interesting to see how he responds to this setback.

[Rusty12]

Absolutely, he plays those situations like a basketballer, more than a footballer.

Unfortunately he is injured, however he has started the year far better than I would have predicted or given him credit for.

[Hot Dogs]

I'm still not convinced he'll make it as a regular best 22/23 player, but he looks like he'll be handy depth at worst. It can never hurt having players like him that can come in a play a role like he has.

[Pedro Sanchez]

To be fair to him, that was a stupid handball by Duryea. He was already surrounded. Agree, he is a touch slow though

Yeh it was rubbish by Doc, no doubt, but the inability to literally read the play that you're in a super 'hot' position on the field with heat coming is part of the slowness - I'm not just talking leg speed. Look with more games and experience he'll potentially improve a bit, it's just whether or not he gets that chance.

[Vred]

I'd be playing him more over Duryea at this point, think he will be a good long term replacement. Always been a fan of his, every time he has gotten a run of senior games I've never seen him do anything I'd consider ''bad'' enough to get dropped, and yet, it happens.