Higgins Season Over

[Desipura]

Re: Higgins Season Over

Not sure why you (and others) are getting upset. It's more a compliment to Griff than a big whack to Higgins.

Pretty simple.

If me and others are getting upset, does that not tell you that perhaps you could have worded it differently? It looked more like a dig at Higgins IMHO.

[comrade]

Re: Higgins Season Over

If me and others are getting upset, does that not tell you that perhaps you could have worded it differently? It looked more like a dig at Higgins IMHO.

Don't get me wrong - I was having a dig at Higgins, but purely to highlight the performance of Griff.

Regardless of whether Higgins should have played (which he shouldn't have), both were asked to perform under severe duress and one succeeded.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Higgins Season Over

I'm usually a bit of a critic of Higgins but I can't fault him on his performance on the weekend. From my observation, he was really busting a gut and gave his all. Whether he was well enough to be selected is a different matter but Higgins himself gave as much as he could
give. You only had to look at Higgins standing alongside say a Beams to know there was something wrong. The woods players were all chest puffed out, focussed, energetic and standing tall. Higgins had sunken eyes, looked pale, head bowed, lethargic and little muscle definition. And this was before the game. He looked like he dragged himself out of bed still sick but he had to be there.

[Mantis]

Re: Higgins Season Over

Regardless of whether Higgins should have played (which he shouldn't have), both were asked to perform under severe duress and one succeeded.

The question remains was it Shaun's illness which made him unable to perform at an adequate level or was it his lack of mental toughness.

All the signs point to the illness (well at least that's what we are being told), but I guess the question can't be answered until Shaun is fully recovered and we can then view the type of footy he plays.

[Greystache]

Re: Higgins Season Over

Very harsh comment. Do you know how easy it is to play with the injuries/sickness Higgins has had?
Griffen did the injury the week prior whereas Higgins has had them all year.

As far as I'm aware the club is saying Higgins' thyroid problem only surfaced in the later part of the season. His form has been poor for virtually the whole season, I know there's been mention of him carrying a groin issue too, but I seriously question his ability to play at the level required unless he's 100% fit, and unfortunately at AFL level that's not a luxury players can enjoy all that often. I think Higgins needs to have a hard think about his football and whether or not he's going to be able to mentally and physically handle the demands it puts on players.

[Desipura]

Re: Higgins Season Over

As far as I'm aware the club is saying Higgins' thyroid problem only surfaced in the later part of the season. His form has been poor for virtually the whole season, I know there's been mention of him carrying a groin issue too, but I seriously question his ability to play at the level required unless he's 100% fit, and unfortunately at AFL level that's not a luxury players can enjoy all that often. I think Higgins needs to have a hard think about his football and whether or not he's going to be able to mentally and physically handle the demands it puts on players.

For memory Mantis and I noticed him clutch his groin after a kick when we played Essendon the first time this season.

[Topdog]

Re: Higgins Season Over

It is a shame for Shaun that his thyroid condition deteriorated on the weekend, but to say he should not have played is simplistic and easy in hindsight. His thyroid function tests would have been monitored constantly since his diagnosis, and he would not have played unless his blood tests were completely within normal parameters.

What appears to have happened is the combination of the extra physical energy required to play at AFL finals level over VFL level, along with the rise in adrenaline levels from playing in a final, have combined to stress the thyroid gland into crisis and resulted in the deterioration of Shaun's condition. It got worse the longer the game went, which is consistent with this sort of thing and something that could not have been predicted.

Hopefully Maxwell feels about 1mm tall after his sledging of Shaun about his lack of effort, considering the extenuating circumstances.

So we didn't expect him to react poorly to a massive increase in physical energy / pressure being applied to him?

When it was announced that he had the condition they said he was done for the year, 2 weeks later he is playing in a final against a team that applies enormous pressure in H&A games. Lunacy IMO. I don't blame Shaun at all, just think he should not have been risked.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Higgins Season Over

As far as I'm aware the club is saying Higgins' thyroid problem only surfaced in the later part of the season. His form has been poor for virtually the whole season, I know there's been mention of him carrying a groin issue too, but I seriously question his ability to play at the level required unless he's 100% fit, and unfortunately at AFL level that's not a luxury players can enjoy all that often. I think Higgins needs to have a hard think about his football and whether or not he's going to be able to mentally and physically handle the demands it puts on players.

From what i understand thyroid problems rarely just suddenly appear. The thyroid will be overactive, the levels slowly creep up over a number of months (or longer) , you don't feel right but can't put your finger on it, until the symptoms become severe enough that someone in the know can recognize it for what it is and suggest a blood test.