Why Is It

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  • Old Royboy
    Support Staff
    • Mar 2004
    • 879
    #1

    Why Is It

    That when a kid is promoted to seniors he inevitably seems to spend most of his time on the bench or in a totally unfamiliar role.

    Kieren was rewarded by being given the job of minding small forwards when he came up, this week I saw Laidlaw playing a defensive role at times too.

    One area of the reserve graders game that is suspect is their ability to play back half defensive roles - they simply do not get any practice at this in the Canberra comp. In any case, the guys who have been promoted are midfield guns, not defensive stoppers - so why does Roo's persist with playing them up back when they come up? It's almost like he want's them to fail so that he has an excuse to keeps hacks like McVeigh and Bevan in the firsts.
    Pay peanuts get monkeys
    Tags: Swans, sydney
    • NMWBloods
      Taking Refuge!!
      • Jan 2003
      • 15819
      #2
      Oh so cynical!
      Captain Logic is not steering this tugboat.

      "[T]here are things that matter more and he's reading and thinking about them: heaven, reincarnation. Life and death are the only things that are truly a matter of life and death. Not football."

        Comment

        • liz
          Veteran
          Site Admin
          • Jan 2003
          • 16844
          #3
          Not sure I entirely agree with you ORB.

          Playing through the middle for extended periods at AFL level is a very different proposition than doing it at ACTAFL level. It's not realistic to expect Laidlaw to come straight into the senior midfield for anything other than brief spurts.

          His attributes - foot speed, strong marking ability and a booming kick - scream out for HBF, at least as a starting point. And while you're right that he doesn't get much of a chance to hone his defensive skills on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning, I reckon the work the reserves do at training during the week is harder and more important than that they do during their weekend training runs. Chances are he's done a decent amount of training off the HBF.

          I thought he looked pretty sound back there on Saturday. Made a few correct decisions to spoil and ran it out a couple of times. Given the conditions were so awful its hard to make much of an assessment but he didn't look out of his depth. I've made this comment before but he strikes me as a Matthew Nicks type prospect (though a little quicker) in his potential ability to play on a flank at both ends of the ground.

            Comment

            • Layby
              Suspended by the MRP
              • May 2006
              • 1803
              #4
              Originally posted by liz
              I've made this comment before but he strikes me as a Matthew Nicks type prospect
              A bit harsh, he is only thining slightly !

                Comment

                • goswannie14
                  Leadership Group
                  • Sep 2005
                  • 11166
                  #5
                  Originally posted by Layby
                  A bit harsh, he is only thining slightly !
                  Yeah, yeah!!
                  Does God believe in Atheists?

                    Comment

                    • Nico
                      Veterans List
                      • Jan 2003
                      • 11385
                      #6
                      Originally posted by NMWBloods
                      Oh so cynical!

                      But correct.
                      http://www.nostalgiamusic.co.uk/secu...res/srh806.jpg

                        Comment

                        • TheHood
                          On the Rookie List
                          • Jan 2003
                          • 1938
                          #7
                          Bevo is turning out to be little more than a thug, hard man ala Campbell Brown when he garnered little respect unlike in 2007.

                          McVeigh at his best was carried by the rest of the squad and this year without that support, he's on his own and the reality is stark and ugly. He is not in most other "best 22".

                          Yes, these guys are the new whipping boys for 2007 but for very good reason, they are making poor decisions in regulation backline exit raids. When Tadhg returns, Mcveigh should be the casualty, not Schmidt or Laidlaw.
                          The Pain of Discipline is Nothing Like The Pain of Disappointment

                            Comment

                            • sharp9
                              Senior Player
                              • Jan 2003
                              • 2508
                              #8
                              I thought Laidlaw did a fantastic defensive job when he was down there. A few very assured spoils etc I assumed were C. Bolton...until C. Bolton gathered the ball 10 metres away. Looked utterly at home in the last line, much better than Dempster, Richards or Malceski from a defensive point of view (or Bevan for that matter).

                              Couple of disposal errors but I think he will be a keeper. Fantastic couple of chase downs too...didn't quite get the player in time but altered the disposal when player thought he had acres of time - I was impressed.
                              "I'll acknowledge there are more talented teams in the competition but I won't acknowledge that there is a better team in the competition" Paul Roos March 2005

                                Comment

                                • premiers05
                                  On the Rookie List
                                  • Jun 2005
                                  • 73
                                  #9
                                  [QUOTE=liz;317426]Not sure I entirely agree with you ORB.

                                  Playing through the middle for extended periods at AFL level is a very different proposition than doing it at ACTAFL level. It's not realistic to expect Laidlaw to come straight into the senior midfield for anything other than brief spurts.

                                  This IMHO is why we don't have any players from the 2nds that can just slot into seniors. The ACTAFL is hopeless and no preparation for young kids into AFL. I seriously would like to see some way of getting regular games for these boys to play at a higher level. If they can't play in VFL, there must be a better alternative. It is no coincidence that the pies and essendon and the the eagles too can bring young kids in and they are really useful unlike the swans where we really needs to ease them in slowly and at the moment we can't afford to do that so they languish.
                                  There is no spoon

                                    Comment

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