Tweet
I think the evidence (Exhibit A: Hannebery. Exhibit B: Bird. Exhibit C: Jetta) indicates that the club has been prepared to give even very new recruits a chance to play early senior footy if they've proved themselves capable. Players like Jack, Grundy, Smith, Malceski took a little longer but did the hard yards, proved themselves worthy and establshed themselves firmly in the senior team at equivalent, or younger, ages than all the imports. If you're good enough and fit enough you get your chance.
I am repeating myself from earlier posts, but I think the perception of some that Vez was hard done by in the opportunities he got is off the mark. He debuted in his first year almost as soon as he'd got over a groin injury that hampered him for the first half of his rookie year, despite not really having the necessary endurance. He was clearly in Roos's senior team plans at the start of his second year before that got derailed by a bad finger injury. In the summary of the Vez interview that Ugg posted, Vez states he came back under-done from that finger injury? Why? Surely 10 weeks unable to handle a footy but with most of his body unhampered should have been a fantastic opportunity to slog it out on the track to build the start of the necessary endurance base. When he actually returned to the reserves team that year, he looked less fit than he had the previous year. Despite that, he was still granted some senior games late in the season.
He was possibly a little stiff to get dropped after his one senior game in 2010, which was a more than competent performance. But his reserves form in the latter half of the year was pretty mediocre in the main. Further opportunities for youngsters did open up (Meredith, Rohan, TDL all played games) but all got picked because they were doing more in the reserves than Vez was.
This isn't an anti-Vez rant. I really liked what I saw and I am sad he's moved on. But to say he (or any other youngster) who has deserved it has not got a fair go is stretching things a long way. (If anyone was a little stiff not to get a game or two last year, my opinion is that it was Johnston. Sadly for him, he managed to time his runs of good games when the senior team was going well, and put in a couple of shockers just around the time an opportunity did open up, before getting an injury late in the year that scuppered any remaining chance he might have had.)
I am repeating myself from earlier posts, but I think the perception of some that Vez was hard done by in the opportunities he got is off the mark. He debuted in his first year almost as soon as he'd got over a groin injury that hampered him for the first half of his rookie year, despite not really having the necessary endurance. He was clearly in Roos's senior team plans at the start of his second year before that got derailed by a bad finger injury. In the summary of the Vez interview that Ugg posted, Vez states he came back under-done from that finger injury? Why? Surely 10 weeks unable to handle a footy but with most of his body unhampered should have been a fantastic opportunity to slog it out on the track to build the start of the necessary endurance base. When he actually returned to the reserves team that year, he looked less fit than he had the previous year. Despite that, he was still granted some senior games late in the season.
He was possibly a little stiff to get dropped after his one senior game in 2010, which was a more than competent performance. But his reserves form in the latter half of the year was pretty mediocre in the main. Further opportunities for youngsters did open up (Meredith, Rohan, TDL all played games) but all got picked because they were doing more in the reserves than Vez was.
This isn't an anti-Vez rant. I really liked what I saw and I am sad he's moved on. But to say he (or any other youngster) who has deserved it has not got a fair go is stretching things a long way. (If anyone was a little stiff not to get a game or two last year, my opinion is that it was Johnston. Sadly for him, he managed to time his runs of good games when the senior team was going well, and put in a couple of shockers just around the time an opportunity did open up, before getting an injury late in the year that scuppered any remaining chance he might have had.)
Comment