Dont give up on Tommy Walsh !

[Auntie.Gerald]

I have to say watching the game again it is only the little things that Tommy still needs to bring to his game

there was a tough ball that Harry Cunningham kicked along the ground out to the boundary miles in front of Tommy.......not Tommys fault as Harry wasnt under pressure and could have pinned it on Walsh's chest.

But what can be learnt was the line wasnt a great line that Tommy ran (as Dermmie mentioned) but more importantly he had the guy up his back and he could have easily got a free.......buddy would have........Goodes would have..........Tommy got pushed in the back (by the defenders chest and biceps) to the line as they both over ran the ball but this went on for 3 or 4m's.

Tommy is somewhat better when he can see his defender but struggles with gamemanship and earning the free when defenders are moving him away from the ball.

Tommy has great skill on both feet. He is strong and works fairly hard.

If Mike Pyke can end up a FF Ruckman for a GF winning team then in my opinion Tommy Walsh if he is patient to stay at the club can become a handy forward and maybe even a strong Grundy style defender in the future.

Final point was that Patton and Cameron didnt do much better then Walsh and Reid...........GWS had two very solid key defenders on our two forwards ......yet GWS had a big run of the footy and many more chances then our forward line to stand out !

[Melbourne_Blood]

Dont give up on Tommy Walsh !

Patton and Cameron played on the premiership defensive spine. A little more credit is deserved for there effort I think.

[Auntie.Gerald]

agree Aj to manned up alot on Cameron along with Richards and Grundy but they had double the chances if not triple that Reid and Walsh had and I reckon our two were easy pickings with the deliveries that rarely got to them

[Auntie.Gerald]

sorry MB

just to qualify where I was coming from was that we may have thought Reid and Walsh were a little average but given the circumstances of lack of possession and lack of forward entries for our lads ......some may have though that Patton and Cameron looked miles ahead.

I agree with you re credit to Patton and Cameron vs our tall KP Defenders as the two GWS lads are very young but will have no doubt healthy careers

[ernie koala]

I have to say watching the game again it is only the little things that Tommy still needs to bring to his game

Like catching the ball perhaps.

[Auntie.Gerald]

ernie ernie ernie

c'mon ROK, Macca and Grundy even dropped the ball a couple of times and I would rate Grundy as having one of the best set of hands at the Swans !!

I know I am being bullish but he has the attributes just like Pyke he just needs to find that killer instinct and smarts against the strong defenders

Its not like i am asking him to transition to becoming a key midfielder

I do believe he should even have a few games or a few qtrs at key defender to help him find that intensity !

[stellation]

I imagine a GAA forum somewhere has had someone post the same thread title after watching the weekend's games.

[Wazza]

Tommy is one dimmensional with little agility his defenders ran easily off him. Jamison looked like a rebounding HB rather than the ultra defensive block he is.
What position do you see Tommy Playing in this current team? Force out morton?? Morton is better one on one and has some x factor. LRT? Can mark can lead can defend can get a goal. Reid?? little things like cant read the play cant mark cant turn cant defend sure all the little things Israel couldnt work out at GWS. (i would rate Israel as ahead of Tommy)

sorry Mate dont see a role for Tommy now or in the future -not at this level , Swans paid overs and will have to give him a couple of games to try and save face.

Cheers

waz

[Triple B]

I imagine a GAA forum somewhere has had someone post the same thread title after watching the weekend's games.

[Nico]

Not good enough. His highlights reel when we drafted him must have been his only career highlights. He has shown no dash or agility whatsoever.

Making up the numbers in the 2's I am afraid.

[Jeffers1984]

Slower turning circle than Ricky Mott.

1 more year in the 2's then back to Ireland.

[Auntie.Gerald]

Waz I was not alluding to this season for a Tommy Gun attack.......... unless injuries strike

I still think one more season in ressies and another pre season........then 2014 could be his opportunity to rise up.

If not is he a legitimate conversion to become a KP defender ?

ie Ted was approx 26/27yrs of age when he made the conversion and it was not like he showed any significant signs of making this a successful transition until he was given the job

[Auntie.Gerald]

2013 COACHES CALL
2012 was a pretty positive year for him. When he came in as a forward he hadn?t played there a lot and he had a lot to learn to play as a key forward. The start of his pre-season was a bit slow in terms of picking up what we wanted, but about half way through the year it seemed to click for him and he came in and played good footy and got picked a couple of times to play senior footy.

Pre-season has been a bit slow because he had a shoulder operation which held him back, so he?s been non-contact for a while, but we?re hoping to get enough work into him in the next month or two.

We hope in 2013 to see him play more senior footy, that?s the big thing for him. To do that, he just needs to keep improving and if he improves as much as he did last year this year, then he?ll certainly get there.


................

PS the number 35 pick that Saints went with in exchange for Tommy was Daniel Markworth

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[Velour&Ruffles]

I imagine a GAA forum somewhere has had someone post the same thread title after watching the weekend's games.

Well played, oh peach eating controversialist.

[liz]

I am not sure how anyone can pass judgement on our forward line from Sunday's games. The number of times they received the ball in a manner conduicive to marking could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Most of the passes in Walsh's direction were fell short, to the side or were right on top of his head with a fast marking Jamison on his tail (and Jamison is a very competent close checking defender). Add in the wet conditions and the amount of time our mids and defenders spent fumbling the ball in our backline, and it wasn't a night to be a forward.

I am not overly bullish on Walsh but I am prepared to wait for more than one crap team performance to write him off. He did show steady improvement throughout last season and I think it is clear he really wants to give the AFL his best shot. I am not convinced he is a 'close to the goal square' kind of forward. He's not really quick enough. But he does have excellent endurance, meaning he really needs to be used in a roaming role where he can work his opponent over through sheer hard work, not unlike O'Keefe did before he decided he wanted to be a (Norm Smith medal winning) onballer.

And he took his best opportunity pretty well -that was quite a skiiful snap he converted, given the conditions. He sized up the opportunity very quickly and executed perfectly.