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A really poor performance from the Swans. We didn't have any plan for scoring a goal. Even some of our better 1st half players, like Gould and Sinclair, had poor second halves. In the end, Taylor was probably our best. Bell and Campbell had some nice moments. Stephens is a real worry.
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We were pretty comprehensively outplayed in the second half. The ones that usually play well for us eg Clarke, Sinclair and Taylor were good. Not enough from some others. Campbell was good though in the mids. Stephens such a disappointment with his poor disposal - no use getting it if you can't use it! Onto the Seniors now.Comment
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Thanks for the info Ludwig and April. Unfortunately little to get excited about. We have been badly beaten by the only top 8 reserves teams we have played.Comment
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I was getting a bit despondent about how Stephens was travelling - in particular his tendency for clanger kicks. A player that kicks so unreliably is never going to make it as an AFL player, so if feels like such a waste of a top 5 pick.
However I went back to look at some of his reviews from his draft year, which gave me some hope that this is just a temporary form slump, and he will eventually come good.
For example this from Rookie Me Central:
"Stephens pin-point kicking and inside 50 penetration was evident.." & "Overall, given his skills, athleticism and work rate, Stephens is a standout midfielder, and the top outside-leaning midfielder in the draft crop."
Also some excellent video highlights here: https://sanfl.com.au/draft-pick/dylan-stephens/
So - here's hoping!Comment
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Another poster Gloveski made comment that Stephens has more time than he realises and does not need to rush his kicks. Hopefully the coaches will hone in on this and show his pi-point kicking and penetration.
I am also hoping that Gould gets his opportunity to play in the firsts as I would love to see what he is capable of. I haven’t given up hope on both Stephens & Gould and have a good feeling that they will both be successful.Comment
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I didn’t watch more than fifteen minutes of the reserve game and then only on the AFL app but our disposal looked poor and I understand that Casey are probably the standout team in the competition but I wasn’t filled with optimism.
Given what you say about Dylan and Will and the senior teams performance last night who would you suggest as potential outs to make way for them?
I am genuinely curious because as I mentioned I didn’t see enough of the game or for that matter previous VFL games to form an informed opinion.Comment
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Hey Faunac8, I wasn't specifically referring to their performances last night as I didn't see the game, hopefully I would like to see them play in the firsts. When they get selected, I will leave that to the coaches and match selection committee and I repeat hopefully it won't be too far away.Comment
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I think Gould has been very good at VFL level all season. So I certainly think he's overdue for a shot at senior footy. Conversely, I don't know what's wrong with Stephens? He started okay when he was playing in the top side, but once he got demoted, his disposal, especially his kicking, has steadily got worse. Maybe he'll click back to form, after a confidence boosting game or two? Maybe it won't?
And although Ludwig may not like me saying this, he does appear to be quite a mild mannered young guy, who's very close to his parents. So, maybe he's genuinely homesick and that’s affecting his performance?Comment
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It's just Stephens' kicking that's the problem. The rest of his game is looking okay and improving. I don't know why homesickness would only affect his kicking.
It's worth repeating that this VFL game was very difficult for a kicking team. Casey played that Melbourne choking defence that had a lot of quality players in it. I won't watch the replay because it was a dud boring game, but I can't remember to many easy kicks in the game.
We shouldn't give up on Stephens. He has a lot of good parts to his game. I hope he's just in a slump and his kicking will return to the level that saw him rated so highly in his draft year.Comment
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i have a question .. why is it only Dylan who gets it for his kicking ? Its not like we have a bunch of Dennis Carrolls in the afl team !Comment
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Because he was a pick 5 and came with a reputation of being a good kick, his current kicking form has been a disappointment. With the loss of Dawson, there has been some elevated hope that Stephens might soften the blow of losing such a good kick of the footy. Add to that the delisting of Matt Ling, who also was a good kick and high draft pick, there's a bit of a worry about how many quality players and prospects can be lost without seriously impacting our chances for a premiership run. If Dylan was a rookie draft pick, I doubt he would come under such scrutiny.Comment
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Well, it's possible that he might want to be somewhere else and therefore feeling a bit down. Which may affect his confidence. The thing that he may feel the less confident about in his game, is his ability to hit targets. So, it might be that is the first thing to break down? His evasiveness is still very good, but the ability to run away, might not be that closely tied to confidence?
But of course, that's all a vague assumption on my part, and as far as I know, he could be perfectly happy.Comment
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