#1 Andy McGrath loves finals football (Part 1)

Buddy has a fair grip on the best player over the past 10 years

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donā€™t agree. Has had several seasons derailed by injuries (2010, 2012, 2015) in that periodā€¦ also has had some really woeful patches of form as well.

Iā€™m ok with him being in the discussion but Iā€™d probably pick Selwood, Dangerfield, Fyfe and Pendlebury ahead of him. On current form you would also put Martin in the discussion, not to mention that GAJ was so far beyond GOAT till injury hitā€¦

Either way we are probably splitting hairsā€¦ you would probably want any and all of those guys on any team you picked.

Agree.

And I think we will all be talking about Daniher like we talked about Buddy, and itā€™ll be Joey in the mix with a whole lot of mids (Dusty, Bont, Kelly, Merrett, Petracca etc)

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Donsā€™ midfield to get ā€˜serious talentā€™ boost

Callum Twomey
AFL 2017 Training - Essendon 041217
Andrew McGrath is set for a full-time move into the midfield

EMERGING Essendon youngster Andrew McGrath is ready for a full-time midfield role next season according to Bombers assistant coach Mark Harvey.

McGrath pieced together a brilliant debut season in 2017, playing 21 games on his way to claiming the NAB AFL Rising Star award after being the clubā€™s first ever No.1 draft pick.

The 19-year-oldā€™s pace, smarts and poise stood out as he shut down some of the competitionā€™s best small forwards and provided excellent rebound.

However, Harvey, who looks after Essendonā€™s defence, says he doesnā€™t expect to again have McGrath at his disposal next year.

ā€œHeā€™s starting to really excel in the midfield. Weā€™re starting to see his stoppage craft really evolve. Iā€™m not sure if we really will see him too much back there (in defence) but Iā€™ve told him he can still talk to defenders during play though. Thereā€™s still that relationship that heā€™s got with them,ā€ he said on Tuesday.

"I think [heā€™s ready to become a full-time midfielder]. Heā€™s a serious talent. We saw what he did in his first year and he played with great composure and heā€™s really good in close and makes quick decisions.

ā€œHe wonā€™t be left wanting.ā€

Another player Harvey has lost from his backline group in recent years is Cale Hooker, who pushed forward last season in a permanent role and booted 41 goals.

The Bombers are focusing heavily on reducing the scores they conceded last season in a bid to push up the ladder next season, but Harvey says Hooker is slated to again be an option in attack.

The 29-year-old, however, is still recovering from the serious leg injury that surfaced late in the home and away season and saw him miss the Bombersā€™ elimination final loss to Sydney.

ā€œMost of the guys, like [Michael] Hurley, Joe Daniher and [Dyson] Heppell, who have had post-season injuries, they will all be back in January,ā€ he said.

"We find these three-and-a-half weeks before Christmas builds a platform and even though those guys havenā€™t been physically training, theyā€™ll have two months of serious training.

ā€œThey have done a lot of cross training and they wonā€™t be too far off the mark.ā€

Harvey said the Bombersā€™ smashing at the hands of the Swans in that finals appearance was partly behind the coachesā€™ implementation of more brutal training in the early parts of this pre-season.

ā€œTheyā€™ve certainly been put through the bullring. Our blokes have been training really hard, particularly physically, so theyā€™ll be looking for the break,ā€ Harvey said.

"Thatā€™s the main difference, that weā€™ve put a lot more emphasis on our physicality and our pressure.

ā€œThatā€™s been the main focus and moving into January and February hopefully we start to see that play out in our game situations.ā€

Essendon players will break from training this week before returning on January 5.

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So many similarities to Gavin Wanganeen

You just know that McGrath is going to do the defensive work in midfield as well as the fancy stuff.

Canā€™t see us having the same issues we have had for ten years with both Merrett and McGrath in there. Both love to tackle.

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Smith as well I reckon. Made a lot of tackles for a guy playing as a half-forward at GWS

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If he ends up at Port Adelaide after an EFC premiership - Iā€™ll take it, but regret it, but be shattered, etc.

Forgot about him.

Our midfield is still very much an unknown but I think itā€™s git high potential.

Iā€™m looking forward to seeing mcgrath in the middle next year, i still think at this stage he is too light so maybe he will play off a wing and not at many centre bounces. Having some actual pace around the centre will be a big change, last year we were way too slow in there and our slow guys werenā€™t even good at the hard stuff either which made them a liability.

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Yepā€¦ Iā€™d also add that Parish doesnā€™t mind putting blokes in the mud eitherā€¦!!

That gives us three prime mids that not only love tacklingā€¦ but also tend to make them hurt/stick. Absolutely no offense to Watson but he struggled in that area late in his career, particularly this season, and Heppell is more an offensive ā€˜corralā€™ type playerā€¦ so it is going to completely change our dynamic to have these young bulls in the middle imho.

Throw Walla, fanta, hurley et al into the mix and we suddenly have a little bit of ā€˜mongrelā€™ back in us which I LOVE! Not to mention they are all very classy ā€˜mongrelsā€™ to boot!

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Lol.

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Wouldnā€™t it be more likeā€¦just sayin!

From the AFL website ā€¦

Meanwhile, Myers is optimistic Andrew McGrath can have an immediate impact in the midfield.

Last yearā€™s NAB AFL Rising Star winner lined up mostly in defence last year but ended the season with more stints through the middle and is poised to become a full-time onballer.

ā€œHis work ethic is first-rate and thatā€™s why heā€™s had the year he had last year,ā€ Myers said.

ā€œHe has spent a lot more time in and around the mids at training throughout pre-season so far and even in the short time we have been training, just his craft and getting used to playing inside, heā€™s improved out of sight.ā€

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What sort of player will he be compared to? Scotty West comes to mind.

Ottomh,ā€¦ Paul Kelly, ā€¦ Greg Williams spring to mind.

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Ooh, I like the Paul Kelly comparison.

What a gun that guy was.

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Kelly is one of the most loved player, never heard a bad word about him.


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