HBF next year with Conor & Andy rotating through the midfield?
I suspect itāll be a year too soon to have him named onfield in a HBF role. Possibly during the year though if injuries hit, or his form is awesome.
But Ridley can pretty much play anywhere. I think heāll simply earn a bench spot as a utility for his debut. And then likely keep it, as the kid looks to have a solid game.
It will be interesting to see what sort of body he ends up with by the end of preseason.
Heās bulked up a lot this year during his injury layoff. No longer the twig we drafted.
Is this kid KP height now, or would he be able to still run through the middle/ off HB?
Heās KP height but in my opinion doesnāt play like a KP player.
He is more like Fletcher in that he will back his judgement to get to a contest rather than wrestle somebody. Heās your third tall type.
Obviously heās young and that can change but at this point he reads the play very well and likes to position himself so that he is the outlet kick.
Do you think heāll get a game or two next year?
A fair bit more than a game or two. Heās one of the highest potential kids weāve got.
He will no doubt.
We have quite a bit of depth in those roles now though so it will be interesting to see what happens.
Gleeson, Francis and Ridley will all more than likely play a similar role.
They did trial Ridley forward towards the end of the season and I thought he did ok but I still believe long term he will be a defender.
Is he good one on one? really interested in this kid. Havenāt seen a lot of him, but heard good things.
I donāt see him as a body on body defender.
I watch a lot of VFL and he doesnāt like to engage body contact. Heās light though at this stage though so he probably recognizes that itās not a smart play.
That will improve though with a few more preseasons and I can definitely see him becoming a very good player.
Still think he becomes a Lever type intercept defender.
We sooooo need McNeice to fill the actual small defender role.
or rookie/draft another quality one from the state leagues.
Hoping Redman can find a spot to.
If McGrath goes midfield, and when Bags slows up, we effectively need to replace 3 players in the defence (Bags, Kelly, McGrath). So we need several of them to step up ahead of Bags slowing down.
His best asset in the TAC was his ability to control the backline and set up play while also directing teammates. He is a smart kid and talented to boot and I could see him becoming our own Josh Gibson/Easton Wood. A player that just makes the backline run smoother and can come in for timely intercepts and use the ball well out of defence
I think he is awkwardly below KPD heightā¦but he appears to have long limbs, and that might make up for it?
Best description from what I have of him is this. His silky smooth, calm and composed.
I see players like Ridley, Francis, Gleeson and Brown (not to mention Hurley) providing more dynamic movement than the likes of Hartley and Ambrose.
I think Hartley could be in trouble next year and wonāt get a regular spot in the best 22 unless Ambrose is injured and/or there is a Gorilla that needs to be managed.
I think that redman will play a lot of games off the HBF or back pocket next year in the seniors. Lots to like.