#26 Cale "Thank You Mr" Hooker - rejects a brown paper bag from FCFC

[Klawdy]

Seems to have found his accuracy this year. Struggled a bit in his season forward (still kicked 40+), but I can’t remember him missing too many this year. I generally feel pretty confident when he is lining up now.

His kicking for goal has been fantastic this year.

[chris_64]

He’s really struggling as a defender…I think they have to play him forward and bring Hartley in, but I reckon Hartley is really low in the pecking order of the selection panel and was only played against the crows because they had no other option.

Seems like it. I am not especially a Hartley fan, but I reckon the selectors shot themselves in the foot in their indecent haste to drop him even when we had to deal with 2 meter peter, 2 metre Jarrod, 2 metre Ben and 1.97metre Sam.

[wannabe]

Makes sense that if we are trailing, a tall opposition fwd might go back to give them an extra tall in defense to help them hold the lead. It’s good that Hooker can follow him and that he’s probably a better fwd than his counterpart is a defender.
Probably also means that if Hooker goes forward (while we are behind and opposition is in “hold on” mode) then a tall fwd has to follow him. This would probably clog up our fwd 50 a bit (not if our transition is quick enough) so Brown would take his opponent to the wing to help in defense should the opposition get the ball out of our forward 50.
Most of this switching would happen after a centre bounce or coming off the bench, which is why we often don’t see Hooker fwd until just before he marks it.

[munna1]

While I agree with that. Hooker is not 100 percent and struggling down back. Hence why he needs to go fwd

[munna1]

Not only that but smack also would get the second best tall defender. It actually makes it better for smack.

[Lance84]

Seems to have found his accuracy this year. Struggled a bit in his season forward (still kicked 40+), but I can’t remember him missing too many this year. I generally feel pretty confident when he is lining up now.

His kicking for goal has been fantastic this year.

Fun fact, his goal kicking accuracy is actually worse this year than it was in 2017. (and yes, that includes OOB)

[Albert_Thurgood]

Aww, that’s not fun.

[Lance84]

He’s kicking the ones that matter.

[Bomber-A]

Fun fact, his goal kicking accuracy is actually worse this year than it was in 2017. (and yes, that includes OOB)

Really?? I can’t think of too many that he has missed this year.

To be fair though I think a lot of his shots this year have been from 40+ meters out and a lot of his misses in 2017 from memory were easy and he’d shank them and miss badly (probably where he got this rep from)

[Lance84]

Yeah it would have been more noticeable when he was a full time forward. And the sample size this year is pretty small.

[Klawdy]

Seems to have found his accuracy this year. Struggled a bit in his season forward (still kicked 40+), but I can’t remember him missing too many this year. I generally feel pretty confident when he is lining up now.

His kicking for goal has been fantastic this year.

Fun fact, his goal kicking accuracy is actually worse this year than it was in 2017. (and yes, that includes OOB)

Since when are we allowed to use stats here? I thought we could only form opinions when watching the game through rose coloured glasses. That is really going to change the way I post from now on.

But seriously, as @bomber-a said, it feels like he’s barely missed this year. Maybe I just feel more confident because he doesn’t run at the man on the mark flat out like he used to. Is there a stat for that? If not we need a “set shot approach speed” added to the list. @chris_64 can you please contact CD?

[Azza78]

He’s kicking the ones that matter.

Watching with Mrs Azza, who’s not a big footy fan. When he was lining up for that goal she asked if Hooker’s normally a good kick for goal. My reply was that he’s usually pretty awful but I’d put the house on him kicking this one.

He’s a big game, big moment player.

[Sameolds2010]

He’s kicking the ones that matter.

Watching with Mrs Azza, who’s not a big footy fan. When he was lining up for that goal she asked if Hooker’s normally a good kick for goal. My reply was that he’s usually pretty awful but I’d put the house on him kicking this one.

He’s a big game, big moment player.

Whose names your house under

[Azza78]

Mine, but it used to be under Mark Stevens’ name.

[Milanista28]

Snag with Hooker aye Den?

[Maxx]

Hooker fwd we score at 97 points per 100 minutes.
Hooker down back we score only 63 points per 100 minutes.
When Hooker plays forward, the Bombers defence improves — they go from conceding 62 points per 100 minutes to 42 points per 100 minutes.

9 goal swing.

Hooker wins 50 per cent of his one-on-one contests, including directly out-marking his opponent in six of his 21 targeted opportunities.

Jake Stringer has marked seven of his 40 targeted opportunities, Shaun McKernan five of his 43 and Mitch Brown is yet to out-mark his opponent after 32 one-on-on-one opportunities.

[Albert_Thurgood]

Snag with Hooker aye Den?

Hooker should send Den for a battered snag.

[is_good_is_don]

Hooker fwd we score at 97 points per 100 minutes.
Hooker down back we score only 63 points per 100 minutes.
When Hooker plays forward, the Bombers defence improves — they go from conceding 62 points per 100 minutes to 42 points per 100 minutes.

9 goal swing.

As the egg said to the chicken… who came first?

[mdso]

Mitch Brown may well be out marked by his opponent in the stats however he is one of most accurate kicks for goal.

[Black_Kavanagh]

And this is why you don’t start him forward in a game.

Because all he does is stand in the one spot and call for it in a 2-3 vs 1.