there might be a spot for him early if hocking hasn't come up yet. It's up to him.
Has he got enough ■■■■ in him for a tagging role?
Has winger written all over him for mine.
you might be right but if there is a tagging spot available i think any player who is truly committed to making it will give it a decent crack.
I can think of a few guys who started out as taggers who weren’t necessarily pests or possessing of the **** gene (pev, kirk, cross spring to mind). As long as he can play hard enough for long enough i don’t care if he doesn’t snipe blokes or step on their hands.
Kirk, Pev, Cross might not've been full of C but they all tackled a hell of a lot, and they all tackled like they really had genuine unresolved personal issues with the other bloke.
We've not seen the slightest indication of either trait, nor C word, in Kav!
I can see him getting his work rate up and even improve his tackling and strength but it doesn't really seem his bag? Accountable run-with role, maybe - out and out tagger, not a chance. Let alone Hocking's other body work - shoving guys off balance with the hip to allow Watson or Zaha a path to the ball, shepherding, etc etc.
yeah agree with all that. i’m just trying to look at this with an open mind. His mindset is clearly that he wants to play seniors (as should be the mind set of most). My thinking is that he should be targeting a spot that is realistically achievable and given hocking’s injury his may be one. I certainly don’t expect him to keep hocking out of the side as the no.1 tagger long term but if he can sneak a few games in a row early on it could help him build some confidence.
i think we need a bit more balance in the midfield as it is a bit skewed towards plodding big bodies (jobe, hepp, myers, hocking, howlett). I’d like to think someone on the list who can offer a bit more zip and agility can start to pressure at least one of those spots without detracting too much from what those guys can produce at the contest. i’m hoping one of kav, browne, melk, nob, hams or aylett might be able to do that. If a guy emerges from that lot who can break a line and win their own ball it will really help our midfield. That said i’m not convinced any of those mentioned fit the bill and we may be waiting another year or two for laverde or zmerrett to really elevate their contested game
I think he’ll eventually be an ideal replacement for Stanton, who’s 29(?) this year. He’s got the fitness to present all day and to run both ways and get an extra man at the contest and his disposal is fairly high quality. Downgrade on Stanton but similar qualities. Can’t see him playing a run with role at all. Does he really have zip? He’s always looked slow when he’s played.
there might be a spot for him early if hocking hasn't come up yet. It's up to him.
Has he got enough ■■■■ in him for a tagging role?
Has winger written all over him for mine.
you might be right but if there is a tagging spot available i think any player who is truly committed to making it will give it a decent crack.
I can think of a few guys who started out as taggers who weren’t necessarily pests or possessing of the **** gene (pev, kirk, cross spring to mind). As long as he can play hard enough for long enough i don’t care if he doesn’t snipe blokes or step on their hands.
Kirk, Pev, Cross might not've been full of C but they all tackled a hell of a lot, and they all tackled like they really had genuine unresolved personal issues with the other bloke.
We've not seen the slightest indication of either trait, nor C word, in Kav!
I can see him getting his work rate up and even improve his tackling and strength but it doesn't really seem his bag? Accountable run-with role, maybe - out and out tagger, not a chance. Let alone Hocking's other body work - shoving guys off balance with the hip to allow Watson or Zaha a path to the ball, shepherding, etc etc.
yeah agree with all that. i’m just trying to look at this with an open mind. His mindset is clearly that he wants to play seniors (as should be the mind set of most). My thinking is that he should be targeting a spot that is realistically achievable and given hocking’s injury his may be one. I certainly don’t expect him to keep hocking out of the side as the no.1 tagger long term but if he can sneak a few games in a row early on it could help him build some confidence.
i think we need a bit more balance in the midfield as it is a bit skewed towards plodding big bodies (jobe, hepp, myers, hocking, howlett). I’d like to think someone on the list who can offer a bit more zip and agility can start to pressure at least one of those spots without detracting too much from what those guys can produce at the contest. i’m hoping one of kav, browne, melk, nob, hams or aylett might be able to do that. If a guy emerges from that lot who can break a line and win their own ball it will really help our midfield. That said i’m not convinced any of those mentioned fit the bill and we may be waiting another year or two for laverde or zmerrett to really elevate their contested game
I think he’ll eventually be an ideal replacement for Stanton, who’s 29(?) this year. He’s got the fitness to present all day and to run both ways and get an extra man at the contest and his disposal is fairly high quality. Downgrade on Stanton but similar qualities. Can’t see him playing a run with role at all. Does he really have zip? He’s always looked slow when he’s played.
no i don’t think he is fast but i think he has the potential to move better between the lines than some of our regulars.
from the glimpses that we have seen of kav i think he moves alright in traffic (though paradoxically often misreads how much space he has when receiving on the move). He actually has quite good vision when it comes to picking options in close quarters and i think his kicking technique is solid and efficient but he lacks confidence at times to take more risky options.
when hurried in traffic he looks alright, when he thinks he has time he looks terrible. the directive to play more on instinct and back himself is probably on the money. I’m far from sold on him but i’m not quite convinced he is a dead horse either. he would want to show solid improvement this year though.
certainly needs to display more aggression at the man and at the ball.
I’m happy to hear he is having a ripping pre-season. I’ve all but given up on him making it so if he plays 10+ games this year and we are a strong side he would be an absolute bonus.
I love it how some on here seem to think Heath Hockings role is easy and some kid can come in and just play it. Not much respect on here for Hocking obviously!
Playing that tagging role is insanely hard, not only do you have the joy of running along side the competitions best players, who for the most part are all in the top bracket athletically in some way, have incredible game sense and will tear a game apart if give half a chance. But you have to actually stop the guy from even playing well, limit his space and effectiveness all the while trying to get a kick yourself.
Playing Kav in that role is just asking him to have confidence issues. Imagine trying to fight for your spot in the 22 each week and it being dependant on stopping Ablett, Judd, Dangerfield, Bartel, Beams, Parker, Ward, Mitchell etc.
It’s an incredibly hard role to play and few do it well enough to be worth it.