Alot of posters think Durham will be able to just fit in as a midfielder because of his size and physicality.
It doesn’t work like that.
Playing midfield is an art, reading the tap off the ruckman is an art, its not something anyone can just go in a do because they have the body for it.
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I don’t get the oh he was excellent with parish out last year but ran out of puff. He’s what 23/24 that’s five years in the system to be fit enough.
If you haven’t established yourself as a gun by then there’s a fair chance you’re not going to be.
I think he will end up as a average player and that’s ok
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I dont think he run out of puff.
Parish came back and he was moved out of the middle, thays what happened.
Also Calders is not your typical 23 year old, as like many others on our list he has spent large periods injured.
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Do you mean excellent with Parish out and then relegated to the forward flank and interchange?
Not sure he ran out of puff, so the good news is you are off the hook for not getting it.
I’d love for someone to tell me what iam missing because he probably only had two decent games when parish was out against Richmond and Carlton.
Not trying to be a prick I just don’t see what everyone sees as this great talent when I think Hobbs is already past Caldwell and he will probably struggle to get time in our midfield this year
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This I just don’t see. I rate Hobbs but I have Caldwell pretty comfortably ahead at this stage.
More damaging with the ball, cleaner, keeps his feet a bit better and just as good (maybe better) in contested ball/tackling.
Not sure who ends up better, but if was picking one or the other I’m going Caldwell atm.
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Personally iam sticking with Hobbs over Caldwell they are very similar but Hobbs just finished he’s second season where as Caldwell finsihing he’s fifth I see far more growth in Hobbs then I do Jye
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It is worth noting with Caldwell that due to injuries he has only played 20 games more than Hobbs.
I think they are actually at quite similar stages of development.
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I would prefer Caldwell play half forward.
He has the best impact of our midfielders that can play forward.
He either halves contests, wins them by using his hands or Creates secondary stoppages. He has good midfield traits but he is more a hybrid mid. Hobbs is a genuine inside mid
Durham is an outside player with the ability to go inside but still needs to learn when he holds width, blocks for his teammates or closes space down.
Around the ground he has the best offensive spread and defensively he is good as well.
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Hobbs and Caldwell stepped up in the absence of Parish (& Setterfield)
Injuries happen
Depth play a bigger part
That is list mgmt in action
As @Benny40 rightly points out there are about 8-10 mids at least on each side at any given time. This Caldwell is effectively playing midfield for the majority of his minutes, just not centre bounce or being used as the prime mover…because….he isn’t the big dog.
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If we are pushing for top 4 in the home and away season in coming years; Caldwell, Perkins and Hobbs need to take the next step.
I’ve seen gradual improvement in Perkins and Hobbs, but Caldwell has stagnated imo. Probably because he lacks consistency.
He’s been in the system a while now. He’s 23 years old, so the pressure is on now. He’s now reached his prime for a midfielder. We need to see some improvement.
He came to us with huge potential. Need to start seeing it.
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Said this earlier in the thread that Hobbs will go past him as Hobbs has a lot more growth in he’s game.
I think people get wrapped up in comments made by Phil Davis, I’ll give it to Caldwell he’s had a couple of good games but so have a lot of players that didn’t kick on with it.
I think he personally ends up a average player and that’s fine as you need a group of players
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Caldwell has the ability to be BOG for a quarter. His limitation is strength and contested endurance through a full game. Hopefully we see a more consistent coal face performance this year.
Caldwell is a good example of a lot of our players. Just so inconsistent, and goes missing when the opposition stifles the way we want to play.
This is really disappointing for a player who has a reputation for cracking in at the contest.
He just has far too many games where he has no influence on the game what so ever. 10-13 disposals & no goals, just isn’t good enough for a player pushing for a run through the midfield.
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If he’s not doing it for full games after five years in the system then the chances of him doing it are very slim.
bit unfair when he only played 14 games in his first 3 years due to injuries
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He’s played 50 games of football, and turns 24 later this year.
It’s time to see some consistency now.
The excuse of “he’s still young” is wearing thin. If we dont see him kick on soon, he’ll be over taken by other players.
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100% agree.
He’s had an interrupted career to date, has shown serious glimpses of what he could be. He needs to step up and deliver.
I remember the first quarter in that final played in Tassie. He was best on ground, absolutely dominant, but faded due to poor fitness returning from injury too early. He can do it, he just needs to do it more often. If he doesn’t, Hobbs and Tsatas will push him out of the side.
This sort of competition for spots is exactly what we need. It’s a good thing, hopefully all the players think they should be best 22 and want to stick around.
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Caldwell is not consistent because he’s a midfielder playing on a HFF…a hard position to regularly win the footy. Throw him into the centre and he will all of a sudden seem consistent.
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