They’ve would’ve got him in 2002 as well if not for their draft sanctions
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I’ve been in this situation so many times…
I suppose the reverse can also be true…
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Nice to know in his time at the Mighty Bombers, we indoctrinated him into the F**k Carlton Club.
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Loved his passion for the club even tho it annoyed people and he cop it in the media for it.
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Shame about Settterrrfiekd going the opposite direction.
Love what BJ did.
I think we will see fairly early on the hole that BJ will leave. The Hooker injury will be compounded by Goddard’s absence IMO and not because of the position he plays but the leadership he provided. Hooker is the backbone of the defence IMO & without the use of runners, there’s going to be an increased focus on onfield leadership. Hurley will need to provide that in addition to taking the no.1 forward more often than not. Francis will also have to step up in that regard. So the Goddard decision is not merely a playing decision but a leadership one as well IMO. It’s a step we’ve been needing to take (leadership wise) but let’s hope we have over the off season.
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Completely agree. The couple of years beforehand we also had Kelly back there helping set up the defence and guide the younger players.
Our back six really haven’t played a hellava lot of footy together - Hurley has a big challenge ahead of him to step up when needed here.
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I agree, but also feel he was a liability in 2018 as well. I’m not sure his absence will effect the overall team in the way it functions, but there will be times we miss his skills.
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We will have Heppell in Goddard’s position. If we have a leadership shortage with the captain playing in defence, there’s a major issue.
And before Kelly we had Fletcher, but whatevs.
We still have a heap of experience back there, Francis is the only new one and the rest have all played a season together.
Heppel will drop back sometimes, Myers too, Connor and Saad know their roles, Ambrose has been at the club for around 5 years now, same as Brown. Bags could go back, Hooker should only miss the first few games.
Even throwing Guelfi or Ridley in the mix shouldn’t be a big deal.
He’s our main clearance player. I don’t think he’ll spend much time in the backline.
I’m actually pretty confident he’ll be playing a defence / midfield role. Will be interesting to watch how he gets used.
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Yeah, I agree with this also. I feel Hurls will need to leave rebounding to Francis, Oirish & Saad - and even Ridley, and concentrate on holding his man and marshalling the backline.
Not convinced on this. I rate Hepps midfield craft extremely highly - as high as I rate Merret, actually. So I don’t want him spending too much time back.
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Hurley aside, with Hooker out, we most definitely do not have a heap of experience back there.
Agree that Heppell is likely to spend time of half back for that very reason, though.
I honestly don’t know why people want Heppell to play back. He’s a solid reader of the play and quite good in the air for a mid, but he’s not a particularly explosive rebounder, and he doesn’t distribute the ball by foot or set up play with particularly exceptional penetration or accuracy.
I think most opposing clubs would be rapt if we stuck one of our best clearance players and most prolific ball getters down in defence where they could try to suck him deep away from the play.
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Understandable. I think we need to reduce his exposure so we don’t cripple him early in his career. Get more balance through the middle. Use him in the center but don’t break him. He finished the year in pretty poor condition.
From what I’ve seen Hurley looks to be playing as the deepest back. He’ll lead our backline well as the play will always be ahead of himself.
Encouraging leadership signs from Francis has also been noticeable over preseason.
Defensive leadership will be the least of our worries once Hooker and Gleeson are back.
I only see it happening in very small patches if we need to change momentum. Maybe just while Hooker is out. He’s just too good in the guts.
I hope you’re wrong