Super happy that Raz and Joe are staying. I rate Raz as capable of being the best high half forward in the comp and we know what Joe’s best is like when his body allows it. Our new medical department will be crucial in getting the best out of these two.
Lav is still here. I’m a fan, I know others aren’t.
As far as who we’ve brought in, Phillips is an upgrade on Zac Clarke, Cutler improves our depth and versatility.
I’m disappointed that we still haven’t addressed our inside mid weakness. I don’t care what stats you throw at me, I still reckon we lack an inside brute and our undersized, slightly timid midfield brigade are too often out grunted at the coalface against the top sides. I’m sure we’ll get some state league plodder in the National Draft who we’ll be told will help us in this department.
Seems to me we picked up 2 Players exactly of the type we most needed, … a decent back up Ruck,… and a big bodied Mid, … and both for a couple of packets of Chips, … & who both could very well develop into very good best 22 players with more opportunity & development.
I actually don’t mind Cutler and I’m happy we’ve brought him across but just to be clear, he certainly is a big body, and he is often a mid, but he’s not a big bodied mid who operates at stoppages or gives us presence on the inside.
I reckon the club played the Joe situation absolutely perfectly, and, for once, have come out of it with the media strongly in their corner (yeah, I know, wgaf, but hopefully it sinks in for Joe that Sydney were not serious and only wanted him if he was a bargain, whereas we backed him to take us to success).
Well done, Adrian. You’re pretty handy come this time of year.
The way we have loaded up on those picks in the 60’s I’m not convinced we are done yet. Might bundle them together and send them to a club that needs extra points for an academy player.
I have no doubt he was recruited as a outside mid. Its his natural position. And it’s a area we severely lack in. I don’t see him being a inside mid, it goes away from all his natural strengths
Happier than you expect considering we only picked up two fringe players via very late pick trades
Retaining JD with no clear replacement lined up or gun talls in the top of draft in the end had to happen. Raz changing his mind himself was also fantastic and great for the club. If those two are fit and firing rd1 game on.
Lav shopped himself and no club really cared much at all which will have him back to knuckle down hard. With Stringer prone to picking up an injury here and there Lav will still be needed every now and then as depth 3rd tall fwd.
Cutler I am very bullish on. Think can play a range of roles including inside mid. He’s a bigger lad than I knew (192cm/92kg), works really hard up and back the ground and a thumping accurate kick. Will be a gem of a pick up IMO
Phillips despite being a Blues #2 ruck could very well push himself up to our #1 next year for many games given Tommy’s injury woes, maybe can rest him when he gets banged up more often. He actually follows up much better than Tommy and very experienced. Thankfully we have a far better back up than Clarke now also.
If Bonar’s actually on the reported 3-400k I’m happy we went nowhere near him. He’s a long way from the finished article, that sort of coin is ridiculous.
i do not understand people saying they are happy we picked up depth players.
we scraped into 8th position, we don’t need depth, we need better players in the best 22.
I can only hope that if phillips and cutler are outperforming their supposed senior counterparts, that they get a fair go in the seniors, and are not relegated to merely “depth” players who come in when we allow 21 goals against, and not seen any other time.
I reckon he’ll be close to best 22 round 1, our outside run is poor. That poor we had to play ham on a wing in a final this year (taking nothing away from him, he’s good, but still a little off it)