He looks more of a Redman type to me, a rebounding defender who seems to be really good at intercepting the ball too. We need more back and HB flankers, so I hope he’s good enough to get in.
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Didn’t we stock up with talls in the draft last year why look at taking another one? A small fwd or pure inside mid with size should be priority
He’s 190cm tall. I’d say he’s a medium defender, so the question is, is he good enough to play on smalls too?
I wish we had that sort of marking ability playing in our midfield.
What we need, is a 180-ish speedfreak Hb that can not only take the game on and break lines but also cover quick small forwards and is good in the air.
Oh wait…
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from draft central. Pace looks OK which is important
AFTER suffering an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury a couple of years back, Baker has put together a couple of years of good work to emerge as a genuine mature-age option in this year’s draft. Stationed at half-back for Canberra Demons, Baker was an intercept machine, averaging 7.2 marks and 30.6 disposals in the NEAFL. Had an eye-opening 37 disposals, 15 marks and 10 inside 50s against NT Thunder. A number of clubs are keen on the readymade player who could also be released as a tall midfielder if need be. At the State Draft Combine, Baker recorded a 3.04-second 20m sprint which is not too bad for his size, and while his other athletic traits were not overly impressive, he still has strong impact in the air and is hard to bring down in tackles. He has a high hurt factor and of the mature-agers eligible, Baker might be one of the most likely to land at an AFL home given the interest and ability to have an immediate impact.
STRENGTHS: Intercept marking, rebounding, accumulation, hurt factor
IMPROVEMENTS: Versatility, agility
190cm isn’t a tall
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Lets make him a tall mid then
He’s not a tall. You can be an interceptor while being medium sized (see Gleeson when younger). The real question is how is he played? Is he played primarily as a free man who can intercept (such as Gleeson was) or does he play man-to-man but know when to peel off (like Hibberd did)? If the later, and if he can shut his man down, he could be a good option. We would really like another Hibberd!
The question is whether at 190cm he can go with the guys who are faster, who are often smaller?
That’s what Perkins is meant to bring. Or Heppell if we could get him back on the park!
Agreed. Its partly whether he can play on smalls, but also does he have a defensive side to his game? We don’t really need an interceptor, others play that role. So if he intercepts (especially if he’s been freed up to do so), but not much else, then that’s not really the skill set we need.
But if he can intercept while also keeping someone 180-190cm quiet, then that’s cool. Can he shut a Liam Ryan down?
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He also might be handy on the wing @Finding_Nino.
His ability to intercept isn’t going to make him any worse rebounding off HB. So often on these threads people seem to discount players for certain positions because they have talents that suit another position too. That is a strength NOT a weakness.
As I said, it depends on how he’s played and what his other strengths are. If the team is structured so he’s spare man in defense, coming across and intercept marking as the third man (a role Gleeson used to play), then we don’t really need that.
If he plays more like Hibberd who shut a man down but knew when to peel off to either intercept or provide an option, then we definitely do need someone like that.
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Hocking might be able to give him a few tips.
Especially in regards to sour dough.
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Great to see us bring along someone at least. We have list spots available and other clubs have players training with them. At the very least we can make a call on a bloke and find someone else if need be.
Question: Why would we be looking at a player who has already had a bad ankle injury and done an acl?
Answer: To save time.
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Gen Lol. 
Alec Waterman also set to train with us
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How’s he been going at Claremont? Such a shame the young bloke’s been suffering from glandular fever
Looks like he kicked 20 goals in his last 6 games, including 7 from the 2 finals he played.
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26 from 10 for the year and won the BnF.
Role at AFL level?