http://www.bordermail.com.au/news/local ... 42980.aspx



Should he get an extension?



Also nice to see the boys up at Wahgunyah Primary in Nthn Vic. spreading the love..

_________________
There's so much I could say...

Ryan Houlihan shows his skills in a clinic with the students of Wahgunyah Primary School. Pictures: MATTHEW SMITHWICK

My goodness, how Houla has changed since Friday night.

_________________
“It is a state of mind, a system of belief, a way of seeing the world, a deep faith that, because you are Carlton, you belong to something great.” - Mike Fitzpatrick articulating what Out of the Blue means.

..yeah, easily deserves a contract extension.. ..our list is still a fair way off us being able to knock back players of his standard.. ..if yer reckon he's not good enough a player, fair enough [though i disagree], but either way our list isn't good enough yet to offload players like him..

_________________
..if you can't be good, be good at it..

yeah,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, give him a contract extension

will be a good asset for the Northern Bullants !!!!!

_________________
BRING BACK PERFORMANCE BASE PAYMENTS !!!

absolutely!
and with his non-collision style of game he should have a few years service left and a very fresh body!

_________________
C'mon Blueboys!

I'm not sure comments like "he belongs in the Bullants" or "collision style" are really relevant comments, and seem to be a thinly veiled swipe at a player, which IMO is unnecessary.

Anyway to the topic at hand...

Houla has never been or never will be a "hard nut" in the style of a Glen Archer etc. Thats not to say he has not improved his defensive skills. During the first few games the stats show he had a solid returns in tackles, hard ball gets etc. He has been given some KPIs from the coach in realtion to those things, and as we saw, suffered demotion when he did not meet those.

Houla is also another one who IMO has been the victim of being played out of position too regularly. Houla has and always will be a forward of centre player. There is no point in playing him in the backline, HBF or anywhere near that area.

Its forward or bust AFAIC.

Now as to his future - he deserves a contract extension assuming he consistently applies the things he has improved on this season eg: tackling pressure etc. It would be nice also if he got a bit more return of the scoreboard, but that should come assuming he is played to his strength in the forward line and he does not have to perform to many negating roles like he did against St Kilda.

So in a nutshell I think he does have a place in our best 22, skills like his don't grow on trees.

_________________
Cripps is the man

No rush. He can wait till the end of the year just like Setanta.

As long as he is not being paid a lot

He is not worth big bucks

_________________
It's a small world, but I wouldn't want to paint it

Whats all this about ???

Is this what TC has become ???

I sure hope not !!!

besides I am just saying, I dont believe Houla will be good enough to make it in the senior side, but would be good Value in the Bullants.

What is so wrong with that ??????

_________________
BRING BACK PERFORMANCE BASE PAYMENTS !!!

OB perhaps I read more into your post than I should of - so I apologise.

But I don't agree that Houla is not good enough to make it in the senior side, after all he is and has been playing seniors most of this season, which would suggest he is in fact good enough.

_________________
Cripps is the man

You should have just said it like that in the first place.

Good to see the balanced view points coming to the fore.

Worth another two seasons after this one observing his entire season's performance. Worth one on current form.

I think we can safely review it at the end of the season.

_________________
29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

I also saw a post by his biggest fan over on BF stating that he was suspended/ommitted at that time for missing a team curfew.

Either way, not a good selling point for a 27yo who's looking for a new contract and has very talented young players competing for a forward spot.

I think a lot of posters pretend he is something a lot more special than what he actually is.

Average - slow paced, good value at times but lacks consistency in intensity,..unreliable, IMO.

I wouldn't be disappointed to see him moved on ... and I wouldn't go crook if he was re-contracted on a low base contract for depth purposes.

_________________
There's so much I could say...

I think his pace is actually starting to come back. That lead in the fourth was blindingly quick.

_________________
29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

..would he be on schedule regarding his 'comeback' from the big hip-ops last year..?.. ..i'd imagine the sort of work he had done would take a while to fully recover from..

_________________
..if you can't be good, be good at it..

One of our more skillful players at the club. Fev always says if he could have one person kicking the ball to him every game, it'd be Houlihan. Big wrap for him given we have the likes of Judd, Gibbs etc in the side who are good users of the ball by foot.

_________________
Writer for SuperCoach Paige www.scpaige.com.au
Twitter - @johnfeeney24

I agree. His good qualities would excuse his inconsistency if he was younger or more raw.
However he is very experienced as a footballer, and doesn't deliver good performances often enough.

Happy to keep him for depth, but would not sacrifice too much of the salary cap for him. Good servant to the club but has been given plenty of leeway in the past

Definitely worth another year with a club exercisable option for a second. There's no hurry though, I'd expect the decision will be made towards the end of the year.

We're not overwhelmed with young quality forwards of any description.

Definately not worth delisting. If something good was on the table come trade week then I'd consider, otherwise a 2 year deal for me as there won't be much better available over the next 2-3 years.

True that.

_________________
The problem will be made. for the solution to be sold, to your face before your eyes, tolerance is now the new danger