JR is much better than a good ordinary footballer. He will become an elite player of the AFL within the next two years. AA here he comes.

Does anyone think JR will get a little more time in the middle in the first few rounds? Especially when you think we'll be at least Juddless and perhaps also Murphless.

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You want the flame? Give us the marbles!!

If he's confident enough in his mind and physicality with his opponents he's capable of playing most roles IMO.

Of course, all roles rely on the individuals understanding and implementation of the game plan/style.

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There's so much I could say...

If he makes AA we should definitely catch up for a beer.

Full spectrum of opinions in here.

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dane's trolling again

I'll admit it, Jordan Russell was my number 1 whipping boy, couldnt stand him, didnt think he was up to it. High draft pick, high expectations, athletic, could run, jump, mark and kick but had absolutely no judgement or football smarts. It used to particularly irritate me that every time he got the ball he would stop and prop, look around, look indecisive, slow the play down, take a poor option, and often turn the ball over. Used to drive me crazy.

He proved me wrong in 2009. With the benefit of hindsight I think he was just scared of making a mistake. No confidence. Afraid to take risks. Fearful of stuffing up.

Brett Ratten (for all his deficiencies) takes the credit. He encouraged him to play on, take on the opposition, run the lines, outmark his opponents, and take risks, and this has increased his confidence no end.

The Geelong game against Steve Johnson (albeit an injured Steve Johnson) was the turning point. He murdered him in that game, and seems well suited to be a rebounding half back role.

Good on you Jordan. I've got no idea. You can play.

Done and done!

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You want the flame? Give us the marbles!!

Spot on. Pagan worked on intimidation. If a certain player didn't respond, he had no plan B. JR had pretty much all his confidence sucked out of him for the two years Pagan was in control. Almost makes you wonder about Trent Sporn and Justin Davies and whether Ratts could have turned their careers around had he got to them earlier. But like you said, Ratts has to take all the credit for this one. He's turned what many people rated as dead wood into a very promising footballer. I guess Ratts like a few of us could see that all the tools were there and all Russell needed was an injection of confidence (albeit an 18 month one). Make no mistake, provided JR kicks on again this year this is a HUGE win for Ratts.

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You want the flame? Give us the marbles!!

Some people rated him as deadwood, i was nowhere near as impatient as others around here

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"I will rejoice in their anguish, delight in their failure and revel in our success"

We are Carlton, @#$%&! the rest !!!!!!

Haha, yeah where is TroyBond nowadays??

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You want the flame? Give us the marbles!!

JR was never my favourite player , but I'm happy to say his last few games in 2009 were very good .
Definately in the best 22 on the HBF . Don't know about the middle . We've got some top class mids . Good HBFs are very important too . Leave him there , and hope he continues the good stuff from 2009 .

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Get the facts first.
Then you can distort them at your leisure.

lets not get ahead of our selves. I agree that he finished the year off really well but to say he's an A grader or he's made it is a little premature.

lets see how he goes this year, he needs to back it up and the coaching staff needs to keep him as a running half back. thats his spot, with his run and carry he can BECOME a damaging. still a long way to go but i take my hat of to you JR, i didnt think u stood a chance.

+1

Is this the JR Praise thread?

Sorry but yeah he made improvement in 2009 but unless l had a few too many drinks watching the game last year, l did remember him doing 4 or 5 kickouts from opposition points and they turned in to 4-5 turnovers.

I always said you will never win a premiership with Bentick, Cloke and Russell in the team. I still believe that to be a true statement.

How long you have to give a player a go to see improvement.

Top 10 in the B&F!

..listen, kick-outs aren't the kicker's fault, unless they butcher it.. ..if the players don't present and move, he's got a harder task.. ..and that's for all kickers.. .... ..and, yes he has made it.. ..look at how many games he's played now.. ..a player that has made it, doesnt mean they're elite.. ..it means that they've proven themselves to be AFL standard, which he is..

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

That is not a good sign if he is in our top 10 of our B&F!!

A premiership team would not have him in their top 10.

You try and tell me a Jordan Russell would be in the top 10 of a St Kilda, Pies, Hawks, Geelong team. Which are genuine premiership contenders.

To be a successful club we need better players then Jordan Russell in our top 10.

I won't deny he has improved, but its not hard to improve from being a turnover king in previous years. Hopefully he continues to improve.

Keep digging your own hole, it'll be lovely to watch Jordan tear them up this year and many years into the future.

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"I will rejoice in their anguish, delight in their failure and revel in our success"

We are Carlton, @#$%&! the rest !!!!!!

now maybe the top ten implies that he continued to improve

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This type of slight is alien in the more cultured part of the world - Walsh. Its up there with mad dogs, Englishmen and the midday sun!

Which rounds were those turnovers made from kick ins by Russell?

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

I honestly can't remember which game, l went to 17 games last year. It was at Telstra dome game, l think it was against Adelaide. If l have got him mixed up with someone else, then apologises, but pretty sure it was JR.

He didn't actually spray the kicks, but 5 times in a row he could not kick it to a player properly. Did not look for a player inside the 50m arc which was open. Just booted it out to the 55m line like in junior footy to a man covered hoping for a big mark, got spoiled each time obviously which resulted in a goal each time from kick ins. You would think once or twice but not 4-5 times in a game
Comes back to Footy smarts.