2 months ago Eddie was a champ and we were going to name a stand after him. He's having a form slump, but at least he's got form to slump too.

Yarran is showing his ability, that is an ability to change a game in an instant and an even bigger ability to coast in the easy zone.

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I hope Essendon* folds.

Betts has kicked:

19 in 2005
20 in 2006
21 in 2007
25 in 2008
38 in 2009
41 in 2010

The only way is up.

he still goes missing against the top teams, i would like hime to prove me wrong over the next few weeks

Yazz ?

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BRING BACK PERFORMANCE BASE PAYMENTS !!!

Don't always disagree with you JK but Grigg is a 'nothing player'. Just an observation/opinion. suspect kicking, decision making and footy smarts. And I don't see him as a hard nut at all. Anyway, that's just my take on him.

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

Agree, Betts is a junk time goal specialist. Wouldn't trade him though. Maybe needs half a dozen games in the Bullant next year.

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

Against top teams it only makes sense he is going to be up against a top defender and the chances are that the ball is not going to be coming into the forward line with the system that gives lots of goal scoring chances. In his postion the odds are stacked against him. Over the years many a small forward has come undone in the big games but with modern gameplans involving defensive pressure in the forward line there are many ways a player like betts can have an impact on the game.
He and us should not be so goal focussed. He should be more team focussed and focus on laying the big tackles, making sure that if the ball comes out of our fifty comes out on our terms, getting his knockons and defelctions that can lead to scoring opportunities. He can also take his opponent out of play and open up space for those not so closely guarded.

All is not lost with betts. He can rebuild his game with a few tweaks and be of great value to the team in coming weeks.

Needs to stop being a punk and realise he is now a mature footballer and needs to behave like on, forget about the 3 amigo stuff and just become the ultimate team player.

Betts is ranked 1st in goals, 1st in goal assists, and 7th in tackles for us.

So on the face of it, he's really performing well.

Taking a close look at this season, he does seem to go missing when we lose.

http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/pg-c ... ward-betts

However playing as a small forward, there's not much he can do if the midfield isn't getting the ball into the F50 (either properly or at all).

It's not his fault he's not rotated through the midfield more.

Perhaps it's up to the coaching staff to find ways to use him more effectively when we're losing?

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I AM DISENFRANCHISED

Apart from the suspect kicking, I couldn't disagree more ... he's a very smart footballer and I'd put decision making down as one of his strengths. Well composed and has the ability to look up and pick an option outside of his initial field of vision. What he lacks in kicking (and he'd be just mid range on the Carlton list best kicks) he makes up with excellent handball with both hands over distance. Knows where to run and makes it to an enormous number of contests around the ground.

Solid, quality player and like's the physical stuff. An excellent rotation in the midfield, a poor man's Jordan Lewis and that's no insult.

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"It was like calling your ex girlfriend after a night on the booze, just a really bad decision".

I stand by my original assessment. We'll agree to disagree

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

One of our issues going forward is to get more out of guys like Garlett, Yarran and Betts. Small forwards who play purely as small forwards do not win premierships. The best types are guys like Stokes, Chapman, Rioli etc who are able to contribute to the team in other ways as well.

Betts needs to spend more time on the ball. He is one of the best readers of the play at stoppages and he uses the ball as well as anyone. If he can develop the engine to spend more time up the ground it will help us enormously. If he can do that I am sure it will help his consistency and he will still kick 30-40 goals a year. Garlett is a bit the same and I can see him spending time on a wing or as a lead up HF. HIs tackling and speed is a bonus as is his marking. A late developer who will hopefully keep improving. Needs to improve his disposal under pressure.

Yarran has as much skill as anyone on our list but needs to keep developing his engine and improve his work rate. This is his big question mark. If he can have another good pre season I would play him off HB where he will be accountable, have to work harder for longer, learn to do the 1% ers and simple things and become a creative force ala McLeod. He can still push forward at times but this would help his development and above all help the team.

As with a lot of our players the development by our coaching staff will be the key to our future!

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#NewBlues beginning 25th August 2015

I love the truth.

Truth is what you said.

At present...well since he signed his generous contract he's been crap.
He's got the money and lost the heart. Superfluous.

If he is selected gaainst Freo this week and doesn't perform (other than with his cameo junk time goals), then drop him to teach him a lesson or keep him for the finals and trade him.

How much would you put on him at 40 metres out on a slight angle with a set shot? Yeah trade him. He's shitting me too much.
And to think earlier this year I had him along with Judd, Waite, Gibbs and Murphy as our AA candidates...I guess if that acronym meant Alcoholics anonymous then I am still right. Just kidding, but that may be correct.

The preseason training he did at the Richmond gym after being banned from the team for being drunl and asleep in the city is along long time ago, and as such, the positve effect that time in the gym had for hism has long worn off.

Time to deliver Bettsy. Onya Doc. Keep drinking and posting. I like the honesty.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

The idea is forward-thinking, but I just couldn't trade Eddie Betts. Garlett is definitely cutting his grass this season, but there is more to Eddie's game than the usual front-and-square small forward stuff. His rotations into the clearances mean almost as much as his work at the feet of Waite/Hendo.

I would rather bring in a bash n crash type to create more crumbs than trade away our best crumber after a form slump.... Campbell Brown would be just the type of bloke - assuming we can't build a 90kg Robbo.

To answer the original question, both Yarran and Garlett have good chase/tackle games, but they're not defenders by any stretch of the imagination. Believe me, if I could get Yarran on to a HBF instead of Jordan Russell, I would.

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"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter" - Winston Churchill.

Trade Eddie to the Weagles for Spangher. He's 23yrs, 195cm, 95kg, wanted to come home to Vic. this year, signed a one year contract. He's a tall defender who is still improving, Carlton could do with one or two like him.

The Illeagles certainly need someone who can kick goals other than Lecras (they have got some nobody called Kennedy who might make it one day), I reckon they'd jump at the deal.

The only possible problem is that the Gold Coast Sunburn might be sniffing around young Matt knowing he's unhappy in the West.

Eddie for Spanner

Are you F!@#$% serious dude.

Glad your not in charge as that is totally F!@#$%.

I just threw up in my own mouth.

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When you're a Jet you're a Jet all the way!

Not for Spangher thanks.

We don't want that hack.

No probs 99...I just have feeling about Grigg reckon he may surprise....let's hope so anyway but Im sure we can agree Lucas has what it takes from what we have already seen of him

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"Truth, for the tyrants, is the most terrible and cruel of all bindings; it is like an incandescent iron falling across their chests. And it is even more agonizing than hot iron, for that only burns the flesh, while truth burns its way into the soul"     — Lauro Aguirre

Is this for real??

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We are on our way back...

Eddie was on fire early on in the year and in fact one commentator said he had become the most important player inthe team . Since that game he has been junk

Yarren. Has all the skillls but is as soft as butter needs to toughen up big time

Garlett is a super star for such a skinny kid to produce what he has been doing is nothing short of sensational . Betts was a 1/4 as good as him at the same stage
two more preseasons and 5 more kilos and he most likely will be the best player on our list

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If you allow the Government to change the Laws in an emergency
They will create an Emergency to change the Laws

I think that Garlett needs another pre-season or two in the gym. Too many players brush his tackles aside and just walk through him. He was a bit older than Chris and Eddie when he came to the club and had been playing senior football in WA so perhaps was more prepared than they were when they started.

Yarran appears to have an ego and I think the MC should use that to make him improve and teach him that getting the hard ball, laying a tackle, and helping the team, are more important than being the fastest over 20 metres or having the most tricks. However he is only young so another year or two and he may really step up.

Ediie has suffered because for quite a few of games he has been our main go to forward and the structure of our forward line has not allowed him to get those crumbing goals whcih come from having 2 or 3 marking targets up forward.