After a loss and all the negative crap that gets thrown around on here during this time, i thought we could focus on something a lot more positive to get our minds off the loss.

The Confidence to know you belong. Plenty of kids get chewed up and spat out the other end of the AFL system not because they dont have the talent, not because they dont have the desire, but simply because they never reach the mental state that allows them to feel confident in the fact that they deserve to be out there and they can match it with the best.

I read in an article a while back with Nathan Buckley that when he would step out onto the field, not only did he know that he could dominate the match, but that he could tear anyone and anything apart that gets thrown at him. This is the type of confidence i am talking about.

To relate this back to Carlton, Bryce Gibbs has been in the system for a year and a half now. When he started out last year i remember thinking he looks a step behind everyone else and if he could just get his brain ticking over to the next level he would find the game of AFL very easy.
I could see, as i'm sure most could ( thus he was the number 1 pick), that he had the ability to dominate games and stamp himself on the contest. But he just didn't seem to believe it himself. He was still working through those cobwebs. Last week around the middle of the first quarter i msg'd a mate and said this will be the making of Gibbs. I could see from the first quarter that he had found that 'spark' that 'confidence' that when he got his hands on the ball, if he thought his way through it, there was nothing anyone could do to stop him. This confidence, shone through last night. Every time he touched the ball he had the confidence to shrug an opponent off, take a side step, run, bounce, whatever he liked. He finally realised that he belongs!

Murphy i feel found this confidence a lot earlier. Almost instantly. Walker i think only found this confidence last year. This was evident by his willingness to take the opposition on. Russell has shown glimpses but clearly does not yet believe it yet. (there is a reason he was pick 9 people).

So what we should be taking out of last nights game is the fact that we now have a kid who is ready to grab the game by its horns and really start to strut his stuff and dominate the competition for a long long time.

_________________
Loooook OUT!

Gibbs and Walker were also bottom age players.

At 17 even 18 year olds can be daunting.

_________________
"Liberals feel unworthy of their possessions. Conservatives feel they deserve everything they've stolen."

Mort Sahl

murphy and gibbs FTMFW

_________________
"You don’t get much more Navy Blue than Stephen Kernahan" - Marc Murphy

Nice post MB - totally agree.

So were Jake and Mark Austin but that seems to get forgotten. Both are still babes in AFL footy terms.

From the 2005 draft if you look at picks 20-40 (Jake at 36) 13 of those 20 have played only a handful ( <10 ) of games and Jake was one of the youngest of that group of 20. Jake just turned 20 in Jan and Mark doesn't turn 20 until next Feb.

There are very few players at that age and their height of 192+ that are performing consistently at AFL level.

Regards Cazzesman

_________________
Ricky Gervais - “Everyone has the right to hold whatever beliefs they want. And everyone else has the right to find those beliefs f***ing ridiculous.”

See, you ruined a really good post by putting Russell's name in there. I am guessing the reason he went pick 9 is similar to the reason Livo went at pick 4.

Yup.............

cos they didn't go at pick 6................!


kindest regards tommi

_________________
that'siti'mnotchangingthistagain......!

Doof Doof, i was waiting for someone to say something like that. And the reason i included Russell in this post was to try and reiterate my point.
I dont think you would disagree with me that if he played as well as he did in that last quarter against Port every match that we would be harping on about how good he is. But the fact is that he doesn't play that well. Infact he has hardly done anything since that game.
THUS my point is that players have that ability but do not reach their potential because they lack the confidence and belief in themselves that they can maintain that standard for four quarters throughout the year! Russell i believe is this person. Whilst Gibbs has realised that he can dominate this level, i dont think Jordan is anywhere near Gibbs's level MENTALLY!

_________________
Loooook OUT!

Russell is nowhere near Gibbs at any level.

Gibbs = AFL Footballer

Russell = Metro Footballer

He has done more than you

A few weeks back Mackey of Geelong was on the radio and said it took him a few years to get his consistancy as he was going in and out of the firsts. We forget that these are young kids. It doesn't help to have keyboard experts constantly knocking players as above.

Oh by the way no one said Russell was at Gibbs level

Not wanting to bump up my own posts....but, i feel that Russells time has finally arrived. Weather he becomes an A grade 'amazing' footballer is yet to be seen but i can confidently say he finally believes. The way he is running and demanding the ball are all signs of a guy that is confident in his ability with the football. He has a belief in himself that it is now up to him to clear the ball from the back line and that if he doesn't do it perhaps no one will.

I say congratulations to the man that is much maligned on this site and by the wider carlton community.

He is really running and playing like a man that is confident in his ability and believes that he is a seriously good footballer.

GREAT WORK JR!!!!!!

_________________
Loooook OUT!

Although never bagging him personally I took everyone's views to note and scrutinised his disposal to see if posters had a point.

Up until he was dropped I think they did.

BUT OMG ... being dropped was simply the best thing that ever happenned to him ... was hoping Ratts would drop the whole team for the Melbourne match! We would be a shue in for the flag if the team responded like Russle.

I am just so wrapped at his progress and how important he is to the team now.

His runs out of defence are a revelation! Good on ya son ... keep it going and you will have the satisfaction of turning 85% of the TC crowd into man loving stalkers ... I personally am developing a man crush on you at the mo!

What a small amount of self belief will do.

Just keep it up Russle everyone here has no problems you rubbing our face in it on a weekly basis.

I want you to become an absolute legend!

im one of the 15%

always thought the kid could play, he, not anyone else, he just needed to believe he could play.

we are a better 22 with him finally playing like some of us thought he could

_________________
Got to love the stare Down by Setanta on Llyod

Was even directing traffic against Melbourne; giving Stevens directions. Confidence.

_________________
I AM DISENFRANCHISED