how many key defenders average over 16 possies a game and set-up attack out of defence like t-bird does?

http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/tr-c ... t=TA&st=DI

I wish this site had spoils as well. That would be an intersting stat.

T-bird is clearly our best defender. For the last 3-4 years he has had to play on the gorillas and done an admirrable job, and tonight he clearly beat mark williams, one of the best small forwards in the comp.

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@cecil_anderson

Beat me to it.

T-Bird is one of the top players in the comp for defensive spoils.

He's had to meet the ball in flight so many times in his career and have everyone else around him fall like a deck of cards (and concede a goal) so I'm not surprised he has a piddly amount of tackles to his name.

Dig up some other statistics, like defensive marks, loose ball gets, hard ball gets, rebound 50s, bounces.

EDIT: Heeeere we go...

http://www.pro-stats.com.au/psw/web/player_profile?pid=2002026

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

thornton must be high on clangers and turnovers surely.

his spoiling is 1st rate though.

Such a long post,too bad you are unaware that Tex was opposed to Matt Little and not Boyle!

why the hell is there so many negatives in this thread ????

All of our players tried there best in the 2nd competitive game of the year on a ground we have never played at against a team that "is on the up".

All this crap about the Tassie Hawks not being full strength, bah humbug, who were they missing really ? Hell over at B#g F#@*y some of the Tassie supporters think that Roughead didn't even play !!!!!!!!!!!!

All out young guns put the game on our terms after the first 5 mins or so, and the older ones (Stevo & Kouta) steadied the ship in the last quarter.

Marc Murphy that all that needs to be said, even Voss was in awe of his performance tonight.

A job well done, if the learning curve continues like this, exciting times ahead in the next few years for the Blues.

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when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth

Feelgood Hit of the Winter - GHRP-2, GHRP-6, CJC-1295, AOD-9604, Humanofort and Hexarelin

Was a scrappy hard fought game, and while we missed too many easy shots at goal and we had the usual excessive turnovers, got to say I was wrapped watching it.
Murphy is a star. Kennedy presented very well. Tex was running it out of the backline and attacking the ball at pace. Jackson was good around the ball and pressuring the opposition. Carrots kicked straight when it counted. Eddie was harrassing the hell out of everyone and causing the Hawks to turn it over on our forward line.

That's me smiling for the rest of the week

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The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.

Ronald Reagan

Too mute to go back and quote, but whoever bagged Jordan Russel for being soft must have been at a different game. He has improved out of sight in the hardness stakes over the last 18 months. He was obviously running with that softcock Bateman who normally pulls 25 stats against us. How many did he get tonight? I've held judgment on JR till tonight but he absolutely decimated Bateman who had 4 years (IIRC) experience on him. In addition he threw himself into packs he had no right to be in. He will be a player. Maybe not a pick 9 but he will play a lot of games for us.

Walks had a dirty night skills wise but @#$%&! I love him as a player. And I would still turn for murph too.

_________________
The only way for some people to understand is for them to be on the receiving end

Left wing moralists
In self serving denial
They shit me no end

Interesting to read all the above. I listened on the net from 1:00 a.m. through SEN (not the best commentary team) and the impression I had just from listening, was that Waite did well on Franklin but his kicking seems to be awful. Same with Walker. He runs well but then seems to turn it over a lot or miss his target. I know it is different when you can watch it but comments like 'the kick falls short' or 'terrible kick went straight to the opposition' seemed to pop up a lot with them. It sticks in your mind because you don't get to see the things that came before, like a dash through half back or a great piece of groundwork that the commentators haven't got time to describe. Just the same, I will take the win but agree with earlier posts that we should look at the Bowers, Griggs Hartletts and co before the real balloon goes up.
I was also disappointed in Saddington's game until I just read he played 80 % on the bench. He did OK when he came in from all reports.
Where is Wiggins? Is he injured? Is he going to be in our best 22 this year? I prefer him to Bentick and think he is more overall value than Eddie Betts because he can play taller, although I think Eddie is a better chaser and causes a lot of spills.
Thanks for the comments everybody, but let's try and stay positive. A win is a win is a win. It gives the kids a winning feeling they haven't had much. And it makes them learn the words of the song.

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Let slip the Blues of war (with apologies to William Shakespeare) (and Sir Francis Bacon, just in case)

Bret Thornton has been one of my favorite Carlton players,the guys does a great job with nearly no support for nearly 5 years and some guys wanted him to go for a second round pick.

I wouldn't have gave him up for at least a top 5 pick and still would be worried,because you need good defenders.

His a top 3 pick in my draft.He still only 23,should play at least 5 years even up to 10 years depending on injuries and his form.

Good 2nd win for us,don't want to sound to cocky,we should take baby steps.

That was a good crowd in Tasmania,there was a bit of a Carlton crowd there,maybe we should investigate playing 1 game in the season there,could be some handy members to Carlton we can take away from those hawks.

I thought Bentick has been injured,so he would be rusty for a few weeks until he gets his fitness back to where he was,it could have been a lot different in the real season,he might have stopped Mitchell doing much if he match practice.

Skills were very ordinary, to say the least.

BUT, the boys fought the whole match out, and resisted when challenged in the last, with Kouta chiming in with some very deft touches at times in the last qtr.

Stevens was very good. It's becoming obvious that he's feeling under far less pressure with Bentick, Simpson, Murphy and Gibbs around him in the midfield and not being required to be the man each and every time.

Murphy. What can you say? Wow. It's like he moves faster than time itself, and ends up having time to size up opponents, pick targets etc.

Waite Santy and Walker were solid down back, but their kicking was, well...ordinary. That will hopefully improve as the season matures.

Thornton looked far more settled with support around him.

Overall very happy with the effort all round, and I think it will be a nice warm-up into the season proper.

It's early in the morning, and I don't want to be up, but at least I'm smiling.

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And so while others miserably pledge themselves to the pursuit of ambition and brief power, I will be stretched out in the shade, singing.

Hey...............

we finished 16th last year did we not............?

it's been a while since we've won ugly..........
so far so good if you ask me.........!


kindest regards tommi

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

Thought Stevens played his best game for a while....ran and worked harder and used the ball well.
Murphy is a terrific player.....makes something out of nothing and can win the footy even when outnumbered and he is a threat with his clever decision making every time he gets it.

Liked Kade Simpson's game....doing a Wayne Johnston and leading by example by putting his head down and body on the line...took a hit where he had to stand his ground in a marking contest and has really developed as a footballer and I consider him one of the leaders on the field.

Ackland and Cloke are an odd pairing but did their bit....Ackland's ruck work isnt great but he made up for it by taking some very nice marks down forward and kicking a few goals. ...his skills are good and he looks more suited to playing forward.
Cloke has been a surprise...fitness being the key to his success...in terms of ruckwork he is a bit raw but he has a good leap and contests well.
Got a bit of the footy around the ground and used it ok....seems keen to impress and was encouraging his teammates.

Was Walker on Boyle by default or on Little...couldnt work it out? AW had a few disposal problems but you can never fault his work rate....

Thornton did a good job on the more mobile Williams....Williams didnt get great delivery as Franklin is now the prime target but I thought Thornton did the job..

Russell....did the job on Bateman without getting a lot of the footy himself.

Josh Kennedy...like Robert Walls I like the way Josh Kennndy goes about it..no stylist, or will he ever be a heavy goal kicker but he is a very honest competitor who keeps presenting and providing a target.

Carazzo....started on Mitchell and was slaughtered ...kicked a couple of handy goals though and was a contributor. has improved as a player but doesnt get the plaudits he deserves.

Bentick....took over from Carazzo on Mitchell and got another lesson, but Mitchell is a class act and AB wont play on many better players than Sam Mitchell in his career.
Needed the run and probably needs to be allowed some feedom to create
himself rather than being played in a negative role...Mitchell will get the footy regardless of being tagged and I think you have have to hurt him by playing a quicker player on him who plays wider and runs more and maybe can cause enough damage to even the ledger.

Waite had a good duel with Franklin...if Buddy gets the footy then you suffer but he doesnt take enough overheads for mine and I thought Waite broke even overall...

Kouta took a few marks but cant kick straight...Lappin was useful..still uses the ball well and is handy.

Ryan Jackson did some good things... neat footballer.

Bryce Gibbs...never got into it, looked off the pace and a bit rushed but its all part of the learning curve...

Brad Fisher...kicked a nice goal but didnt much of it....needs to do more to hold his spot.

Eddie Betts...did some good things..always hard when you play in the pocket... but Eddie chases well and I do like his tackling....

Fev...played on Dawson who is a dud...should have done better...looked a bit disinterested...

Whitnall...didnt do much..been a big week so he probably had other things on his mind...

Overall it wasnt a bad win...good endeavour shown and we held on well unlike some games last year when we were overun...
We look a bit slow though and I wouldnt mind seeing Bower and Grigg next game to give us some more zip...

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"When you have the attitude of a champion, you see adversity as your
training partner."
- Conor Gillen

Too much negativety here boys. We won didnt we.

Bentick is good. Will fill a roll around the ball because he is so strong. He stops it getting out at centre clearences heaps which is crucial. Sure he is limited with pace and his kicking really needs improving but I thought he did ok in the last quarter on SM. Mitchell is a gun. He and Murphy were clearly best.

Russell tagged Bateman for anyone who watched and beat him easily. Yes he [REDACTED] up a few times but he did the job asked of him. Dont forget JR is 188cm so he will match up well as a tagger on the second or third midfielders of the opposition.

Some people on this site must have been watching sevens comedy classics

good win, good pressure. Skills were always going to oridinary given with was very humid and played on a big ground. Fatigue would have played a big part in the skill errors of both sides, as did the pressure at the contests. Still certainly needs work though.

My votes for the best were -


3- Marc Murphy
2- Jarrad Waite
1- Kade Simpson

Andrew Walker, Simpson, Sentanta, Thornton and Eddie were all impressive too.

The biggest positive for me was how impressive the backline is becoming.

Walker will generate the run of an Andrew McLeod, Waite's kicking has improved, Sentanta is imposing.

The backline is the key... With a strong backline all other factors fall into place.

Agreed, and I just happy we are holding on to close games. We'd normally begin twitching our arses and then lose the match.

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The measure of a life is a measure of love and respect
So hard to earn, so easily burned
In the fullness of time
A garden to nurture and protect

#DopeThenStash

He definitely started on Boyle, the 10 boys made mention of it more than a few times, especially at quarter time, with Wallsy making comment of the lack of respect shown toward Boyle.

I know he didn't finish on Boyle, as Saddington finished on him, but I'm not sure how much time he spent on Little however.