JackWorrall wrote:
Whilst I agree that Pagan should be given the flick at the end of the year, I disagree with those who say he hasn't developed our young players. Simpson, Walker, Carazzo and others are becoming quality players, and some of the credit should go to Pagan. Walker's defensive game is outstanding, and the overall tackling pressure and attitude is very good in our young blokes.
Too often Pagan has a negative attitude towards our player performances after a game, and the occasions when he out-coaches the opposition are so rare, there's a sense of amazement when it happens.
Yes, Pagan should go at the end of the season because of the team's overall performance, but the one area in which he's done well is youth development.
Absolutely, he shouldn't be criticized for the way he has handled our kids. Bentick, Thornton, Santy, Carazz were all rookie elevations and Simmo and Fisher were rather late picks. And no one can ever doubt what a sensational job he has done with Fevola - there were a very small portion of people who believed Fev could turn it around and one of them was Pagan.
You have to say that Pagan is one of the best at extracting the best out of a player. He, Leigh Matthews, Roos, Woosha and Mark Williams are probably the best in this category.
Just because Gibbs isn't winning the Rising Star Player of the Week, doesn't mean he is being played the wrong way. Pagan has the intention of turning this guy into the complete package.
I still think that when our key guys all have two or three seasons under their belt, Pagan will have exactly what he needs to contest for the flag.