I don't think we can carry similar like midfielders on the list for too much longer.

We currently have Murphy, Carrazzo, Blackwell & Bentick who are all similar type of players.

Blackwell and Bentick both have something to offer but in a different way.

Blackwell is a ball magnet and can win the hardball on a constant basis; Bentick can tackle and lose a tackle but a poor user of the ball.

Both are slow but Blackwell is more damaging and creative when the ball is in his hands.

Would you trade Blackwell or Bentick for a quick?

i.e would you trade either of the two for Nathan Foley for example?

Just don't see the point of having so many similar midfielders in the squad.

I like Bentick.. pound for pound he is quite strong. However considering our needs , balance etc; I would swap Bentick for Foley in a flash.

If we are to make hard decisions, this would be one I'd consider.

i would swap bentick but i aint losing blackwell.

i would also swap carrazzo, wins the ball but more often than not his disposal lets him down.

you're right about the abundance of midfielders who are similar types-Murph, Carrots, Bent Dick, and Blackwell. Blackwell and murphy easily get the nod for mine....

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Back like a raging case of pubic lice

Adam Bentick is underrated in my opinion

He does a power of work in the guts for us and currently is second in the competition for tackles, 3 behind Brett Kirk.

He is our defensive pressure in the midfield and others should follow his lead

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SMFC 1959 : ONE LIFE, ONE LOVE, ONE CLUB

I think Bentick is great around the stoppages, but his closing speed is behind Kirk.

It's difficult to categorically say that we should trade one, but don't disagree that we need another couple of different styles of midfielders in the mix.

It's a shame we have been robbed of seeing what Jackson and Grigg could /can offer us first hand, although that will come in time, because they maybe the extra bite we need in the midfield.

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Supporting the Blues No Matter What

Blackwell is like Daniel Harris.Similar skills light on his feet in congested situations,slow but good vision. He is better than bentick, but having kouta, bentick and blackwell cant be in the one side.

We have too many plodders, Brent Harvey smoked our mids for pace and left them standing and Harvey isnt a kid anymore.
I like both Blackwell and Bentick for different reasons......I think Blackwell is the better player in the middle but wouldnt mind seeing Bentick given a go in the backpocket. We need a backpocket specialist and I think Bentick is more of a defensive player than a creative attacker and should be given the opportunity down back.
We need a couple of players with express pace like the good teams have......you cant play teams like the Bulldogs, Port etc with plodders and expect to keep up with them.....

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

Don't want Murph spending his entire career in the clinches, and I think Blackwell is more of a linkman; Bentick is definitely an in and under or bust, and I would rate Carrots (on current form) as a poor man's Kerr.

I think long-term I would like to have Carrots & Murph in the side, with Blackwell for depth. Carrots has done a lot of hard work to touch up his game, but I'd still like to see him run and carry a lot more than he does (when the opportunity presents itself).

Bentick and Blackers still have a long way to go to be in our 22 in the coming years IMO.

But back to the original question, the key similarity between Bentick & Blackwell is a lack of pace, but I feel that over the long run, Blackwell will cope with it better.

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we need to add pace around themalso. Grigg Benj etc.


Scotland, Houla, Muph, Gibbs The two B's - none of them are express.

JR is fast and we use him as a tagger.

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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!

any particular reason to call him bent dick bnz? or do u have cute little names for all our players?

Stand next to both of them and then tell me which one is built like a brick outhouse and which one you could simply blow over?

You are barking up the wrong tree. They may look similar but they are not.

Even as an old man myself, I reckon I could break a Blackwell tackle but I'd be crunched by AB and I'd stay crunched.

So, if I were the opposition in and under player like a Scott Burns or a Scott West, I'd be happy to see AB out of my hair.

Also, I think AB can be an accumulator but he needs to be allowed to accumulate. At the moment he is being asked to apply the close tag on the opposition in form midfielder. Blackwell is not.

So, you are not comparing apples with apples even though you think you are.

I see a spot for both - remember you need 8 to 10 guys who can rotate through the midfield. You also need depth to cover injuries.

Stevens longevity has to now be questioned. Kouta retires. What sort of a midfield is left if you begin culling guys who are half way through their apprenticeship with 50 games under their belt? One with little experience and one that would be, in boxing parlance, super flyweight.

On cue

I also think there is room, and a big future, for both.

But Simpson isn't fast and he runs and carries the footy more than anybody in the team and more than most in the comp. Express pace isn't everything. It helps at times but running to position and making space is more important over the entire game.
Judd isn't quick either and he can play a bit.

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

I forgot to add - GIVE OUR MIDFIELDERS A DECENT RUCKMAN TO RUCK TO and then watch the improvement.

The biggest problem area the side has had for 5 years now and only in late 2006 did we decide to do something about it! However, Hampson, Jacobs and Co. won't be ready for a few years yet.

You want to trade/wheel and deal? Then go out and make an offer to someone that can provide a contest and give our smalls a fighting chance.

Cain Ackland won't give us that fighting chance so go out, do your homework and offer Kouta's 'golden handshake salary' from this year to someone that will do the job for us next year and beyond.

I appreciate that it's easier said than done, to entice someone of any quality to swap clubs, but it's now gone beyond a critical need.

It's disgraceful that we ask these young midfielders to act as our 'heavies' which they do willingly and then we have supporters calling for the kids to be traded??????????

I know who I'd be moving on and it doesn't include anyone at the club under the age of 25.

bentick-bent dick....seemed logical.

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Back like a raging case of pubic lice

I agree that Blackwell and Bentick aren't exactly the same. Yes they are both fairly slow and don't have penetrating kicks. But the difference between the two is more so in the head and skill level. Blackwell (even with less games under his belt) has superior instincts, decision making and awareness. He also has better skills. Bentick is the stronger player and a better tackler. I think Blackwell will make it and Bentick is still borderline. I don't mind the suggestion of pushing one of these guys into a back pocket, interested to see if that would work out (like a Dean Rice type).

Carazzo and Murph are in different universes. Murph is a class above. Carrots is a solid player but again his decision making and use of the ball is not up to Murph's standard. And he needs to explode more when he gains posessions. He's not slow and should start using the pace that he has. Watch Murph when he gets the footy in a congested situation. He explodes and breaks tackles so well.

Yeah great post. I hope that both can be used in the future, even as depth. Bentick is frustrating as he can be so good sometimes and then disappear in other games. I have to say I'm a big Blackwell fan. He got 3 votes last year against somebody and his disposal is great. With more time I think he'll be a great asset. Sure they're not super fast, but when they both find the ball so much, it's not as bigger deal. Both cant play in the midfield at the same time yet. Please Pagan, Give Russel a bigger role in the middle.

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bentick plays like tony liberatore
blackwell plays like simon black.

brisbane had black & voss as their only slow players surrounded with akermanis, lappin, power.

i'd keep one of the two above mentioned players but not both. i'd trade one of them for nathan foley for example.

I wouldn't trade Blackwell and you won't get Foley for Bentick. If you could I would definitely take it.

yeah i think you are right.
just shows how confused the match commitee is.
nathan foly was elevated from the rookie list last year and he is ahead of bentick. i too wouldn't trade blackwell, he and murph's vision is all the money.

Bentick can be good around the packs, but the problem is he has no motor to play 90% of the game, in saying that this could be a MC decision which does not give us a true indication of where he is at.

Blackwell is a quality ball winner with superior skills to Bentick. He also has a hard edge to him. Blackwell also has the footballers brain and great play reading abilities. Whether he can last a full game week in week out is what we also need to see.

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Mjonc signing off at 8888