Easton Wood - Playing his 50th Game- Where is he at?

[bornadog]

Wood is about to chalk up his 50th game this week against Richmond. He has had his injury concerns with hamstrings, but where do posters think he is at? He has had some tough roles the last two weeks playing on bigger opponents. I thought he played well against Black for most of the game, but we lost his dash out of the back line as he was too busy defending.

Where is his ideal position?

This is what Macca thinks:


Senior Coach Brendan McCartney said Wood’s added responsibility across the back line this year, has helped him mature."Easton Wood might actually be growing up in front of our eyes because we've put more on his plate, too, that he's having to deal with a taller opponent," McCartney said in his post-match press conference on Sunday.
"We think we've got a pretty good defender in the making there."]

I still think he needs to get more of the ball, and hit targets further down the ground, and be more creative in the Murphy type of role.

[SlimPickens]

Not sure if he has the skill set required nor the evasive skills to be as effective as Murph (not many in the league are) but I would love for him to take the game on more. He is close to the quickest bloke at the club but doesn't use that to his advantage. One thing he does need is continuity of football, 7 years for 50 games is a very ordinary return.

Someone who he could model his game on is someone like Alan Toovey, who is very good at shutting down an opponent but then quite dangerous with ball in hand. Easton's game last week was solid and I think we will see him improve pretty strongly over the year we just need see some great consistency in performance.

[Mofra]

We wont know where he's at until he is up against opponents that are remotely in his height and weight category.
He's giving up a lot of size and despite clearly putting in the effort (I apprecate he never drops his head) it clearly is an issue at least a couple of times per game.

[always right]

In some respects I don't mind the coach throwing big challenges Easton's way even though there might be some short term pain. As I have stated previously, McCartney has his eye on the medium to long term rather than simply focusing on winning next week. This could be the making of Wood or it might reveal that he simply doesn't have what we are looking for. The coach is certainly showing a lot of confidence in Wood which might be the making of him.

[Scorlibo]

I'm an Easton Wood fan myself, as a player and as a person. His athleticism is his main strength, but for mine this means playing him in a defensive rather than offensive role. Dale Morris has for years competed with all types because of his athleticism and sheer competitive will and I see the same attributes in Easton. I'm not sure he's quite as agile as Dale but he's certainly just as quick and his leap gives him the ability to play on tall opponents. It seems the coaching staff have come to the same realisation and have him identified as one of those unique, valuable defenders to be able to plug into a back six.

[stefoid]

Has an unusually high leap that lets him defend in the air as if he was 3 or 4 inches taller. I see him as someone who can and probably should take an opponent that is a little taller, heavier and less agile than himself, which will give him some chance to run off them, but also will allow him to leave his man and go third up - if he is playing on a good small, he would have to stick much closer at the contest for when the ball hits the deck. Obviously playing on absolute monsters is not great.

He is an 80m player who can run 20m and kick 60m, as long as you aren't too concerned about where the ball lands. I guess if our players get used to him being in the team they can anticipate the ball coming over the back of the contest.

With his run and long kicking, he should be a player who can break up play by getting the ball to the fat side if we have someone breaking in that direction, or just clearing the congested middle part of the ground.

Oddly enough, he has the physical attributes to be a Walker / Crameri type of forward who runs long and fast all day, but I suppose he doesn't have the forwards instincts, otherwise we might have tried him in that position.

[josie]

I thought Easton did alright today - including in tight moments in last qtr.

[GVGjr]

I thought Easton did alright today - including in tight moments in last qtr.

Yep, I thought he played his best game of the season

[soupman]

Was very good today. Turning into a very reliable defender, and I heard he was kicking at 100% effectiveness today, which is pleasing.

[bulldogtragic]

I still prefer to use Easton more offensively. His run and carry and leg cannon are strengths of his.

[Remi Moses]

I thought he was excellent on Saturday.

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Yep, I thought he played his best game of the season

I reckon that his best football could come from a centre wing position rather than in defence. He has the capacity to break the lines from the midfield with his dash.

[bornadog]

I thought he played one of his best games on Saturday and showed his customary dash out of the backline.

[always right]

I thought he played one of his best games on Saturday and showed his customary dash out of the backline.

He was outstanding....particularly when the team was struggling in the first half. Defended well and still took the game on with aggressive running.......more importantly his ball use was much much better. Amazing what a show of confidence from the coach can do.

[lemmon]

Rewatching the game now, how good was his pick up in traffic at centre half back, burst away and storm through the middle in the first quarter? That pick up in heavy traffic...wow

[LostDoggy]

Really impressed in his ability to keep his feet this year. It's heavily contributing to winning crucial one on one contests once the ball hits the deck, including the obvious one late in the Richmond game.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Really impressed in his ability to keep his feet this year. It's heavily contributing to winning crucial one on one contests once the ball hits the deck, including the obvious one late in the Richmond game.

Good point out.

He was notorious for jumping in the air, crashing the pack and landing on the ground whilst the ball fell out the back.

He has been terrific so far this year. His defensive efforts have been impressive, but he's also finding more of the ball and attacking well. Skills aren't always as good as they should be but he's an improved player.

[LostDoggy]

Defended well, and had his running game going, and he was hitting targets by foot. That's the Easton Wood we want to see.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Rewatching the game now, how good was his pick up in traffic at centre half back, burst away and storm through the middle in the first quarter? That pick up in heavy traffic...wow

It was superb - thought the GWS game was his best game for the club