AFL Game Day R8 2023

[Eastdog]

Round 8


Friday, May 5
Carlton vs. Brisbane Lions Marvel Stadium 7:50pm Seven/Fox


Saturday, May 6
Richmond vs. West Coast Eagles MCG 1:45pm Fox Footy
Geelong Cats vs. Adelaide Crows GMHBA Stadium 2:10pm Fox Footy
Gold Coast Suns vs. Melbourne Metricon Stadium 4:35pm Fox Footy
GWS Giants vs. Western Bulldogs Manuka Oval 7:25pm Seven/Fox
Fremantle vs. Hawthorn Optus Stadium 7:30pm Fox Footy


Sunday, May 7
Port Adelaide vs. Essendon Adelaide Ova 1:10pm Fox Footy
Collingwood vs. Sydney Swans MCG 3:20pm Seven/Fox
North Melbourne vs. St Kilda Marvel Stadium 4:40pm Fox Footy

[Eastdog]

Bump

[GVGjr]

Cracking quarter in front of a full house.

[Grantysghost]

Hey there is a Rd 8 thread...!

Yes great game.

Dunks semi run with on Cripps and managed ten disposals of his own.

Young probably needs to be stronger in the contest just following our exs.

[jeemak]

I'm getting sick of the gaslighting from the commentary team about Carlton full houses this year....let alone how awesome every game they play is.

BT said the first quarter was amazing because of the scoring, and then said the second quarter was amazing irrespective of no scoring. Carlton are just amazing this year.

[Grantysghost]

I'm getting sick of the gaslighting from the commentary team about Carlton full houses this year....let alone how awesome every game they play is.

BT said the first quarter was amazing because of the scoring, and then said the second quarter was amazing irrespective of no scoring. Carlton are just amazing this year.

Scoring = good game does my head in.

[JanLorMill]

Carlton are woeful and it is good to see.

[bornadog]

Carlton are woeful and it good to see.

Hate Carlton. Just switched it on to see them 40 points down. They have kicked 1.3 since first quarter.

[The Underdog]

I'm getting sick of the gaslighting from the commentary team about Carlton full houses this year....let alone how awesome every game they play is.

BT said the first quarter was amazing because of the scoring, and then said the second quarter was amazing irrespective of no scoring. Carlton are just amazing this year.

Gonna be tough to big up their 3rd quarter. Absolutely smashed everywhere. Brisbane 5 goals to 0 and that probably flattered Carlton. A couple of pretty embarrassing goals on there too. Cameron beat Newman in a contest, ran into an open goal and Newman wandered off like it had happened to someone else. Lewy has been subbed, which is a weird one.

[macca]

Really enjoyed seeing Carlton get whacked in the 3rd quarter. Their midfield really is not that good.. they can't kick and they cannot kick goals. Only 2 of their mids have kicked goals this year.

Voss is going to start running out of excuses other than ... we need to look at the footage and review.

Its good to see Carlton down. Another year wasted for Carlton.

Games played , goal kicking stats:

Blake Acres 6 2
Adam Cerra 7 2
Sam Walsh 3 1
Edward Curnow 7 1
Oliver Hollands 7 1
Patrick Cripps 7 1
Nic Newman 7 1
Matthew Kennedy 5 1

the best bit is Lyon was there to be hired and they wanted to put him through the process.

[Axe Man]

Did I seriously just see Mitch Robinson in the crowd wearing his old Brisbane jumper, possibly over the top of his old Carlton jumper? What a weird unit.

[jeemak]

Gonna be tough to big up their 3rd quarter. Absolutely smashed everywhere. Brisbane 5 goals to 0 and that probably flattered Carlton. A couple of pretty embarrassing goals on there too. Cameron beat Newman in a contest, ran into an open goal and Newman wandered off like it had happened to someone else. Lewy has been subbed, which is a weird one.

There were two distinct contests from Young that were a mirror of why we didn't want to play him a lot of the time. Kennedy was a good tactical sub, but that Young was the target to come off is really telling.

[jeemak]

Carlton literally had articles written about them being close to their 1995 team two to three weeks ago. What a ****ing joke, that team was amazing.

They're always going to be my second team due to family connections, which is the same reason why I also like seeing them get ahead of themselves and shit the bed. That they have a raft of idiots following them is a bonus to me.

[Happy Days]

There were two distinct contests from Young that were a mirror of why we didn't want to play him a lot of the time. Kennedy was a good tactical sub, but that Young was the target to come off is really telling.

Nah you’re watching it wrong again. Young is amazing and our coaching staff and list management team are all morons. Just look at how well Schache and Cordy are going if you don’t believe me.

[angelopetraglia]

Dunkley was superb tonight. Nullified Cripps and got plenty of it. But he still can’t kick as highlighted by the stats this week that statistically he has been the worst kick this season for the Lions in expected outcome.

p.s. Libba is the best for the Dogs. Doc the worst.

p.s.s. Lewis Young is no good. Like a deer in the headlights under pressure.

[1eyedog]

Went at 61% and gave away two goals that I saw.

[1eyedog]

Carlton literally had articles written about them being close to their 1995 team two to three weeks ago. What a ****ing joke, that team was amazing.

They're always going to be my second team due to family connections, which is the same reason why I also like seeing them get ahead of themselves and shit the bed. That they have a raft of idiots following them is a bonus to me.

Love the vitriol second team or not.

[jeemak]

Nah you?re watching it wrong again. Young is amazing and our coaching staff and list management team are all morons. Just look at how well Schache and Cordy are going if you don?t believe me.

It felt really bad typing what I typed because I just knew that I was wrong when I did it.

It was a "tactical" sub and he is awesome.

[jeemak]

Love the vitriol second team or not.

I have people in my family and circle of friends who haven't really watched them for over a decade get on the horse and dominate footy conversations because Carlton are apparently good again. I had a client last week describe Carlton as one of the "main" teams. Of course I pissed myself in front of his face for his stupidity, client or not that's not going un-checked, and quickly changed the subject away from footy in lieu of not wanting to ruin the relationship via a truth bomb.

But the fact of the matter is, Carlton are the genuine round one to ten good news story that hasn't happened this year because they prepped for a full season in training instead of the first half of a season like they did last year to make the most of a new coach coming in.

The issues they had under Bolton are still there, they can't defend properly to the extent they are bland on the rebound/ once they get the ball again. Saad tries, but he's actually no good, who else in their defence sets them up going forward?

I could keep going but won't, given we're a chance of being done by them next Saturday because we're always a chance of being done by a weaker Carlton side!

[Grantysghost]

Fagan on Dunkley :

"I've got to say it is one of the great games I've ever seen," Fagan told reporters on Friday night.

"If you weigh it all up, he played on Cripps all night, he had 33 touches, he had 13 tackles and he kept Cripps to a quiet game. I would have settled for Cripps having a quiet game, to be honest with you. Josh's influence on the contest was exceptional

[Grantysghost]

Nah you’re watching it wrong again. Young is amazing and our coaching staff and list management team are all morons. Just look at how well Schache and Cordy are going if you don’t believe me.

Thing is with Young he just is an average player. Nothing more nothing less.

He is what he was with us.

Weak in the contest most of the time, out of position a lot, slow to react.

Has ok over head marking, good leap, nice kick, good height, pretty face.

Don't think any players that have gone to other clubs during Bevo's/Power's tenure have amounted to much.

[EasternWest]

Thing is with Young he just is an average player. Nothing more nothing less.

He is what he was with us.

Weak in the contest most of the time, out of position a lot, slow to react.

Has ok over head marking, good leap, nice kick, good height, pretty face.

Don't think any players that have gone to other clubs during Bevo's/Power's tenure have amounted to much.

Well there's Liam Jones.

I know the sample size is small but he has been phenomenal for us this year. I knew he'd become a good player at Carlton but I'd never paid enough attention to just how good.

The other thing that's a bit weird for me is that even though Zaine Cordy (for example) is a premiership player for us, it doesn't feel that odd to me to see him playing elsewhere.

Whereas I always kind of felt Liam Jones was one of "ours". It's good to have him back.

[The Adelaide Connection]

I'm getting sick of the gaslighting from the commentary team about Carlton full houses this year....let alone how awesome every game they play is.

BT said the first quarter was amazing because of the scoring, and then said the second quarter was amazing irrespective of no scoring. Carlton are just amazing this year.

Funnily enough there was only 4K more than at the Dogs game last week.

[whythelongface]

Nah you?re watching it wrong again. Young is amazing and our coaching staff and list management team are all morons. Just look at how well Schache and Cordy are going if you don?t believe me.

Schache was amazing last week in the thumping of North. His lone goal deep in the last quarter made the difference. :)

From a list management perspective definitely made the right call on these three. They occasionally may play well but it is their consistency that continually lets them down. Glad they are someone else?s trouble.

[The Adelaide Connection]

I have people in my family and circle of friends who haven't really watched them for over a decade get on the horse and dominate footy conversations because Carlton are apparently good again. I had a client last week describe Carlton as one of the "main" teams. Of course I pissed myself in front of his face for his stupidity, client or not that's not going un-checked, and quickly changed the subject away from footy in lieu of not wanting to ruin the relationship via a truth bomb.

But the fact of the matter is, Carlton are the genuine round one to ten good news story that hasn't happened this year because they prepped for a full season in training instead of the first half of a season like they did last year to make the most of a new coach coming in.

The issues they had under Bolton are still there, they can't defend properly to the extent they are bland on the rebound/ once they get the ball again. Saad tries, but he's actually no good, who else in their defence sets them up going forward?

I could keep going but won't, given we're a chance of being done by them next Saturday because we're always a chance of being done by a weaker Carlton side!

The conspiracy theorist in me thinks Carlton’s fixture request was to bulk up on likely low-ladder teams early on in the season. They have 20 years of losing culture and choked like no one else to miss finals last year. I think they. Wanted to bank early wins and belief- they literally played the 6 teams you would have likely pencilled in for the bottom 8 in their first 7 games (including 3 of last years bottom 4). It’s maybe only missing Hawthorn, Essendon/Suns as teams you would suspect could be lower down.

It was:
North Melbourne
West Coast
GWS
Adelaide
St. Kilda
Richmond

It hasn’t gone quite to plan because Adelaide and the Saints have bucked the prediction and they were only able to bank 4 and a half wins in this stretch.

Let’s see how the do in this run of:
Lions
Dogs
Pies
Swans
Melbourne

PS We absolutely have to get our shit together when playing them and put them to the sword. We looked crap against them last year.

[bornadog]

Well there's Liam Jones.

I know the sample size is small but he has been phenomenal for us this year. I knew he'd become a good player at Carlton but I'd never paid enough attention to just how good.

The other thing that's a bit weird for me is that even though Zaine Cordy (for example) is a premiership player for us, it doesn't feel that odd to me to see him playing elsewhere.

Whereas I always kind of felt Liam Jones was one of "ours". It's good to have him back.

Thanks to B Macc, he left

[angelopetraglia]

Carlton board. Why Lewis Young was subbed out? They don't have very nice things to say about him.


https://youtu.be/QNpYSmfXtTU

[hujsh]

Carlton board. Why Lewis Young was subbed out? They don't have very nice things to say about him.


https://youtu.be/QNpYSmfXtTU

That last handball was pretty bad panic merchant stuff but aside from that it seems his greatest crime was consistently punching the ball towards Brisbane players. Is that why he was subbed out?

[angelopetraglia]

That last handball was pretty bad panic merchant stuff but aside from that it seems his greatest crime was consistently punching the ball towards Brisbane players. Is that why he was subbed out?

Who knows the real reason.

My take on the highlights. He was soft in a few contests where he got too far under the ball. Some of his spoils were incredibly weak and went straight to Brisbane players. Kill the ball!!! The last handball where he didn't want to take the body contact of the tackle and then make a good decision to offload it sums him up as a player IMHO.

He panics under pressure. He doesn't like physicality. He is a slow decision maker. He is just an average player. You can see why Bevo didn't want to play him. He is also now 24 years of age. He ain't a young player anymore (pardon the pun).

[angelopetraglia]

On Dunkley's game last night. He was elite in how he took Cripps out of the contest and got his hands on it so many times. 13 tackles was also unbelievable.

But he has a massive deficiency as we know in his disposal.

He had 33 touches last night. But he had 11 turnovers last night. 11 !!! The next on ground was only 5. So he touched the ball 33 times but he turned over the ball every third time. That is poor. His disposal efficiency was also at 60%

[Mofra]

Who knows the real reason.

My take on the highlights. He was soft in a few contests where he got too far under the ball. Some of his spoils were incredibly weak and went straight to Brisbane players. Kill the ball!!! The last handball where he didn't want to take the body contact of the tackle and then make a good decision to offload it sums him up as a player IMHO.

He panics under pressure. He doesn't like physicality. He is a slow decision maker. He is just an average player. You can see why Bevo didn't want to play him. He is also now 24 years of age. He ain't a young player anymore (pardon the pun).
It's like we had to choose between Gardner and Young.
The fans loved Young, but Gardner actually plays to his potential. I think we made the right choice.

[angelopetraglia]

It's like we had to choose between Gardner and Young.
The fans loved Young, but Gardner actually plays to his potential. I think we made the right choice.

The big difference is that Gardner is not scared of body contact and is aggressive at the ball.

[macca]

The conspiracy theorist in me thinks Carlton?s fixture request was to bulk up on likely low-ladder teams early on in the season. They have 20 years of losing culture and choked like no one else to miss finals last year. I think they. Wanted to bank early wins and belief- they literally played the 6 teams you would have likely pencilled in for the bottom 8 in their first 7 games (including 3 of last years bottom 4). It?s maybe only missing Hawthorn, Essendon/Suns as teams you would suspect could be lower down.

It was:
North Melbourne
West Coast
GWS
Adelaide
St. Kilda
Richmond

It hasn?t gone quite to plan because Adelaide and the Saints have bucked the prediction and they were only able to bank 4 and a half wins in this stretch.

Let?s see how the do in this run of:
Lions
Dogs
Pies
Swans
Melbourne

PS We absolutely have to get our shit together when playing them and put them to the sword. We looked crap against them last year.

If Essendon don?t make the 8 it shows how bad they are . They play north and hawks twice , that is 4 wins out of min of 12 to challenge for the eight

[macca]

On Dunkley's game last night. He was elite in how he took Cripps out of the contest and got his hands on it so many times. 13 tackles was also unbelievable.

But he has a massive deficiency as we know in his disposal.

He had 33 touches last night. But he had 11 turnovers last night. 11 !!! The next on ground was only 5. So he touched the ball 33 times but he turned over the ball every third time. That is poor. His disposal efficiency was also at 60%

To add to these incredible stats and praise he had 555 meters gained, 13 tackles And 86% tog
He was everywhere ! Only thing he did not do was kick a goal

[bornadog]

Richmond struggling against WC.

[macca]

It's like we had to choose between Gardner and Young.
The fans loved Young, but Gardner actually plays to his potential. I think we made the right choice.

Good call in on letting go of Young . Fact that he was subbed out last night confirmed his limitation . His now Carlton’s problem

This version of Liam jones has some mongrel about him . It’s wonderful to watch him

We need to ask him where he got his angry pills and coach some of the younger players to mature

I hope we can get a couple of years from him

[bulldogsthru&thru]

The conspiracy theorist in me thinks Carlton?s fixture request was to bulk up on likely low-ladder teams early on in the season. They have 20 years of losing culture and choked like no one else to miss finals last year. I think they. Wanted to bank early wins and belief- they literally played the 6 teams you would have likely pencilled in for the bottom 8 in their first 7 games (including 3 of last years bottom 4). It?s maybe only missing Hawthorn, Essendon/Suns as teams you would suspect could be lower down.

It was:
North Melbourne
West Coast
GWS
Adelaide
St. Kilda
Richmond

It hasn?t gone quite to plan because Adelaide and the Saints have bucked the prediction and they were only able to bank 4 and a half wins in this stretch.

Let?s see how the do in this run of:
Lions
Dogs
Pies
Swans
Melbourne

PS We absolutely have to get our shit together when playing them and put them to the sword. We looked crap against them last year.

I think they'll get us. Just ask Dog God. One of their forwards will have a field day.

[bornadog]

I think they'll get us. Just ask Dog God. One of their forwards will have a field day.

Nah, have some confidence

[bornadog]

Umpires are actually blind at Geelong

[Grantysghost]

Umpires are actually blind at Geelong

Tanner Bruhn : always thought he had "it" first time I saw him.
Moves to the midfield after Danger gets hurt and looks a million bucks.

Another go home high draft pick.

What am I missing with Geelong?

It's bogan central.

[Grantysghost]

Melbourne get Chandler out of the rookie draft and he becomes one of the best small forwards in the comp.

Their recruiters need statues.

Then there's Schache.....

[Grantysghost]

To add to these incredible stats and praise he had 555 meters gained, 13 tackles And 86% tog
He was everywhere ! Only thing he did not do was kick a goal

It was an amazing individual effort.

[chef]

Tanner Bruhn : always thought he had "it" first time I saw him.
Moves to the midfield after Danger gets hurt and looks a million bucks.

Another go home high draft pick.

What am I missing with Geelong?

It's bogan central.

Surf coast or the Bellerine peninsula are great places to live, so much better than living in a city imo. You dont have to be in Geelong.

[EasternWest]

Tanner Bruhn : always thought he had "it" first time I saw him.
Moves to the midfield after Danger gets hurt and looks a million bucks.

Another go home high draft pick.

What am I missing with Geelong?

It's bogan central.

$ea$ide living.

[bornadog]

Come on Gold Coast

[bornadog]

2 min and 6 points in it

[chef]

Umps have been robbing GC all night.

[Testekill]

Tanner Bruhn : always thought he had "it" first time I saw him.
Moves to the midfield after Danger gets hurt and looks a million bucks.

Another go home high draft pick.

What am I missing with Geelong?

It's bogan central.

They broker cheap land deals.

[DOG GOD]

I think they'll get us. Just ask Dog God. One of their forwards will have a field day.

Yes they will, but it will be Curnow AND McKay next week. Both were putrid last night. Both will be due.
Curnow/McKay will kick more than Naughton/Jamarra. That will be the difference.

[westdog54]

To add to these incredible stats and praise he had 555 meters gained, 13 tackles And 86% tog
He was everywhere ! Only thing he did not do was kick a goal

Only the eighth player in history to record a 'Quadruple Double': 10+ kicks, handballs, marks and tackles.

[jazzadogs]

On Dunkley's game last night. He was elite in how he took Cripps out of the contest and got his hands on it so many times. 13 tackles was also unbelievable.

But he has a massive deficiency as we know in his disposal.

He had 33 touches last night. But he had 11 turnovers last night. 11 !!! The next on ground was only 5. So he touched the ball 33 times but he turned over the ball every third time. That is poor. His disposal efficiency was also at 60%

There was one horrible turnover where he missed Andrews with a 15m backwards kick, and it ended up in a Carlton goal. Amazing game but his hurt factor is definitely in the contest, not in his ball use.

[EasternWest]

Thanks to B Macc, he left

Fair point. Got my timeline a bit wrong.

[bornadog]

Fair point. Got my timeline a bit wrong.

I wonder where he would have played if he stayed on when Bevo came in?

[EasternWest]

I wonder where he would have played if he stayed on when Bevo came in?

Ruck.

[macca]

Ruck.

Carlton gave up trying to play him forward. So they played him back and his natural ability to read the play and mark the ball really shone. They were about to delist him, it was one last role of the dice.

But we would have tried with Liam jones in multiple positions, back, ruck and maybe on the wing in the name of versatility

[whythelongface]

Pies leading at 3/4 qtr time. Can they hold on?

[whythelongface]

Saints 14 v Norrh 8. Midway through the 2nd. Doesn’t sound like a quality game.

[macca]

Essendon ability to want to win matches really stood out in the last 2 mins of the game. They hardly touched the ball. Too many down hill skiers. They lead for 3/4 of the game.

Well done Port for winning. Rioli is just sublime how he moves , goal sense and ducks tackles.

[bornadog]

Essendon ability to want to win matches really stood out in the last 2 mins of the game. They hardly touched the ball. Too many down hill skiers. They lead for 3/4 of the game.

Well done Port for winning. Rioli is just sublime how he moves , goal sense and ducks tackles.

How many weeks for Rioli

[westdog54]

Tanner Bruhn : always thought he had "it" first time I saw him.
Moves to the midfield after Danger gets hurt and looks a million bucks.

Another go home high draft pick.

What am I missing with Geelong?

It's bogan central.


Surf coast or the Bellerine peninsula are great places to live, so much better than living in a city imo. You dont have to be in Geelong.

I'll second this.

Your housing dollar goes a hell of a lot further than in all but the outer suburbs of Melbourne, there are plenty of great schools if you have a young family, and everything you need is not far away.

After 18 months out that way I can see why players would take slightly less money to live out here.

[Sedat]

Swans are the spin masters. Got the entire AFEL media talking about booing Franklin instead of their sub-par 3-5 record.

Isaac Heeney on a long-term deal around $800k a year is worthy of detailed analysis relative to his diminished returns on-field this year, which I bet we won't get.

[Bulldog Joe]

Swans are the spin masters. Got the entire AFEL media talking about booing Franklin instead of their sub-par 3-5 record.

Isaac Heeney on a long-term deal around $800k a year is worthy of detailed analysis relative to his diminished returns on-field this year, which I bet we won't get.

Good call on Heeney. Apparently is the star product of the Sydney Academy that they saved from Rugby League.

I see him as the most overhyped player in the comp.

[jazzadogs]

Good call on Heeney. Apparently is the star product of the Sydney Academy that they saved from Rugby League.

I see him as the most overhyped player in the comp.

Up there with Lachie Whitfield for greatest frauds in the game.

[jeemak]

They still refer to Heeney as a young star.....he's the same age as Bont!

[mjp]

They still refer to Heeney as a young star.....he's the same age as Bont!

If he wanted to come and play for us I'd take him.

[bornadog]

If he wanted to come and play for us I'd take him.

same

[hujsh]

If he wanted to come and play for us I'd take him.

Would you pay the 800k a year figure touted earlier and where would you put him? I think everyone would take him with no cost attached.

[jeemak]

If he wanted to come and play for us I'd take him.

Same, but I think the characterisation of him as anything other than an experienced player who should be in his prime is a bit weird.

I'd love to have him playing for us.

[jeemak]

Would you pay the 800k a year figure touted earlier and where would you put him? I think everyone would take him with no cost attached.

I'd pay a fairly hefty price to get him across to us, but the $800K might be stretching it.

[Grantysghost]

Heeney is awesome. Love him at Dogs.

[Mantis]

Heeney is awesome. Love him at Dogs.

Averaging 15 touches & just under 1 goal a game.. that ain't awesome.

I know Toby Greene is elite, but in terms of playing style (as well as natural ability & wage) he would be the most similar to him and he's averaging 18 & almost 3 goals a game.

[Grantysghost]

Averaging 15 touches & just under 1 goal a game.. that ain't awesome.

I know Toby Greene is elite, but in terms of playing style (as well as natural ability & wage) he would be the most similar to him and he's averaging 18 & almost 3 goals a game.

Is he carrying an injury? He's elite when in form so that's surprising.

[jazzadogs]

I understand why people like him but I don't understand why he's not playing midfield. I think he consistently underperforms for his talent level. I concede that he was very good last year (49 goals in a grand final team), but objectively his worst three games were in their three finals.

A comparison with another highly rated but underperforming permanent forward:
Jake Stringer: 178 games, 302 goals, 2331 disposals (ave 13)
Heeney: 162 games, 206 goals, 2382 disposals (ave 16)

I just don't see Heeney standing up and being the point of difference when it counts. Undeniably talented, and better than our McNeill/Scott/Garcia/VDM rotation so of course we would take him, but if I was a Swans fan I'd be really disappointed in his output. Particularly on his juicy contract.

[Grantysghost]

I understand why people like him but I don't understand why he's not playing midfield. I think he consistently underperforms for his talent level. I concede that he was very good last year (49 goals in a grand final team), but objectively his worst three games were in their three finals.

A comparison with another highly rated but underperforming permanent forward:
Jake Stringer: 178 games, 302 goals, 2331 disposals (ave 13)
Heeney: 162 games, 206 goals, 2382 disposals (ave 16)

I just don't see Heeney standing up and being the point of difference when it counts. Undeniably talented, and better than our McNeill/Scott/Garcia/VDM rotation so of course we would take him, but if I was a Swans fan I'd be really disappointed in his output. Particularly on his juicy contract.

Gee that's an interesting comparison with Stringer thanks JD.

Midfield move would make sense he has all the attributes.

[GVGjr]

I understand why people like him but I don't understand why he's not playing midfield. I think he consistently underperforms for his talent level. I concede that he was very good last year (49 goals in a grand final team), but objectively his worst three games were in their three finals.

A comparison with another highly rated but underperforming permanent forward:
Jake Stringer: 178 games, 302 goals, 2331 disposals (ave 13)
Heeney: 162 games, 206 goals, 2382 disposals (ave 16)

I just don't see Heeney standing up and being the point of difference when it counts. Undeniably talented, and better than our McNeill/Scott/Garcia/VDM rotation so of course we would take him, but if I was a Swans fan I'd be really disappointed in his output. Particularly on his juicy contract.

Great assessment. I think Heeney is spending more time forward than in the midfield because the Swans are rating the quality Guldens disposals more as being an asset in the midfield forcing Heeney to spend more time up forward. Heeney is more of a highlight reel player than a genuine goal kicker and he should be spending 70% of his TOG in the midfield.

[hujsh]

Averaging 15 touches & just under 1 goal a game.. that ain't awesome.

I know Toby Greene is elite, but in terms of playing style (as well as natural ability & wage) he would be the most similar to him and he's averaging 18 & almost 3 goals a game.

His best in terms of goals seems to be 2 a year and disposals best average was 20ish a while ago, seemingly as a back flanker.

Neither shout superstar.

[JanLorMill]

Heeney is awesome. Love him at Dogs.
Overated. Blonde and plays for the Swans.

[JanLorMill]

If he wanted to come and play for us I'd take him.
Zero chance of that happening. From Sydney and their glamour boy, to come to Footscray?

[Sedat]

I understand why people like him but I don't understand why he's not playing midfield. I think he consistently underperforms for his talent level. I concede that he was very good last year (49 goals in a grand final team), but objectively his worst three games were in their three finals.

A comparison with another highly rated but underperforming permanent forward:
Jake Stringer: 178 games, 302 goals, 2331 disposals (ave 13)
Heeney: 162 games, 206 goals, 2382 disposals (ave 16)

I just don't see Heeney standing up and being the point of difference when it counts. Undeniably talented, and better than our McNeill/Scott/Garcia/VDM rotation so of course we would take him, but if I was a Swans fan I'd be really disappointed in his output. Particularly on his juicy contract.
I like Heeney as a player but he doesn't do anywhere near enough relative to his talent level, and certainly not relative to his pay grade. He should be a top 3 player for his club and top 15-20 in the comp but he's nowhere near it at the moment and hasn't been for a lot of his career (2022 is an outlier).

The comparison with Stringer is instructive - Stringer has copped endless criticism over many years (not without justification), but he has a vastly superior and more consistent CV as a mid sized forward who can play bursts in the middle than Heeney, and he's done it on far less coin. He's also done it overweight a lot of the time and with the world's shittiest tatt.

Greene is the rolled gold star in this demographic and he is so far ahead of Heeney across all metrics it is not funny.

[Grantysghost]

Zero chance of that happening. From Sydney and their glamour boy, to come to Footscray?

Interesting to hear Toyd lamenting the drive over the West Gate in the latest pod.

I reckon that's a common theme with players.