Re: Pre-Game Potential: AFL 2019 Rd 8: Carlton vs. Collingwood
Reply #155 –
It's not about being a thug, that's crap, its about 100% commitment. Its about pure, unadultered will to win, and damn the consequences.
I'm having trouble putting this into words, and maybe its just perceptions resulting from two bottles of red and 20 years of abject frustration, but there's been an issue at the club for a long time. Blokes that run around and look like they're engaged, but they're aren't. The kind that get a reasonable number of possessions but don't influence the game. They lay tackles that rarely stick, they chase but the opponent always gets away, they never seem to quite get into position to block or spoil or whatever. They chase kicks and don't worry about their opponent. Its frustrating because as players they are more than capable of meaningful contributions.
Maybe they are just perennially unlucky and their tackles are all broken by stronger players. Maybe they lack or have lost a yard and their opponents break clear from contests and they get left trailing a few steps behind. But I can't believe this, because its a pattern.
There's an exCFC player now at Adelaide who was the epitome of this kind of player.
Cripps was pretty cut and dried about commitment this week. I wouldn't want to be the teammate who came off on Saturday giving less than 100% .