Re: Rd 18: Pre Game Polite Discourse: Carlton vs Sydney
Reply #54 –
Simpsons showed nothing in 3 games straight! 0 disposals.
I heard Denis Pagan about a month ago talk about that. He told the team to let Simpson take a kickout, and kick it to himself, just so he could get his first disposal!
Imagine if we wrote him off after 1 game....or 3 games.
Blokes need a chance to get used to the speed of AFL. You do not get that chance in the VFL.
While it's true that Simmo didn't get a disposal in his first three games, he actually spent very little time on the ground.
I don't think anyone is writing Jaksch off after one game. After all, Jaksch is in his fourth season on an AFL list and has played 14 senior games. By that stage of his career, Simmo was a regular, had received a Rising Star nomination and was in the leadership group. Yes, some big blokes can take longer and Jaksch might be a regular in 2017, but he's not really up to it now.
Good players don't need to get used to the speed of AFL, but they do need to take the game by the scruff of the neck in the VFL.