Sorry Tractor Boy. You are right. I'll retract that statement about Russell. I haven't seen every game he has played. Early days yet, not only for AB but also for Jordan.

I just broke one of my cardinal rules...........................

Billy i "bash' blokes that have been around the club for a long time and done @#$%&! all.. not blokes that have been around the club for a shirt time and spat our blood for it..(and do not apologise for it.. because theyre blood suckers)Re Kouta and Lance)

And i know rod Waddell and Wangers personally and have 'articulated exactly that to them in person.'

Which is more than i can say about some blokes who wont stick their head out in real life but act like dicks....

As i keep saying AB works hard and dpes the kind of coal mine stuff noone else would do around the club.

He also offers more leadership on the ground than "Big Red Rooster".. who is just a lead balloon .. and our captain who needs 300k to continue playing and blokes having to manufacture 'Kouta - the positive thread' for him.

You show me where i have bashed a kid... let alone bashed a kid that works hard in every possible way for a club he TRULY LOVES!!!???

Can you ???

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Preacher it seems you are an AB fan and thas great but no need to bag Russell after all this thread is about AB.

Yes, I'm one of the few on this thread that thinks AB is a battler.

I attend many pf the preseason sessions and I admire how AB goes about it. He gives it 110% and in fact I believe he puts in more than most of the other players. I hope I'm wrong and I will not be ashamed if he kicks on. I just look at the top sides and they don't seem to have the AB type of players.

I suppose having Smith and Blackwell as well we just cannot afford to have three similar players on the list, to me Blackers seems to have the edge as he seems to have more time with the ball and seems to be able to make space in order to deliver the ball.

Again this is not a criticism - it's just my opinion. His strengths include his attitude, endeavour, toughness for the ball, never shirks at issue and he can feed our outside players. May be with more talent in the side he may fit in better as he can extract the ball out to our runners (similar to West at the Doggies) I hope Ratten does come to Carlton next year as he could be a real bonus for AB.

Then again I remember playing with Jimmy Stynes at Prahran and I said at the time he will never make it. So who am I to know!!

Come on AB prove me wrong.

Look we all have pour doubts at young players.. i know i do with a couple too..

But!!!.. whether its Russell or AB.. theyre still just kids and its abit early to make a call on any of them.

Hopefully they all make it as if they dont we will have to start another generation of players drafted that need to make it whilst we sweep away yet another generation.

The reality id they wont all make it.. but at that kind of age anything can happen.

And they dont all have to be champions they can however have a role.

People please remember... if we had a real hard nut in the middle like Kouta we wouldnt need Bentick... but Kouta wont put his head over the ball and he wont take the hits.
someone has to do it in that position.
At the moment its just Bentick.. i cant see how that for a kid is not appreciated... its like watching the game through a childs eyes unwilling to see that what Bentick does allows others to not have to cop the real physical stuff in the guts.

And Number 1 Blue... youre pretty funny mate!!!....

Its hard to take you seriously.. yes i know you love your footy and you love your idols.. and yes i know we need more skilled players but that trade was hysterical...
Classic example of MORE = Better

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Not sure about AB but Carrazzo is extremely over rated IMHO. I cringe everytime he brings the ball to his boot.

The reality is that except for a few very talented kids each year, no draftees are guaranteed to make it. After the first round, they're probably less than 50% to go on to a long AFL career, less for rookies. Bentick, Smith and even Blackwell are no certainties to make it. I haven't seen anyone say they're certainties in this thread.

Having three similar kids competing for the same position (maybe two positions) is great. Why anyone would want to get rid of Bentick, who is both playing an important role in the team at the moment, and is still improving is beyond me.

We need as many kids coming through competing for positions as possible. If we were full up with kids, then yeah hard decisions might have to be made, but we're not. Let's give the kids time to develop, without leveling vague criticisms like "over-rated" at them.

What?? are you crazy?? Surely you are a Bulldogs supporter in disguise. If we traded Lance the fabric of this club would be destroyed so much we probably won't even have a club in two years time. Lance has proven he is a Carlton man time after time. He is a role model and bleeds navy blue. How on earth would we replace that footy brain? Oh my god some people just don't get it, footy brains don't just grow on trees you know.

If we have to trade Red we should ask for no less the bulldogs first round pick from this draft, probably about pick 10, one of Cooney or Griffen plus Giansiracusa, I might even be tempted to throw in Teague or Prendergast to sweeten the deal. You can get midfielders anywhere in the draft, they are a dime a dozen, players with incredible footy brains that can play at CHB or CHF who are LEADERS cannot be replaced.

Would you have AB in your under 21 AFL team? I reckon he'd go close. And coming from the rookie list, I reckon that says something about his determination.

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Interesting that Bentick is having shoulder surgery tomorrow an injury he received courtesy of Richo earlier in the year when he backed into the ball and took the hit.Obviously has found it difficult at times and failed to have any great impact in the last 2 games.But it shows what a courageous fellow this guy is.


It flower shits me when guys come on and bag a kid who is prepared to put his head and body on the line every time when other more celebrated players are weak as piss.

Stick it up these pricks next year bendy and make em eat their own shit .

I remember that hit. Richo was coming out like a freight train and AB just came right in front of him for the spoil and got ironed out.

Settle down Keogh,

99% have been supportive and a very few have long term doubts if he will make it, it's called an OPINION

Get over it.

Synners and I have had a chat in person about AB and even others. His views and mine differ on some and that's OK - I'm cool about it.

What I particularly find f****** frustrating are those posters that 'try' to make mockery of your argument and bully you to sway your opinion about a player towards theirs, and totally discount your views.

It's about opinion and respecting that - you don't have to agree, and that's fine.

I'm sure Cazzesman and other recruiting officers view players differently when they're searching for talent. Same goes here.

By the way, Powell is a player I don't highly rate, even though I think he can hurt the opposition moreso than AB a few years ago, but AB has upside.

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For some silly reason, you people want to assassinate him, and it's just rubbish. You people. All of you, ALL of you!

By the way you might not Rate Powell.. but now that he cant play .. the rest of the stKilda midfield is suffering.

Remember him in the night GF a cvouple of years ago smash Ling at the first bounce??

that gave stKilda the impetus to go a few straight.

Tough bastard eh???

And what Bentick did to sustain an injury is LEADERSHIP ... the kind of work we dont get from Kouta or Lance who are older AND bigger bodied!!!

Some things are intangible and have an effect on the team thats not about 'silky skill's'. Bentick has that in bucketloads!!!

Thats why Bentick is invaluable.

Cant wait for him to have his shoulder surgery and come back even more hungry doing all those little things 'childlike supporters' cant appreciate but the rest of us can.

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Due to recent budget cuts and the rising cost of electricity, gas, and oil....... the Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off. We apologize for the inconvenience.

I hope so to Synners,

One thing is for sure he has taken no short cuts to get where he is and he is giving it everything he has got.

Interesting that Powell's name has entered the debate.Powell has got something that Andy B needs to develop ie. the mongrel factor.No question on Andy's bravery.But Andy,if ya gonna cop all those hits,ya gotta learn to dish a bit out. Line a few up and get even kiddo.Andy is too nice for his own good.

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All my dangerous friends

Who's Andy???

Its not andy its Adam...

And Adam has enough mongrel.. probably more than most 20 year olds playing football.

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Yeah, I don't think it's mongrel he lacks- I think it's the fact that he isn't willing to take enough risks, in that he will never enter the forward 50 unless there is a stoppage, and he hardly leaves his man to go forward. He is the opposite of Stevo- he is almost too accountable if you know what I mean.

Thats what Denis wants from the kids.
Thats what the senior players dont do.. which makes the kids less confident and have just get more defensive because there are way too many opposition players running around free but when you look at the kids they all have their man.

As the older players piss off.. (also a new coach) the kids will play with more confidence and freedom... and will begin to run off.

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Yeah, well articulated, mate. Send me the translation, will you.



If "real life" is contingent on meeting 'huff & puff, know nuffs' like yourself, I'll give the game away.



Yaawwwnnn....



Wink, wink, sunshine. Reading comprehension pre-kindie - google it up.



Exactly! So what's your problem? I just hope the Club is having similar discussions about all the players on our list, about how they can improve and how they fit our future. And I truly hope that these discussion are on a much higher level than the crap that pours out of your keyboard.