CASEY coach Justin Plapp reviews the Melbourne-listed players who played in the VFL
2017 Peter Jackson VFL
Saturday, July 22, 7pm
Casey Demons 10.11 (71) d Essendon 7.14 (56)
Casey Fields
From the coach …
“In really trying conditions for footy, we had a really clear way about how we wanted to play against Essendon. They play a completely different style to the way we do and we felt that if we were able to put those things in place, then we’d go a fair way to winning the game – or at least being really competitive. Our players were really diligent and absolutely fantastic around the way they executed those plans. Overall, it was a tough night of footy, it wasn’t pretty, but it was very effective in the way we were able to grind out the win – after a couple of below par performances in the past few weeks. It was good to get back on the winners’ list and play the type of footy we know works. We didn’t have any passengers – we had 22 contributors and full credit goes to our players. The win keeps us on track.” – Justin Plapp
Angus Brayshaw: He had 25 disposals, five inside 50s and four tackles. It was good to have Angus back on the ground, after a really challenging 10 to 12 weeks. He was able to perform and have some influence on the game. He probably exceeded a little bit of what we thought he was going to give us. That’s not through his talent, but just where he’s come from. We felt as the game went on, he looked a lot more confident. He started really driving his legs and giving us some really good rebound out of defensive 50. Moving forward, we expect him to keep on improving and he’s going to be a really important addition to our club.
Dion Johnstone: He had 14 disposals, including eight contested possessions, three inside 50s and three tackles. It was one of Dion’s quieter games over the past six weeks. He struggled to get into the game and have the type of influence he’s been having from a pressure point of view. Dion plays a role, which at times can be challenging, as a high half-forward. But we’re trying to develop him in other areas, such as around the ball a bit more and on the wing. It’s adding more layers to his game. He played his role, but didn’t have the influence that he’s had in the past month.
Declan Keilty: Declan had 10 possessions, three marks, three rebound 50s and two tackles. I thought Declan played his role really well on the weekend. Defensively, he was able to influence a lot of high balls. He’s taken a while to build this year, but I felt that it was one of his better performances this year. Declan’s got a really good opportunity to build on his game.
Ben Kennedy: He had 28 disposals, six clearances and three inside 50s. Ben continues to perform really well at VFL level. He had some moments in the game where he was able to will himself into the contest. He was able to get the ball moving forward for us and generate some real contested possession in uncontested chains. The thing that’s probably holding Benny back a little bit at the moment is his ability to connect going inside forward 50, and a little bit of execution. He’s had a pretty good month of football and continues to perform the way we need him to play around the contest and pressure side of the game.
Mitch King: Mitch had six disposals and eight hit outs. He continues to play as a back-up ruckman to Jake Spencer. At the moment, he’s not getting the game time that allows him to get the big numbers, but we’re seeing improvement from him. He’s starting to position himself and influence more contests around the ground, through better positioning. The challenge for Kingy is to execute marks and fundamentals, until he gains more game time. But I think he’s tracking the way we need him to.
Corey Maynard: Corey had 30 disposals, including 20 contested possessions, seven clearances and five tackles. I thought he was the most influential player on the ground on Saturday night. In a game that was tough, due to the conditions, it required players to be strong over the ball and really drive through contested situations. I thought he really led the way and was a standout in that part of the game. He keeps building and going from strength to strength with his game. He hasn’t had the most conventional way into football, but his fundamentals around his game – in terms of execution, is really improving. It was an outstanding game from Corey.
Cam Pedersen: Cam had 13 possessions, five marks, five inside 50s, two tackles and kicked two goals. I thought Cam was the most dominant big man on the ground. Given the conditions, it made it hard for those players, but I felt he played the role of a big man really well. His ability to put pressure on the opposition, with his tackling, and compete and be able to bring the ball to ground was really good. I felt that he was one our players who had an influence.
Joel Smith: Joel had 10 disposals, including seven contested possessions and four tackles. Coming back from the AFL, he provided us with some good defence. His energy and intensity to take us forward under hot situations was really positive. He’s working on lots of areas of his game, so for him it’s about working on his consistency. The upside and the things that he brings to our team is certainly very exciting.
Jake Spencer: Jake had 10 possessions, 22 hit outs and four tackles. His opponent, Matthew Leuenberger, was probably the winner on the night. It’s not to say that Jake didn’t add any value to our side, but I felt that Leuenberger just won the points on the night. The big thing for Jake is that we need more out of him around the ground – we need him to impact and take marks. But for Spence, he’s had some injury worries this season and missed a bit of footy with his shoulder, so he’s working hard on his game.
Billy Stretch: Billy had 22 disposals, including 10 contested possessions, two inside 50s and 13 tackles. He came back to VFL footy and the things that he’s been challenged on – he’s been trying to get those things into his game at VFL level. He’s playing a couple of different roles, playing around the ball and wing. I thought his ability to have an influence around the contested ball and drive through contested situations – and get the ball to the outside – was really good. He really led the way in that area of the game. Moving forward, we just need to get some consistency out of him in that area of the game, but I thought he had an influence on the match.
Josh Wagner: He had 24 disposals, including 11 contested possessions, four clearances and nine tackles. Josh played a different role on the weekend. He played more of an inside mid and I felt he adapted to the role well. Josh plays with a lot of intensity and his ability to win the contested ball was something that really stood out. It’s not easy being thrown into new roles, but it was something that he accepted really well. He gave us something else to think about and it gave him the opportunity to develop other parts of his game. We were really positive about his influence on the game.
Sam Weideman: Sam had 14 disposals, three inside 50s and two marks. Conditions weren’t kind to our key forwards, but we felt that Sam competed well on the night. He played the role of a key position quite well by his ability to bring the ball to ground. He had a really good break out game a few weeks ago and has been copping a bit of attention from opposition teams. The challenge for Sam is to try and add other layers to his game. We want to make sure that when he’s not marking or winning the ball, or kicking goals, he’s adding influence to the team. We’re starting to get more of an even balance around that part of his game. He’s developing and he certainly continues to be on the right track.
Mitch White: Unfortunately, pretty early on in the match, Mitch suffered a hamstring injury and took no further part in the game. Hopefully we’ll see him back before the end of the season.
2017 AFL Victoria Development League
Saturday, July 22, 4pm
Casey Demons 7.12 (54) d Northern Blues 5.9 (39)
Casey Fields
Liam Hulett: The development team had a really good win over the Northern Blues and Liam, for the first time in two or three weeks, I felt he could walk off the ground, having played his role. He competed and showed effort for the level required. It was one of the more positive things to come out of the weekend. For Liam, if he continues to play that way, he’ll push his name up to play VFL football. There were some really positive signs for him.