CASEY coach Justin Plapp reviews the Melbourne-listed players who played in the VFL

2017 Peter Jackson VFL
Saturday, June 10, 2.10pm
Casey Demons 15.12 (102) d Collingwood 13.5 (83)
Casey Fields

From the coach …

“We felt that the game was set-up in the first half. Our ability to be able to pressure the opposition and keep the ball in the contest, and play our way, was significant. We had a big focus on taking Collingwood’s uncontested marks off them and we really denied them the football. Our players were first rate in team defence. We lost a few players throughout the day, and Jay Kennedy-Harris was our carryover player, so it really put some pressure on our rotations. I was really pleased with our players and we had a strong mentality, with a team-first focus.” – Justin Plapp 

Liam Hulett: Liam had five disposals and two tackles. It wasn’t a great day for Liam. He found it hard to get into the game. We’re looking to get more consistency in his game, particularly around his contest side of the game. He had a couple of good performances, but we felt it dropped off a bit on the weekend. He’s a young, developing key position player and we understand that there is going to be some inconsistencies in his game. But we’re just looking for Liam to bounce back and continue to develop.

Dion Johnstone: He had 11 disposals, eight tackles, three inside 50s and one goal. Dion’s game continues to go from strength to strength. He’s been in a really good patch in the past fortnight to three weeks. He’s one player who plays with energy and puts the opposition under strong pressure in our forward half. He’s also another player playing a number of different positions – from high half-forward to wing and midfield. He continues to develop and really impress.

Declan Keilty: Declan had nine disposals, seven tackles, 15 hit outs and kicked one goal. He’s been mixing his form over the past few weeks – he had an opportunity early in the game to hit the scoreboard and missed a relatively easy goal, which would’ve set his game up. But I really liked his second half, where he put the opposition under pressure. Seven tackles for a key forward/ruckman is pretty impressive. It was a game of two halves for Declan, and his focus is to string some consistency over four quarters.

Ben Kennedy: Ben had 29 disposals, including 15 contested possessions, six tackles, eight clearances and nine inside 50s. He continues to have a good month of football and continues to put himself back in consideration at AFL level. We felt his game on the weekend was very good and had a lot of energy and intensity around the contest. He was able to win some critical contests and get the ball forward for us. His ability to put the opposition under pressure was clearly a highlight of his game. He was one of our more prominent players.

Jay Kennedy-Harris: Jay had 13 disposals, six tackles, four clearances and four inside 50s. He only played half the game, as he was the carryover player for the AFL team. But within that time, he really continued that form from the week before, when he had 47 disposals. He’s playing a number of different roles and he’s really embracing them. Jay played with real energy and speed and he’s getting some good rewards for work-rate. The half a game he played, we were delighted with what he did.

Dean Kent: Dean had 22 disposals, including 10 contested possessions, six tackles, five inside 50s and kicked 2.1. He continues to build. His ability to put the opposition under pressure was a highlight on the weekend, particularly his tackling. His ability to go and win the ball and find the ball was quite prominent. He missed a couple of opportunities, but we think his game is in pretty good shape at the moment. He’s got some clear areas that he’s working on, but he’s certainly building.

Corey Maynard: Corey had 23 disposals, including 14 contested possessions, nine tackles, seven clearances and kicked 1.3. He started with a run-with role on the weekend to continue part of his development. We felt he embraced that role well and was able to nullify his opponent. His pressure and repeat efforts around contests were a highlight. The only disappointment was his inability to capitalise on the scoreboard, kicking three behinds from four scores. It would’ve made his day much more prominent otherwise. Still, he’s getting his game going after coming back from a recent concussion.

Tim Smith: Tim came off the ground pretty early in the game due to a foot injury. Until that stage, he had nine disposals, four tackles, three inside 50s and kicked 1.1. Unfortunately, Tim’s season is over due to injuring his navicular bone, but we’re confident he’ll bounce back.

Jake Spencer: Jake had seven disposals, 35 hit outs and three inside 50s. It was Jake’s first game back after missing six weeks with a shoulder injury. I thought he really looked sharp in the ruck – he jumped at the ball well and gave us first use. He looked a bit rusty around the ground and we would’ve liked him to be involved a bit more and take some more marks. But for the majority of his role, we felt his return was really strong and positive.

Billy Stretch: He had 24 disposals, including 12 contested possessions, six tackles and kicked two goals. Billy continues to perform at a high level in the VFL. He played a number of different positions on the weekend and was really accepting of those roles. I really liked the way he was able to take us forward and the way he used the ball inside forward 50. His work, in and around the contest, was as good as I’ve seen it, particularly his ability to win the contested ball in critical contests.

Jack Trengove: He had 20 disposals, six tackles, four rebound 50s and kicked one goal. Jack continues to play at a really high level in the VFL. He’s been consistent and the pleasing thing about Jack is that he’s playing a number of different roles. The great thing about him is that he accepts what’s given to him. He continues to demand a high standard from his teammates and he provides strong leadership. We’re lucky to have Jack playing the way he is at VFL level. I thought his game on the weekend was very good again.

Josh Wagner: Josh had 27 disposals, four marks from opposition kicks, three tackles, five rebound 50s and one goal. Wags’ response to being left out of the AFL team was first rate. He played with real energy and his ability to read opposition kicks, particularly to impact the high ball was first rate. His ball use was efficient and he set-up a lot of inside 50 attacks for us.

Sam Weideman: Sam had 21 disposals, eight marks and kicked 2.3. I was pleased with his game on the weekend. He got himself involved in the game, by providing a strong contest up forward, and he tried to create some real separation from his opponent. It was pleasing from Sam, because he had a couple of weeks where he struggled to find the ball and it got a bit tough for him. He’s worked hard on his game and he got some good rewards.

Mitch White: Mitch had 18 disposals, four marks, two intercept marks and four rebound 50s. I really liked Mitch’s game – he’s becoming a lot more consistent in the areas we need him to, particularly the high ball and his ability to defend the drop of the ball defensive 50. He played with real intensity and the pleasing thing on the weekend was that his ability to defend and then join in offensively to help us take the ball forward was pleasing.

2017 AFL Victoria Development League
Saturday, June 10, 11am
Casey Demons 21.16 (142) d Box Hill Hawks 9.4 (58)
Casey Fields

Mitch King: He had 10 disposals, 48 hit outs, four marks and kicked 1.1. Due to Jake Spencer coming back to the VFL team, Mitch pushed back to the Development League. We were really pleased with game – I was delighted with it. One thing we ask our players when they go back a level is to invest in the side. It can be some different situations, but I thought his attitude for first-rate and he played the role that we needed him to do. He dominated the ruck and gave his midfielders first use of the ball. Mitch also followed up and continued to get involved in the game. It was a good game from Mitch and he’ll put himself back into VFL contention this week.