Pick 53: Jack Graham | PUNT ROAD END | Richmond Tigers Forum
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Pick 53: Jack Graham

Dow had two shoulder ops, disrupted pre-season
Will Martyn glandular fever disrupted pre-season, (and personally think he is too slow to make it)
Parker just can't kick he was horrendous in the first half in the VFL.
Riley unfortunately not getting from contest to contest.
Sonsie disrupted pre-season didn't start any running till basically early Feb so needs to build some fitness.

So I can understand their desperation to rush Graham which unfortunately confirms the cupboard appears to be bare.

I would keep Graham this week if he pulls up ok and the only one I would add from above is Dow instead of Aarts.

**Someone needs to sacrifice their game or preferred position to allow Shai to become a more permanent mid and the ideal player should be Syd and why he was trialed their most of the pre-season. Syd started wing again in VFL, I only saw the first half, not the worst and not the best in what was a thrashing so not sure if we give up on the hard love and jus throw him in there as there is very little talent to call upon.

**Actually just saw this report from VFL as I did not see 2nd half to add to why Syd should play forward :


Richmond was pricked into action by senior coach, Steve Morris at three-quarter time. They then kicked the last five goals of the game, ignited by talisman, Sydney Stack and Noah Cumberland up forward, both showcasing their aerial skills.

Stack was the first to soar above the pack inside-50, juggling a strong contested mark and converting his set-shot from a smidge inside the paint. Stack kick 2 goals after half time.
Once again spot on Caesar.
Sydney definitely lifted when moved forward.
Sonsie did some good things.
Other than that, nothing positive to take out of that game. They trounced us in every department.
 
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Its never a great sign for a club in general when their reserve team is getting beaten by 100 points.

As we saw during our premiership years our VFL team was also strong. It showed we had the required depth.
 
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you criticize the selection of an underdone Graham, but yet declare RCD a bust because he wasnt selected after an interrupted preseason?

Graham should be Caddy'd for a week or 2 after his efforts last night.
I thought RCD played in the VFL?

And his pre season was unquestionably more comprehensive than Jack Graham's. If we don't have faith that he can deliver more than an underdone Graham then its a concern.
 
Hardwick has history picking his Favourites
Griffens and Conca rings a bell??

Exactly what I thought of when Hardwick made the comment. Seems he still has to learn the lesson


I support taking Gibcus. But i think the club should have done some live trading to snag Hobbs.

From reports we tried but no-one in that range would deal

In any case Hobbs in first game was not going to fix our midfield problems last night.
 
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Graham played extra minutes due to Prestia being injured so he wasn't up to it with his limited preseason. He'll be better for the run so we should see improvement each week from now. Dimmas gamble with playing him underdone didn't come off last night.. move on
 
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Just on Jack Graham..some touted him as Captain before preseason.. but can he go to the next level as an elite midfielder or is this as a role player about his ceiling?
Yes he's been a legend in many games so far in his short career but he's actually one I think needs to step up again this season & take the mantle from the likes of Dion, Dusty & Cotch. I'm not sure he can but I sure hope he does.
 
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how did caddy go?

Caddy was arguing with players, (certainly didn't look like positive instruction). He was also demanding the ball when he was not the best option.
I were very critical of him on the day whilst watching with @Dont Argue (pardon the pun :) )

To be fair the whole VFL side looked in disarray it came as quite a shock.
 
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which is why we were all confused Richmond didn't prioritise midfielders in last years draft.
I think we have begun a re-build. We need to try and get the talls in first as they usually take longer to hit their straps. Mids will come later.
 
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I think we have begun a re-build. We need to try and get the talls in first as they usually take longer to hit their straps. Mids will come later.
We have begun a rebuild no doubt. My questions on Graham as an A grade mid remain however. Nobody seems to want to touch it but it's a genuine question. Can JG become the next Cotch, Martin or Prestia? That's what we need from him.
 
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We have begun a rebuild no doubt. My questions on Graham as an A grade mid remain however. Nobody seems to want to touch it but it's a genuine question. Can JG become the next Cotch, Martin or Prestia? That's what we need from him.

The answer is an emphatic no and always has been. Can be a great Ringo, but we shouldn’t expect him to be a great George, let alone John or Paul.
 
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The answer is an emphatic no and always has been. Can be a great Ringo, but we shouldn’t expect him to be a great George, let alone John or Paul.
When you break it down, he’s probably just a better decision maker and finisher than Daniel Jackson. And that’s about it.
And Daniel won a B&F
 
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We have begun a rebuild no doubt. My questions on Graham as an A grade mid remain however. Nobody seems to want to touch it but it's a genuine question. Can JG become the next Cotch, Martin or Prestia? That's what we need from him.
No cos he's not shown it in 5 years in the best side in the competition.

Initially thought he would be the replacement for our great King Chimp but doesn't look likely of getting anywhere near that level which to be honest is a pretty high level (Brownlow Medalist and 3 x Premiership Skipper)!!

He's tough and hard and handy around goals but he's not elevating to the player we hoped he could be.
 
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When you break it down, he’s probably just a better decision maker and finisher than Daniel Jackson. And that’s about it.
And Daniel won a B&F

I think that’s a good analogy. Daniel won one in a far weaker team though.
 
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I'm a big fan of Jack Graham. I was mad on him as a late pick in his draft and he's been a good player since then.

Dimma described him in a presser last year as a 'project player."

That's where Jack's at. We've used him as a role player since 2018, defensive mid. Jack can have occasional lapses with execution but his best DMBIH is very good. And when he's fresh (not fatigued) he can find space and use.

That bloke we put on the park last week is massively underdone and even if fit would have been batting too high. Jack Graham is not yet #4 mid class at his best. Getting him there is a project. For lots of reasons he is covering much more ground than he would naturally. If we could afford to play JG on 70%TOG we'd see a different man. With actual BWA.

But as at R1 22 JG is not fit, perhaps not sound, batting too high and under the pump.
 
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Overall we are missing the run of Lambert but Graham is missing it more. The two running in tandem works better. Without Lambert Graham is asked to do more.
 
I think that’s a good analogy. Daniel won one in a far weaker team though.
And Short won one in a Premiership year.
You’ve still got to have a great year and poll more than 26-28 other teammates.
My point being Graham hasn’t had a great year yet. Only great games.
Thankfully one of them was in a Grand Final
 
Like McIntosh, Graham is another of our regular gut runners, who's also playing catchup on his preseason.
You can see the efforts there but he's struggling to exert his influence in the midfield. He ends up running around a lot but not doing much damage.
There's reasons we're fading from game's & Jack's current endurance levels is one of the reasons.
 
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Like McIntosh, Graham is another of our regular gut runners, who's also playing catchup on his preseason.
You can see the efforts there but he's struggling to exert his influence in the midfield. He ends up running around a lot but not doing much damage.
There's reasons we're fading from game's & Jack's current endurance levels is one of the reasons.
I'm Skinner and I haven't walked the block in 2 yrs.
Our fitness bloke is crap.
They came back from Perth.
Anyone else wouldve beaten them by 10 goals
 
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