Nathan Foley [merged]

[one-eyed]

Foley to play a half for Coburg this weekend.

[the claw]

mainly based on over all performance over the journey when fit. and where they are currently. of course ive thrown a ouple in based on potential.
#1 cotchin. super reliable is in the best 10 mids in the comp. conservative.
#2 deledio  probably the most underrated mid going around.
#3 tuck  just a hard ball winning machine yes he has some flaws but he is critical to all sorts of things like contested possesion  and contests at stoppages. imo had a quiet start to the yr.
#4 martin will probably end up  only behind cotchin but atm based on the above criteria id place him here. foleys maybe a bit stiff not to be here atm..
#5 foley an inside machine almost as important as tuck lose tuck and foley will fill the void. personally id like to have them on different rotations so when tuck comes off foley goes on and we dont lose much at stoppages etc. nathan has an extra string in the fact he can play outside footy very well as well. the only knock i have on foley like tuck is at times foot skills can let em down.

tuck aside  whos very much inside, in a way we are lucky with the above in the fact cotchin deledio martin foley to varying degrees are both inside and outside players.

#6 grigg fantastic run and spread player. the knock is hes just invisible when it comes to other areas of the game.also for an outside player i have real issues with his kicking it should be elite for the role he performs,  imo its ave at best.
would in time be looking for a highly skilled mainly  outside running player who can win a little ball.  hopefully really quick but not a be all end all need as long as hes got good pace.   with a large tank who will at least defend and run and help his team mates.a bastinac type is more my go. its this type we really need to target.

#7 conca  still a kid and improving every yr,  i have some issues but think we have at the least a good solid player.  im hoping for a little more than that to be honest. wont state what issues i have. not here to knock him.
#8 knights  geez some areas he looks all class others he needs to work hard. seems to make real good decisions and find time.the knock he just doesnt find enough ball or spend enough time in the midfield. injuries have played their part as we all know. if he stays healthy for a good period of time i think he will be a decent mid for us.
#9 ellis another kid who did real well in yr one.  for a sml hes a lovely size and he has great skills. hes a bit intimidated by older players atm imo. and thus is a bit timid  this will change. we need to continue to play him. no matter what

#10 vlaustin TRULY BELIEVE HE SHOULD BE A LOCK IN. genuine big bodied well rounded mid whos as tough as nails. reads the play exceptionally and god forbid has good skills. in two yrs time it wont be talk of cotchin deledio and martin but cotchin deledio martin and vlastuin. this yr  should be played off hb asap.

#11 helbig reckon hes behind those mentioned thru injury etc. really like him and performance wise he hasnt done a heap. can kick is tough is quick and can find his own ball.
have stated on othe rthreads would personally play him off hb with a view to play him in the midfield as a run with player in the longer term.

that leaves two other obvious ones

jackson well hes been solid first three rounds but i just cant abide dumb poor decision makers with skills that are poor. we all know its just a matter of time before he reverts back to type.
houli well i just cant see him playing well as a mid in pressure games  imo hes not a mid. if i was to place him  in there it would be as a running wingman. 

while at times you want your best 6 in their i reckon most of the time its about finding the right spread of very good players and foot soldiers so you dont drop off to much when rotations happen.

[HKTiger]

And after all that you leave out the current most effective clearance player on the team in Shed.  And when people call you up on your view's apparently its abuse.  Go figure.

[Smokey]

Pretty fair summation Claw, although like HKT said - where's Shed?  I've got a couple of comments:

"#6 grigg fantastic run and spread player. the knock is hes just invisible when it comes to other areas of the game."

He had a much more defensive role last week and did a great job.  I don't think he will ever be known for his defensive prowess but if he shows more defensive pressure like that then he would allay some of your concerns and become a much more rounded mid.  Also, you mentioned Bastinac but I saw his game highlighted on a show during the week (can't remember which one) and he was guilty of very poor defence - wonder if that becomes his Achilles Heel also?

"#10 vlaustin TRULY BELIEVE HE SHOULD BE A LOCK IN."

I've been thinking about that since the season start and I agree with you.  I reckon what they are doing is what the consistently top sides have the luxury of doing and that is playing him in the 2's for a while so that his body can get some conditioning against men and he is exposed to an increase in tempo before he steps up to senior level.  I don't think it will be very long before we see him and I am very confident he will make the grade - it's a new position for us to be in where we don't have to fill our side with kids just to get games into our entire list.

"houli well i just cant see him playing well as a mid in pressure games  imo hes not a mid."

I wouldn't even consider him when discussing our midfield.  He's our best running defender and is back playing the type of footy that he did in his first season with us, and I don't see him going any where near the midfield rotations.

[tigs2011]

As bad as Grigg can be defensively at times and it does frustrate the hell out of me. We'd be ready to burn Bastinac's house down if he was in Tiger colours and did what he did against the Swans. 

[dwaino]

He had a much more defensive role last week and did a great job.  I don't think he will ever be known for his defensive prowess but if he shows more defensive pressure like that then he would allay some of your concerns and become a much more rounded mid.  Also, you mentioned Bastinac but I saw his game highlighted on a show during the week (can't remember which one) and he was guilty of very poor defence - wonder if that becomes his Achilles Heel also?

That was in AFL Insider on Tuesday night. He paid absolutely no respect to McVeigh and because of that was responsible for conceding several goals. If he were a Richmond player everyone would be screaming to neck him. Grigg on the other hand played to perfection the role against Libba as Bastinac was supposed to play against McVeigh, adding another string his bow but will unfortunately go unnoticed to stat hawks (but really who cares about them).

[Judge Roughneck]

so who do we drop for Foley......NO ONE

Still feel Richmond 21 +1 is rock solid?

[one-eyed]

Jen Phelan (Witham) @AFL_JenPhelan

"Nathan Foley has got through a half for Coburg. Kicked a great goal just before halftime. Happy with how he's pulled up so far"

 

[tony_montana]

Hopefully he pulls up well this week.
 Give him another 3 weeks imo.
3 qtrs next week and then full game for 2 weeks solid before bringing him back for rnd 8.

[one-eyed]

RICHMOND midfielder Nathan Foley has gotten through his first taste of competitive football in almost 12 months, playing a half for Coburg in the VFL.

He won a handful of quality possessions, tackled well and got more involved the longer he was on, with his half culminating in a great goal kicked shortly before the break.

Afterwards, he said he pulled up well and predicted he would need up to three more games at VFL level before being considered for senior selection.

Full article here: http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2013-04-21/foley-returns-at-coburg

The VFL guy on SEN tonight said Foley had 7 possies up to half-time.

[one-eyed]

Impressive comeback by Foley for Coburg

   Brent Diamond
    The Age
    April 22, 2013

Richmond midfielder Nathan Foley says his body held up well after an impressive first outing in nine months for the Coburg Tigers in their 26-point loss, 19.15 (129) to 15.13 (103), against the Northern Blues at Coburg City Oval on Sunday.

The 27-year-old racked up 18 disposals on limited game time and although Tigers development coach Tim Clarke touted the idea of perhaps using Foley as a substitute next week against Fremantle, Foley believes the club was likely to take a more conservative approach with his conditioning.

''I'll sit down with the fitness staff and sort of work that out as we go … It was good, I was a bit nervous getting out there for my first run again, it was good to blow off some cobwebs,'' Foley said.

Clarke described Foley's return as outstanding.

''He was one of the best players, I think at the end of the day he was our fifth- or sixth-highest possession getter and he played a half of footy,'' Clarke said.

''He's fit and ready to go, it's now about him getting match fitness.''

Foley, who has had a wretched run with Achilles injuries, said competition for spots in the midfield was now far greater than last year.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/impressive-comeback-by-foley-for-coburg-20130421-2i8i6.html#ixzz2R7PWuDym

[one-eyed]

Foley to play three-quarters this weekend for Coburg against Box Hill.

Full article here: http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2013-04-22/foley-fine-firstup

Video interview here: http://www.richmondfc.com.au/video/2013-04-22/foley-returns-to-vfl

[Stripes]

Sounds like they are aiming for him to return for the Port game

[Hellenic Tiger]

Sounds like it.
As a sub against Port he might be instrumental in getting us over the line.

[one-eyed]

On the bright side, Hardwick said Nathan Foley was close to making a return after playing a full game for Coburg in the VFL on the weekend.

http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2013-05-05/richmond-to-assess-fitness-of-tall-duo