Craig McKay, who posts as Macca19 on BigFooty has been writing week-by-week player reviews for the Port Adelaide board on the AFL forum for a number of years, and we’ll replicate the reviews for his Top 5 each week on portadelaidefc.com.au to give you a fans’ view on the game.
The opinions in these player reviews will be Macca19’s, and not of the club or its coaches.
Macca19 was at Richmond Oval today to see a young Power side go down to the Crows. This is how he saw the best five players, plus his best young players…
Top 5 v Adelaide – NAB Challenge
Jared Polec
Stunner. Best on ground. You can see why we chased him hard and why we were so happy to get him given that performance. We had heard about his outside run and carry and his pinpoint passing and how great they were (and they really were great) but it was his clearance work and his work around the stoppages that impressed the most. It looks like we've got a new centre square midfielder on our hands, that is just as good on the outside. He'll be a very important player this year and into the future. You'd think he'd be locked into the Round 1 team on that showing.
Tom Logan
Beaten early but really picked up in the last three quarters and was one of our best players in the end. Thought he defended well, threw himself in with reckless abandon as we expect and used the ball well. The best of the few experienced heads out there.
Andrew Moore
Was the standout best in the first half. Slowed down after half time but looks the part this year. Looks stronger, more switched on, capable of winning the ball at stoppages and is standing up in tackles. Bigger through the core. Can’t wait to see what he can do this year.
Sam Colquhoun
Thought he was very impressive playing further up the field more than we saw last year. Played almost a Cornes role through the middle. Impressed with his disposal and ability to make space and find the ball, as we saw last year. Looks fit. Expect him to have an impact this year.
Aaron Young
Impressive playing through the midfield. Stood out with his ability to get hands free and also to sneak forward and kick a goal. Will be on the fringe come round 1, may just sneak in.
The best of the youngsters
Karl Amon
The best of the draftees by a fair margin. Gets in great position to win the ball, nice and pacey, lively around the packs and knows how to kick. Looking forward to seeing what he can do with a better group around him. Could certainly impact this year if given the chance.
Ben Newton
A smooth mover across the field, gets into good position, uses it wisely when he gets it and is a strong body around the packs. Thought he started well and finished well, but struggled a little in the middle two quarters. Definitely something to work with and will be around the mark come round 1. Want to see how he goes with the first team next week.
Jarman Impey
Couldnt get into it playing on a forward flank, but had more of an impact when playing further back. Defintiely quick and a good size. Disposal needs a bit of work but you can see theres a core footballer there with some decent qualities. A couple of his chases were class.
Darcy Byrne-Jones
Didn’t get a whole lot of game time, but when he was on he was lively. Kicked a nice goal. Threw himself in more than I expected him to. Obviously needs to put on a lot more bulk but again it looks like the core footballer is there to work with and develop.
Mitch Harvey
He’s a big lad. Similar to Shaw, just wasn’t given any chance to do much up forward. Liked the way he hit the packs, but again, needs to time his leads and work into space a bit more. Spent considerable time in the ruck and did a reasonable enough job.
Daniel Flynn
What an enigma. His lightning speed, mongrel, ability to take the game on and decent skills will win a lot of fans. Just needs to get up to speed with his football nous. A few times he ran himself into trouble or sold teammates into trouble, but for a guy playing his third game of Aussie Rules ever, there’s a lot to like and a lot to work with. Physically he looks ready to go. Skill-wise he is nowhere near the worst in our squad. It’s just all about the football nous and knowing what to do and when to do it.
