AFL Rd 19 2024 Post Game Prognostications Carlton vs North Melbourne

[Baggers]

I've been one to stick up for him and praising him for his 'unnoticed effort' each week.

I stood up for him when people were calling for his eviction from the side in favour of a 2nd ruck. (You may have been one of them).
Now without wanting to go down that path, you can clearly see what he offers and how that is a benefit over another tall, specifically a ruck.

We need pressure players. Ollie is a pressure player.
People forget, he is only in his 2nd year. Not many other blokes are going better than him that were taken around (or after) his pick, #11, in the draft.

Someone like Carroll has been on the list longer and shown us less. Somehow because he has played less games, he gets more chances....even though he has been around longer.
Similarly Cottrell who has been around longer than both...but offers very little more than Ollie does at the moment. Even though a lot of his stuff goes unnoticed, he hasn't got back to his pre-injury form yet, far from it.

I don't think anyone questions Ollie's endeavour and ability to get to contests to effect timely spoils. His work rate is... well... first rate.

However, and yes, he's still learning, he still makes critical disposal errors, especially handing the aggott back to the opposition. One error against the Kangabies cost us momentum and very likely a shot on goal - a simple short kick to a team mate fell short and was marked by the opposition. Another where he tried to mark the ball with hands only, failing to commit his body. And due to his slight body, he's easily knocked out of contests. Does that mean we drop him? Of course not. But it does say he has important skills to work on... and he aint Robinson Crusoe in that regard.

Nutshell: great work ethic and defensive efforts. Disposal skills, still a concern. We all love Ollie and his huge ticker, but that doesn't mean we can't be objective, even critical, of his shortcomings.