FOLLOWING Casey's Round 15 clash, VFL coach Rhett McLennan provided his reflections on the contributions of AFL-listed players.
Jack Henderson
23 disposals, 5 marks, 6 tackles, 5 inside 50s
"Hendo was really consistent and provided four quarters of really strong effort. He had eight score involvements and just didn’t stop trying.
"His consistency as a VFL midfielder is really strong at the moment, and I’m sure he’ll hold up his end of the bargain if he gets his opportunity at AFL level."
Aidan Johnson
3 goals, 16 disposals, 13 contested possessions, 4 tackles
"AJ’s first half was elite. He was the most influential player on the ground by a mile in the first half, kicked three goals and was really combative in the ruck, fantastic as a forward, and his contest work was really good."
Xavier Taylor
18 disposals, 5 marks, 5 tackles
"Xavier was really solid. He got involved in offence a lot more this week and fought to the death really well.
"He had a couple of scrambling defensive efforts that were really impressive. He played on a bigger body and got beaten a couple of times, but overall he definitely held his own."
Tom McDonald
19 disposals, 7 marks, 7 intercept possessions
"Tommy played an interesting role because he got tagged as a full-back, which is a credit to the influence he’s had as a key defender.
"He was still looking to take intercept marks and used the ball well. It probably blunted his influence a little bit, but he still had an impact."
Luker Kentfield
13 disposals, 8 marks, 5 score involvements. 3 tackles
"Luker had lots of opportunities to have a really positive impact on the game, he just didn’t quite take them.
"He had four shots on goal and the ball struggled to get to him in the second half, but if he takes those chances, he’s a really hard key forward to contend with."
Ricky Mentha
19 disposals, 8 intercept possessions
"Ricky’s game was a little bit like the rest of the side. His first half was really solid, he used the footy well, defended well and had some great defensive efforts.
"His tackling has improved out of sight, he just got lost a little bit defensively in the last quarter, which put a bit of a dampener on a game that started really well."
Max Mapley
12 disposals, 24 hit-outs, 4 tackles
"Max’s first half was fantastic. He showed some really good ruck technique and was easily getting over his opponent.
"As the game went on, some bigger and stronger bodies started to run him around a little bit more, but he showed in moments that his best is definitely good enough, whether that’s in the air or on the ground."
Jake Melksham
11 disposals, 1 goal
"Melky got involved early in the first half but didn’t get much of a look at it in the second half.
"We need to either be a little bit more penetrating with the footy or he needs to get up into the game a bit more to have a more consistent influence."
Riley Onley
11 disposals, 1 goal, 4 marks, 3 tackles
"Riley had a new role in the midfield this week, which is where he played most of his junior footy.
"He started really well, was on task and his tackle numbers were as good as they’ve been all year. He just needs to be confident with ball in hand to have a bigger influence."
Patrick Cross
13 disposals, 4 marks
"Crossy’s influence on the game was solid. He worked really hard, but we couldn’t get him out in the open or in as many isolation moments as we would have liked.
"He moved into the midfield in the second half to give us some extra run and was solid, but probably didn’t have as many individual moments as he would have liked."
Kalani White
2 goals, 8 disposals, 5 marks
"Kalani had some moments that he’s had all year where, when he can run and jump at the ball unimpeded, he looks fantastic.
"He still needs to get involved defensively a little bit more, but his ability to get back and get involved in offence was good, which led to his two goals."
Oscar Berry
8 disposals, 2 tackles
"Oscar held his own from an offensive point of view from the back half.
"Playing on bigger bodies over the last couple of weeks is giving him a really good starting point on how to compete against stronger bodies, especially in the air. His offensive stuff is continuing to grow."
