Is Dempster becoming a liability?

[mightysainters]

dempster is very solid.. no idea how people can think this

[magnifisaint]

He's become the rock of gibraltar of the backline. One upon a time people on here use to say that he was Dempstered. How memories are short!

[loris]

Lee stays in.
Dempster is the best defensive mark we have in the side. He stays.

I hope Lee gets an extended run at it over the next few weeks whilst Roberton is out, to show he has what it takes at AFL level.

Agree with you samurai saint re the Dumpster. His defensive marking saves us time & time, there is no one challenging him in that area to date. Roberton down back would be second I would imagine.

I know he's been a great servant for years and he's the favourite of so many, so I'll get shouted down here.IMHO Fisher is the one who appears to be unravelling.

He's slowed down, is fumbling a lot when the ball is below the knees, and this season his skill of leaving his man to attempt the 'intercept mark' seems to be deserting him. He's made some wrong decisions in all matches this season. There were a couple of instances yesterday, he left his player, the ball went over his head, both times Lee had to contend with his own & Fishers player. Then Lee gets criticised when he's been out bodied and can't mark or spoil.
Also Fisher doesn't appear to have the fitness for our style of game. He's been absolutely exhausted, hardly able to raise a trot in the final quarters of the last 2 matches, and often loses his feet and goes to ground too easily this season. Whereas, Dempster has been just as exhausted, but seems to be able to will himself to the next contest, remain on his feet and able to stick tackles etc.

I just hope Fisher hasn't played on one season too many and his decline becomes too obvious. Champion players deserve to go out on top of their game or at least in some control of it.

If Lee maintains the level he showed yesterday I think he is a more obvious replacement for the ageing Fisher.

[Trev from the Bush]

Agree Loris. Dempster is still near his best, audacious in his attempts to win Mark of the Year. Sammy is still playing good footy, though, and your view may be coloured by comparing the Fisher of today with the Fisher of 5 years ago. He has slipped by his standards but is a long way from being an easy-beat.

Given that, this will be Sam's last season. I think yesterday we all saw where the Club was heading. Behind closed doors I reckon the coaches would have been thrilled with Tommy Lee's performance - struggled early but played his way into the game and ended with 20 possessions and a good tall of marks. Nothing flash but very dependable, and don't forget Carlisle will add much needed size and strength to the back half next year. The slightly forgotten Goddard will also be making inroads later in the season. Sammy will be able to throw his boots in the bin in full knowledge he has given the club everything and he has left it in good shape.

[Bluthy]

Fish has deteriorated a bit but he plays on the number 1 forward every week. That is a thankless, exhausting job where you take your eye off them for a second they get a mis-match and often a goal. Dempster has more freedom to play that last line sweeper role he does so well. I am biased towards Fish because I really value his kicking - he doesn't get a chance to show it off much because he has his hands full on the forward gorillas. It wouldn't surprise if both Fish and Demps retire at the end of the year. I think we will have the new talent to replace them and we want to get games into them as we start to head towards finals.

[BigMart]

I still think Dempster is not a liability... I think he is an ageing star who is still a valuable contributor.

He is about 30% better than Lee, 50% better than Goddard at this point

[Harvey To Hayes]

Dempster is the best defensive mark we have in the side. He stays.

Complete gun, totally underrated.

[Trev from the Bush]

Dempster is the best defensive mark we have in the side. He stays.

Complete gun, totally underrated.

Only underated by Saintsational posters, not by his peers, the general footballing public or the media.

It's a problem that comes when you are posting on any blog - you think you are the smartest person in the room all the time. That;s because you usually are the ONLY person in the room!

[The OtherThommo]

Agree Loris. Dempster is still near his best, audacious in his attempts to win Mark of the Year. Sammy is still playing good footy, though, and your view may be coloured by comparing the Fisher of today with the Fisher of 5 years ago. He has slipped by his standards but is a long way from being an easy-beat.

Given that, this will be Sam's last season. I think yesterday we all saw where the Club was heading. Behind closed doors I reckon the coaches would have been thrilled with Tommy Lee's performance - struggled early but played his way into the game and ended with 20 possessions and a good tall of marks. Nothing flash but very dependable, and don't forget Carlisle will add much needed size and strength to the back half next year. The slightly forgotten Goddard will also be making inroads later in the season. Sammy will be able to throw his boots in the bin in full knowledge he has given the club everything and he has left it in good shape.

Fish is performing admirably, I reckon. They've pushed him back a line due, in part, to compensate for him having slowed up a bit. And he's using his sizable football noggin to adapt to playing on the bigger/biggest forwards, a responsibility handed to others when Fish was at his peak, because Fish was a premier game reading, intercepting, ball getting, roaming defender who regularly set us up.

Old dog, new tricks, and all that. Kudos to Fish.

[Con Gorozidis]

Was shocking today. Shocking.

[The Fireman]

I think it's good to bump these crap threads...and always look at the author.

[Moods]

I am currently in NZ and have been following scores on my phone. Hard to tell tone when it's written. Was Dempster good today? Who stood Hogan?

[terry smith rules]

I think it's good to bump these crap threads...and always look at the author.

exactly, really pathetic

he'd rather we lose and then he good really happily complain

[SainterK]

Yawn.

[Dr Spaceman]

Ageist crap.


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[8856brother]

You are relentless Gora.

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[skeptic]

It's a but of a lame bump to be honest...

What's wrong with Dempster being criticised for playing a few average games?

He's been better since then and good on him... Doesn't mean the criticism wasn't warranted. The reality is Dempster isn't is not a part of the future. That means that essentially, if he is not playing well, there is no point to playing him at all.

By playing better, he has removed room for criticism and rightly so

[The Fireman]

It's a but of a lame bump to be honest...

What's wrong with Dempster being criticised for playing a few average games?

He's been better since then and good on him... Doesn't mean the criticism wasn't warranted. The reality is Dempster isn't is not a part of the future. That means that essentially, if he is not playing well, there is no point to playing him at all.

By playing better, he has removed room for criticism and rightly so

and by playing better gives everyone the right to have a crack at those with little faith and foresight .

[skeptic]

It's a but of a lame bump to be honest...

What's wrong with Dempster being criticised for playing a few average games?

He's been better since then and good on him... Doesn't mean the criticism wasn't warranted. The reality is Dempster isn't is not a part of the future. That means that essentially, if he is not playing well, there is no point to playing him at all.

By playing better, he has removed room for criticism and rightly so

and by playing better gives everyone the right to have a crack at those with little faith and foresight .

Meh... I don't think there's anything wrong with saying someone is playing badly when they are. It's the same line of thinking as giving praise to someone when they deserve it.

Call it as it happens

[SainterK]

It's a but of a lame bump to be honest...

What's wrong with Dempster being criticised for playing a few average games?

He's been better since then and good on him... Doesn't mean the criticism wasn't warranted. The reality is Dempster isn't is not a part of the future. That means that essentially, if he is not playing well, there is no point to playing him at all.

By playing better, he has removed room for criticism and rightly so

and by playing better gives everyone the right to have a crack at those with little faith and foresight .

Meh... I don't think there's anything wrong with saying someone is playing badly when they are. It's the same line of thinking as giving praise to someone when they deserve it.

Call it as it happens

So...can expect Con to start a thread on how Geary nullified Gartlett today?

Balance the ledger occasionally I reckon, makes the opinion appear more tempered.

[St Lenny]

Dempster had the first worst game ever. Give him a break. What about that amazing mark, didn't even get a replay. Saved our butts so many times, don't write him off to quickly.

[BigMart]

Just a solid, reliable defender who gives 100

Criticism was silly.

Players can't be at their best every week... But he almost is... Possibly the least of our worries

Only real worry with Sean is that he's near the end and we have to replace him

[The Fireman]

It's a but of a lame bump to be honest...

What's wrong with Dempster being criticised for playing a few average games?

He's been better since then and good on him... Doesn't mean the criticism wasn't warranted. The reality is Dempster isn't is not a part of the future. That means that essentially, if he is not playing well, there is no point to playing him at all.

By playing better, he has removed room for criticism and rightly so

and by playing better gives everyone the right to have a crack at those with little faith and foresight .

Meh... I don't think there's anything wrong with saying someone is playing badly when they are. It's the same line of thinking as giving praise to someone when they deserve it.

Call it as it happens

playing badly for a couple of games and becoming a liability after so many good games and a good track record ? nup sorry Skeptic this thread was ill conceived from the start.
You can criticise any player who puts in a bad one but to lable him a liability was just plain silly...the question mark was a way of the author covering his arse

[The Fireman]

Just a solid, reliable defender who gives 100

Criticism was silly.

Players can be at their best every week... But he almost is... Possibly the least of our worries

Only real worry with Sean is that he's near the end and we have to replace him

read this skeptic.

[Con Gorozidis]

So GWS get 62 x I50 entries and Cameron kicks 5 and it is all Tom Lee's fault.

But

Melbourne only get 55 entries and Hogan kicks 7 and it is nobodies fault.

Just as long as we have cleared that up then. One rule for Tom Lee and one for everyone else.