How can Walker Improve??

[double hoops]

Well training more then once a week is a start. Oh he's injured isn't he. Play Station it is.

 

[mjb136]

Stop standing so shallow at first receiver, and a bit of confidence will do him the world of good.
Just run hard at the d line and build confidence from there, ala DCE the past couple weeks.

 

[Technical Coach]

A half or 5/8 has either got it, or they haven't.

Yes, practice can and will make him a better 5/8, but in my opinion he will never be a natural.

He needs to be the one hitting the gaps off playmakers.

Run Dylan Run.

You mean "never be as good as a natural" as the thread in itself implies he lacks natural qualities.

You can improve and learn the trade to a point where the structures help you become a more simple direct straight player but that requires a lot of patience and getting all players to know their role and on the same page.

At the moment Walker is learning his trade at the same time the squad is learning itself a very tough environment to learn the trade.

I've always been of the opinion it is more important to have natural or good ball-playing qualities ahead of natural running qualities in the halves, the running aspect should be the change up not stock play.(Well until the interchange drops further or there is less overal stoppages)

Don't get me wrong a running game is important to keep the defence honest and tight around your ball-playing abilities but if it is all you have most set structured defensive lines that are not going backwards will contain the running qualities fairly easily.

 

[Snake]

I was willing to give him time but the fact that he has not got one try assist to his name as yet, I think the experiment should maybe cease. I understand Snake has some injuries troubles but playing outside Walker has really nullified his impact.

I think it's too early to be expecting him to tear up the opposition, but there should be glimpses of promise and I am just not seeing any. He has scored three individual tries this season because he is quick and has a good fend, but all three had more to do with his athleticism as opposed to warming into his new role.

 

[Woodsie]

You mean "never be as good as a natural" as the thread in itself implies he lacks natural qualities.

You can improve and learn the trade to a point where the structures help you become a more simple direct straight player but that requires a lot of patience and getting all players to know their role and on the same page.

At the moment Walker is learning his trade at the same time the squad is learning itself a very tough environment to learn the trade.

I've always been of the opinion it is more important to have natural or good ball-playing qualities ahead of natural running qualities in the halves, the running aspect should be the change up not stock play.(Well until the interchange drops further or there is less overal stoppages)

Don't get me wrong a running game is important to keep the defence honest and tight around your ball-playing abilities but if it is all you have most set structured defensive lines that are not going backwards will contain the running qualities fairly easily.

All you say is true, practice can make almost anybody better at anything. And I am sure he will become a better 5/8.

But I am not only talking about physical attributes, I am talking about those things that made Sterling, Mortimer et al great.

As @king2213 said they also need instinct, vision, positional awareness and they have to be talkers, organisers, and thinkers. These things can't be coached to any great degree. Ask the greats halves why they did something and half the time they don't know. Just seemed like the right thing at the time.

I know you didn't mean it in this context, but to borrow your point of learning his trade. Front row is a trade, 2nd row is a trade, but to the really good halves like Cliffy Lyons it is an artform.

He either has it or he doesn't. But when judges such as Bozo think he is worth persisting with, I'll pull my head in and see.

 

[Mataiforever]

should learn to put taupau in holes

 

[BOZO]

Walker can improve and will make a good 5/8 but he will always excel as a centre . I would rather play him where he excels

 

[Technical Coach]

I was willing to give him time but the fact that he has not got one try assist to his name as yet, I think the experiment should maybe cease. I understand Snake has some injuries troubles but playing outside Walker has really nullified his impact.

I think it's too early to be expecting him to tear up the opposition, but there should be glimpses of promise and I am just not seeing any. He has scored three individual tries this season because he is quick and has a good fend, but all three had more to do with his athleticism as opposed to warming into his new role.

The point i was trying to make is that there was never a chance of Walker to succeed in such a small time frame behind a lack of structure that asks questions to the defence, power in the forwards and a young Coach still learning his role.

I was not even expecting more than "2-3 ball playing try assists at best" for the entire season due to all the above on top of not being a natural ball player.

Most "ball playing assists" these days are off the back of attacking structures that ask questions----- not so much a case of the ball playing alone causing enough deception to create a hole like the old school days---- against broken and fatigued defensive lines making poor defensive choices.

If Walker's main reason to come to Manly was to establish himself as a 5/8 it was the wrong team choice due to the current performance cycle/development of the team. A team like the Storm to learn the science behind the attack from the Coach right through to Cameron Smith and the Maestro Cooper Cronk on the field, playing off well drilled attacking structures would develop his game at a faster pace. (Even Inglis could excel at 5/8 in such an environment)

Walker was always going to be a long term project that had more chances of failing than excelling given the type and style of player he is along with playing in the very early stages of a new team and coach.

In saying that he does possess more skills than what he has been allowed to show in his limited time in 1st grade but the expectations are way too high.

There is nothing to gain switching Walker and Lyon around long term for the team other than a bit more mature 5/8 play from Lyon that might grab the odd extra win this season.

If Walker shows good signs in the back 1/3 of the season great, if not with Lyon retiring the choice is made easy for Barrett to put Walker back at centre and unearth other options.

 

[Technical Coach]

All you say is true, practice can make almost anybody better at anything. And I am sure he will become a better 5/8.

But I am not only talking about physical attributes, I am talking about those things that made Sterling, Mortimer et al great.

As @king2213 said they also need instinct, vision, positional awareness and they have to be talkers, organisers, and thinkers. These things can't be coached to any great degree. Ask the greats halves why they did something and half the time they don't know. Just seemed like the right thing at the time.

I know you didn't mean it in this context, but to borrow your point of learning his trade. Front row is a trade, 2nd row is a trade, but to the really good halves like Cliffy Lyons it is an artform.

He either has it or he doesn't. But when judges such as Bozo think he is worth persisting with, I'll pull my head in and see.

Most Halves or 5/8's these days play off the back of structures and learn the "Science" of creating a conducive attacking environment, even the ball playing that looks like an artform is well rehearsed to "look natural".

Cooper Cronk is a well drilled disciplined smart footballer who is not what you would call a "Natural Half or Ball Player" along with players like Foran who is probably the best ballplayer at the line in the comp.

One of my favourite passes was Cronk to Slater in the GF against the Dogs, the footballing smarts of Slater to hide behind and float from Coopers right shoulder to his left with the double pump no look fall back pass from Cronk was well rehearsed, timed and beautiful to watch-----"smart football brains that made the science of attack look like pure art and instinct"

 

[Snake]

The point i was trying to make is that there was never a chance of Walker to succeed in such a small time frame behind a lack of structure that asks questions to the defence, power in the forwards and a young Coach still learning his role.

I was not even expecting more than "2-3 ball playing try assists at best" for the entire season due to all the above on top of not being a natural ball player.

Most "ball playing assists" these days are off the back of attacking structures that ask questions----- not so much a case of the ball playing alone causing enough deception to create a hole like the old school days---- against broken and fatigued defensive lines making poor defensive choices.

If Walker's main reason to come to Manly was to establish himself as a 5/8 it was the wrong team choice due to the current performance cycle/development of the team. A team like the Storm to learn the science behind the attack from the Coach right through to Cameron Smith and the Maestro Cooper Cronk on the field, playing off well drilled attacking structures would develop his game at a faster pace. (Even Inglis could excel at 5/8 in such an environment)

Walker was always going to be a long term project that had more chances of failing than excelling given the type and style of player he is along with playing in the very early stages of a new team and coach.

In saying that he does possess more skills than what he has been allowed to show in his limited time in 1st grade but the expectations are way too high.

There is nothing to gain switching Walker and Lyon around long term for the team other than a bit more mature 5/8 play from Lyon that might grab the odd extra win this season.

If Walker shows good signs in the back 1/3 of the season great, if not with Lyon retiring the choice is made easy for Barrett to put Walker back at centre and unearth other options.

It's pretty black and white to be honest; he making a **** fist of his opportunity at 5/8. It's not rocket science to coach structure into first grade footballers but he is simply not producing the goods within the structures. He is not independent of these structures; he is one of the reasons there is none.

I was a massive fan of this guy and very happy with the decision to move him to 5/8 and championed him as being a 5/8 in the juniors etc. and he has been ordinary. Some of his arm grabbing in defence has been a disgrace.

 

[Technical Coach]

It's pretty black and white to be honest; he making a **** fist of his opportunity at 5/8. It's not rocket science to coach structure into first grade footballers but he is simply not producing the goods within the structures. He is not independent of these structures; he is one of the reasons there is none.

I was a massive fan of this guy and very happy with the decision to move him to 5/8 and championed him as being a 5/8 in the juniors etc. and he has been ordinary. Some of his arm grabbing in defence has been a disgrace.

It's not rocket science but at the moment we only have very basic structures and an attack that looks 1998 material.

Arm grabbing has been evident before he arrived at Manly and gets lazy at times when the tempo is up pace.

It's a bonus if he develops into a 5/8 that is why he is being given the time, i doubt he was signed to be a 5/8 just sealing the deal to offer him the opportunity.

No point chopping and changing now unless there is a long term prospect to be unearthed.

 

[mosto]

Simple answer to this thread is for him to grow some balls and tell Trent Barrett that he is a centre not a 5/8. He is never ever going to be like Milford, never

If a player starts to tell a coach where he will and won't play, and is listened to, then neither is worth having IMO.