NORTHERN Blues senior coach Josh Fraser analyses the performances of the Carlton-listed players who featured in the Round 8 VFL clash with Sandringham.

4. Lochie O’Brien

Stats: 13 disposals, four marks, seven handball receives
From the coach: Lochie had some strong moments in the game where he was able to use his run and demonstrate his ball-use. He gained some exposure as an inside midfielder and he performed quite well. We need him to string more of his best footy together for longer periods, playing to his strengths by using his run.

16. Darcy Lang

Stats: 18 disposals, seven marks, five clearances, one goal
From the coach: I liked Langy’s game, he’s starting to build some solid form through the midfield. He’s playing to his strengths, using his speed and burst away from stoppages and he kicked a really nice goal in the first quarter. We think he’s progressing well in the last couple of weeks.

19. Angus Schumacher

Stats: 12 disposals, five spoils
From the coach: I thought his game was pretty solid again. He had a couple of moments in the third quarter which he probably would’ve liked to have done a bit better with, but on the balance he’s becoming a dependable member of that back six or seven for us. When he can see the easy target and take it, he’s quite effective: we think he’s turned a corner in the last few weeks.

21. Jarrod Garlett

Stats: Seven disposals, seven spoils
From the coach: Jarrod played down back and had some really good aerial smash in terms of his ability to kill the contest. There were a few in the second half which he’ll have to improve on: at ground level, we’re looking for him to continue applying that pressure and make it a feature of his game.

26. Harrison Macreadie

Stats: 11 disposals, five marks
From the coach: ‘Creads’ was okay, he took some good intercept marks. For him, it’s about consistency over four quarters and we understand he’s had an interrupted build-up to his matches. If he can string his best footy together, he’s going to be exactly where we need him as someone of his quality.

27. Matthew Lobbe

Stats: 18 disposals, nine clearances, 16 hitouts
From the coach: ‘Lobes’ split his time between forward and ruck, and in the first half he was really strong alongside Andrew Phillips. I thought their second halves were a bit below what we expect from them, but he’s been able to take marks around the ground which is important for him. 

29. Cameron Polson

Stats: 10 disposals, three inside 50s
From the coach: ‘Pols’ was in and out of the game, he started quite well. As someone who played between half-forward and midfield, we’re looking to find more ways where he can have an impact in the game. We’ll keep working hard with him on where he’s running and how he’s finding the footy to increase his output.

34. Andrew Phillips

Stats: 11 disposals, six marks, 24 hitouts
From the coach: ‘Flip’ in the first half was really strong against Longer, he ended with 24 hitouts and 11 touches. With six marks around the ground, he probably had his hands on another four or five which he didn’t complete. If he takes those, his game is really impressive: we need him and ‘Lobes’ to have really big presences as our key rucks.

36. Patrick Kerr

Stats: 12 disposals, six marks, 3.3
From the coach: ‘Kerry’ finished with another six shots on goal and his first half in particular was really strong, when we were able to move the ball the way we wanted to. I thought his ability to apply more pressure at ground level was a feature and that’s something he’s been working on.

42. Kym Lebois

Stats: Nine disposals, two goals
From the coach: It was one of Kym’s more exciting performances, with his ability to hit the scoreboard and apply some pressure inside 50. He was clean with the ball with this week in his second game back, so it’s probably the base line of what we expect from him going forward.

43. Will Setterfield

Stats: 23 disposals, eight clearances, six inside 50s, one goal
From the coach: ‘Setters’ had a lot of inside mid time and finished with eight clearances. He had a strong presence around stoppages and he impacted the game pretty well. He was able to get forward in the last quarter and kick a nice goal also.

44. Matthew Owies

Stats: 12 disposals, two goals
From the coach: Matty started well, he kicked a couple of nice goals. He probably wasn’t as consistent over four quarters as he would’ve hoped, so he’s still very much learning the game in some respects. He shows enough each week to be excited by and he’s turning into a clever forward for us with his running capacity improving each week.

45. Hugh Goddard

Stats: 14 disposals, eight marks, six rebound 50s
From the coach: Hugh was dependable: he spent a lot of his game on Max King, and we all know his talent. Hugh kept him relatively quiet and he continues to control and organise the back-line. He’s becoming a consistent performer for us and was one of our co-captains on the day.

46. Matthew Cottrell

Stats: 10 disposals, five tackles
From the coach: I thought his game was strong on the wing. His ability to run hard to defend and provide us offensive opportunities: he showed a fantastic ability to win a ground ball in the first quarter which set up a goal. He’s got attributes, as someone with an interrupted build-up he’s got to keep presenting and stringing together consistency.