Bulldogs Development Manager Chris Maple casts his eye over a selection of players and their progress in the VFL for Footscray in recent months.
Mitch Honeychurch: Mitch has been outstanding, he received really close attention on the weekend against Collingwood’s Marty Clarke but he’s put together three really good games in a row and he kicked three goals again on the weekend. He’s going really well for a first year player.
Jack Redpath: Redpath is up there in the league goal kicking - currently ranked second in the VFL for total goals. He had five marks in the first quarter on the weekend and finished with nine. When he gets his body in front he’s hard to beat. He had seven shots on goal on the weekend which is a good result. Jack is improving quickly but he just has to keep working hard on his craft.
Lachie Hunter: Lachie has had a really good run over the last three or four weeks. He gets a lot of the ball and is clever with how he uses it. Hunter is obviously hitting the scoreboard as well. He found 32 disposals and three goals in a best on ground performance against Collingwood on the weekend. Going on recent performances I think it won’t be too long until Lachie reappears at AFL level.
Sam Darley: Darley has improved out of sight. I think over the last five or six weeks he has really gained confidence with his one-on-ones and his running off from the back line. He’s using the ball well and we are seeing a lot of growth in his game.
Jason Johannisen: JJ has been playing in a variety of roles in recent months. We are trying to develop Johannisen so he can play a range of positions across the ground and he has embraced that. With his speed and foot skills he’s really showing us that he can contribute in various ways across the ground and we are really happy with his development.
Josh Prudden: He did really well this week. For a guy that hasn’t played since practice matches Prudden played a really good game. He was strong inside the contest, collecting 15 disposals at 100% accuracy. He also had five inside 50s in a solid first game back.
