Clinton Young

[Piethagoras' Theorem]

The jury's still out for me, I think he can be a handy player but is he good enough to be a permanent fixture in our best 22?

A few observations about his game.

I don't believe he's soft but he gets nudged out of a contest quite easily.

Moves well and is evasive.

Has loads of penetration in his kicking but the radar seems a little more miss than hit.

With guys like Seedsman, Williams and Sinclair becoming available in the next month, competition for spots is gonna get hot. How do you see his prospects for the rest of the year?

[Damien]

Far from sold. Front runner from what I've seen. Seed Marley and Sinclair are a mile in front of him as far as I'm concerned.

[Tannin]

I was a skeptic early on, but his performances in recent games have been impressive. I think his kicking radar will improve as he slips back into the groove - he's been a long time out of regular senior football - and he has a good footy brain. I don't like him in defence - as you say, he's hard enough but he gets pushed off the ball too easily - but I reckon he's one of nature's born wingmen. Harry on one wing, Young on the other, that's a great combination.

Competition for spots is looking very tough this year. I'm thinking they wouldn't have Young in the Leadership Group if they didn't think very highly of him. But where do you fit Seedsman?

[Piethagoras' Theorem]

I agree, Tannin. He worries me a little when deep in defence, would like to see him further up the ground more often.

[mattys123]

Depth when we have our absolute best 22 available (which may be soon) but he's very handy, senior experienced depth.

[melliot]

Surely injuries will make the selections for us. Our luck can't continue.

If not, then surely the team will drop a game and we'll have to find a scape goat.

Young has his flaws, but brings assets too. His kicking has been disappointing to me. It's a laser kick. But the optical lense wobbles every now and then.

[Damien]

I'd just like to see him get a hard ball. As far as I know it hadn't happened yet, including when he was at Hawthorn

[Tannin]

Nothing wrong with his tackling: I've seen him stick a couple of beauties lately.

[John Wren]

[Jezza]

I've been quite indifferent to Young's performances this season. He hasn't been spectacular by any means but he's also played his role reasonably well so far. His kicking has been fine for my liking so no issues there. Ideally, I'd love to see him play on the wing as many others were saying earlier. His long penetrating kick is perfect for a wingman and as a result it could provide good delivery for the forwards. I also like the idea of Young taking the kick outs. He's generality reliable in this regard along with Fasolo and Sidebottom every so often as well.

Clinton Young's Tackle Count in 2014:
Round 1 v Fremantle = 1
Round 2 v Sydney = 1
Round 3 v Geelong = 2
Round 4 v Richmond = 4
Round 5 v North Melbourne = 1

In total he's laid 9 tackles in 5 matches which is at an average of 1.8 tackles a match for Young. By referring to these stats, it's clear that tackling isn't a big part of Young's game so he's definitely more of an outside player. If he can lay more tackles in every match that would be fantastic considering we need a strong tacking effort from our whole side if we're going to win many matches this season.

[Tannin]

It was probably the Richmond game I was thinking of, Jezza. I was thinking of quality though, as opposed to quantity. He's not afraid to crunch in with the shoulder and deliver a big hit, be nice to see more of that.

[Jezza]

Absolutely Tannin! Do you remember the great rundown tackle by Youngy last year on Carlton's Dennis Armfield? Absolutely brilliant stuff and what a great first impression he made on the Collingwood fans on his debut for the club.

[MagpieBat]

Best 22.

Offers a handy point of difference to our one-paced midfield. The fact that he can actually kick the ball helps too.

Young's outside, but he's not soft. I've seen him go when it's his turn on more than just the one occasion...

[neil]

Bit soft and is outside
He has been improving his disposal the long layoff has hurt him
Outside mid or as it used to be know wing
Has defensive skills but is not a hard nut
We have lots of hard nuts

[Clifton Hill-Billy]

I'm not a fan, thought he had a good game against 9thmond but a poor game against pauperoos. For a supposedly good kick he makes some terrible skill errors on his preferred left foot.