Farewell and thanks - John Noble

[Jezza]

His defensive pressure was outstanding. Jumped into everything and didn't take a back step.

I just realised he's played 45 consecutive games, so he's firmly entrenched in the best 22 now.

[Magpietothemax]

Love John Noble. He is officially an elite small defender. His pace, his courage, his energy, his tackling pressure, is now finally widely acknowledged. I think he is a second Jack Crisp. Jack was "steak knives", John was a mid season pick 19 draft, even less than "steak knives". But he has become a laser like force in defence. He has also played 45 games straight, missing only when inexplicably omitted. (Must have been resting him...no other explanation).
Like Jack, he has unbelievable endurance and resilience.
I feel very secure with Noble in defence.

[Mr Miyagi]

Coach’s MVP, 95% disposal efficiency against Carlton, 21 disposals and a ton of applied pressure

[LaurieHolden]

[Jezza]

He's been superb.

The coach acknowledged him in his post match presser and said his form has been "very strong" since the Brisbane game when he was the sub.

[E]

We need to strongly reconsider our recruitment paths to the Club given the recent success of Checkers, Ginnivan, Noble....and of course Max, H, Wellers and many others in the past.

There is gold in them there hills

Why, it seems to be working. I would say that the success in these areas is a credit to what we have already been doing. It does not appear to be luck. We seem to be very good at spotting overlooked talent with the intangibles to be successful at AFL level.

[E]

So nice that I didn’t have to bump this thread this week.

My man John Noble just seems to be going from strength to strength. each week he surpasses his prior superlative performance. Well done Johnny and keep up the good work.

You have done us all proud.

[Skids]

Best 22?
This bloke is in our best half dozen! His efforts week in, week out are second to none. With his excellent disposal efficiency (80.6%), you always feel good about him with ball in hand exiting the back half.
Having a great season!

[RudeBoy]

I'm with you Skids. The kid is a gun.

[Harrysz]

Most pundits when "selecting" the best possible Collingwood side do not include John Noble, although some include him as an interchange player. When deciding how new recruits will be squeezed into the side Noble is the first to be eliminated, to make way. There seems to be little love for Noble in this Forum.

And yet, John Noble played 25 games last year. He was selected every week. He was never injured. He was never dropped. I see him as a player with dash who fights hard for the ball and who has reasonable skills. Is my view in the minority? What's the knock on him?. I'm prepared to be enlightened.

[Charlie Oneeye]

I have him on the cusp of the 22, in fact he has a foot in, and a foot out.

Or do I prefer him over Mcreery?

Do I prefer Mcreery over Murphy?

I have my days when Noble is a certain starter, and others where his is not.

The issue for me... He is fantastic, a favorite, but not really as damaging playmaker as I'd like.
I feel improvement can be made in that role.. we saw what a Naicos can do.


Richards ? Hill ?

[Boot]

In my opinion, John Noble has done very well to establish himself as a regular in the Collingwood defensive group. He has speed, courage, desperation when required, great ball handling skills, reasonable disposal skills and provides the attacking run off the halfback line that was a key factor in the game plan that worked so well in 2022.
The only knock on Noble is the obvious physical statue of the man...He is by AFL standards a small man. His relative lack of size and associated strength makes it very hard for him to compete physically with his direct opponent. Hence, there is always the risk that if he gets caught out in a direct one-on-one contest I think he will rarely win that duel. Luckily, or good teamwork, he doesn't get caught out that often but I suspect smart opposition coaches are a wake-up to this weakness and would look to isolate Noble in the defensive 50 area of the ground, as they know if it becomes a one-on-one contest most AFL forwards would be able to physically out maneuver Nobel when the contest becomes a test of strength.
Looking at Collingwood's core defensive group of Moore, Maynard, Murphy, Howe, Quaynor, Crisp and now Frampton, they all have good body strength that makes them very good at winning one-on-one contests. Now the fact that that whole defensive group is so good at one-on-one contests probably allows for Noble to be carried as with good team work they should be able to cover him to avoid him being isolated in the defensive area of the ground and leverage Noble's strengths for run & carry to help clear the ball and turn defense into attack.
Hence if it becomes a choice between the runners from defense in Maynard, Crisp and Quaynor or Noble I would be listing Noble last in that group for a starting spot in the team. Perhaps the wing position is where Noble is better suited as his run and endurance offers similar traits to Sidebottom but again his one-on-one contest work would be behind the likes of Josh Daicos and Steele Sidebottom and we haven't seen Noble display the attacking skill set of those two to challenge them in their current winger roles.
When looking at our best team for 2023, I think Noble is battling with Will Hoskin-Elliot for the last role on the bench and may get to be the sub for a lot of games given a full list to select from. That said it's a good sign that a pretty good player, that Noble has shown himself to be, will be struggling to keep his spot in the team which provides good depth and pressure on everyone to perform else they'll be replaced.

[Boogie Knights]

I'm firmly in the pro Noble camp so you're not alone in this view.

I believe the biggest knock (that I can discern) is his size (combination of height and weight).

Yes, there have been times where he has been brushed off when attempting a tackle, or pushed too easily off the ball or line; but nearly all players have some weakness to their game and Noble makes up for this with effort and desire. A passage of play late last season saw him dive for an unlikely smother of a shot on goal and then when an opposition player gained possession from the ball spilling free, he dived again for a fingertip tackle to bring that player down when seemingly running to open goal. This late in a close game is something that lifts the team and the fans.

Some will say his disposal is poor, but I am yet to be convinced of this. I think he's an excellent and penetrating kick and am more than happy to see him break from defence, take a bounce and deliver forward of 50.

The great thing is that we have a real evenness across the playing list where positions 15 through 30 are all worthy of being top 22. This is a great but unenviable thing for selection committee time and makes for some understandable variance in fan best 22s.

[Pies2016]

If every player on our list improved year on year like Noble has, we would have won the flag last year.
The guy was overlooked in several National drafts, eventually taken in a mid season lottery and now finds himself getting a game every week in a decent side. That’s rarified air and he’s clearly squeezed everything out of himself and he should be applauded for that.
The key to “ protecting “ Noble from being exposed is to give him a match up that suits him. Play him on a ground level player who isn’t experienced or had to many pre seasons under his belt ( if possible ) That’s when Noble is at his most damaging. You want him being proactive and using his strengths out of defence, rather than being caught up in one on one defensive actions against an opposition A grader.

[Pebbles Rocks]

Hes a good player. The only reason why he might not be in a best 22 is that our biggest strength is our backline and he is not tall.