Games: 9
Goals:5
Kicks: 23
Marks:10
Handballs:20
The Fan's Rating: 4.9/10
Some of what the fans had to say:
""Showed great potential. has a good leap and just needs to hold more marks. If can build up in the off season may become a regular senior player. Wing or half forward.""
""Very promising debut. Has a good football brain and just needs to fill out a bit. Could be one a great in a few years time.""
""Showed he had what it takes in the few games he did play. Needs a big preseason to work on his fitness and strength, but has the ability to become a regular senior player this year.""
""Good first up season, has great talent and natural leap, when he bulks up a bit he will be a great asset to the club.""
""A good first year for Joel. Has shown he has a bit of a leap and the capability to take strong contested marks. Look forward to continued improvement next year.""
""Joel showed some good things in his first season. Needs to build up and get more experience. Then he will be a player for the future.""
""A growth year for Joel with him showing he has talent to read the play. With a few extra kilos and a bit more regular game time Joel looks like becoming a real talent.""
""Joel displayed that he is a very promising and up and coming Essendon star in 2002. Look forward to seeing him get more game time and establishing himself as a regular player in 2003.""
The wash up:
The fan's agree that Joel Reynolds is a very promising player for the Bombers and showed great potential in his debut season. He needs to bulk up a bit over the coming seasons to really stamp his authority on the game. The Bomber fan's thought that Reynolds is very athletic and has a fantastic leap and they look forward to continued improvement next season. The fan’s were also impressed with Reynold’s ability to read the game – they think he has good football smarts.
What Mark Harvey has to say:
""When we actually recruited Joel Reynolds, we thought there was a lot of aspects of his game that reminded us of Adam Ramanauskas. Joel is a little bit taller than Adam, but they have the same left foot and the same straight up jump and leap. To be honest I was shocked that we drafted Joel at pick 31 - I thought he would have gone in the top 20. He is only 18 and for such a young kid, we all thought he was exceptional in his first season. He has put on four kilograms already from last season, which is a positive. What you find is with young players is that you can't put too much weight on them in the first year or two, otherwise they keep breaking down. You have to monitor them and build them up slowly.""