Footy Tragic

Captains Round 21:

 

Well it’s been a while since captains articles on Footy Tragic. To be honest, we see them as largely pointless most weeks – yes you can debate the worth of player X versus player Y, but at the end of the day, there are few coaches prepared to take too big a risk with their captains. However, now that the finals have arrived, there could be a real argument for trying to be a bit different.

I am now really speaking to the coaches who see themselves as underdogs in their leagues this week – you are the ones needing to get a bit creative to make up for other areas on the field. Whilst your opponent is likely to stick the ‘C’ on Ablett and think no more of it, this is a great opportunity to make up some valuable ground. So without further ado, here are the players I believe to be the best ‘unique’ (and perhaps a couple of non-unique too) captain choices this week:

Brendon Goddard:

Opponent: Geelong

Last 5 DT: 97.2

Last 5 SC: 103.8

Verdict: Up against the Cats is a big ask for BJ, but his recent form could warrant selection as Captain. He has been playing with much more intent since his 200^th game a few weeks ago and looks capable of pumping out some decent scores. There are also very few players on the Saints list who want to play finals more than BJ. My only worry is if Riewoldt doesn’t play – last week he was played as a permanent forward when Nick went off injured and he wasn’t fantastic. If Nick doesn’t play this week, I daresay we may see him in a similar position.

 

Marc Murphy:

Opponent: Essendon

Last 5 DT: 108

Last 5 SC: 114.2

Verdict: Murph has a great history against Essendon, averaging over 100 points in both competitions in his past five games. His consistency this year has been remarkable, so setting him as captain is far from a bad idea. Essendon are using Hibberd and Hocking as taggers at the moment, but both got badly beaten on the weekend by the Roos. There’s no doubting Murphy will attract opposition attention, but it’s hardly fazed him all year, so I doubt it will start to this week.

 

Jobe Watson:

Opponent: Carlton

Last 5 DT: 90.8

Last 5 SC: 112.6

Verdict: Jobe’s history against the Blues is only OK, but I do really like him for this must-win encounter. His scoring this year has been phenomenal and he had another massive game against the Roos this week. He will likely go head-to-head with Curnow and will surely smash him inside the packs, which is why taggers can rarely do much to stop him.

 

Matthew Pavlich:

Opponent: Richmond

Last 5 DT: 97.6

Last 5 SC: 104.4

Verdict: Pav loves to beat up on the Tigers, and forgetting his misdemenour last week, his recent form has been great. Since round 10, Pav has kicked a whopping 46 goals at an average of 4.6 per game – this includes 6 goals against Richmond in round 11. In another game where finals chances are on the line, surely he can muster up the strength for a big ton! Based on recent form and scoring, he’s surely one of the best picks for captain.

 

Dayne Beams:

Opponent: North Melbourne

Last 3 DT: 79 (hasn’t played them this year)

Last 3 SC: 72

Verdict: It does look like Beams has an average history against North, but it’s worth noting that he has not played them once in 2012 – a year in which he has taken his scoring to a whole new level. The beauty of Beams has been that he is often not the first player tagged, and even when he is, it has hardly waned his scoring at all (he was tagged last week and against the Saints and got massive scores in both games). Judging by his recent form, Beams is a great captain option for those coaches wanting to go a little left-field.

 

Andrew Swallow:

Opponent: Collingwood

Last 5 DT: 71

Last 5 SC: 77

Verdict: Swallow’s history against the Pies is actually one of his worst, but I still believe he is a reasonable option. The Pies don’t tag their opponents, so he will have the ability to go head-to-head with someone like Beams or Sidebottom, which may work out very well for him. He has received many plaudits this past month for his form as captain whilst the Roos have been building a really strong finals campaign. You could do much worse than nominate the North skipper as your own captain this finals series.

 

Patrick Dangerfield:

Opponent: Brisbane

Last 5 DT: 50.4 (hasn’t played them this year)

Last 5 SC: 60.2

Verdict: Danger is another player with an awful history against his opponent, but this five game average dates back to his debut year and includes no games in his breakout 2012 season. His past couple of months have been insanely good, especially this past fortnight. This week he comes up against the Lions who conceded four midfielder tons on the weekend to Richmond, including 152/175 to Cotchin. Surely Dangerfield is in similar form to Cotch and just as capable of putting together a similar score. He’s my pick of the bunch this week.

 

Dean Cox:

Opponent: Port Adelaide

Last 5 DT: 91.8

Last 5 SC: 103.4

Verdict: Cox vs Port Adelaide is nearly all the information you need. We have seen some massive ruck scores conceded by Port in the recent weeks and I doubt this week will be any different. Cox is in great form too, playing a dominant game on the weekend against Geelong, kicking 3 goals up forward, whilst also laying down 45 hitouts in the ruck. Surely he has it in him for another big game this week against the Power.

 

Adam Goodes:

Opponent: Western Bulldogs

Last 5 DT: 119.2

Last 5 SC: 132.6

Verdict: Goodes has been pretty average since returning from injury about a month ago, but his history against the Dogs is ridiculous – it’s easily one of his best averages against a side. The Dogs are struggling to field a full side at the moment, with plenty of injuries and their apparent ‘youth policy,’ meaning Goodes should be able to inflict plenty of damage, whether it be in the midfield or up forward, on this pretty inexperienced team. I’d be pretty hesitant making him captain due to recent form, although those stats don’t lie!

 

Sam Mitchell:

Opponent: Gold Coast

Last 2 DT: 111

Last 2 SC: 118.5

Verdict: The Gold Coast have been conceding some pretty big scores lately, so plenty of Hawks will be good captain choices this week. Mitchell stands out as we know he is consistent, regardless of the opponent, so should be able to blitz the young Suns without much issue. He is a beast in the clearances and it’s safe to say we can put him down for about 10 right now. Should be a good safe option this week.

 

Gary Ablett:

Opponent: Hawthorn

Last 5 DT: 128.4

Last 5 SC: 137

Verdict: Well I’ve come this far to give you options besides Ablett, but when you do look at the great man’s history against the Hawks, you can understand why so many coaches just follow the pack. The numbers speak for themselves – he typically dominates the Hawks and they have no real player capable of going with him. Chances are, he will dominate again this week, unless if he has another quiet one like he did last week – although, when does Gary ever have two bad games in a row?

My Top 5 Dream Team:

1. Patrick Dangerfield
2. Gary Ablett
3. Dean Cox
4. Dayne Beams
5. Sam Mitchell

My Top 5 SuperCoach

1. Patrick Dangerfield
2. Dean Cox
3. Gary Ablett
4. Marc Murphy
5. Matthew Pavlich

 

Well we’ve entered the elimination stage of finals and it’s time to get desperate, but smart.

For people like myself without any trades left, you can block your ears, but there’d be a fair majority of people with still one or two trades up their sleeves.

It’s time to use those trades. There is no point saving trades for injuries as there may not be a ‘next week’ to use them if you go down.

For those who know me well, or even slightly, I like to get creative.

I’m going to think tactically here. Which clubs have the best draws in the remaining three games?

Adelaide is the clear standout. They play Brisbane at the Gabba, Melbourne at the MCG and then finish off with Gold Coast at home.

I also like Carlton’s draw with Essendon at the MCG, Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium and St Kilda at Etihad Stadium.

Richmond have a pretty good run too; Fremantle at Paterson’s, but then Essendon at the MCG and Port Adelaide at the MCG.

We obviously know Dane Swan is going to miss this week as well through suspension. If you have him, but your opponent doesn’t, it’s probably time to bite the bullet. If you have him, but you are straight through to the preliminary finals, well then you are laughing.

The benefit of trading Dane Swan right now is his price. You could do a sideways trade which will net you at least 100K and then in process make another upgrade somewhere else.

The question is; who do you trade Dane Swan to?

You can look at it two ways. You can play it safe and trade in someone who your opponent already has and back the unique players you have to get the job done or you can decide to confront this thing head on and go for broke. I like to keep things exciting, so I’m advocating the latter.

Looking at the midfielders, and keeping in mind club’s runs home, this is my list of options:

 

- Scott Thompson

- Patrick Dangerfield

- Marc Murphy

- Bryce Gibbs

- Kade Simpson

- Chris Judd

- Trent Cotchin

- Shane Tuck

- Brett Deledio

- Shaun Grigg

 

I’m not saying if you choose any one of the players that you can’t go wrong, there are some very speculative players in there, but they have the best run home and all should score well.

The two players I like the most from that list are Marc Murphy and Trent Cotchin. Both are relatively unique, but they’re both powerhouse scorers, so you can back them in to give you a positive point of difference.

Murphy’s had five weeks back from his shoulder injury, and he really hasn’t missed a beat even though his scores a little lower than what we usually expect from him. With Chris Judd back this week, Murphy will be given the support he needs and he could really fire with a favourable draw and the fact the Blues are still well in the hunt for September action.

Even though the Tigers won’t play in the finals, Trent Cotchin is the ultimate professional. He’s got a Brownlow to win now, so expect him to continue to finish off the season in style. He’s averaged 118 DT and 124 SC in his last seven matches. Ryan Crowley looms as a threat this week, but last time they met, Crowley went to Deledio and shut him down. Cotchin’s proven he’s untaggable though, with his ability to go forward and kick multiple goals. He’s never out of the game.

Chris Judd is a great Super Coach option for the run home. Before his suspension, we saw him change his role to become more of an outside midfielder, and he excelled, averaging 137 SC in that time. With Murphy back, you’d think it’ll only benefit him, as Murphy generally gets the #1 tag these days.

Scott Thompson, Patrick Dangerfield and Brett Deledio are the other obvious choices, but chances are they’d be in your opponents team, so you wouldn’t be picking them if you were looking for a point of difference, although with Adelaide’s draw, this is one instance where going different could really backfire, so something to ponder.

If Buddy Franklin doesn’t play this week, well then there’s another major decision you’ll have to make. He plays the Gold Coast in what should be a monster score for him but then has to go to the SCG to face the Swans and then play West Coast at the MCG. It’s not the best draw in the world, although the Gold Coast game could make up for it.

Depending who you listen to, some say he’ll play, others say he’s still 50/50. The last thing you want is for him to be named only to be a late withdrawal or be given the red vest late in the third quarter.

So here are your options in case Buddy doesn’t pull up;

Of course, you have the stock standard bunch of Dayne Beams, Steele Sidebottom, Steve Johnson and Patrick Dangerfield. Boring.

Here’s the three I LOVE;

Matthew Pavlich, Ryan O’Keefe and Matthew Wright.

I advocated Matthew Wright on the show two weeks ago, and although he didn’t deliver straight away, he made up for it last week with a PB performance of 37 disposals and 2 goals. What I love about Wright is he’s one of those players that can fill up all areas of the stat sheet, so if he’s not having a great game disposal wise, he’s probably kicking goals or laying tackles unlike Colin Sylvia who’s normally just doing nothing. With the Adelaide draw, and his move to the midfield made permanent, he’s sure to finish off the year very well, and best of all, no one has him. Long live the unique!

Matthew Pavlich and Ryan O’Keefe are just warriors, and not much else needs to be said about them. They perform week in-week out and due to age, and slow starts to the season, they aren’t all that popular, but boy are they making up for it now. What you see is what you get with these two. There’s no fluffing around, it’s all business and they’ll deliver the scores. You can’t go wrong with these two champions.

So there you go, if you’re looking to add a bit of spice to your finals match up. My spice comes in the Colin Sylvia form unfortunately but that’s a story for another day.

Good luck for your match ups this week guys, unless you’re playing me!

 

 

 

Ok, so we’re now at a pretty prickly point of the year. Those amongst us with trades are preparing for finals and are therefore hesitant to burn them for anything but injuries. Then there are also plenty of coaches staring at zero trades left – an awkward, yet uncommon position to be in this year. However, with this trade situation in mind, there are still plenty of controllables to consider; one obvious one is captain choice, whilst the other is who to play on the field vs the bench. So I thought I’d take some time to analyse the best bench/field options each week – what teams they are playing and what this means for their scoring power. I will focus on the key forward and back options – most people don’t have these decisions to make in the ruck or midfield unfortunately.

 

Defenders:

 

Greg Broughton:

Opponent: Port Adelaide

Last 3 games: 56.7 DT, 52.7 SC

What to expect: Is he even going to get named this week? Whilst many coaches brought him into their team for his fantastic scoring ceiling when he plays through the middle, the cold hard facts are just that he isn’t getting any game time here. Even if named, I’d be sticking him on my bench – at best, he’s worthy of being emergency.

 

Sam Shaw:

Opponent: Geelong

Last 3 games: 63.3 DT, 83.3 SC

What to expect: He missed last week with an eye injury, but with Geelong’s tall forward line, Shaw-ly (hehe) he will be rushed straight back in. Andy Otten is out for 6 weeks, which will also further cement his side in the team. He’s been very good in SuperCoach, although I can’t see him being a starter on your field for Dream Team. Probably one of the better rookie backs in SC though – I’d play him over Broughton for sure.

 

Mark Baguley:

Opponent: Hawthorn

Last 3 games: 67.5 DT, 68 SC

What to expect: Baguley has only played two games, so there are question marks on whether we can trust him. That said, his performances have been solid and with the amount of soft-tissue injuries at Windy Hill lately, he should be able to keep his spot for the year. He’s a good bet, but I can’t see him outscoring his average, especially against the Hawks.

 

Lee Spurr:

Opponent: Port Adelaide

Last 3 games: 74 DT, 76 SC

What to expect: He’s been fantastic this past fortnight and the way he’s been playing should make him a priority on your field if you aren’t stocked up with premiums. He’ll get a role on one of Port’s small forwards, but should be able to zone off and collect plenty of ball as he has been doing this past fortnight. In my opinion he is the best of these backline options.

 

Sam Darley:

Opponent: Collingwood

Last 3 games: 69 DT, 67 SC

What to expect: He’s fallen away a bit lately and I’m personally a bit concerned about GWS coming up against a Collingwood team looking for a point to prove and a decent percentage boost to keep them in the top-four. I’d be keeping him on your bench this week if possible.

 

Forwards:

 

Adam Treloar:

Opponent: Collingwood

Last 3 games: 68 DT, 67.3 SC

What to expect: Treloar has had a quiet few weeks, but was fantastic against Freo last weekend with a DT ton and 88 points in SC. The only real concern is the fact they are playing Collingwood and GWS have been giving plenty of rest to their younger players in the recent weeks. Treloar has avoided a lot of these rests, but that just means his time may come soon. Sub risk??

 

Travis Cloke:

Opponent: GWS

Last 3 games: 55.3 DT, 50 SC

What to expect: Well, what a horrible average over the past three weeks he has. In fact, it’s disgraceful! If Buddy is named this week, I’m sure there would be plenty of coaches getting ready to relegate him to the bench. Well, that would be if he wasn’t playing GWS. You would think that he would be able to manage a decent score against a team who conceded massive numbers for Fremantle’s forwards last week. Cloke has proven this year that he is happy to beat up on the less experienced teams too; his only Dream Team tons of the year came against Gold Coast and Port Adelaide and in SuperCoach he has had four tons, against Gold Coast, Melbourne, Port Adelaide and Richmond. So are we in for another 100+ score this week. I reckon we are, but if it means benching another premium, or an overachieving rookie, then he better bloody well deliver!

 

Dayne Zorko:

Opponent: West Coast

Last 3 games: 108 DT, 115.3 SC

What to expect: Despite a quiet game (by his standards) last week, the guy simply hasn’t missed a beat all year. He should be locked into your forward line and shouldn’t budge for anyone.

 

Jamie Elliott:

Opponent: GWS

Last 3 games: 59.3 DT, 46.3 SC

What to expect: Elliot started his career with a bang, but has gone quiet the past few weeks. That said, he’s another to come up against GWS this week. It’s always easy to just stick these guys on the field and assume they will dominate against the Giants, but at the end of the day, I don’t reckon he’ll be producing a massive score this week. He should do well, but regardless of his opponent he has still been looking tired lately. This game could even be a good opportunity to rest some of the youngsters.

 

Jason Porplyzia:

Opponent: Geelong

Last 3 games: 91 DT, 104.3 SC

What to expect: It’s been a pretty good past month for the Porpoise and I know he sits precariously as F7 in many teams. His past month has featured games against the likes of Richmond, Port Adelaide and GWS, but also a very strong outing against West Coast where he kicked 3.1 from 25 disposals. It shows he can compete with the top teams and he comes up against another this week in Geelong. Remember too that Tippett will be out, but so will Scarlett, however he will likely be given close attention. Honestly, I’d be playing him this week above any of the rookies on offer, but if it were him versus Cloke, Cloke would likely win for me.

 

 

The year so far…

Well, we are fourteen rounds into the 2012 season and so far in AFL Dream Team I have scored 27,671 points, am ranked 10,486 overall, have an average score of 1977 and have made 19 of a possible 24 trades.

I’ve found it interesting this past week to reflect on my season so far – looking at what has made my team either succeed, or crash and burn. I’ll give you the hot tip though, most decisions have ended up in the latter category.  Whilst in some leagues luck has kept me in touch with the top-end of the ladder, in other leagues I will be finishing close to the bottom. Not exactly what I had wanted. That said, I’m feeling in a pretty good position for the rest of the year. So, what has gone right and what hasn’t…

 

What has gone right:

Not a lot, unfortunately. My backline is probably one area I have been pretty happy with from the start – I didn’t have a huge amount of confidence coming into the year with the players I selected and felt like I was missing some pretty important players. But as it turns out, I’ve made some good selections. I started with Goddard, Deledio, Birchall, Duffield (he is probably the one downfall here), Lake, Clarke, Ellis and Morris. But I had toyed with the likes of Hargrave, Brodie Smith, Malceski and Conca for quite a while. So pretty happy I avoided these.

Starting Giles was a great decision in the end, although not an uncommon one. Actually, having Giles as my number two ruck from round one was what allowed me to start with the strong backline I did. He’s falling away a bit at the moment, but I can’t think of anyone I’d have rather started (except maybe Maric, but that would have been a huge risk).

I fell a few hundred bucks short of trading Murphy in a week before his injury. Gotta like a bit of good luck!

 

What hasn’t gone right:

My number one ruck has been a disaster this year. I have made two trades on this position already this year: Mumford – Sandilands – Goldstein. There have been way too many late withdrawals and injuries in this position this year too, which has really hurt.

I have made some horrible trading errors this year and have had terrible luck when I do bring someone in. So often, I have traded a player in only to receive their worst score of the year.

Trading rookies before their first price rise or just before they hit form has also hurt. Dickson was traded out without a price rise, whilst Coniglio ($222k), Clay Smith ($149k) and Devon Smith ($240k) were all traded way too early.

 

Worst trade of the year:

There are probably two…

Firstly, trading in Aaron Sandliands for Mumford at round four was a poor decision. He netted little points, had a couple of no-shows and then got injured. I probably should have seen this coming considering his injury history.

Also, trading in Allen Christensen in round six was terrible. In fact, this was my first upgrade of the year and clearly a poor one. Whilst Christensen had looked good in his couple of games before I traded him in, he ended up playing just two games for me with scores of 71 and 68. I then traded him out again in round 11 – four weeks later.

 

Who did I wish I’d started in my initial squad:

Fortunately, this one is a pretty hard question. I didn’t miss any of the big breakout names, although I wish I’d stuck to my guns and picked Pearce Hanley. I talked him up all pre-season, so it’s a bit annoying I didn’t follow through on it. That said, he’s not killing me too much by not having him!

 

Who do I wish I’d left out from my initial squad:

Travis Cloke is quite clearly the easy answer here. He has been terrible this year, with few decent scores and has subsequently leaked me stacks of money, now forcing me to keep him. I wish I could trade him out, but at his current cost he is just not worth it!

 

Now, I’d love to hear from you all on the above questions – where are you ranked, how happy are you with your team and what would have you done differently?

 

 

 

Hi guys.

For anyone who is interested, Toby was interviewed about the growth of fantasy sports in Australia in an article published yesterday on The Age website.

Nice work, Tobes!

Fantasy sports enjoy very real growth

 

 

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MAKING UP THE NUMBERS

Part 1

Part 2

 

The rest of the number changes across the AFL for all of you footy junkies out there!

 

HAWTHORN HAWKS

#4 Matt Suckling – moves on up from number 31. Suckling will be hoping he doesn’t suffer the injury plague that befell its previous wearer Rick Ladson. Hawthorn Team of the Century ruckman Paul Salmon (yeah that actually happened!) wore this number in his time at the Hawks.

#19 Jack Gunston – the Crows’ defector takes over this number from former star Jarryd Morton. Ben Dixon wore the jumper for most of the last decade. The number has been worn by somewhat mediocre forwards since Jason Dunstall hung up the boots.

#22 Luke Breust – the juice moves up from number 47 after his breakout 2011.

#31 Jarryd Boumann – the former Bulldogs listed player inherits the number from Matt Suckling who wore it last year. Stewart Dew wore the number in the 2008 premiership.

#32 Brad Hill – Riley Milne was allocated this number for the Hawks and was delisted at the end of 2011. Interestingly, brother Stephen wears the corresponding number at the Dockers.

#34 Jordan Kelly – the young defender inherits the number from premiership ruckman Brent Renouf (yeah that happened as well, the Hawks certainly have a weird history with ruckmen).

#36 Alex Woodward – Jordan Lisle wore this number last year for the club.

 

The others:

#40 Broc McCauley

#43 Amos Frank

#44 Andrew Bosely

#47 Adam Pattison

 

MELBOURNE DEMONS

#17 Sam Blease – moves up from #46 last year. The last player to wear this number for the club was Chris Johnson in 2008. Brett Lovett was a gun for the Dees in this number during the 80’s & 90’s.

#19 James Strauss – moves up from #47 last year after Addam Maric was delisted. It has been a bit of a insert random player X number for the Dees, read: Scott Chisholm, Ben Beams, Peter Vardy, Clint Bartram and Boobs Maric.

#25 Tom McDonald – no player was allocated this number at the club last year. Kyle Cheney wore the number before crossing to Hawthorn in 2010. Nathan Brown wore the number from 2000 to 2007.

#26 Daniel Nicholson ® – takes over the number from non-comeback kid Robbie Campbell last year. #26 certainly has been a bit of a mediocre player number for the club (there’s been plenty) John Meesen, Luke Williams & Daniel Ward have worn the number for the club in the past 15 years.

#30 James Sellar – the former Crow wore #29 at his previous club. Simon Godfrey was a Melbourne superstar who wore this number in the 00’s.

#32 Michael Evans – moves up from #50 in his debut season. Cameron Bruce wore this number in a solid career for the Dees before leaving/being forced out of the club in 2010.

#43 Rory Taggert – old mate bullseye gets the number as Tom McDonald moves up to #25. Guy Rigoni had a solid (albeit injury plagued) career for the Dees in this number.

 

Others:

#46 Josh Tynan

#47 Tom Couch ®

#49 James Magner ®

#50 Jai Sheehan ®

#51 Leigh Williams ®

NORTH MELBOURNE KANGAROOS

#2 Brad McKenzie – former Kangas’ superstar Ed Lower wore this number for the club last year. Jonathan Hay was allocated this number from the club in his brief time at the club.

#3 Ryan Bastinac – Brady Rawlings wore this number in a decorated career for North Melbourne. Bastinac wore #28 last year.

#15 Luke Delaney – moves up from #45 last year. Ben Ross wore the number last year prior to being delisted.

#28 Will Sierakowski – the former Hawks’ listed player gets the number that Ryan Bastinac has worn for the past two seasons.

#30 Tom Curran – son of Peter gets the number that Leigh Adams started his career in for North.

#37 Malcolm Lynch ® - in his previous AFL stint, Lynch wore #39 for the Bulldogs, the number made famous by Tony Liberatore.

 

Others:

#43 Sam Gibson ®

#44 Max Warren ®

#45 Brad Mangan ®

 

PORT ADELAIDE POWER

#4 Brent Renouf – the former Hawk gets the number that was allocated to Daniel Motlop in his time at the club. Prior to Motlop, Gavin Wanganeen made the number famous at the Power.

#7 Brad Ebert – wore #5 in his time at the Eagles. Marlon Motlop was allocated this number before he was delisted at the end of 2011. Peter Burgoyne played in the Power’s 2004 Premiership in this jumper.

#20 Chad Wingard – inherits Dean Brogan’s old number.

#24 Nathan Blee – Damon White was a player who promised much but delivered zero in this number.

#31 Darren Pfieffer ®– back for his third AFL crack! Pfieffer gets a number previously worn by current players Mitch Banner & Steve Salopek.

#35 John McCarthy – gets Chadley’s old number. McCarthy wore #3 in his time at Collingwood.

 

Others:

41 Brendan Ah Chee

45 Danny Butcher

 

RICHMOND TIGERS

#2 Dylan Grimes – moves up from #48 last year. This number has been one for key defenders at Tigerland with Will Thursfield and Darren Gaspar before him also wearing the number 2.

#7 Matt Dea – wore #43 for the Tiges last year. Nathan Brown wore the number in an injury cruelled career at Tigerland as did Marc Dragacevic before him.

#11 Jake Batchelor – moves up from number 31 in 2011. Joel Bowden carved out a more than decent career at half back for the Tiges in this jumper.

#20 Ivan Maric – wore the corresponding number at the Crows last year. Mitch Morton wore this number during his time at the club as did the boy from Woy Woy; Ray Hall.

#24 Ben Griffiths – Big Ben moves up from #38 last season. Mark Coughlan donned the number in a career cut short by injury at the Tiges.

 

Others:

#31 John Heslin ®

#38 Steven Morris

#42 Brandon Ellis

#43 Todd Elton

#44 Matthew Arnot – Troy Taylor wore this number in his short time at the club.

#45 Bret O’Hanlon

#47 Addam Maric ®

#48 Ben Darrou ®

#49 Steve Verrier ®

#50 Gibson Turner ®

#51 Piva Wright ®

 

ST KILDA SAINTS

#6 Sebastian Ross – gets the number that Zac Dawson wore for the past two seasons. Before Dawson, Leigh Fisher donned the jumper for the Sainters.

#10 Daniel Markworth – has big shoes to fill in wearing the same number that champion niggler Steven Baker wore for the club until his forced retirement last year.

#15 Tom Ledger – gets the number that was last allocated to Michael Gardiner. Jason Gram initially donned this number after crossing from the Lions and prior to moving up to number 1.

#16 Jack Newnes – modern day great Raph Clarke began his career in this number for the club, one year wonder Ryan Gamble was allocated this number for the 2011 season.

#21 Ahmed Saad – Nick Heyne was the player who wore this number for the club prior to his delisting last year.

#29 Jimmy Webster – Tom Lynch wore the number for the club before crossing to Adelaide at the end of the 2011 season. Webster has a little bit to live up to in this number; top Saints players Andrew Thompson & Aussie Jones started their careers wearing this number.

#32 Terry Milera – gets the number that Andrew McQualter wore for the club until the end of 2011.

 

Others:

#36 Jay Lever

#37 Beau Wilkes

#38 Sam Dunnell ®– tagger Clint Jones began his career wearing this number for the Saints

#40 Jordan Staley ®

#41 Darren Minchington ®

 

SYDNEY SWANS

#6 Tom Mitchell – SOB gets Craig Bolton’s old number, the number has had a bit of a defenders’ history at the club with Andrew Dunkley also wearing the jumper for the club.

#17 Tommy Walsh – the new Irish recruit gets Tadgh Kennelly’s old number. Walsh was allocated #36 during his time at the Saints.

#19 Tony Armstrong – is wearing half the number he wore at Adelaide (#38) if he becomes half the player he was at Adelaide he’ll be lucky to get a gig in the NEAFL magoos.

#22 Mitch Morton – Morton wore #20 at Richmond and #24 at the Eagles. Byron Sumner was allocated with the number last year. Jason Saddington wore the number during the 2000’s.

#23 Jordan Lockyer – Lewis Johnston wore this number before crossing to the Crows at the end of 2011. Matthew Nicks wore the number for much of the 2000’s.

 

Others:

#36 Alex Brown

#42 Jack Lynch ®

#44 Harry Cunningham ®

#46 Shane Biggs ®

 

WEST COAST EAGLES

#5 Brad Sheppard – moves up from #12 into Brad Ebert’s old number. Chad Morrison & Tyson Stenglein have also worn this number for the Weagles.

#19 Ryan Neates – moves up from number 22 last season.

#22 Michael Mascoulis ® – the mature age rookie gets a reasonably high number. Could it be an indication that he is in line to play in 2012?

#33 Josh Hill – wore number 20 at the Bulldogs last season and takes over a jumper made famous by Phil Matera.

 

Others:

#36 Fraser McIness

#38 Murray Newman

#39 Brad Dick ®

#40 Anton Hamp ®

#42 Jeremy McGovern ®

#45 Callum Papertalk ®

#46 Simon Tunbridge ®

 

WESTERN BULLDOGS

#8 Patrick Veszpremi – was allocated #32 in his first year at the club & wore #13 at the Swans. Mitch Hahn wore #8 in a long career at the Dogs.

#10 Easton Wood – moves up from #29 last season. Justin Sherman wore the number last year. Brent Montgomery and Nathan Eagleton also have worn the number for the club.

#11 Justin Sherman – moves down a slot to the number he wore for the Lions prior to crossing to the Dogs. Sam Reid who was traded to GWS wore this number last year.

#14 Clay Smith – the young hardnut assumes the number that GWS defector Callan Ward left vacant. Former Dogs’ captain Luke Darcy wore the jumper in a long career at the club.

#15 Jason Tutt – moves up from #34 last year. Ben Hudson wore this number for the Dogs before leaving at the end of 2011. Scott Wynd made the number famous at the club.

#18 Fletcher Roberts – Brennan Stack donned the number in his short time at the club.

 

Others:

#20 Daniel Pearce

#29 Tory Dickson

#32 Michael Talia

#34 Alex Greenwood ®

#43 Jack Redpath ®

#45 Tom Campbell ®

#46 Lin Jong ®

#47 Mark Austin ®

 

 

Here is the definitive list of pre-season content we have published so far on Footy Tragic in 2012. Come here to catch up on anything you may have missed or perhaps would like to revisit:

 

Analyse This:

Surviving The Dreaded Byes
Rucks A Plenty
The Backline (3 Premium Defence Theory)
A Giant Headache

 

Clarkey’s Pre-Season Weekly Wrap:

Part 1 (Jan 9 – Jan 15)
Part 2 (Jan 16 – Jan 22)
Part 3 (Jan 23 – Jan 29)
Part 4 (Jan 30 – Feb 5)
Part 5 (Feb 6 – Feb 12)

 

Club Previews:

Adelaide Crows
Brisbane Lions
Carlton Blues
Collingwood Magpies
Essendon Bombers
Fremantle Dockers
Geelong Cats
Gold Coast Suns
Greater Western Sydney Giants
Hawthorn Hawks
Melbourne Demons
North Melbourne Kangaroos
Port Adelaide Power
Richmond Tigers
St Kilda Saints
Sydney Swans
West Coast Eagles
Western Bulldogs

 

Dan’s Rookie Reveal:

Dylan Shiel; Luke Brown; Tony Mitchell
Dayne Zorko; Orren Stephenson
Lee Spurr; Tommy Walsh
Dom Tyson; Kyal Horsley
Steve Morris; Ahmed Saad
Clay Smith
Darren Pfeiffer
Tory Dickson
Sam Reid (GWS)
Sam Gibson
Beau Wilkes; Tim Mohr
Sam Kerridge
Brandon Ellis

The 2012 Rookie Lists (Part 1)

 

Jimmy’s Gems:

Allen Christensen
Mitch Wallis
Nick Suban
Bryce Gibbs
Jack Grimes
Kane Lucas
Jobe Watson
Ryan Hargrave
Open Your Eyes!

 

Kristian’s Dimes:

Matt DeBoer
Brad Ebert
Jack Watts
Reece Conca

 

Miscellaneous:

The Numbers Game – Part 1
The Numbers Game – Part 2
The Numbers Game – Part 3

 

Submit Your Team:

2012 Submit Your Team #1
2012 Submit Your Team #2

 

The Show:

Episode 1

 

The Weekly Wrap:

NAB Cup - Week 1
NAB Cup – Week 2
NAB Cup Cup Wrap – Defenders

 

Toby’s Prolific Premiums:

Nick Riewoldt; Marc Murphy; David Zararakis
Change Positions! (Brett Deledio; Bryce Gibbs; Matthew Pavlich)
Ruck Yeah! (Todd Goldstein; Ben McEvoy)
The Forgotten Men (Travis Cloke; Matthew Boyd)

 

Training Reports:

Richmond (Jan 18, 2012)
Western Bulldogs Intra-Club (Feb 11)

 

 

 

GIANT NUMBERS

It’s time to have a look at the player allocated numbers of the AFL’s newest club which will provide essential info for the NAB Cup 2012 and useless trivia for years to come.

 

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY GIANTS

#1 Phil Davis – he wore #16 for the Crows last year. Number 1 has been a bit of a graveyard for fantasy players for those who look towards omens, Jason Gram has probably been the best fantasy player to wear number 1 in recent memory.

#2 Curtley Hampton – number 2 has also been a bit of a poor number for fantasy football. Hampton is one of a plethora of potential superstars on the GWS’ list worth having a look at in the NAB Cup.

#3 Stephen Coniglio – 2011’s number 2 draft pick follows in the footsteps of other highly rated midfielders to wear the number 3 including Chris Judd (at West Coast), Marc Murphy, Michael Voss, Jimmy Bartel, Brett Deledio & Nathan Burke. GWS will hope that Coniglio becomes a player of similar calibre.

#4 Israel Folau – the last key forward to wear the number 4 in the harbour city was Plugger Lockett. Sticks Kernahan also wore the number. Izzy would be doing well to reach the lofty heights Ben Holland set in the jumper at Melbourne.

#5 Dylan Shiel – similar to #3, this number has been one of midfield jets. Shiel promises to become one.

#6 Luke Power – the veteran also wore this number for the Brisbane Lions and is the only recycled player at the club to wear his former number.

#7 Rhys Palmer – he will wear the same number he was drafted at in 2007. Palmer previously wore number 10 for the Dockers.

#8 Callan Ward – the former Bulldog donned number 14 at his last club.

#9 Tom Scully – if you flip this number upside down that is the amount x $1m that Tom will be earning at his new club. Scully wore number 31 for 31 games at Melbourne (yeah it still stings if you can’t tell). The number 9 has been synonymous with top midfielders: James Kelly, Shane Crawford, Andrew Swallow, Josh Carr and Ben Cousins. Interestingly Gary Ablett donned the number (changing from 29 at Geelong) when he crossed to the Gold Coast.

#10 Dean Brogan – ‘airport security’ wore #20 throughout his career at the Power.

#11 Chad Cornes – Chadley wore #35 in a long and decorated career at Port Adelaide

#12 Jonathon Patton – the 2011 number 1 pick will get this number in his first season at the club. The last number 1 pick to wear number 12 was Nick Riewoldt for the Saints. If Patton is anywhere near as good, GWS will have a real player on their hands (fantasy coaches will also rejoice).

#13 Sam Darley – this youngster pulled in some really good fantasy numbers in the NEAFL last year. Dale Thomas, Michael Long, Adem Yze & Daniel Giansiracusa are all more than handy players to have donned the jumper across the AFL.

#14 Tomas Bugg – another young player to keep an eye on from the Giants. Sheedy has named him in the Giants likely round 1 side last week, one to look out for in the NAB Cup!

#15 Tim Golds – is a young half back, Luke Hodge was another young half back to wear the number.

#16 Nathan Wilson – another that Sheedy has indicated will start in Round 1.

#17 Adam Treloar – another 17 year old recruited to the club in 2010. Treloar is a talented young midfielder.

#18 Jeremy Cameron – is a highly talented KPF who has somewhat flown under the radar. The most famous 18 KPF in the AFL was Wayne Carey for North Melbourne. If Cameron becomes half the player Carey was he will be a great success.

#19 Nick Haynes – was one of GWS’ many first round selections last year. A rangy utility type, he is reminiscent of fellow #19 Sam Gilbert.

#20 Adam Tomlinson – is a young KPD who will most likely be in development mode for 2012.

#21 Matthew Buntine – a young half back in the mould of Brendon Goddard

#22 Shaun Edwards – the young NT product is a midfield project player for the Giants.

#23 Sam Reid – a former Bulldogs player who wore #11 at his previous club. Reid has a mature body and a bullish attack on the ball and although not nominated by Sheedy as a starter for round 1, will be surely called upon to help out some of the Giants younger bodies during 2012.

#24 Steve Clifton – is a three time premiership player with North Ballarat. A mature age recruit, Clifton has been nominated by Sheedy to start the year.

#25 Anthony Miles – a somewhat local product, Miles is an inside midfielder.

#26 Jonathon Giles – a former Port listed player, Giles could well be their number 1 ruckman in 2012.

#27 Andrew Phillips – at 202cms he is an apt player for this club’s moniker. Is unlikely to play much AFL footy this year

#28 Liam Sumner – was one of GWS’ 700 first round picks in 2011. The slightly built midfielder has plenty of promise.

#29 Dom Tyson – the number 3 draft pick from last year. Tyson is a midfield dynamo – this number was made famous at Geelong by Gary Ablett Jr.

#30 Taylor Adams – another first round selection from 2011, Adams is a midfield bull from the Geelong region.

#31 Jacob Townsend – is a local developing utility player.

#32 Gerald Ugle – a famous football (random) name, a small midfielder/defender.

#33 Will Hoskin-Elliot – the beep test king, “Two dad’s” is a well built endurance midfielder.

#34 Devon Smith – another young midfielder with a strong attack on the ball, expect him, Green & Adams to form a bash brother manage a trois in the coming years.

#35 Toby Greene – inside bull who was a first round selection in 2011.

#36 Jack Hombsch – a young Croweater tall who can play back or forward.

#37 Setanta O’hAilpin – the kicker of Cloke wore 17 last year for the Blues after starting with #38 under Denis Pagan.

#38 James McDonald – Junior senior wore #23 the last time he pulled on the boots for the Demons.

#39 Tim Mohr – a former player for Casey in the VFL, Mohr is a key defender.

#40 Adam Kennedy – a young midfielder from the Western Jets, he may struggle for a consistent game as the Giants try to develop their top end young talent.

#41 Josh Growden – another young midfield prospect for the GWS.

#42 Mark Whiley – a youngster from Finley, Shane Crawford territory. Whiley is a rangy utility type.

#43 Kurt Aylett – a famous footballing name, GOD (Grandson of Doc) is an exciting midfield prospect for the Giants.

#44 Tom Downie – a 205cm giant Giant, Downie looks to be a very promising back up ruckman. Tom Bellchambers is a current ruckman who wears this number. #44 was made famous at Carlton by Justin Madden.

#45 Sam Schulz – another local product. The young midfielder was officially the first player signed up by GWS.

#46 Tim Segrave – is another local zone selection for the club. He is a key defender with good closing speed and will more likely than not spend most of the year developing in the NEAFL.

#47 Josh Bruce – another local KPD prospect (from Canberra), Bruce models his game on Sam Fisher.

#48 Sam Frost – picked up in the rookie draft, Frost was a highly rated (and possibly overrated) KPD prospect prior to the 2011 National Draft

#49 Rhys Cooyou – is a goalsneak originally hailing from WA.

 

 

THE NUMBERS GAME – PART 1

What’s yo number?

 

Greetings, If I may be indulgent for a mo, I’ve always been somewhat obsessed by player jumper numbers and make a point before every season to memorise every one from every club – perhaps it’s a subconscious aversion to the stereotypical Melbourne supporter’s catchcry “GO NUMBER ELEVEN!” Most likely, it’s because I’m a footynerd who should get outside a little more… AFL is undoubtedly a unique sport and the culture surrounding jumper numbers is an example of this. This article will inform you of all number changes at each club as well as the numbers that new senior and rookie listed recruits will be wearing in 2012. For footynerds such as myself, this is a wet dream, for more normal folk it is a means to identifying new players in the Nab Cup, an important aspect of choosing those potential cash cow rookie priced players in your fantasy team. “GO NUMBER ONE!”

 

ADELAIDE CROWS

#2 Brad Crouch – will don the number 2 in the Nab Cup, although he wont be able to play in the season proper until 2013. The number 2 jersey became available after club legend Brad Moran ‘retired’ at the end of 2011. The best player to wear the number for the Crows was Wayne Carey!

#6 Luke Thompson – its three number changes in 3 years for LT. He previously wore #1 in 2010 (and vacated it for Richard Tambling!) & #28 in 2011.

#8 Lewis Johnston – the former Swan wore #23 at his previous club and inherits this Guernsey from Myke Cook. #8 was famously worn by Nathan Bassett.

#16 Luke Brown – inherits the #16 from GWS recruit Philthy Phil Davis. Previously, this jumper has been worn by Ken McGregor.

#20 Josh Jenkins – meet Josh Jenkins! The former Bomber will wear Ivan Maric’s old jumper.

#27 Tom Lynch – wore #29 at the Saints and now wears the jumper vacated by Scott Stevens last season. Matthew Liptak donned the jumper in the 90’s!

#28 Cameron Ellis-Yolmen – before Luke Thompson this jumper was worn by Jack Gunston who then moved on to #6, as Luke Thompson has done, bad omen Crows fans?

#29 Sam Kerridge – inherits the number from former superstar James Sellar!

#38 Mitch Grigg – Tony Armstrong most recently wore this number

#42 Nicholas Joyce – was drafted at pick 46 for the Crows last year.

 

Others

#44 Ben Dowdell ®

#46 Rory Laird ®

#48 Dylan Orval ®

#49 Tim McIntyre®

 

BRISBANE LIONS

#1 Sam Docherty – the Gippsland product will wear the number vacated by defector Mitch Clark last season. Defective defector Des Headland also previously wore the number 1.

#2 Ryan Harwood – the young hardnut takes over a jumper previously worn by stalwart Albert Proud. Chris Johnson is probably the best Brisbane Lion to wear no 2 (a number he also donned at Fitzroy during their final years). Harwood previously wore #26.

#5 Billy Longer – the young ruckman inherits this number from the man who wasn’t shy in opening his fly; Brendan Fevola.

#6 Josh Green – inherits Luke Power’s number after wearing #42 last year.

#8 Bryce Retzlaff – moves up from #37 this year after Matt Austin was delisted, Tim Notting wore this number in the premiership years for the Lions

#15 Dayne Zorko – inherits the number 15 from one game (for Brisbane) wonder Xavier Clarke.

#19 Jordan Lisle – the former Hawk wore number 36 at his previous club & gets number 19 after Jamie Charman’s retirement in 2011.

#22 Ben Hudson – wore #15 at the Bulldogs and gets now delisted Tom Collier’s number.

#25 Richard Newell ® – Bart McCulloch was the last Lion to wear this number (in 2011).

#26 Elliot Yeo – gets Ryan Harwood’s old number, Joel Macdonald wore this number before crossing to Melbourne in the 2009 off season.

 

Others:

#37 Patrick Weardon

#42 Justin Clarke ®

#46 Sam Michael ®

#47 Jack Crisp ®

#48 Stephen Wrigley ®

 

CARLTON BLUES

#7 Dylan Buckley – son of Jim gets his coach’s old number. The most recent player to wear this number was Brock McLean in 2010.

#17 Sam Rowe – the new recruit will wear Cloke kicking Giant Setanta O’hAilpin’s old number in 2012.

#21 Josh Bootsma – Mark Austin wore this number last year.

 

Others:

#28 Tom Bell

#37 Nick Heyne

#39 Frazer Dale – previously worn by Ang Christou.

#49 Matthew Lodge

 

COLLINGWOOD MAGPIES

#1 Alex Fasolo – inherits Leon Davis’ number 1 after wearing #35 in his first season

#3 Andrew Krakouer – wore no 7 last year and moves up to the number vacated by John McCarthy

#9 Marty Clarke – the Irishman is in his second stint at the club. In his last appearance for the Pies he wore no. 18.

#15 Jarrod Witts – the young giant inherits Leigh Brown’s old number.

#33 Jackson Paine – Brad Dick wore this number in 2011 for the Pies.

#38 Peter Yagmoor – is wearing the number vacated by Scott Reed last year.

 

Others:

#44 Corey Gault

#45 Lachlan Smith ®

#46 Marley Williams ®

#47 Michael Hartley ®

#48 Caolan Mooney ®

#49 Paul Cribbin ®

 

ESSENDON BOMBERS

#12 Stewart Crameri – the promoted rookie inherits the number most recently worn by Andrew Welsh. Crameri wore #45 last year.

#28 Elliot Kavanagh – gets this number after Darcy Daniher retired at the end of last season

#33 Jackson Merrett – Bomber superstar Mark Williams wore this number last season.

 

Others:

#35 Nick O’Brien

#36 Lachlan Dalgleish ®

#41 Brendan Lee ®

#45 Hal Hunter ®

#46 Mark Baguley ®

#47 Corey Dell’Olio ®

 

FREMANTLE DOCKERS

#3 Zac Dawson – gets Byron Schammer’s old number after wearing #6 & #43 at the Saints and #26 in his time at the Hawks.

#10 Nick Lower – moves up from #34 to Rhys Palmer’s old number.

#11 Tom Sheridan – this number was last donned by Des Headland in 2010.

#17 Hayden Crozier – Joel Houghton wore this number last season.

#19 Alex Forster – will wear the number donned by Clayton Hinkley in 2011.

 

Others:

#27 Lachie Neale

#33 Cameron Sutcliffe

#34 Lee Spurr ®

#35 Haiden Schlothe ®

#39 Sam Menegola ®

#43 Jordan Wilson-King ®

 

GEELONG CATS

#6 Lincoln McCarthy – this number was last worn by Mr September Brad Ottens.

#21 Jordan Murdoch – gets the big hairy cat’s number in 2012

#23 Orren Stephenson – Marcus Drum wore this number last year but didn’t play a senior game for the club

#24 Jed Bews – Mark Blake wore this number for the Cats last year

#37 Cam Eardley ®– this number has been worn previously by Jeremy Laidler and Tom Harley.

 

Others:

#38 Jackson Sheringham ®

#39 Shane Kersten

#45 Joel Hamling

#48 Mark Blicavs ®

 

GOLD COAST SUNS

#1 Jaeger O’Meara – will wear number 1 which was vacated by the club’s inaugural captain Marc Lock.

#11 Harley Bennell – the 2010 no 2 draft pick moves up from #37 last year.

#12 Sam Day – moves up from #39 last year

#14 Matthew Warnock – wore number 1 & 37 when he was a Dee.

#19 Tom Lynch – wore number #46 last season

#21 Jeremy Cameron – Daniel Harris wore this number in the Suns’ inaugural AFL season.

#28 Josh Caddy – the almost Bomber wore #42 last year.

 

Others

#31 Jackson Allen

#33 Aaron Hall

#37 Alex Sexton

#42 Kyal Horsely

#50 Henry Schade

#51 Andrew McQualter ®

 

To be continued…..