Footy Tragic

Hey, apologies for the lateness this week – I have been away all weekend, so haven’t had a chance to do write this up until this morning! Hope you still enjoy it!

Weekly Wrap Round 11

 

Melbourne vs Essendon:

Melbourne:

• Brent Moloney wasn’t necessarily the Dees’ best on the night, but you gotta love the way he goes about it. He wins so much of the hard ball and constantly provides great leadership to his younger teammates. Kicked the winning goal (and it was a beauty) amongst 28 disposals and 5 tackles.
• Jordan Gysberts was the real talking point of the night as he played a great game whilst at the same time Carlton dropped the man he was traded for – Brock McLean. His disposal was much more efficient than is has been in the past and he had no trouble winning the ball (mind you, we knew he could do this). After two tons in a row, he is beginning to show the signs of a future DT jet.
• Tom Scully came straight back into the side for his first senior game of the year, despite having only played 50% game time in the VFL last week. He was brilliant, playing mainly between the HFF and midfield. Geez, Melbourne won’t want to lose this kid. He plays with great tenacity and looks to have a great footy brain on his shoulders – notched up 24 disposals and 6 tackles. At under $350k, could he be the cheap 7^th mid that everyone will shortly start discussing?
• Colin Sylvia was a pretty frustrating injury and would have set the tone for the weekend ahead for some coaches. He went off with a pretty bad corkie in the first quarter and didn’t return, despite attempting a fitness test on the boundary. His price dropped $37k because of it and it will continue to drop over the next fortnight, meaning he could be a great DPP trade target once he has bottomed out. Dees play GCFC in the league semi-finals too, which would be an added bonus!

Essendon:

• Jake Melksham was one of the better players from the Bombers, although I must admit, I’m not totally sold on him as a player. He does run hard through the middle when the Dons are attacking and provides a good handball option for his teammates. He kicks the ball a stack too, with only five of his 25 disposals being a handball – nice stats.
• Michael Hibberd was impressive again – his courage and contested marking skills shouldn’t be underrated – he throws himself at every contest and seems like a player who will never die trying. For this reason I reckon his spot in the Bombers’ team should be pretty safe for a while. Too late to trade him in now, but those who did should be licking their lips at the amount of money they should make from him!
• Sam Lonergan was good again for the Bombers – he has now had two pretty good games in a row. Whilst I wouldn’t really consider him as a great DT or SC option, his numbers have been pretty solid this year and he seems to be a true quiet achiever. Got himself 29 touches, mainly playing through the middle and should only get better.
• Paddy Ryder looked poor again and although it was Tom Bellchambers that got subbed off, Ryder has looked in the least form of the three Essendon ruckmen this year. There are plenty of rumours that he may rejoin Sheedy at GWS or even another club during trade week, and whilst there is obviously no confirmation of this, his form is that of a player whose head is somewhere else.

 

Geelong vs Western Bulldogs:

Geelong:

• Brad Ottens showed off some vintage form both in the ruck and up forward, showing off how Geelong may look without Mooney or Hawkins. Quite honestly, it looked good, with Ottens booting through five goals as he rotated in the ruck with Vardy. With knees like his, you wouldn’t consider him for Dream Team, although he does have the ability for some monster games.
• Jimmy Bartel was great… finally! He has been far from his best this year, but Jimmy looked really good back down the highway. He played a lot of his game from half-back and had no trouble pulling in plenty of touches, finishing with 29 for the game. Hopefully he can continue on with this role in the coming weeks.
• Steve Johnson had another blinder, starting the game as a midfielder, clearly as a way of escaping the clutches of Morris early. It worked, with Stevie racking up 42 DT points in the first quarter alone. His game could again be called ‘selfish’ at times, but personally I am happy he does it all himself – more points for my Dream Team!
• Nathan Vardy was impressive in his third game, competing well in the ruck with Minson. He also dropped forward and provided a good target there, although just booted the one goal. At this stage he is already offering more than both Hawkins and Mooney, so should really stay in the team. Vardy was one of the big sliders of the draft last year, so already it looks as though Geelong have gotten themselves a steel!

Western Bulldogs:

• Daniel Giansiracusa was one of only a few competitive Dogs – and not for the first time. He booted five goals and looked dangerous all game. He also managed 23 touches and 7 marks, but the issue with Gia is his consistency – just as much as he is able to turn it on, he also manages to disappear from week to week, making him a rather frustrating DT or SC prospect.
• Ryan Griffen got himself his third ton in a row, suggesting some good consistency. He did rack up plenty of his numbers once the game was over, but personally I think it is good that he continues to try hard for his DT and SC owners, even though the game is lost. Managed 24 touches, 6 marks and 2 goals for the game.
• Christian Howard played his second game and again looked pretty decent. As I said last week, he looks composed and willing to take the game on, despite his youth and inexperience. Whilst he doesn’t look likely to be racking up too many huge numbers this year, Eade has already stated that kids will be the way forward this year, so the likes of Howard should be given their chances.
• Brian Lake was rubbish again – he played the first three quarters in defence and continued to be a step behind all his opponents and generally unfit. He was swung forward in the last quarter and booted three goals when the game was well and truly over. There are plenty of coaches looking at his price and feeling tempted, but it is important he shows some form this year before trading him in – he won’t earn you any points playing in the VFL.

 

West Coast vs Gold Coast:

West Coast:

• Dean Cox had a ripping day in the ruck, despite being up against the ultra-competitive Zac Smith. He spent the game switching between ruck and full-forward to exploit the Gold Coast defence and of course was very good – he was on 103 DT points at half time! He booted two goals and also managed 26 possessions, 9 marks and 28 hitouts.
• Mark LeCras was my tip last week to be the highest point scoring player against the Suns – fourth best wasn’t too bad. As usual, it is the classy HFF types that seems to most trouble the Suns and LeCras fits very nicely into that mould. Like the last fortnight, he spent some time up through the midfield as well as down forward, meaning he was able to rack up some good disposal numbers to compliment his goals. He finished with 28 touches, 9 tackles and 2 goals.
• Shannon Hurn was prolific off half-back and the small-bodied Suns were no match for his massive frame. He is typically not a big ball-winner, so to see him notch up 30 disposals was impressive. He is a brilliant SC option, but I wouldn’t be tempted in dream team, despite this massive score.
• Ash Smith was good again off half-back, providing plenty of run alongside Hurn. I have been talking him up all year, but I think it’s time to perhaps suggest he is not the DT type… yet. Keep an eye on him as I reckon he is showing some very good signs – he could even be a good one to put on your 2012 wish-list.

Gold Coast:

• Gary Ablett was dominant, justifying his selection in so many teams as the 6^th midfielder. Despite copping a tag from Scott Selwood, Ablett was hardly restricted and showed it is more his tireless workrate, rather than chop-outs from teammates that makes him some a strong force. He racked up 32 possessions and 9 tackles, whilst also booting 2 goals.
• Zac Smith stepped up again for all those with Sandilands currently sitting on their bench – he has now averaged over 100 points a game this past month. I’d say many coaches will now be thinking twice about holding onto Sandi… whilst it’s a bit of a risk, that’s over $400k of cash sitting there on your bench. Tempted??
• Michael Rischitelli continues his terrific season at the Suns, cracking the ton for the 6^th time this year. He has been remarkably consistent, in fact he only has one score under 95 points in DT! There has been little love for Rischa this year, but could be a great trade target if you are after a consistent performer with NO byes left. Finished this game with 25 touches and 5 tackles.
• Danny Stanley put in a pretty average performance after two very good games in a row previously. He managed just 11 touches, playing mainly across the HFF. It’s amazing that he, Harris and Iles have been some of the lower-end performers for the Suns this year, considering they were all the ‘rookies’ with some senior experience.

Collingwood vs St.Kilda:

Collingwood:

• Scott Pendlebury was the real four quarter performer for the Pies and best on ground when the final siren rang. He did handball it way too much for my liking though (21 handballs, 11 kicks), but still managed a pretty decent score, thanks to his 9 tackles. He looks to be out of that form-dip he went through a few weeks ago, so it looks like we can start trusting him with the captaincy again!
• Dale Thomas received the Clint Jones tag for the first half of the game and was restricted to just 45 DT points before half-time. Lucky for Thomas, Jones was shifted off him after the break (are the Saints tanking!?) and he went on to be the best player on ground in the second half, really setting up the goal-onslaught in the third quarter.
• Travis Cloke totally dominated Zac Dawson, kicking three goals from six shots, but it was his contested marking skills which were at their best. He is playing better this year than he has before and is seemingly much more consistent. Finished this game with 11 marks, plus a very good 16 touches and 6 tackles.
• Dane Swan was always going to be of interest in this game, knowing full well that he would be on a plane to Arizona the next day. He played OK, but looked nothing like the player we know. He had very little influence on the game, apart from his 4 goals, drifting in and out and only finishing with 19 touches. So we now say farewell for a fortnight to the great Dane and hope he can come back and rack up some massive numbers for us on the way home to the finals.

St.Kilda:

• Ben McEvoy played his best game for the Saints as the sole ruckman. Whilst he is not the most amazing tap ruckman you will find, his strength is his contested work around the ground – he laid 7 tackles and clunked 9 marks for the game to go with his 22 possessions and 30 hitouts. In the meantime, Kosi was kept goalless playing in the VFL, suggesting it may be a little while before we see him in the seniors again.
• Brendon Goddard managed to bounce back pretty well from his injury last week and racked up 24 touches and 11 marks. He wasn’t at his best, but he is working up out of defence a lot more now than he was earlier in the year, suggesting he is feeling a lot more confident in himself. I hope you didn’t trade him out, but if you did, perhaps you may start to feel a bit silly in the coming weeks.
• Sam Gilbert is ready for the trading – I have been saying for a few weeks now that it is time to bring Gilbo into your squad, but as you will now see, his price is starting to become bigger and bigger with each week. He is looking much more like his old self, running off half-back and taking the game on with confidence. Whilst he is not the type to average over 100 points, he can quite consistently get you scores around 90, which is nothing to scoff at.
• Leigh Montagna looked like he may have finished the game statless when Armitage landed on his leg very early in the first quarter, pushing his knee backwards in an action that looked like a significant injury. Fortunately, whilst clearly sore, he played out the game, but was resigned to playing out of the forward pocket, hence his lowly score. Ross Lyon is talking up his chances for next week, but you’d have to think he would be a chance to miss, especially with the Saints playing on Friday night.

 

Brisbane vs Sydney:

Brisbane:

• Matthew Leuenberger was one of only a few highlights for the Lions – he has come along slowly over the years for Brisbane, but he is now pushing up into the higher echelon of ruckmen. He easily beat Seaby both in the air and around the ground. He managed 22 touches and 7 marks alongside his 34 hitouts.
• Jack Redden has come back into his early season form with another strong ton. Whilst he only managed 5 tackles (for most players, this is a lot), he got most of his stats around the ground from possessions, which was quite nice to see for a change, finishing with 26 touches and 9 marks.
• Josh Green played his third game and was impressive again, improving on his first two outings. As I commented last week, he has plenty of zip and knows where to run. Also, he is not afraid to put his body on the line, laying 6 tackles for the game – also, 50% of his 14 possessions were contested.
• Jed Adcock was mighty quiet again, and for the second week in a row it wasn’t because of a tagger, but just because of the role he was playing. For some reason he has been stationed much deeper in defence of late, so has not been able to provide the rebound we have come to expect of him this year. Instead, Hanley seems to be the player given these responsibilities, and whilst Hanley is actually doing a very good job, SURELY Adcock would be better!

Sydney:

• Jude Bolton had another brilliant day at the office with 35 disposals and 8 tackles. Despite copping the tag all day, Bolton’s grunt work in the midfield simply couldn’t be stopped – he had 20 contested possessions, which is simply ridiculous! He was a real driving force for Sydney’s midfield and deserves the BOG honours.
• Martin Mattner was impressive again for the Swans – since the return of Kennelly, Mattner has appeared to take on a much more rebounding role for the Swans and it is reflecting nicely in his DT & SC scores. With Malceski, Kennelly and Grundy all assuming elements of attacking football in their games, you wonder how long Mattner can keep it up for, but over the past fortnight he has certainly been the best of the lot of them.
• Adam Goodes continued on his recent trend of starting fast, but then slowing down in the second half, which continues to frustrate his owners. Fortunately, some good junk stats helped him over the ton-line, but only just after he scored just 8 points in the third quarter. He finished the game with 19 touches, 7 marks and 7 tackles.
• Nick Malceski continued his positive return from a knee reconstruction with his first ton this year. He looked good off half-back, but the question will really be whether it was more his own form or the poor form of Brisbane that assisted him to the score. He is definitely one to keep an eye on for the run home as apart from his ACL injury, his pre-season form was very good.

Hawthorn vs Fremantle:

Hawthorn:

• Sam Mitchell owners watching this game would have spent the last five minutes of this game cheering as loud as any Hawks fan as he junked it up like no-one’s business – the winning goal, a few tackles and then a bit of kick-to-kick, meaning he was able to rack up 66 points in the fourth quarter alone! Hell yeah! The rest of his game was pretty good without being spectacular, but it will be this final quarter we will thank him for!
• Cyril Rioli was the best for the Hawks – as he wryly noted in a post-game interview, he was pretty happy when Buddy didn’t play, meaning he had a lot more room in the forward line as he slotted through five goals from 14 disposals. He is playing pretty much permanent forward at the moment though, so if you are tempted to bring him in, you might find he may not have the scoring potency as he does when running through the midfield.
• Luke Hodge was a lot quieter than he has been in recent weeks, managing only 22 touches and a goal (one of the sealers) whilst being tagged by Crowley. He also seemed to re-aggravate his leg late in the game and played no further part, looking very sore – lets just hope it was not Achilles related!
• Luke Bruest was awesome, coming on late as the sub and kicking three very important late goals to help the Hawks get over the line. He buzzed around the forward line and clearly had much more energy than anyone from Fremantle. Was one of the best sub games we have seen this year – hopefully he can start getting some full games sometime soon.

Fremantle:

• Greg Broughton was the story for Fremantle, playing the majority of the game through the midfield, which was a wonderful sight for all his owners. Personally it had me already planning this week’s trades in my head as I look to get him in. He racked up the ball with no issues, finishing with 29 touches, 7 marks and 5 tackles. May the role continue!
• Stephen Hill was brilliant for Fremantle and was one of the driving forces to get them in front in the third term with a beautiful quarter where he racked up exactly half of his DT points. He still continues to be a SC star rather than a DT one, but I hope one day soon I can stick him in my midfield as when he is ‘on’, he is a jet.
• Jon Griffin certainly mounted himself a case to be kept in the lineup, even when Sandilands returns. He at least broke even with Bailey and Roughead in the ruck and was very competitive around the ground, bringing in 17 disposals alongside his 31 hitouts.
• Tendai Mzungu probably didn’t live up to expectations in his third game, going pretty quiet after a good first quarter. He spent his game across HFF and looked fine, but never threatened to win much ball. But, before anyone complains about him, it must be remembered that this is his THIRD game of the year, so he will come good soon.

 

North Melbourne vs Adelaide:

North Melbourne:

• Andrew Swallow… Wow. Just Wow. 27 contested possessions (from 40 disposals), 17 clearances, 5 tackles and 6 inside-50s!! Those numbers are simply ridiculous! This guy goes about his business week-to-week, but this game was scintillating! Whilst you can’t expect this from him every week, his scoring is becoming more and more consistent as he presses for another Roos B&F.
• Todd Goldstein is continuing his great form of 2011… I feel like I am writing about him in this article almost every week – well he certainly is a favourite of mine! He thoroughly beat his Adelaide opponents with 48 hitouts, but also notched 17 disposals and 7 tackles for the game.
• Drew Petrie had another great game and should get bonus points for doing it against Rutten, who would definitely be one of the better full-backs in the competition. Petrie booted four goals from 14 possessions and four marks and looks well and truly recovered from his foot issues that kept him out for the majority of last year.
• Levi Greenwood is going to feature in this article again for Kristian’s sake as he keeps banging on about how good a trade target he will be this year… Unfortunately, after two sub-par scores to start his season, both times in tagging roles, he is definitely not worth considering yet. I can see what gets Kristian’s attention, so keep an eye on him, but certainly this is not one to go early on!

Adelaide:

• Graham Johncock was easily the best of the Crows – he has actually had a very good year, although that doesn’t always translate into a good DT score. It would have helped that he was matched up on Lindsay Thomas, who is notoriously not very defensive, so he managed to zone off very easily up the ground. Unfortunately for the Crows, the ball didn’t often get much further up the ground than their defence before it came hurling back in again.
• Kurt Tippett was good, but also disappointing. The Crows’ forward supply was terrible, hence their ability to score, but Kurt’s 3 goals from 8 scoring shots was a pretty bad success rate from limited chances. Like many commentators, I am continually waiting for this guy to just dominate a game – he has all the attributes, but not the consistency.
• Bernie Vince played his first game in a while after a stint in the SANFL and was pretty good. He is still far from his best though, although I can’t put my finger on why. If you held onto him this long, firstly, I am surprised, secondly, I would think it’s a good idea to offload him.
• Brad Moran, I was very happy to see you named in the team this week for your first game of the year, considering you are my fourth ruck! Everyone else has Bailey or Vardy as their fourth ruck, so I have been pretty jealous. So therefore I was excited to see your game this weekend and justify why I picked you. Unfortunately, when you finish with 4 disposals and 8 hitouts (with only 1 hitout in the whole first half), I can’t see you playing again any time soon! In fact, I think the only reason you weren’t subbed off was because Neil Craig didn’t even know you were out there

 

Port Adelaide vs Carlton:

Port Adelaide:

• Troy Chaplin played his usual role as loose man in defence and Carlton allowed it, meaning he had very little trouble stacking on the possessions. I think plenty of people discount Chaplin as an option because of who he plays for, but honestly, his numbers this year suggest he is a pretty good bet. Knows how to win the ball too, which of course, is a much needed bonus!
• Justin Westhoff got the Power off to a great start with three first-quarter goals, but unfortunately he didn’t really do too much after that. Whilst he was still good around the ground, he only won 20 DT points in the second half when Carlton fought back.
• Travis Boak was good again for the Power with 7 clearances and 14 contested possessions – clearly more than his next-best teammate. With the club sitting towards the bottom of the ladder, Boak will continue to struggle a bit with opposition attention, but once Port pick themselves up and start fighting up the ladder again, Boak will surely be one of the must-have mids.
• Cam O’Shea was one player I talked up in the wrap last week as he has looked pretty good in his first year, however he was absolutely towelled up by Walker, having 6 goals kicked on him before he was subbed off. That wasn’t a great sign and may suggest he is due for some time in the SANFL.

Carlton:

• Mitch Robinson was brilliant for the Blues, with his contested ball winning skills the highlight. He is tough as a cats head and won’t ever be questioned for a lack of tenacity. He won 16 contested possessions (amongst 34 touches for the game) and took 9 marks. This is his second massive game in a row, suggesting that maybe he will be a much more prolific DTer than we had every predicted.
• Marc Murphy continued to make many coaches despondent about his DT-finals bye – “I really want him but can’t deal with that bye…” There are plenty of for and against cases for him and this game was another ‘for’ as he shot through the middle of AAMI Stadium, winning 32 touches.
• Andrew Walker had a brilliant game, and quite arguably his best ever for Carlton. He kicked six goals, but it was more how hard he worked for them that was impressive. He spent time up the field and even won some ball off half-back, so really covered the ground, hence his 18 disposals. He really kept the Blues in the game early, kicking their first 3 goals himself.
• Ed Curnow played his first game back from injury and was largely anonymous, winning only 18 touches, many of which came in the last quarter. If you held onto him it’s not panic stations – he only player 77% gametime, so should improve as he is eased back from his time off. You don’t lose all your skills in 3 weeks!

 

Hey all,

I apologise this thread is a bit late this weekend… especially considering how much everyone seems to need it this week!

Please use this thread to discuss all your Dream Team and SuperCoach heroes and villains for round 10 – who let you down and who is carrying the weight of your team on their shoulders??

Also feel free to gloat about all your successful trades this week, or perhaps you may like to concede it was your fault for a player’s injury or poor score after you trades them in this week!

Please just avoid obscenities or abuse… as hard as that may be!

Enjoy!

 

All the teams as they are announced for Round 11…

 

ESSENDON V MELBOURNE

 

A run through of all the bottom-priced players set to jump in value this week.

 

Luke Delaney – North Melbourne (DEF)

DT: $92,500. Scores: 40, 34 = 37 avg.

Delaney has been in the system a few years and finally got his first shot at senior action a fortnight ago against the Lions. He was set a tough task, lining up on Jonathan Brown for the entire game and actually competed very well, earning plenty of praise from his coach. With North’s key-defender stocks whittling away with injury, you would think Delaney would be given plenty of chances – it does help that he is playing alright to. As a key defender though, he is not really what we are looking for in Dream Team, unless if you just need a live body to stick on your bench.

Summary: Should get a number of games this year, but provides little more than a live-body from a Dream Team perspective.

 

Michael Evans – Melbourne (MID)

DT: $80,400. Scores: 112, 58 = 85 avg.

Evans is a speedy medium-sized midfielder and looks pretty capable at AFL level, considering he has come from playing WAFL footy last year with the Colts. In his first game, against the Saints, he won 27 touches, 9 marks and 6 tackles, which is pretty damn decent for a debut game! The slight on him though is his ball-use skills – whilst he had no issues in winning the ball, he turned the ball over on a number of occasions and had some pretty poor kicks inside-50. With Melbourne’s injury list in the state it is (terrible), he will continue to get games, but I worry that due to his disposal skills he may either get dropped or put in a much lower possession winning role.

Summary: I worry he may be the 2011 version of Barham, Muston or Gysberts, rather than the Barlow or Curnow type.

 

Josh Green – Brisbane (MID)

DT: $92,500. Scores: 41, 51 = 46 avg.

Green has played the past two games and Brisbane has won both of them – coincidence? I think not. Honestly, I didn’t think much of him in his first game, but this week against Adelaide he looked pretty good before fading later in the game. He has plenty pace, intensity and red hair – exactly how Vossy seems to like his footballers. Green was one player we looked pretty hard at in the pre-season considering his junior numbers – he averaged 25 disposals and 5 tackles per game in the Under 18 championships and then 27 touches and 8 tackles in the TAC cup, suggesting that he will be a super DTer one day. So far he has shown good signs, but his two scores so far suggest he is a little way off from replicating his junior form. Vossy is also a bit funny with his younger players – he is one of the harder coaches to get a read on with kids and whether they are safe in the team or not. Personally I reckon Green will get a bit of a go – the likes of Bewick and O’Brien are probably the next ones out of the team.

Summary: Don’t expect to see his junior numbers, but he should continue to improve if given his chances. Still a bit of a punt, but could be one that pays off quite nicely.

 

Tendai Mzungu – Fremantle (MID/FWD)

DT: $97,600. Scores: 21*, 85 = 53 avg.

If you play Dream Team and haven’t been counting down the days until you were able to trade this kid in, then there is something wrong with you. Mzungu shone in the pre-season, looking like a legitimate lock-and-forget mid or forward prospect for every single team – his ball-winning skills were great, but he also knew how to use it and fitted into Freo’s structures very well. Unfortunately, he injured himself in the pre-season and only managed to play his first senior game in round 9 as a sub. Last week against the Saints we got to have our first good look at him and he was great – he was their main option coming off half-back and he looked composed with the ball in hands and had no issues winning the ball, nor running out the game. Looks a great option for all teams, whether it be as bench cover or even as a 7^th forward.

Summary: Yes – get on! Now! One of the few ‘must-have’ DT players this year.

 

Nicholas Winmar – St.Kilda (MID/FWD)

DT: $97,600. Scores: 33, 33* = 33 avg.

Winmar was probably a bit of a surprise inclusion to the Saints squad initially as his VFL form hadn’t been great. That said, great to see the Saints blooding some new talent. Winmar was the Saints’ first pick in the 2009 draft (after they traded their first pick for Lovett…. Grrr) and is a pacy half-back/winger who can use the ball well. His strength was never ball-winning though, so if anything, he will be more a SC pick than a DT one. That said, I’m not expecting him to play against Collingwood and will likely be in and out of the side this year, depending on the team’s form. He has looked a little lost at senior level, with where to run etc. He will improve, but I don’t think this is his year.

Summary: Has talent, but he won’t keep his spot or win enough ball to really be considered.

 

Nathan Vardy – Geelong (RUCK)

DT: $97,600. Scores: 29, 70 = 49 avg.

After being run through by Karmichael Hunt after the first bounce last week, it looked like Vardy would be subbed off on zero DT points for a season average of 14. To the kid’s credit, he came back on towards the end of the quarter and had a really good game. He was up against Zac Smith, who has actually been one of the better ruckmen this year and competed really well around the ground. The question now is whether his spot is safe – with Mooney, Hawkins and Ottens all in the team or coming in, will Vardy keep his spot? Honestly, he gives much more than Mooney and at the moment is in better form than Hawkins. That said, he will likely be in and out all year – also, is anyone even needing to trade in a ruck? With injuries to Mumford and Sandilands, I can’t imagine anyone wants to cash in Smith right now!

Summary: Looks a good type, but you’d only trade him in for the sake of it – I can’t see his worth to any teams.

 

Max Bailey – Hawthorn (RUCK)

DT: $97,600. Scores: 45, 57 = 51 avg.

Bailey is one of the good-luck AFL stories of the year after he has (so far) come back successfully from his third ACL reconstruction. He has played the past two games which Renouf is out with a hamstring injury, but with Renouf back within the next week or two and Hale not far behind, the Hawks will have to make some tough decisions, especially with Roughead also playing very well in the ruck. I’d say Renouf and Bailey will both be in and out for much of the year – the Hawks will be impressed that Bailey has already shown some good signs of improvement after just 2 games this year (he has only played 6 games prior to this season), so they may want to stick with him. That said, like Vardy, I can’t see any reason why you would be trading him in.

Summary: Great to see him back, but question why you would look to trade him in – average scoring potential and average job security.

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Well, there’s been some awesome discussion this week on the site and a few calls for a Poll or two to get the answers from the masses. So please see below for a few polls to help you work out where your team fits in the scheme of things… If you have any other good suggestions for polls, please let me know.

(this first poll is assuming you already have Pendles, Boyd, Swan and Selwood in your mids – the most common combination)

A run through of all state-league action from the weekend been. Which players are looking close to a senior call-up?

 

Adelaide

Patient Andy Otten owners can take comfort in the fact he has returned to senior football with South Adelaide on the weekend. He had 13 disposals and three marks playing in defence. With the Crows struggling it might not be too long before he gets another recall.

 

Jack Gunston kicked 5.3 among 23 disposals, including six marks for Central District, while Dogs teammate Brad Symes had 31 touches with six marks and a goal, though neither were named in the best players. Gunston kicked the final goal of the game in a tight seven point encounter with North Adelaide in a clash between first (Dogs) and last (North).

 

Bernie Vince had 31 possessions, six marks and kicked 2.2 for Woodville-West Torrens on return from a minor hamstring strain. Expect to see him back for the Crows this week. Youngster Aidan Riley nearing debut reportedly played a practice match for Sturt against the SA U/18 side – no idea how he went, but he can’t do any worse than majority of the mids in the Crows side at the moment.

 

Brisbane

Patrick Karnezis and Aaron Cornelius kicked four goals each for the Lions Reserves. Cornelius apparently showed a bit more work rate, which could see him return to the frame for AFL selection, while Karnezis prides himself on pushing hard up the ground and was named second best.

 

Amon Buchanan was best on ground and is close to a return for the Lions, while Ryan Harwood and Andrew Raines were both good. Mitch Golby continues his solid month of form too.

 

Xavier Clarke returning from a niggle (I think it was hamstring again this time) and did not get injured. This will move him closer to the 2:1 ratio of games played to games injured in.

 

Carlton

Matt Kreuzer played another three quarters of footy before resting up in the final term. He had eight touches, 13 hitouts and kicked a goal. He looked pretty good moving around, so will probably only be a couple of weeks away.

 

Lachie Henderson was named BOG with his contested marking and pack crashing a big feature. It sounded like a confidence game, in which he had 12 touches, six marks (most contested) and kicked three goals. That sort of effort that will see him get a game in the seniors.

 

Zach Tuohy is banging the door down for a debut. The young Irishman has been named in the bests three weeks in a row for the Ants – this time as second best. He had 27 disposals and five marks. Jarryd Cachia is admittedly someone I have a soft spot for, but he was also named in the bests and had 22 touches along with six tackles.

 

Andy Collins on return from a shoulder injury was also good with 14 touches and three goals across half forward. He’s nowhere near as bad as his AFL form showed earlier this year! Paul Bower made a reasonable return from injury. Even though he didn’t play reserves, from a team selection perspective, it’s worth noting there’s a bit of talk that Ed Curnow is close to a return. Ryan Houlihan could be in the mix too. It was his third game back for the Bullants. He had it 21 times and kicked a goal.

 

Collingwood

Not a whole heap of news from a ‘pushing for selection’ point of view. Ben Johnson returned from injury, but went off in the first quarter as a precautionary measure for his hamstring tightening up.

 

Paul Seedsman had a good, consistent game and was named second best for the Maggies twos. Livewire Kirk Ugle showed plenty of good forward pressure. He’s tiny, but has a real dip and a booming kick for such skinny legs, though he’d be a bit underdeveloped for AFL this year I would think.

 

The big American Shae McNamara took some big strides in his development rucking against AFL hardened Angus Graham. Graham was actually named BOG for Coburg, but McNamara added plenty around the ground and was quite effective in the ruck, especially against Tom Derickx. If Jolly is out for a while I wonder if Malthouse goes for the bold move of dropping Wood for this bloke? What a story that would be!

 

Perennial emergencies Alex Fasolo and Lachlan Keeffe were kept out of action to be on standby for AFL action.

 

Essendon

With Essendon having the bye they used this chance to get a bit more game time into Kyle Reimers and Alwyn Davey (despite playing AFL the previous week). The reports on Reimers’ game were fantastic with plenty of run through the midfield. He displayed his usual selfishness at times, but it wasn’t an overriding factor in his game.

 

The news that had Bombers fans wetting their pants was the return of Tayte Pears. He’s a quality player, so I can understand why they were so excited. He played the first half only, as planned, and was very impressive – not just from a returning from long layoff perspective, but by all standards. He’ll spend a few weeks getting match fitness for Bendigo before becoming a vital addition to Essendon’s finals charge.

 

Travis Colyer was named BOG and kicked a couple of goals, with about 30 touches through the midfield. Whenever he’s out of the team he’s never going to be too far away from getting back in. The progress of Josh Jenkins is basically mocking all clubs lacking in the ruck department. Essendon are currently playing three in the seniors and have this gem on their rookie list. His athleticism, competitiveness and even an ability to kick on his opposite boot (a ruckman on the opposite shoe?!) stood out.

 

Brent Prismall was kept out. No reason was given, but I wonder if that means he was rested and in line for an AFL recall considering Essendon play on Friday (Bendigo game was on Saturday).

 

Fremantle

Like last week, with Freo’s massive injury list there’s only a small amount of players playing state league for them. Byron Schammer picked up 22 touches, five marks and six tackles to be named in the bests for Claremont.

 

Clayton Hinkley is a similarly hard worker with questionable disposal and he had 19 disposals, along with five marks and four tackles to be named fifth best for Swan Districts. Ben Bucovaz had a neat game across half back for East Freo with 21 touches.

 

Zac Clarke played in the Foxtel Cup for East Perth against the NT Thunder and helped them to a six point win with 10 touches and 15 hitouts in a shortened game. John Anthony and Josh Mellington each had seven touches and kicked 2.2 for Subiaco and West Perth respectively.

 

Michael Barlow is set to resume action next week in the WAFL Reserves.

 

Geelong

Shannon Byrnes made his return from injury and was OK, nothing stand out, but was better for the run. Jordan Schroder was the one to really impress though. He’s a competitive little bugger and knows how to find the goals. He finished the day with three goals and was named second best for the Cats reserves.

 

Jonathan Simpkin competed well across half back and kicked long on a number of opportunities. Also in the backline was Tom Gillies, who had mixed reports on his game. He was named fifth best though, so the coaches must have liked his role.

 

Mitch Brown didn’t do a great deal, but kicked one nice goal. His three weeks have been a little bit on the quiet side. First year player George Horlin-Smith played his first game of the year.

 

Gold Coast

Harley Bennell was the star of the show for the Suns reserves, kicking four goals and winning a stack of the ball through the midfield. He was their best on ground and by some margin from reading the reports. He’s almost a certainty to come back in, especially with the game being in his home state of WA against the Eagles. The wide expanses of Subiaco should really suit his game too.

 

With Karmichael Hunt suspended the Suns will be looking for a defence replacement. Jack Hutchins drew praise from coach Shaun Hart, especially for his “fantastic” second quarter. Seb Tape would also be a chance to come back after missing last weekend with illness. Some rumours are starting to circulate that Josh Toy isn’t fitting in very well up there.

 

Taylor Hine, Luke Russell, Hayden Jolly and super athletic Joel Wilkinson were also named in the Suns’ best. Ruckman Tom Nicholls could also be in the selection frame to help Zac Smith out against the Cox/NicNat combo.

 

Hawthorn

Yeah, there is pretty much no info going around about Hawthorn’s VFL affiliate Box Hill. Their game clashed with the Hawthorn game, so no one has given a first hand account of the game, and frankly, I was at the AFL game too.

 

All I can tell you is that Kyle Cheney, Paul Johnson, Clint Young and Will Sierakowski were named in the bests. Young would be one of the first in line for a return, you’d imagine. Isaac Smith was named, but didn’t end up playing. Hmmm, that’s three weeks off now for “general soreness.”

 

Melbourne

I went down to Werribee on Saturday afternoon to see Melbourne’s affiliate Casey Scorpions take on the Bulldogs’ affiliate Williamstown. There was this really promising bloke wearing #62 from memory. He wasn’t in the record, but he was just so damn classy. His teammates kept shouting out “Scull! Scull! Scull!” when he got the ball, so he must be a proficient drinker. It was Tom Scully and I was just playing silly buggers. He looked a class above and got through the game well. Could be a chance to come straight in, but a second run wouldn’t hurt either. I thought he ran out the game pretty well.

 

I was super impressed with Jeremy Howe. His overhead marking is amazing and I’ve always known he was a bit of a highlight reel, but he can just pluck them even when it looks like he’s out of the contest. His workrate really impressed me and having seen a few of his matches on tape in the Tasmanian league from last year, I was concerned with this facet of game, but he has worked so hard both times I’ve seen him live this year. He has to be right in the mix for selection and personally I think Melbourne should pick him this week.

 

Another one who could be in line for debut very soon is big Max Gawn (in fact, he was talked up as a chance yesterday). There’s huge wraps on the huge kid and he was much better than when I saw him about a month ago. He had a big challenge against Ben Hudson, and while Hudson’s experience shone at times there were some big positives from Maxy both in the ruck and around the ground.

 

I can’t claim to being Sam Blease’s biggest fan, but I liked his game, especially in a seven goal second quarter to Casey. It might be time to give him a game in the next month to see how he goes.

 

North Melbourne

For those not totally across it, the Roos have a partial alignment with two VFL clubs – North Ballarat and Werribee. North Ballarat had the bye, so quite a few of their reserves, including Cam Richardson had the week off. Damn.

 

The big news for the North Melbourne faithful was that Ryan Bastinac played for Werribee reserves. Bastinac is actually aligned to North Ballarat, but considering they had the bye he was allowed to play reserves for Werribee – good effort from all parties involved to allow that to happen. He got 29 touches and was instrumental. Good to see him back out there.

 

There wasn’t a great deal going on for Werribee. Robbie Tarrant was solid down back, but isn’t he always? Cam Pederson only kicked the one goal, after kicking eight last week.

 

Port Adelaide

Chad Cornes just keeps busting his gut, you’ve got to give him credit for that, even though there doesn’t seem to be much going on for the Power this year and it’s clearly his last season. He had 18 touches, six marks and 1.3 for Glenelg and was second best. A chance for the Magarey Medal? No…probably not, but I’m just saying his form is good. I’m not totally across his contract situation, but surely he had a year to run on it last year. What would be the point in re-signing him if he was going to show good form, but not be able to get a game in a struggling AFL side?

 

Rookie listed Tom Jonas had a great game for Norwood, no longer having to worry about playing second fiddle to Taylor Walker. He had 18 touches, seven marks, seven tackles and kicked a goal in a BOG performance for the Redlegs.

 

Daniel Stewart was also impressive with 19 possessions, ten marks, nine hitouts and 2.1 to be named second best for North Adelaide in their near upset of top of the ladder and winner of the last 70 odd SANFL premierships Central District.

 

Brett Ebert had it 21 times, along with seven marks and 2.1, while Mitch Banner was solid again with another 24 disposals.

 

Richmond

Angus Graham responded well. Even though his ruck battle with Shae McNamara arguably went the way of the big American (not much in it) Graham was dominant around the ground. His work rate was immense and did his chances of a senior recall no harm.

 

David Gourdis and David Astbury were solid in defence. Tom Hislop wasn’t bad once again, but disappeared in the last quarter (possibly hurt or iced up early). Ben Griffiths showed glimpses of the player Richmond hope he can become crashing packs and displaying a good set of hands. For anyone stashing Tom Derickx as your fourth ruck, don’t expect him to get a game any time soon. The reports weren’t glowing…

 

Thanks to Kristian for a bit of help on the Richmond guys.

 

St.Kilda

Tom Ledger was impressive with 28 touches and a goal playing as an inside midfielder. The Saints have been blooding a few youngsters and he’s another promising one, so keep an eye out.

 

Raph Clarke was named BOG for Sandringham with 21 possessions across half back, while Tom Simpkin was solid across half back with 28 touches and 12 marks – another who could be a chance for debut shortly. The promising Irishman Tommy Walsh (I might stop referring to Saints players by their first name and we can just assume they’re all called Tom) had a good game with 17 disposals to be named in their bests and has been impressing lately. Elevated from the rookie list last week, he may be a chance for a debut soon – especially with Blake out for a month.

 

Jason Gram didn’t really turn heads, though he got it 20 times, but some reports suggest he didn’t look overly interested.

 

Sydney

After playing a half two weeks ago, in his first full game back Campbell Heath was named BOG for the Swans reserves for his role in defence. It’s good news for the youngster on his return from LARS surgery.

 

Paul Bevan kicked three goals and was named second best, and it must have been a mighty competitive display from the reserves because Trent Dennis-Lane couldn’t get a mention in the best players with six goals. Dylan McNeil, Brett Meredith and Jarred Moore were prolific through the midfield.

 

Jesse White left the game in the second quarter with an ankle injury, leaving the bulk of the ruck duties to fifth year player Daniel Currie, who is yet to debut, but could be nearing with the long list of injuries to Swans rucks and his recent good form.

 

West Coast

The Eagles lengthy contingent of East Freo players were impressive on the weekend. All of Bradd Dalziell, Koby Stevens, Jacob Brennan and Tim Houlihan had good games. Dalziell and Houlihan were named third and fourth best for the Sharks with 27 touches each, but it sounds like Stevens was the big story. He had 29 disposals, six marks, five tackles and kicked a goal. He did a bit of everything and would be a big chance to come in this week.

 

Brett Jones was solid across half back for Claremont with 20 touches and was named fourth best, while teammate Gerrick Weedon worked hard for 21 possessions and eight marks, but kicked 0.4.

 

Scott Lycett was named fifth best for Peel Thunder in his best game for the season with 13 touches, eight marks, 13 hitouts and 1.2, while Jordan Jones was also handy across half back.

 

Andrew Gaff suffered hamstring tightness in the first half and didn’t return after half time.

Western Bulldogs

Young key defender James Mulligan was very good on Fev. Fev kicked three, but there was some pretty good delivery to him and overall Mulligan won the day. He was named BOG for Williamstown. Lukas Markovic was also solid in defence.

 

Brennan Stack worked hard and rebounded well across half back. Nathan Djerrkura and Luke Dahlhaus were good through the midfield. Jarrad Grant started like a house on fire with two early goals and finished the day with four.

 

Developing ruckman Ayce Cordy showed some good signs, while Ben Hudson showed his experience in a good battle with Max Gawn. Patrick Veszpremi had good involvements in patches, particularly later in the game when he seemed to be playing up the ground a bit more.

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Welcome to another week of Kristian’s Kaptains folks! I hope you’re all surging up the rankings now that we’re entering the business end of the season.

Was anyone a genius and made Stevie Johnson their skipper for the week, or did you get let down by Chapman or Swan again?

Let’s get stuck into it!

 

JOEL SELWOOD

I’m very envious of those of you who have him in their team. He’s been super this season, taking out the round one game that he concussed, scoring only 28, and he’s still averaging 108 Dream Team points. He comes up against the Bulldogs at Skilled Stadium this week, a team who really doesn’t have a designated ‘tagger’. We all saw how well the Hawks players scored against the Dogs on the weekend, so this could be a sign of things to come, especially down at Skilled. Very much like last week, there are players that scream out as an obvious captain selection this week. Dane Swan is not 100% at the moment, so captain choices are more intriguing than they’ve ever been in years at the moment! Having said all that, Joel Selwood is as safe a bet as you’re going to get.

Last 5 games vs Western Bulldogs:

DT: 139, 45, 136, 110, 76

SC: 142, 25, 122, 109, 89

 

DEAN COX

Cox, in his current form will always be worthy of a mention, but he comes up against the Gold Coast this week on his home turf. While Zac Smith, in my opinion, is already one of the better ruckman in the league after only 8 games, Cox really should have a day out. I think he’ll spend much more time forward this week, which could be either a good thing or a bad thing, depending if he brings his marking and kicking game. He’s another good, safe bet, with a scope of scoring anything between 100 and 150 this week. I don’t see him scoring much less than that.

 

SCOTT PENDLEBURY

Pendlebury has shot up to become the #1 Dream Team player in the competition right now, taking full advantage of Swan’s lack of form and fitness. He comes up against the resurgent Saints, and while Clinton Jones normally goes to Swan, there’s every chance he might go to Pendlebury. Ross Lyon might’ve given a clue away yesterday however, labelling Dale Thomas as probably the best player in the competition right now. Read into that what you like, but I think we all know which Pies player will be copping the most attention. Last time these two sides played, Scott Pendlebury won the Norm Smith medal, so you wouldn’t think the Saints will let him get away with much, although they’re not exactly the same team they were. He’s every chance to be my captain this week as you simply can’t go past his red-hot form.

Last 5 games vs St.Kilda:

DT: 141, 119, 108, 10, 122

SC: 156, 106, 107, 22, 128

*NOTE*- Pendlebury got injured in the game he scored 10.

 

SCOTT THOMPSON

Speaking of form, this guy isn’t lacking any of it. He is literally carrying the Adelaide Crows on his shoulders right now and I’m not sure where they’d be without him. To me, he looks as fit as he has in his entire career, and I’m proud to say this has been one trade I’ve nailed this season. He’s playing North Melbourne this week at Etihad, which shouldn’t pose him too many troubles to post another massive score. He has, in previous seasons, had the tendency to have a couple of really bad games scoring wise in between a few brilliant ones, which has affected his overall average, but this year is different. I’ll be tossing up between Thompson and Pendlebury for my captain this week.

Last 5 games vs North Melbourne:

DT: 119, 95, 116, 75, 128

SC: 129, 88, 111, 67, 104

 

OTHER OPTIONS TO CONSIDER………

Paul Chapman has had a pretty down month after starting the season brilliantly. Maybe his limited pre-season is starting to take a toll? He’s averaged 81.4 in DT and 74.8 SC in his last 5 games against the Dogs.

 

Steve Johnson played a blinder last week but can he back it up? I reckon he might be able to, but his record against the Dogs isn’t the greatest, (89.6 DT and 86.6 SC).

 

Dane Swan owns the Saints, as well as most other clubs, but can we trust him at the moment? For me it’s a definite no. He could be subbed on or off any one of these days, but he’s also likely to come out score 160.

 

Matthew Boyd is Mr.Safe, but at Skilled Stadium this week, anything could happen. His record against the Cats is solid though, so you could do much worse, (100.4 DT and 88.4 SC).

 

Lance Franklin has been in AMAZING form and he comes up against a struggling Fremantle this week. Don’t be fooled though, Luke McPharlin has taken his number on a few occasions now, and Buddy really struggles against the Dockers (75.8 DT and 93.2 SC).

 

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