Footy Tragic

North Melbourne vs Carlton:

North Melbourne:

• Andrew Swallow was sublime for North Melbourne, despite seeming to concuss himself on about three separate occasions. It was a typical game from Swallow, hard and tough in and under, interestingly going head-to-head with Judd for most of the match and actually coming out on top in the first half. He finished the game with 33 touches and 9 tackles and made a significant contribution to North getting so close.
• Todd Goldstein threatened to break the world record for hitouts when he had already notched up 20 by quarter time. Unfortunately, with only 2 more the next quarter and a total of 36 for the game, he finished far from the number he would have needed. He continues to play very well for North and isn’t showing any signs of slowing down towards the end of the year – also in positive news for his owners (although not really good news), McIntosh was a late withdrawal from the VFL on Sunday, so perhaps he is a little further away than expected. Goldy finished with 13 touches and 5 tackles alongside his hitout tally.
• Daniel Wells copped a tag from Armfield for the majority of the game and failed to have a massive influence on the game. However, to his credit, he continued to work very hard all day to get into dangerous spots, and despite only notching 13 touches he managed to make the majority of them pretty effective. He also worked hard the other way, laying 5 tackles for the game.
• Brady Rawlings owners continue to suffer thanks to his terrible past month from a dreamteam perspective. He has proven a good dreamteamer this past couple of years with his attacking role off half-back, but the past month has seen him play more shut-down role, limiting the amount of ball he gets. The number of Blues small forwards didn’t help him either, forcing him to play in his defensive-50 all game as he tried to shut down the dangerous Garlett, finishing with just 13 disposals of his own. His price has dropped so rapidly, there is no one really worthwhile to bring in in his place – perhaps it is time to consider keeping him as your 8^th defender only.

Carlton:

• Bryce Gibbs was brilliant for the Blues, playing the majority of the game in the front half. His ability to get in front of the ball was a real strength of his game, helping him get his four very crucial goals. There was just no-one in the Roos back half capable of running with him as he ran through the middle in spurts before dashing forward as soon as Carlton won the ball. It is a highly lucrative role for Dreamteam and SuperCoach if he can continue to play it well, which is great news for all his owners.
• Kade Simpson had a great night, playing across the wings all night and setting up some really important Blues attacks. He was a really important member of the team, working hard all night and using the ball very well – it would have been a game to score pretty well in the coach’s votes. He finished with 24 touches and 9 marks for the game.
• Chris Yarran worked well off half-back, with North Melbourne amazingly allowing him to roam free behind the ball, which eventually was one of the big contributors to their loss. Yarran isn’t a player to typically win stacks of the ball, but he uses it beautifully, so doesn’t need to rack them up to have an influence. That said, he had 27 touches against North, 20 of them kicks, so there is little wonder why he carved them up.
• Lachie Henderson made a big step to securing his spot in Carlton’s backline with a really strong game on Drew Petrie. His pace really troubled Petrie and he wasn’t afraid to play in front, meaning he was able to cut off so many attacks. He finished with only 14 touches and 5 marks of his own, but crucially kept the in-form Petrie to just 2.3 for the night.

 

Western Bulldogs vs West Coast:

Western Bulldogs:

• Matthew Boyd played a real Captains game for the Doggies, being the one man who was prepared to commit to the contest early in the game with 21 touches and 6 inside-50s in the first half alone. Fortunately, the troops rallied after the main break and Boyd continued to try and drag his team across the line, finishing with 40 disposals, 11 clearances and 7 inside-50s. This was one of his best games for a while – a game where as skipper of the club, he really had to lift and did.
• Robert Murphy was very good off half-back, coming straight back into the side from an injury layoff without skipping a beat. He was strong and confident coming out of the backline, using the ball for precision and seemed to be involved in all of their successful attacks. They want the ball in his hands so badly as it seems that if anyone else gets the ball in the backline, they just turn it over.
• Daniel Giansiracusa was very good up forward, especially in the third term where he was a crucial part of the Dogs’ fight back. He finished with 4.1 and picked up 22 touches and worked really hard through the forward-50 and across the forward flank. He has been one of the in-form forwards over the past couple of months, so could be worth considering after the Dogs’ bye this week if you are after someone a little more unique.
• Andrew Hooper had a shocker, only managing to touch the ball twice before being subbed off in the 3^rd quarter. I have been critical of him so far this year, due to the fact he only bobs up in games for cameo performances, such as this one. Unfortunately, in this case he was subbed off before being able to have any sort of effect on the contest. At the moment he looks like an ideal sub candidate, or perhaps just needs a run in the VFL.

West Coast:

• Dean Cox was insanely good, making Dreamteam and SuperCoach coaches wishing that perhaps Naitanui was rested more often. Cox rucked on his own all game and thoroughly destroyed Hudson, not only winning the hitouts 37 – 20, but also having a massive influence around the ground, picking up 27 touches and 13 marks. He also played a big part in West Coast holding on in the final minutes, taking a game-saving mark before then kicking the game-winning goal – both acts which saw his SuperCoach score rocket over the 200-mark.
• Matt Priddis played a typically tough game through the middle, picking up 31 touches, 9 clearances and a fantastic 14 tackles. No one from the Dogs really tried to go with him, preferring instead to throw their own inside-mids head-to-head with him. His owners would have been damn pleased with this as it simply allowed him to do as he pleased around the ground – and now with much improved foot-skills from where he was a few years ago, Priddis is one man that can’t simply be left to roam free.
• Andrew Gaff has shaken off the sub-vest he was perennially given earlier in the year to now be a ball-winning star in the West Coast midfield. He got them back into the game against the Saints a fortnight ago and did it again from the first bounce against the Dogs, picking up 16 touches and kicking 2 goals by half time to help set the Eagles up – expect his name to be announced on Tuesday as this week’s Rising Star nomination. He is a classy user of the ball too and has great pace, showing he will be a star of our game for many years to come.
• Beau Waters came into the game on the back of news that he may not even be passed fit to play, after he had knocked his troublesome elbow at training the day before. Fortunately he got up to play, but really had very little effect on the game, bar one good inside-50 to set up LeCras for an important goal. He was subsequently subbed off at three-quarter time, but with his name not appearing on the club’s injury list, it would be hoped that he will get up to play next week.

 

Geelong vs Melbourne:

Geelong:

• Steve Johnson was the absolute-hero of the day, in a game that appeared very hard to find a villain… at least a villain in a Geelong jumper that is. It was a Stevie-J master class  down at Skilled Stadium, with Johnson putting his full bag of tricks on display on his way to kicking 7.1 from 34 possessions and 9 marks – an incredible display from a forward. As the game wore on and it became undoubtedly clear that Geelong could do as they pleased, the likes of Johnson began to show off in the forward line, yet still didn’t miss or get caught from a pathetic Melbourne outfit – he was a joy to watch, and an especially nice way to apologise for his late withdrawal last week.
• Joel Selwood was also great, with 43 disposals, 6 tackles, 7 inside-50s and 11 clearances – all brilliant numbers. His form since returning from suspension has not been amazing, but it was great to see him blow out the cobwebs with this display, simply running amok against a Melbourne midfield that chose not to give a yelp. Those who decided not to trade him out a month and a half ago will now been thanking their wise decision.
• Corey Enright was the most pivotal player early in the contest, before it became clear that the Geelong players could do as they pleased. He was fantastic off half-back, mopping up every half-arsed forward-50 entry that Melbourne attempted and rebounded them all greatly, using the ball well to set up Geelong’s own attacks. He had 20 disposals to half time, but fortunately continued on with it, finishing with 36 touches for the match, amazingly with 27 of them uncontested.
• Cameron Ling deserves plaudits for his brilliant tagging job on Brent Moloney – I assure you I will mention him again in a moment – not only did Ling keep Moloney completely statless, but he found a bit of it himself, picking up 22 touches and delivering the ball inside 50 on six occasions – something that has been a great feature of his game in 2011. Whilst he didn’t kick a bag of goals, nor top 40 touches, he should still feature highly on the coaches votes for one of the best tagging displays seen in a very long time.

Melbourne:

• Brent Moloney was quite easily worst on ground – it has been a while since we have seen a player have his colours lowered as much as Moloney did against the Cats. As Melbourne’s Vice-Captain, it should have been expected that he would be one player to really set the standard, despite the score-line – a real feature of his game so far this year – but he just could not get near the pill, thanks to the incredible tagging job done on him by Ling – he didn’t touch the ball once – not once – all game. He was subsequently subbed off in the third quarter, such was his waste of space on Skilled Stadium.
• Brad Green, the Captain of the Melbourne Football Club, was not much better. He at least managed to touch the ball 12 times (although only one of those touches came in the first half), but played the majority of the game up forward and was kept scoreless. The delivery to him was unsurprisingly awful, but I was surprised that as the Skipper he didn’t come up the ground and start spending time at the centre bounces.
• Jordie McKenzie was one of the only Demons who had a reasonable game – not amazing, but OK. He finished with 25 touches, 8 tackles and 10 clearances – one third of his team’s total for the day! He battled on through the middle, but is not traditionally an influential player, other than the hard-ball he gets, so it was unfair to leave him to be the one hard-worker all game, which is exactly what Melbourne did.

Gold Coast vs St.Kilda:

Gold Coast:

• Gary Ablett was at his best, despite the little space allowed to him by Clint Jones. Jones did a reasonable job of keeping up with Ablett, but Gaz was just too classy for him at times, dodging and weaving through traffic and pin-pointing passes to teammates like he had all the time in the world. There was even one passage late in the game where Gary tried to work the ball from his own defence, without a ounce of help from his teammates – he ducked, weaved, and bounced the ball around about three Saints before dishing off the ball – he was clearly stuffed after it, but it showed both how damn hard he works, but also how damn classy he is. Finished with 34 touches, 7 clearances and 1.3.
• Nathan Bock had a great game, standing Ryan Gamble for the majority of the game and clearly had his measure. He cut off so many attacks from the Saints as they continued to forget that Riewoldt was not out there. He rebounded really well and appears to be coming into some of the form we used to expect from him at Adelaide, now combining really well with Jarrod Harbrow and Rory Thompson in defence (both of whom, as a side-note, are also hitting some good form too). Interestingly he was also swung forward late in the game, but missed his only shot on goal. He finished with 28 touches and 10 marks for the game.
• Jeremy Taylor played his debut game for the Suns and it once again appears as though they have unearthed a gem. He was really composed in the backline, often being matched up on Armitage or Peake, and made several good decisions under pressure. Coming into this game, we knew Taylor as a player who is more dour and happy to just get the fist in and leave the rest to his teammates, rather than chase and provide an option in the backline. So it was good to see this prior knowledge proved wrong, which now means he could be a reasonable downgrade option for those in need of some cash.
• Dion Prestia, after initially frustrating many coaches for his lack of game time and scoring ability, has come along in leaps and bounds this past month and had another great game against the Saints. He is really strong for a guy of his size and appears to be really good in the clearances and around stoppages, knowing either where to run or how to win his own ball. He picked up 22 touches for the game, proving himself to be a great emergency option for many coaches for the rest of the year.

St.Kilda:

• Nick Dal Santo continues on his fantastic form, making him currently the most in-form Dreamteamer, averaging 129.8 points from his last five games. He is doing a great job both inside and outside the packs, in this game picking up 8 clearances and laying 6 tackles, whilst also picking up 39 disposals and using the ball beautifully. It is his ball use that makes his teammates want it in his hands, but also his workrate allows him to get to each contest and win his own ball too. He’s getting damn expensive, but in his current form he is becoming hard to ignore.
• Brendon Goddard started the game like a house on fire, picking up 14 disposals in the first quarter across the half-back line. As predicted, he was allowed to float around behind the ball and pick up stacks of easy possessions, but his great ball use is what makes him so dangerous. Gold Coast played their forwards a lot deeper after the first break, which meant Goddard had to be more accountable, so he was thrown into the middle for the second half, which helped him continue his dominance. He finished with 37 touches and 13 marks for the game.
• Jack Steven had another great game for the Saints – in a game that saw very little amounts of aggression or intensity, Steven’s tenacity to the contest really stood out. He won plenty of his own ball, but his pace and engine allow him to find plenty of uncontested ball on the wing too, and he typically uses it well. Was good enough to get in the votes for this game too, finishing with 29 touches and 6 marks.
• Sam Gilbert continues to be an uninspiring dreamteam or SuperCoach option this year, again only just picking up 16 possessions. His form actually hasn’t been too bad, but he is simply not winning as much ball as what we have seen from him these past two years. His role is seeing him play much deeper and more one-on-one with his opponent (perhaps Lyon wants him to concentrate on his defence before his attack, presumably from a confidence point of view). Even with Gwilt done for the year, it seems that Raph Clarke is more taking over his rebounding role, which is a shame. I’d still keep him, but I wouldn’t be expecting too many massive scores between now and the end of the year.

 

Fremantle vs Hawthorn:

Fremantle:

• Alex Silvagni wasn’t the most amazing Dream Teamer on the ground, bu he was definitely the best of the Dockers, keeping the in-form Buddy Franklin Goalless for the first time in over a year. There was plenty of chatter in the build-up to this game that Buddy would dominate with no McPharlin in the side, however this proved to be far from true with SNOS (Second nephew of Silvagni) stepping up and doing a great job on Franklin, playing easily the best game of his career.
• Nathan Fyfe had an interesting game – he actually took a little while to get into the contest, picking up just 3 touches in the first quarter, but ended the game as one of their best players. The game was very slippery and wet, so his high marking skills were not as on display as what we have seen over the rest of the year, clunking just the 2 marks across the game. He also picked up 27 touches and 4 tackles.
• Greg Broughton had another run through the midfield, continuing on his great recent ball-winning form. There had been worry that Broughts may be forced to play in defence due to the absence of many Fremantle defenders, but fortunately Mark Harvey has seen the light and is continuing to play him in the guts. He is a great hard-ball winner, picking up 20 contested possessions from his total 29 touches, plus 3 clearances and 5 tackles, proving he is an effective member of the midfield, not just another number.
• Adam McPhee was terrible in his 150^th game, making numerous mistakes with the ball, whilst also conceding 3 goals to David Hale. It was a day where simply nothing went right for him and everything he attempted to do seemed to result in a turnover. I was also equally unimpressed with Chris Mayne, who seems to just want to crash packs rather than mark a ball – took 2 marks and had just 10 disposals, often using it poorly.

Hawthorn:

• Sam Mitchell had another great game for the Hawks, with his low centre of gravity seemingly helping him in the wet conditions. Thanks to the wet conditions, the Hawks were forced to go much more direct with their ball use, rather than chipping it around their backline and midfield as they have done for much of the year – subsequently, this led to Mitchell being the only Hawk to make it to the magical 100-DT point pass-mark. He was the leading clearance winner on the day with 9, whilst also picking up 24 touches and laying 9 tackles. In some concerning news though, he appeared to hurt his ankle late in the game and has been put on the Hawks’ injury list after the game. Hopefully he will come up for next week’s game, but watch this space through the week.
• Paul Puopolo, another vertically challenged Hawk, played one of his best games for the club, stationed back in the backline after having played the past month up forward. He played on the typically tenacious Ballantyne, keeping him to just the one goal, whilst also providing some good run of his own, picking up 21 touches for the game, 13 of which were contested – the equal most of anyone at Hawthorn.
• Grant Birchall was good again off half-back – his scores of late have been a little less than appealing, making those considering bringing him think twice. He seems to be back to his 2009/2010 form of only needing 20-odd disposals to have an effect on the contest. For what it’s worth though, his form is actually quite good – he is using the ball well and his teammates are certainly giving it to him whenever they can. This game is hard to judge on considering the conditions, but I still believe he would be a good target for any team, considering he managed to rack up 24 touches – it was his lack of marks (3), that really didn’t help, but I’ve already explained why that is.
• Lance Franklin was kept very quiet, as I explained before. He was simply outworked and out positioned by Silvagni, who played out of his skin for the entire game. It’s not to say Buddy was bad – he still worked well up the ground, but just didn’t get his opportunities in the forward-50. It also must be remembered that these weren’t conditions for a tall-forward and the majority of goals came through the midfield anyway. So don’t be despondent Buddy owners – He’ll bounce back.

 

Collingwood vs Essendon:

Collingwood:

• Dane Swan was a possession monster through the middle, picking up 45 disposals, 10 marks and 1.2 through the middle, finishing off the game with his highest Dream Team score ever – 171 points! As much as the stats imply he had one of the greatest games ever, it really wasn’t a 3-vote getting game as he spent a fair chunk of the first half butchering the ball. Fortunately, he did come back in the second half and use the ball much better, combing really well with Pendles and Ball through the middle. He didn’t cop any tag either, which certainly helped him, although I don’t feel we need to be as worried about Swanny copping a tag as some seem to think – with the likes of Pendles and Thomas in the team, he is not going to get nearly as much attention as he is not as much a match-winner as the other two.
• Scott Pendlebury was great, despite starting worryingly slow, sitting on just the one DT point until late in the first quarter. Fortunately, he kicked into gear pretty quickly, increasing his influence around the stoppages and was one of the major players in Collingwood’s resurgence back into the game. Very few negatives can be said about Pendlebury’s game – he wins his own ball, uses it well and has the engine to run hard and continue to present options for his teammates across the ground. Finished with 32 touches, 10 tackles and 3 goals.
• Alex Fasolo, playing just his 5^th game, booted five very important goals throughout the game and was a major contributor to Collingwood’s eventual victory. All five of the goals were on the run or around the corner from a distance out – so all had a real element of skill involved in kicking them – they weren’t just ‘gimmes.’ Once again, another young player appears to have solidified his spot in the Collingwood lineup, increasing their ever-enviable depth. He also had 18 touches and 3 tackles for the game.
• Travis Cloke had a really quiet game, which was a surprise considering Essendon went into the game with no true tall backman. He was stood by Paddy Ryder all game, who played one of his best games for the year, keeping Cloke goalless until the last quarter when he booted 3 cheapies. Cloke was also the last Pies player to take a mark for the game, which was an amazing stat considering marking has been such a strength of his this year. Fortunately he managed to bounce back in the last quarter to finish on a respectable score, but it was in no reflection of the game he actually had.

Essendon:

• Brent Stanton was great through the middle for the Dons, picking up 28 possessions, 11 marks and laying a brilliant 14 tackles – some epic numbers! It is fair to say that Stants has really improved his game from where it was in the early parts of the year, where at times he was being booed at by his own supporters. His ball use has improved, which surely is a confidence thing, and he is running out games much better now – something he also appeared to be struggling with earlier in the year. He took a lot of responsibility on his shoulders this game and it really paid off, being a big contributor for all four quarters.
• Jobe Watson, welcome back, you were missed. It was great to see the Essendon skipper back in the side and able to play out the game after he had suffered a reoccurrence of his hamstring injury last time he had come back. He was very influential in the first half, but it was unfair to expect his influence to carry over all four quarters, considering the Bombers’ injury toll and the fact he was returning from a one-month layoff. Unfortunately, as what has happened a couple of times this year, he just didn’t have the cavalry around him to get the job done in the end. Finished with 27 touches and 8 marks of his own.
• Paddy Ryder was given the unenviable task of standing Cloke for the game and actually did a great job, holding him goalless until the Pies’ massive last quarter, which saw Cloke get three cheapies. It will be interesting to see where Ryder is now played moving forward, and it will depend a lot on match-ups, as well as the form of Hurley and Pears – but it was good to see him add another string to his bow. It was interesting watch him as a defender though (and I do know that this is where he used to play a few years ago), as he continued to play the game as if he was a forward, going for the marks instead of spoils, as well as playing in front – neither of which were bad things, but definitely interesting to watch the habits of his attacking game sneaking into his defensive side.
• Brent Prismall was the sad story of the night, going down with an injury to his left knee, which has been all but confirmed to be an ACL injury, which will require a full reconstruction. This is the second time in his career than he has done his ACL – last time it was on his right knee though. With him already on the outer at Essendon, the query will now be on whether he stays on their list for next year.

Adelaide vs Port Adelaide:

Adelaide:

• Nathan Van Berlo was the deserved winner of the Showdown medal with his 30 touches and 8 marks. Quite often, after a coach is sacked, it is the Skipper that really makes a point the following week and Van Berlo did just that, going harder at the contest than anyone else and doing anything and everything he could to get the Crows over the line. He is not a classy player or a game-winner by any means, but has an amazing work-rate and ethic that really encourages his teammates to get involved too.
• Chris Knights came back to play his first game in nearly a month after being dropped by Neil Craig. Craig has played Knights on a half-forward flank for the past two years and personally, I believe this has been a real waste of his talent through the midfield. Fortunately Bickley seems to agree, playing Knights through the midfield for the entirety of the game. As is seems, Knights was great through the middle, picking up 30 disposals and 10 marks playing across the wings. He pushed the ball inside-50 on numerous occasions and was a big factor in their win. If you still have him, it seems you might finally get some decent scores out of him!
• Taylor Walker was another Crow to come back into the side after a bit of a layoff and he was impressive in the forward line, taking some good grabs and doing a good job at setting up his teammates. He has some good aggression and arrogance – both of which really seemed to suit the Crows’ forward line. He had a bit of a masterclass on all the ball-grips you can use to kick a ball at goal (although most of them didn’t work…), but he managed to still finish with 4.1 – enough to make Adelaide officials very keen to keep him out of GWS’s reach.
• Scott Thompson was a bit of a disappointment to a high-scoring weekend – despite sitting on 49 DT points at half time, his quiet second half saw him net just another 22 points for the game. He went head-to-head with Cassisi for most of the match and wasn’t really allowed to get into the game. Many of his possessions were in close and quick – although he managed 27 touches for the game, 16 were handballs – whilst also only managing 2 marks and 3 tackles. Cassisi put good pressure on him whenever he had the ball, never really allowing him the chance to spread and use it by foot.

Port Adelaide:

• Cam Hitchcock was actually pretty decent for the Port, continuing on the trend of small forwards getting under Adelaide’s radar by booting 3.2. Johncock simply loves to zone off from his opponents and despite sometimes getting mauled on the scoreboard the coaching staff seem to allow it, thanks to his run from defence being so good. Hitchcock managed to find space on his own well, often moving up field to get touches, before finding space in the forward line. His teammates used him well too, knowing he would often be left alone.
• Travis Boak was decent for Port, especially early when the score line was a bit closer. He has no trouble finding his own ball, nor using it, but the slight on him in this game was his defensive ability, not laying a single tackle for the game, despite playing around the stoppages for four quarters. He finished with 29 touches (with 17 by hand) and 5 marks.
• Chad Cornes is great to watch in a derby as his white-line fever seems to be multiplied by 10. He played forward all game on Talia and did a good job with his forward pressure, chasing his opponents and shirt-fronting anyone that got in his way. He has already been told that his last game will be against Collingwood next week, but surely he plays out the year with his current form. He may not kick a bag every week, but he plays his role, has good leadership and will always provide a contest.
• Matthew Lobbe appears to be starting to struggle – he has been the lone ruckman for several weeks now and it is clearly starting to tire him out. He managed 10 touches and 17 hitouts, but gave away a very high 6 frees against as he struggled in the ruck. Huge credit to the kid for coming in and doing what he’s done, but for those who are toying with leaving him as their second ruck, I would be recommending strongly against it.

 

In this week’s episode we run through Teams, Captains, Kids yet to debut, Premiums for the run home and head to the streets to find out what is more important to you – Dream Team or your own AFL team.

 

All the ins and outs for Round 19 – Hows does this effect your Dream Team and SuperCoach?

NORTH MELBOURNE V CARLTON

ES – Fri Jul 29, 7:40pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

North Melbourne

B: Robert Tarrant, Cameron Pedersen, Michael Firrito

HB: Brady Rawlings, Scott Thompson, Scott McMahon

C: Daniel Wells, Levi Greenwood, Jamie Macmillan

HF: Jack Ziebell, Aaron Edwards, Brent Harvey

F: Matt Campbell, Drew Petrie, Lachlan Hansen

Foll: Todd Goldstein, Ryan Bastinac, Andrew Swallow

I/C: Leigh Adams, Ben Cunnington, Cameron Richardson, Kieran Harper

Emg: Gavin Urquhart, Ben Warren, Nathan Grima

In: Ben Cunnington

Out: Ben Warren

 

Carlton

B: Christopher Yarran, Lachlan Henderson, Jeremy Laidler

HB: Nick Duigan, Bret Thornton, Marcus Davies

C: Heath Scotland, Brock McLean, Marc Murphy

HF: Kade Simpson, Bryce Gibbs, Eddie Betts

F: Jeffrey Garlett, Matthew Kreuzer, Andrew Walker

Foll: Robert Warnock, Mitch Robinson, Chris Judd

I/C: Ryan Houlihan, Dennis Armfield, David Ellard, Zach Tuohy

Emg: Paul Bower, Jordan Russell, Edward Curnow

In: Ryan Houlihan, Brock McLean

Out: Edward Curnow, Wayde Twomey

Milestones: Ryan Houlihan – 200 games

WESTERN BULLDOGS V WEST COAST EAGLES

ES – Sat Jul 30, 2:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Western Bulldogs

B: Easton Wood, Tom L. Williams, Ryan Hargrave

HB: Dale Morris, James Mulligan, Robert Murphy

C: Daniel Cross, Matthew Boyd, Liam Picken

HF: Ed Barlow, Liam Jones, Luke Dahlhaus

F: Justin Sherman, Barry Hall, Daniel Giansiracusa

Foll: Ben Hudson, Ryan Griffen, Callan Ward

I/C: Brennan Stack, Jordan Roughead, Andrew Hooper, Thomas Liberatore

Emg: Lukas Markovic, Mitchell Wallis, Jayden Schofield

In: Ryan Hargrave, Robert Murphy, Brennan Stack, James Mulligan, Jordan Roughead, Justin Sherman, Ed Barlow

Out: Dylan Addison, Adam Cooney (Knee), Lindsay Gilbee, Shaun Higgins (Knee), Jarrad Grant, Lukas Markovic, Nathan Djerrkura (Achilles)

 

West Coast Eagles

B: Shannon Hurn, Darren Glass, Will Schofield

HB: Beau Waters, Eric Mackenzie, Scott Selwood

C: Matthew Rosa, Matthew Priddis, Andrew Embley

HF: Mark Nicoski, Quinten Lynch, Bradley Ebert

F: Jack Darling, Scott Lycett, Mark LeCras

Foll: Dean Cox, Adam Selwood, Luke Shuey

I/C: Thomas Swift, Ashley Smith, Patrick McGinnity, Andrew Gaff

Emg: Bradd Dalziell, Brad Sheppard, Gerrick Weedon

In: Thomas Swift, Scott Lycett

Out: Josh Kennedy ((eye)), Nic Naitanui (Soreness)

New: Scott Lycett (Port Magpies)

Milestones: Matthew Priddis – 100 games, Adam Selwood – 150 games, Eric Mackenzie – 50 games

GEELONG CATS V MELBOURNE

SS – Sat Jul 30, 2:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Geelong Cats

B: David Wojcinski, Matthew Scarlett, Tom Lonergan

HB: Andrew Mackie, Harry Taylor, Corey Enright

C: Cameron Ling, Joel Selwood, Jimmy Bartel

HF: Travis Varcoe, Tom Hawkins, Mathew Stokes

F: Allen Christensen, Cameron Mooney, Steve Johnson

Foll: Brad Ottens, Paul Chapman, Joel Corey

I/C: James Kelly, Darren Milburn, Trent West, Mitch Duncan

Emg: Steven Motlop, Josh Cowan, Cameron Guthrie

In: Steve Johnson, Cameron Ling, Cameron Mooney, Brad Ottens

Out: Shannon Byrnes (Calf), Josh Hunt (Back), Josh Cowan, James Podsiadly (Facial soreness)

 

Melbourne

B: James Strauss, James Frawley, Nathan Jones

HB: Colin Garland, Jared Rivers, Daniel Nicholson

C: Jack Trengove, Jordan Gysberts, Colin Sylvia

HF: Lynden Dunn, Jack Watts, Jeremy Howe

F: Brad Green, Liam Jurrah, Addam Maric

Foll: Mark Jamar, Brent Moloney, Luke Tapscott

I/C: Matthew Bate, Ricky Petterd, Stefan Martin, Jordie McKenzie

Emg: Clint Bartram, Max Gawn, Tom McDonald

In: Liam Jurrah

Out: Jamie Bennell

 

GOLD COAST SUNS V ST KILDA

MS – Sat Jul 30, 7:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Gold Coast Suns

B: Maverick Weller, Nathan Bock, Campbell Brown

HB: Karmichael Hunt, Rory Thompson, Jarrod Harbrow

C: Harley Bennell, Gary Ablett, Trent McKenzie

HF: Daniel Stanley, Tom Lynch, Dion Prestia

F: Jared Brennan, Josh Fraser, Nathan Krakouer

Foll: Zac Smith, David Swallow, Michael Rischitelli

I/C: Hayden Jolly, Matt Shaw, Steven May, Jeremy Taylor

Emg: Rex Liddy, Tom Hickey, Seb Tape

In: Karmichael Hunt, Hayden Jolly, Steven May, Jeremy Taylor

Out: Josh Toy, Rex Liddy, Sam Iles (Hip), Joel Wilkinson

New: Jeremy Taylor (Geelong Falcons, VIC)

 

St Kilda

B: Dean Polo, Zac Dawson, Raphael Clarke

HB: Brendon Goddard, Sam Fisher, Sean Dempster

C: David Armitage, Nick Dal Santo, Jason Gram

HF: Brett Peake, Justin Koschitzke, Sam Gilbert

F: Stephen Milne, Ryan Gamble, Adam Schneider

Foll: Ben McEvoy, Clinton Jones, Leigh Montagna

I/C: Jarryn Geary, Jack Steven, Farren Ray, Tom Lynch

Emg: Steven Baker, Jason Blake, Tom Simpkin

In: Tom Lynch

Out: Nick Riewoldt (Suspension)

 

FREMANTLE V HAWTHORN

PS – Sat Jul 30, 5:40pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Fremantle

B: Greg Broughton, Antoni Grover, Michael Johnson

HB: Nick Lower, Alex Silvagni, Paul Duffield

C: Matthew de Boer, Michael Barlow, Garrick Ibbotson

HF: Hayden Ballantyne, Matthew Pavlich, Tendai Mzungu

F: Nathan Fyfe, Christopher Mayne, Adam McPhee

Foll: Jonathon Griffin, Stephen Hill, Ryan Crowley

I/C: Rhys Palmer, Zachary Clarke, Dylan Roberton, Jack Anthony

Emg: Clayton Hinkley, Clancee Pearce, Peter Faulks

In: Rhys Palmer, Jack Anthony

Out: Luke McPharlin (Suspension), Nick Suban (Soreness)

Milestones: Adam McPhee – 200 games

Hawthorn

B: Kyle Cheney, Josh Gibson, Thomas Murphy

HB: Paul Puopolo, Grant Birchall, Brent Guerra

C: Jordan Lewis, Sam Mitchell, Isaac Smith

HF: Michael Osborne, Lance Franklin, Liam Shiels

F: Cyril Rioli, David Hale, Shaun Burgoyne

Foll: Max Bailey, Luke Hodge, Brad Sewell

I/C: Xavier Ellis, Brendan Whitecross, Luke Breust, Matt Suckling

Emg: Rick Ladson, Jordan Lisle, Cameron Bruce

In: Matt Suckling

Out: Shane Savage (Shoulder)

Milestones: Michael Osborne – 150 games

COLLINGWOOD V ESSENDON

MCG – Sun Jul 31, 2:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Collingwood

B: Leon Davis, Ben Reid, Heritier O’Brien

HB: Brent Macaffer, Nick Maxwell, Tyson Goldsack

C: Dane Swan, Dale Thomas, Simon Buckley

HF: Jarryd Blair, Chris Tarrant, Andrew Krakouer

F: Steele Sidebottom, Travis Cloke, Leigh Brown

Foll: Darren Jolly, Scott Pendlebury, Luke Ball

I/C: Ben Johnson, Dayne Beams, Luke Rounds, Lachlan Keeffe, Ben Sinclair, Alex Fasolo, Kirk Ugle

In: Dayne Beams, Luke Rounds, Darren Jolly, Ben Sinclair, Kirk Ugle

Out: Cameron Wood, John McCarthy

New: Ben Sinclair (Oakleigh U18), Kirk Ugle (Swan Districts)

Milestones: Darren Jolly – 200 games

Essendon

B: Ricky Dyson, David Myers, Dyson Heppell

HB: Brent Prismall, Jake Carlisle, Kyle Hardingham

C: Mark McVeigh, Ben Howlett, Angus Monfries

HF: Jobe Watson, Patrick Ryder, Leroy Jetta

F: Jake Melksham, Stewart Crameri, Travis Colyer

Foll: David Hille, David Zaharakis, Brent Stanton

I/C: Henry Slattery, Andrew Welsh, Alwyn Davey, Kyle Reimers, Tom Bellchambers, Alex Browne, Michael Ross

In: Jobe Watson, Andrew Welsh, Tom Bellchambers, Alex Browne, Michael Ross

Out: Tayte Pears (Knee), Michael Hurley (Foot)

New: Michael Ross (Gippsland Power)

Milestones: Ricky Dyson – 100 games, Kyle Reimers – 50 games

ADELAIDE V PORT ADELAIDE

AS – Sun Jul 31, 4:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Adelaide

B: Andy Otten, Ben Rutten, Graham Johncock

HB: Michael Doughty, Daniel Talia, Nathan van Berlo

C: David Mackay, Scott Thompson, Brent Reilly

HF: Jared Petrenko, Patrick Dangerfield, Ricky Henderson

F: Taylor Walker, Kurt Tippett, Matthew Wright

Foll: Sam Jacobs, Bernie Vince, Rory Sloane

I/C: Chris Knights, Ivan Maric, Brad Moran, Aidan Riley, Jack Gunston, Richard Tambling, Brodie Smith

In: Chris Knights, Ivan Maric, Taylor Walker, Aidan Riley

Out: Brad Symes (Jaw)

New: Aidan Riley (Wollongong Lions)

 

Port Adelaide

B: Cameron O’Shea, Jackson Trengove, Troy Chaplin

HB: Ben Jacobs, Nick Salter, Tom Logan

C: Steven Salopek, Travis Boak, Danyle Pearce

HF: Hamish Hartlett, Chad Cornes, David Rodan

F: Robert Gray, Jay Schulz, Justin Westhoff

Foll: Matthew Lobbe, Domenic Cassisi, Matt Thomas

I/C: Kane Cornes, Brett Ebert, Michael Pettigrew, Matthew Broadbent, Mitchell Banner, Daniel Stewart, Cameron Hitchcock

In: Justin Westhoff, Matthew Broadbent, Daniel Stewart

 

Kristian runs through all the kids about to play their 3rd game and rise in price, as well as who looks a likely debutant in the coming weeks.

 

The amount of candidates for the Boys on the Bubble is getting thinner week by week as the season goes on unfortunately. This round we only have one player that will play his 3^rd game on the weekend in Wayde Twomey from the Blues.

 

So instead of just focussing on the one name, I’ll mix it up a little and also list a few players that we should expect to see get a game in these final six games of the season.

 

Wayde Twomey (Carlton, MIDFIELD)

DT: $80,400. Scores: 60, 36. Breakeven: -31

SC: $91,700. Scores: 52, 31. Breakeven: -19

 

Twomey, while naturally a ball-winning running half back, has been put in the Carlton side to play a forward role. He’s applied good pressure and had a decent first up game against the Pies, but he hasn’t won a whole lot of the ball, and consequently got subbed off his second game. Carlton has Carrazzo, Russell, Waite, Bower and Joseph to come back into the side either this week or next week, so Twomey will be the first on the chopping block unfortunately.

 

Summary: Considering he’s a midfield only option, I wouldn’t go there. You need reliable players that will get decent scores in your midfield at this time in the year, and I don’t think he’ll play many more games. Having said that, if you have trades in hand, and only need Twomey for a downgrade, and you won’t need him, well his bargain basement price is enticing.

 

Now we’ll look at some players that could get some games to finish off the season. These players will most likely come from teams like the Bulldogs, Richmond, Adelaide etc that will now look to build toward next season, and will have to play guys on the cusp to see if they’re capable of stepping up or not.

 

Ben Jakobi (Richmond, FORWARD)

During the week, captain Chris Newman mentioned Jakobi, who’s on the rookie list, as one player who could step in and play his role. He’s a running half back who’s had an interrupted year with injury, but has now played a few VFL games in a row.

 

Peter Faulks (Fremantle, DEFENDER)

Faulks will get his debut this week you’d think with the absence of Luke McPharlin. While his DT relevance is really not that high, he could be a reliable option as your 10^th back for the rest of the year.

 

Tom Hickey (Gold Coast, RUCK)

As Dan mentioned in his article, Hickey has been in brilliant form for the reserves. He kicks goals and gets plenty of hitouts, so he’ll score decently if he gets a gig. I can see him coming in and giving Smith a chop out very soon. He’s a good down grade option for a 4^th ruck if you’re stuck for cash.

 

John Butcher (Port Adelaide, FORWARD)

It’s only a matter of time before he gets a go in this Port Adelaide side given he’s a first round draft pick. He’s been in decent form in the SANFL, kicking 3 goals on the weekend, so I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get a go as early as this week. The Power really need to find out whether he can cut it at AFL level or not.

 

Ayce Cordy (Western Bulldogs, RUCK)

Cordy’s been playing in defense lately, as his athleticism allows him to. Even though Lake wasn’t in the seniors, it opens a door for Cordy, and Dale Morris is now under an injury cloud as well. The only problem is he’s a ruck only, so you won’t get much value out of him. I think Hickey is the better option here.

 

Jason Tutt (Western Bulldogs, DEFENDER)

I reckon he’ll get a fair go now, with the Doggies rewarding him for good VFL form off a wing. He and Christian Howard are probably fighting for the same spot, but with their season over, I really can’t see any reason why they couldn’t play both of them. I think he’s a really good option if you’re looking to downgrade someone like Michael Hibberd.

 

Jayden Schofield (Western Bulldogs, DEFENDER)

Schofield’s a player I really like, but unfortunately for him, he’s been over taken by Dalhaus and Hooper. I want to see Schofield in the backline though, so hopefully he get’s a chance there. Also note that he IS on the bubble, having played two games already this year. His price won’t rise that much though, as he’s not a big DT scorer.

 

Josh Dyson (Brisbane, MIDFIELD)

Dyson’s a solid midfielder that likes to win the ball. He could be one to watch, and has made the reserves best players a few times, but we need him in immediately. He has the bye this week as well. I can see him coming in and playing 1-2 games right at the end, which is a bit of a pain.

Dan runs through all the action from this weekends state-league matches. Which AFL listed players are pushing for a senior game?

ADELAIDE

The good news for Chris Knights owners is that he’ll be straight back in this week. After Adelaide were embarrassed on Friday night I reckon a 38 touch and 13 mark game will not go unnoticed. Knights is likely to be dropped TO Adelaide this week (WWT doing well this year) and that game was worth 147 DT points, for what it’s worth. Hopefully Bickley will play him in the midfield. Luke Thompson was solid again in defence with 13 touches and seven marks.

If the Crows are fed up with Brad Moran it looks like Ivan Maric hit a bit of form for the Port Magpies on the weekend, with 16 touches, six marks, 17 hitouts and a goal to be named sixth best.

Tony Armstrong might get one last chance to resurrect his AFL career after picking up 24 possessions, five marks and a goal for North Adelaide.

Taylor Walker played up the ground for Norwood. It would be easy enough for him to go back to and play forward for the Legs and kick a swag of goals, but it won’t endear him to the Crows coaches if he isn’t doing what they want him to do in the AFL. He didn’t lay any tackles unfortunately, but he did have 17 touches, eight marks and seven inside 50’s, sometimes at times playing in the midfield.

First year player Jarrad Lyons had a promising game for Glenelg with 20 disposals, five marks and 1.2.

 

BRISBANE

The Lions reserves were on the receiving end of a drubbing by the Gold Coast reserves, but the game marked the comeback of Jamie Charman, who hadn’t played a game of footy in over 18 months. He played the first half of the game, as planned, and hopefully pulls up OK to line up again next week.

Josh Drummond also returned from four weeks on the sidelines and had a quiet outing, more just getting a feel for the game than anything. Matt Austin was named best on ground for the Lions, with Josh Dyson and Ryan Harwood also getting a mention in the bests. Bryce Retzlaff kicked two goals in a weaker than usual forward line (with Cornelius and Karnezis both in the seniors).

 

CARLTON

Setanta O’hAilpan returned from his layoff due to a hand injury and looked short of a gallop, which is odd considering he should’ve been able to maintain fitness in that time. He will need another week or two in the VFL before being considered for AFL selection, however he did manage six scoring shots (2.4).

Brock McLean was dominant in the midfield once again, racking up a massive 40 touches and nine tackles. It’s the same old story with Brock though – too good for VFL, but not fast enough for AFL. With David Ellard being relegated to the sub role last week maybe McLean is starting to get a little bit closer to a game.

Jordan Russell’s absence from the Blues team might annoy those DT/SC coaches who have him as a sneaky unique, but they’ll be glad to know he was named in the best players after picking up 21 touches and six marks.

Joe Dare is one I’ve mentioned a few times lately and he was good again with 25 touches and eight marks. He’s still on the rookie list, but by my reckoning they could upgrade him as their Round 11 upgrade (the rule that allows clubs to upgrade one rookie after Round 11 regardless on long term injuries). Curnow was their nominated rookie at the start of the year, while Rhys O’Keeffe, Wayde Twomey and Zach Tuohy have been upgraded for Andrew Collins, Andrew McInnes and Luke Mitchell.

 

COLLINGWOOD

Collingwood VFL had the bye.

 

ESSENDON

It really puts into perspective how lucky Scott Gumbleton owners were last year. Those that got him in as a cash cow were incredibly fortunate that his body stayed together for so many consecutive weeks. He was a “very late withdrawal” for Bendigo this week due to a back spasm on the morning of the game.

Michael Ross had a very impressive first term with nine disposals, but was kept out of it pretty well after that. Even though he faded he’d still be a chance for a debut before the season is out, particularly if Essendon look like missing the finals.

First year defender Luke Davis had a good, solid game. There’s nothing too flashy about him. He just gets the job done and has a nice long kick to clear the area in a no nonsense fashion. It might be a stretch for him to get a debut this year, but Essendon are struggling for defenders with Cale Hooker and Dustin Fletcher missing on the weekend and Tayte Pears getting subbed off. Rookie listed Tyson Slattery might be slightly more of a chance if Hooker and Pears miss a bit more footy (which they are set to) but will be undersized. Slattery had a good battle with Cam Mooney and was named in the best players, despite Mooney kicking four and also getting named in Geelong’s bests.

Josh Jenkins played predominantly up forward with Tom Bellchambers doing most of the ruck work. Jenkins was a revelation, kicking five goals. It’s encouraging that a ruckman can have that sort of performance in the forward line with the sub rule meaning most rucks will need an extra string to their bow. Bellchambers was solid.

Mark Williams didn’t play because of the knee injury that saw him announce his retirement this week after earning approximately $200K per game he played for Essendon (or $32,000 per kick).

 

FREMANTLE

With Luke McPharlin out suspended for one week it paves the way for Peter Faulks to finally make his AFL debut. He had another good game, keeping the very in form Chad Jones to only two goals.

John Anthony showed something for the first time in a while, kicking 4.3 from 18 possessions for Subiaco. Swan Districts teammates Clancee Pearce and Clayton Hinkley were both solid with 24 and 20 touches respectively. I really feel Pearce is a bit unlucky to be out of the Dockers side at the moment.

Kepler Bradley had a decent game too with 25 touches, but the good form of Jon Griffin and Zac Clarke in Sandilands’ absence isn’t doing his immediate chances much good. It’ll be even worse when 211 comes back, you’d imagine.

 

GEELONG

Cameron Mooney pushes closer to an AFL return after he kicked another four goals for the Cats reserves against Bendigo. Chris Scott has said this week that he’s very close to a return either this week or next week.

Dawson Simpson had 40 hitouts, however with Trent West having a good game on the weekend and Brad Ottens likely to come back he’s probably back in the queue a little bit at this stage.

Jonathan Simpkin was hard at it in the midfield and was named best on ground. Daniel Menzel didn’t play due to a back complaint.

 

GOLD COAST

Karmichael Hunt played his second game for the reserves and was named best on ground (the first time I believe that has happened in his Aussie Rules career). He played purely as a midfielder in another phase of his development and handled it well, as the Suns beat the Lions reserves easily.

Ruckman Tom Hickey has been on fire of late, adding to the Suns massive depth in that department – it’s fair to say they easily have the most promising ruck division in the league. He dominated the hitouts and kicked three goals and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Queenslander debut before the season is out.

Jeremy Taylor did a good job in defence and was named second best, while Jacob Gillbee kicked four goals.

 

HAWTHORN

After getting dropped back to the VFL Riley Milne responded by being the only Hawthorn listed player named in the bests for Box Hill. It was a really good outing by Box Hill though and a number of other Hawthorn players had good games.

Jarryd Morton has been showing some good form lately, but it might be a bit too late for him – at Hawthorn at least. Is it possible for all three Morton’s to be on the move next season?

Jordan Lisle made an early return from his busted cheekbone. Originally he was listed as 4-6 weeks, but in the end only missed two games. He was crashing packs and playing with confidence since his stint in the AFL and could be a chance for more senior action soon.

Cameron Bruce made his long awaited return from injury. I’m sorry to all of those people who bought him at the start of the year for bringing his name up and reminding you. He’ll need another week or two before being look at for AFL action.

Ryan Schoenmakers returned via the Box Hill reserves team after a five week absence with a foot injury that also dogged him early in the year.

 

MELBOURNE

Casey Scorpions had the bye.

 

NORTH MELBOURNE

Ben Cunnington is pushing up for a senior recall after being named best on ground for North Ballarat in their drubbing of Coburg, with 24 touches and five tackles.

Rookie listed Aaron Mullett had 26 touches and a goal to be named in the best players, while Lindsay Thomas had another encouraging performance with 4.4 among 18 tackles, along with five tackles. It’s important to note that Craigieburn is an extremely hard venue to kick goals at – I don’t think I’ve been to a venue where the wind is such a factor (swirly, inconsistent and always strong).

Shaun Atley was also solid with 18 touches and Cruize Garlett continues his good form with 20 touches. I’m really starting to wonder why he isn’t getting a game.

Ed Lower made his return from a knee injury a full year after his last game of footy via the North Ballarat reserves. He had 19 touches, six tackles and a goal in three quarters.

I went to the Werribee vs. Williamstown on Sunday and there were only a few North Melbourne players in action (six to be exact). Hamish McIntosh lifted in the second half after a  very quiet start, but he just isn’t moving that well as far as I’m concerned. With only a five day break until the Kangaroos Friday night game I would think he’s less likely to make it back this week.

Nathan Grima was excellent, wearing Mitch Hahn like a glove for most of the day. Hahn is having quite a good season, but Grima kept him to six touches and two goals, while providing plenty of rebound himself with 17 possessions and five spoils.

Gavin Urquhart was another rebounding really well with 23 touches and some nice kicking out of defence. Ben McKinley wasn’t too bad either, working hard on his leads to get the ball up the ground and took eight marks along with 2.2.

 

PORT ADELAIDE

John Butcher was the big talking point from the weekend for the Power on their bye weekend. He had 14 touches and four marks, while kicking 3.3 for the Port Magpies. Nothing really comes easy for Butcher though, as he does the easy stuff hard and the hard stuff easily. His set shot kicking doesn’t sound to have improved since getting drafted, but hey, he’s a first round pick and will probably get a game in the bottom placed side before the year is out.

Rookie listed Tom Jonas made a pretty positive return from a six week hand injury with 20 touches and four marks for Norwood.

Daniel Motlop is worth a mention, purely to remind readers that he exists. He had 14 touches and kicked 0.2. I’m not sure that it gets much lower than not being able to crack a game with Port for five straight weeks. Daniel Stewart kicked 4.2 from 11 touches and six marks for North Adelaide.

 

RICHMOND

It was a very dirty day for Richmond’s VFL affiliate Coburg. They got smashed by a resurgent North Ballarat. Matthew Dea in his second game back from a long layoff with a leg injury was named second best for his role in defence – even though his direct opponent Lindsay Thomas kicked four goals.

Robbie Hicks played his first game in a while in VFL seniors, having spent the last two months with Coburg reserves and used his pace well to be named third best. With Richmond looking in trouble at the moment, unfortunately there’s not a great deal else screaming pick me at VFL level.

 

ST.KILDA

Michael Gardiner took a big stride in his road back to the AFL with a good performance in the ruck, where he had 18 touches, 19 hitouts and seven marks to be named in the best players.

Andrew McQualter was best on ground for Sandringham with 28 possessions, but unfortunately sustained a shoulder injury in the last quarter that will see him out for the rest of the season.

Steven Baker kept the VFL’s leading goal kicker (by some margin) Patrick Rose goalless for the first time this year. Jason Blake also had a solid game in defence.

Tommy Walsh sustained a chest injury and was sent to hospital. He appeared on the injury list on Sunday, but has oddly since disappeared completely off the list. Is he OK, or did they quickly decide to hide it? Anyway, if he’s OK he could be a decent chance to debut with Nick Riewoldt missing through suspension this week.

 

SYDNEY

Unfortunately the Swans reserves against GWS was going to be the curtain raiser to their AFL game, but was moved to Blacktown due to all of the rain in Sydney.

So yeah, as a result no Swans fans attended the game and it seems to be the only game on the NEAFL website that hasn’t had a game report submitted…apparently the media and league didn’t even attend. Maybe it was too wet.

Anyway, the Swans only had nine players in action due to their mounting injury list. Nathan Gordon continues to put his hand up for selection, being named second best. That’s five games out of the last six he’s been named in their bests.

Jarred Moore was named third best and is in a similarly rich vein of form, being named in the bests four weeks in a row now. Jesse White and Dylan McNeil rounded out their bests and Trent Dennis-Lane kicked two goals. GWS smashed them, by the way.

 

WEST COAST

Tom Swift had a big game for Claremont with 31 touches, however 22 of them were in the first half. He also had five marks and eight tackles and a goal.

Jordan Jones had another good game for Peel Thunder with 27 touches in his new midfield role. Koby Stevens, after getting dropped from the Eagles with 27 touches for and was named in the bests for East Freo. Chris Masten was filling all the columns with 26 touches, eight marks and six tackles.

Mitch Brown had a scare with the shoulder he’d missed so much footy because of, however it might not be as bad as it first looked and he could be available for selection for West Coast this weekend after keeping gun forward Josh Smith to only one goal.

 

WESTERN BULLDOGS

As mentioned above in the North Melbourne section I went to the Werribee vs. Williamstown game and saw the Bulldog affiliated Williamstown hold off a late comeback from Werribee.

In muddy conditions the Bulldog listed big men were commanding. Jordan Roughead, Ayce Cordy and Will Minson were all good. Cordy played the game in defence and his height and mobility nullified the threat of the Werribee big men Hamish McIntosh and Majak Daw when they moved forward. He’s been named in the best players for the Seagulls two weeks in a row in defence after missing the previous two games with injury.

The other two big men rotated between ruck and forward, combining for 45 hitouts and amassing 19 touches each, with Roughead kicking three goals and taking a few strong contested marks – quite the feat considering how muddy the ball got at times.

Christian Howard and Jason Tutt both provided some good outside run with their noted good kicking featuring moving into the forward 50. Ed Barlow returned from his two week hand injury and was good in patches. Brennan Stack was competitive in defence and very good in contested situations. Mitch Wallis was loving the mud heap in the middle and did a fair bit of dirty clearance work. Josh Hill kicked three goals.

 

Kristian runs through all the best Captain choices for both AFL Dream Team and SuperCoach. Who will you be locking in for the big score this week?

KRISTIAN’S KAPTAINS ROUND 19

Hey guys, you were probably expecting an U/18’s article today, but there was a general bye in the TAC Cup this weekend so there is obviously not much to talk about.

The captain’s article is back for a week, and I think it turned out to be fairly convenient, as there are a few options to consider this week, as well as quite a few to reconsider.

There is a multi bye round for three fairly insignificant teams in Brisbane, Richmond and Sydney, so all the good options are available for captaincy this week, except Nick Riewoldt, who got given a one week suspension for a bump. I’ll say nothing further……..

Anyway, on to some individual options…..

 

GEELONG STARS VS MELBOURNE

The three Geelong big boys in Joel Selwood, Jimmy Bartel and Paul Chapman all present as brilliant options this week at Skilled Stadium against the Demons. Melbourne was pretty dismal against the Hawks and have continually displayed that they struggle against the very best sides. This game shapes as one that could get pretty ugly if the Demons don’t put the clamps on early.

Paul Chapman has been in weird (probably the best word to describe it) form lately. Last week he was coming off the back of a few tonnes, and looked as though he was back to his finest Dream Team form, with a very good 70 in the first half against Richmond. Then he totally faded out of the game and scraped through to get a 90. He’s really not someone you can trust at the moment for captaincy as was the case in years past. Having said that, he’s not delivering any dismal scores, but the days of his big 140+ games appear few and far between. Against Melbourne, in his past five games, he’s averaged 122 DT and 124 SC, so he loves playing against them.

Joel Selwood is always a safe option in both Dream Team and Super Coach, and this week should be no exception. He does have a few games a year where he goes berserk and gets a really big score, and I’m predicting this week might be one of those occasions. He averages 117 DT and 136 SC in his last four games against the Demons.

Jimmy Bartel has finally hit a good run of form with 3 tonnes in a row, and his record against Melbourne, basically over his entire career suggest this might continue. Over his last nine games against Melbourne he’s averaged 116 DT and 126 SC with only 2 matches less than 100 points in both DT and SC (two of those were 99 DT and 97 SC). There are probably better options out there, but never forget sir Jimmy.

 

SAM MITCHELL VS FREMANTLE

Sam Mitchell is in some seriously good form at the moment and now MUST be at least considered every week for the captaincy. The Dockers did a very good job in limiting the effectiveness of Priddis and Embley on Sunday, so that’s probably the only concern, but Mitchell has been breaking tags quite easily this season; something I’ve been critical of him about in seasons gone past. He has averaged 116 DT and 125 SC in his last five games against the Dockers.

 

DANE SWAN AND SCOTT PENDLEBURY AGAINST ESSENDON

This should be another walk in the park for the Pies, and again, Swan and Pendlebury seem like standout options. Surprisingly, even though Dane Swan averages 110 DT and 111 SC in his last five games against Essendon, they aren’t really a team he dominates against traditionally. You have to go back to early 2009 to find his highest score against them, 141 DT and 123 SC. Having said that, really, I don’t see who can stop him in his current form.

 

Scott Pendlebury, in his last two games against Essendon especially, has been HUGE, averaging 148 DT and 125 SC. Overall he averages 115 DT and 124 SC against them. There were some doubts over Pendlebury during the week with a shoulder injury, but he showed no signs of that in the game against the Gold Coast and ended up scoring a very nice score.

 

OTHER OPTIONS TO CONSIDER………

Luke McPharlin has been suspended (although there is talk he may contest it), so you’d think Buddy Franklin could have a picnic this week. Just hold that thought though; he only averages 65 DT and 78 SC in his last five games against the Dockers. McPharlin does play a big role in his poor record against them however.

 

Scott Thompson is another player in fine form. He’s carrying the Crows by himself, and doesn’t seem too bothered. Against Port Adelaide he’s a fine option, and averages 127 DT and 119 SC in his last two games against them.

 

Brendon Goddard, Nick Dal Santo, and Leigh Montagna play the Gold Coast this week. All of these guys should be in for massive games, especially Goddard, who in Riewoldt’s absence (if they choose not to contest), will walk into this game as the skipper – a role he has stated he longs for – expect him to lead from the front and make a real point (or 120 points… Get it!?).

 

Gary Ablett against St.Kilda historically isn’t brilliant. He averages 106 DT and 121 SC in his last five games and he still looks like he might be getting over that knee injury. I’d wait another week before locking him in again, especially with Clint Jones and Sean Dempster both in great tagging form at the moment.

 

The Carlton boys come up against North Melbourne, but none of them have great records at all. Marc Murphy averages 83 DT and 91 SC, Bryce Gibbs averages 83 DT and 89 SC and Chris Judd amazingly only averages 72 DT but a respectable 99 SC. You’d think these days are now over though.

 

I’d be cautious with Matthew Boyd against the Eagles. They’re such a good lockdown team and he barely got to the ton against them earlier this year. He averages 110 DT and 104 SC in his last five games against them.

 

Dean Cox looks a solid option this week, having played much more ruck time in the past two weeks. He averages 98 DT and 101 SC in his last five games against the Bulldogs, but I think there are much better options going around.

 

MY TOP 3 DREAM TEAM PICKS

1. Scott Pendlebury

2. Dane Swan

3. Brendan Goddard

 

MY TOP 3 SUPER COACH PICKS

1. Chris Judd

2. Brendan Goddard

3. Joel Selwood