Footy Tragic

Well, It’s Grand Final time, so when would there ever a better week to have a General Rant Thread?

So, has one of your ‘genius’ trades backfired on you??

Did you lose to that one mate you simply DON’T want to lose to (and subsequently have 37 missed calls…)

Did you pick the wrong captain?

Did you bench a superstar in your bid to be ‘clever’??

Tell us here about all your pains, and let your emotions run free… You no the rules – no swearing or TOO much abuse – and enjoy!!

This week we check out all the carnage produced by the Hawthorn Football Team, we check out the best safe and unique captain options, midfielders for 2012 and also chat with Jay To – The No.1 SuperCoach coach on the planet!

 

RICHMOND V NORTH MELBOURNE

ES – Sun Sep 04, 4:40pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Richmond

B: Bachar Houli, Alex Rance, Will Thursfield

HB: Brett Deledio, Jayden Post, Matt Dea

C: Trent Cotchin, Dustin Martin, Shaun Grigg

HF: Daniel Jackson, Tyrone Vickery, Shane Edwards

F: Robin Nahas, Jack Riewoldt, Brad Miller

Foll: Angus Graham, Shane Tuck, Nathan Foley

I/C: Matthew White, Mitch Morton, Mitchell Farmer, Jeromey Webberley, Ben Nason, Jamie O’Reilly, Dean MacDonald

In: Matthew White, Matt Dea, Ben Nason, Dean MacDonald

Out: Jake King (Suspension)

New: Dean MacDonald (Gippsland Power)

Milestones: Brett Deledio – 150 games

North Melbourne

B: Brady Rawlings, Scott Thompson, Scott McMahon

HB: Kieran Harper, Nathan Grima, Michael Firrito

C: Ryan Bastinac, Ben Cunnington, Lindsay Thomas

HF: Matt Campbell, Hamish McIntosh, Aaron Black

F: Brent Harvey, Drew Petrie, Aaron Edwards

Foll: Todd Goldstein, Leigh Adams, Andrew Swallow

I/C: Daniel Pratt, Ben Warren, Cruize Garlett, Jamie Macmillan, Shaun Atley, Cameron Pedersen, Aaron Mullett

In: Hamish McIntosh, Daniel Pratt, Ben Warren, Ben Cunnington, Aaron Black, Jamie Macmillan, Shaun Atley

Out: Daniel Wells (Shoulder), Lachlan Hansen (Shoulder), Levi Greenwood (Suspension), Jack Ziebell (Suspension)

New: Aaron Black (Peel Thunder (WA))

Milestones: Hamish McIntosh – 100 games

COLLINGWOOD V GEELONG CATS

MCG – Fri Sep 02, 7:40pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Collingwood

B: Alan Toovey, Ben Reid, Heritier O’Brien

HB: Ben Johnson, Chris Tarrant, Tyson Goldsack

C: Dayne Beams, Sharrod Wellingham, Alan Didak

HF: Ben Sinclair, Leigh Brown, Alex Fasolo

F: Steele Sidebottom, Travis Cloke, Luke Ball

Foll: Darren Jolly, Scott Pendlebury, Andrew Krakouer

I/C: Dane Swan, Chris Dawes, Cameron Wood, Jarryd Blair

Emg: Brent Macaffer, Luke Rounds, Simon Buckley

In: Sharrod Wellingham, Luke Ball, Chris Tarrant

Out: Leon Davis (Hamstring), Dale Thomas (Suspension), Tom Young

 

Geelong Cats

B: Josh Hunt, Matthew Scarlett, Darren Milburn

HB: Corey Enright, Harry Taylor, Andrew Mackie

C: Jimmy Bartel, Cameron Ling, David Wojcinski

HF: Steve Johnson, Trent West, Travis Varcoe

F: Paul Chapman, James Podsiadly, Tom Hawkins

Foll: Brad Ottens, James Kelly, Joel Selwood

I/C: Mathew Stokes, Daniel Menzel, Mitch Duncan, Allen Christensen

Emg: Shannon Byrnes, Steven Motlop, Cameron Guthrie

In: Darren Milburn, Mitch Duncan

Out: Shannon Byrnes, Tom Lonergan (Quad Contusion)

 

WEST COAST EAGLES V ADELAIDE

PS – Sat Sep 03, 5:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

West Coast Eagles

B: Shannon Hurn, Darren Glass, Sam Butler

HB: Ashley Smith, Eric Mackenzie, Beau Waters

C: Luke Shuey, Matthew Priddis, Andrew Embley

HF: Andrew Gaff, Josh Kennedy, Mark Nicoski

F: Jack Darling, Quinten Lynch, Mark LeCras

Foll: Dean Cox, Scott Selwood, Adam Selwood

I/C: Chris Masten, Bradley Ebert, Nic Naitanui, Patrick McGinnity

Emg: Brett Jones, Andrew Strijk, Ashton Hams

In: Sam Butler, Jack Darling

Out: Will Schofield (cheek), Ashton Hams

 

Adelaide

B: Graham Johncock, Ben Rutten, Daniel Talia

HB: Michael Doughty, Shaun McKernan, Brent Reilly

C: Rory Sloane, Scott Thompson, David Mackay

HF: Jared Petrenko, Kurt Tippett, Bernie Vince

F: Ricky Henderson, Taylor Walker, Richard Douglas

Foll: Sam Jacobs, Patrick Dangerfield, Nathan van Berlo

I/C: Tony Armstrong, Matthew Wright, Richard Tambling, Ian Callinan

Emg: Ivan Maric, Luke Thompson, Brodie Smith

In: Michael Doughty, Ricky Henderson, Richard Tambling, Ian Callinan

Out: Andy Otten (Concussion), Brodie Martin (Groin), Aidan Riley, Jack Gunston (Shoulder)

 

PORT ADELAIDE V MELBOURNE

AO – Sun Sep 04, 2:40pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Port Adelaide

B: Troy Chaplin, Alipate Carlile, Tom Logan

HB: Jacob Surjan, Jackson Trengove, Cameron O’Shea

C: Steven Salopek, Travis Boak, Danyle Pearce

HF: Brett Ebert, John Butcher, Robert Gray

F: Daniel Motlop, Jay Schulz, Justin Westhoff

Foll: Matthew Lobbe, Domenic Cassisi, David Rodan

I/C: Dean Brogan, Kane Cornes, Matt Thomas, Matthew Broadbent, Mitchell Banner, Aaron Young, Thomas Jonas

In: Dean Brogan, Kane Cornes, Aaron Young

New: Aaron Young (Eastern Ranges)

Milestones: Brett Ebert – 150 games

Melbourne

B: Sam Blease, James Frawley, Tom McDonald

HB: Colin Garland, Jared Rivers, Clint Bartram

C: Nathan Jones, Jordie McKenzie, Jamie Bennell

HF: Brad Green, Jack Watts, Jack Trengove

F: Tom Scully, Stefan Martin, Neville Jetta

Foll: Mark Jamar, Cale Morton, Brent Moloney

I/C: Matthew Bate, Tom McNamara, Rohan Bail, Luke Tapscott, Jack Fitzpatrick, Jeremy Howe, Daniel Nicholson

In: Matthew Bate, Rohan Bail, Jack Fitzpatrick, Daniel Nicholson

Out: Liam Jurrah (Wrist)

New: Jack Fitzpatrick (Western Jets)

Milestones: Stefan Martin – 50 games

WESTERN BULLDOGS V FREMANTLE

ES – Sat Sep 03, 2:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Western Bulldogs

B: Jayden Schofield, Lukas Markovic, Easton Wood

HB: Robert Murphy, Ed Barlow, Liam Picken

C: Jason Tutt, Matthew Boyd, Mitchell Wallis

HF: Jarrad Grant, Liam Jones, Daniel Giansiracusa

F: Luke Dahlhaus, Barry Hall, Jordan Roughead

Foll: Ben Hudson, Callan Ward, Ryan Griffen

I/C: Daniel Cross, Shaun Higgins, Patrick Veszpremi, Thomas Liberatore

Emg: Dylan Addison, Josh Hill, Christian Howard

In: Ben Hudson, Easton Wood, Mitchell Wallis

Out: Dylan Addison, Josh Hill, Ayce Cordy (Hand)

 

Fremantle

B: Greg Broughton, Luke McPharlin, Antoni Grover

HB: Michael Johnson, Alex Silvagni, Paul Duffield

C: Jayden Pitt, Stephen Hill, Nick Suban

HF: Ryan Crowley, Kepler Bradley, Byron Schammer

F: Jack Anthony, Christopher Mayne, Zachary Clarke

Foll: Aaron Sandilands, Michael Barlow, Tendai Mzungu

I/C: Clayton Hinkley, Benjamin Bucovaz, Clancee Pearce, Justin Bollenhagen

Emg: Casey Sibosado, Hamish Shepheard, Joel Houghton

In: Antoni Grover, Benjamin Bucovaz, Justin Bollenhagen, Alex Silvagni, Jayden Pitt

Out: Garrick Ibbotson (Shoulder), Rhys Palmer (Groin), Nathan Fyfe (Shoulder), Peter Faulks (Jaw), Nick Lower (Suspension)

Milestones: Kepler Bradley – 100 games

GOLD COAST SUNS V HAWTHORN

MS – Sat Sep 03, 1:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Gold Coast Suns

B: Karmichael Hunt, Nathan Bock, Josh Toy

HB: Jarrod Harbrow, Joel Tippett, Maverick Weller

C: Harley Bennell, Gary Ablett, Trent McKenzie

HF: Daniel Stanley, Jared Brennan, Luke Russell

F: Brandon Matera, Rory Thompson, Josh Fraser

Foll: Zac Smith, David Swallow, Michael Rischitelli

I/C: Matt Shaw, Dion Prestia, Josh Caddy, Jacob Gillbee

Emg: Sam Iles, Joel Wilkinson, Seb Tape

In: Josh Fraser, Josh Toy, Jacob Gillbee, Joel Tippett

Out: Sam Iles, Tom Hickey, Seb Tape, Nathan Ablett

New: Jacob Gillbee (Lauderdale, TAS)

 

Hawthorn

B: Brent Guerra, Josh Gibson, Kyle Cheney

HB: Benjamin Stratton, Ryan Schoenmakers, Thomas Murphy

C: Isaac Smith, Sam Mitchell, Chance Bateman

HF: Shane Savage, Jordan Lisle, Brendan Whitecross

F: Michael Osborne, Paul A. Johnson, Luke Breust

Foll: David Hale, Liam Shiels, Xavier Ellis

I/C: Rick Ladson, Matt Suckling, Paul Puopolo, Cameron Bruce

Emg: Will Sierakowski, Riley Milne, Jordan Williams

In: Chance Bateman, Xavier Ellis, Rick Ladson, Sam Mitchell, Paul A. Johnson, Jordan Lisle, Benjamin Stratton, Kyle Cheney

Out: Max Bailey (Rested), Grant Birchall (Rested), Lance Franklin (Rested), Luke Hodge (Rested), Jordan Lewis (Rested), Brad Sewell (Rested), Cyril Rioli (Rested), Shaun Burgoyne (Rested)

New: Paul A. Johnson (West Coast Eagles)

 

SYDNEY SWANS V BRISBANE LIONS

SCG – Sat Sep 03, 4:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Sydney Swans

B: Rhyce Shaw, Ted Richards, Alex Johnson

HB: Martin Mattner, Heath Grundy, Nicholas Smith

C: Josh P. Kennedy, Adam Goodes, Jarrad McVeigh

HF: Ryan O’Keefe, Jesse White, Matt Spangher

F: Daniel Hannebery, Sam Reid, Ben McGlynn

Foll: Shane Mumford, Jude Bolton, Kieren Jack

I/C: Tadhg Kennelly, Craig Bird, Gary Rohan, Luke Parker

Emg: Paul Bevan, Nick Malceski, Lewis Jetta

In: Jarrad McVeigh

Out: Brett Meredith

Milestones: Nicholas Smith – 50 games, Daniel Hannebery – 50 games

Brisbane Lions

B: Jed Adcock, Matt Maguire, Niall McKeever

HB: Mitchell Golby, Josh Drummond, Pearce Hanley

C: Cheynee Stiller, Andrew Raines, Tom Rockliff

HF: Sam Sheldon, Bryce Retzlaff, James Polkinghorne

F: Patrick Karnezis, Aaron Cornelius, Ashley McGrath

Foll: Matthew Leuenberger, Simon Black, Jack Redden

I/C: James Hawksley, Daniel Rich, Todd Banfield, Ryan Harwood

Emg: Amon Buchanan, Josh Dyson, Joshua Green

In: James Hawksley, Ryan Harwood

Out: Luke Power (Retired), Brent Staker (Knee)

 

CARLTON V ST KILDA

MCG – Sat Sep 03, 7:10pm

Tickets | TV & Radio

Carlton

B: Lachlan Henderson, Michael Jamison, Aaron Joseph

HB: Zach Tuohy, Nick Duigan, Christopher Yarran

C: Kade Simpson, Marc Murphy, Heath Scotland

HF: Andrew Walker, Setanta O’hAilpin, Jeffrey Garlett

F: Eddie Betts, Matthew Kreuzer, Mitch Robinson

Foll: Robert Warnock, Bryce Gibbs, Chris Judd

I/C: Andrew Carrazzo, Dennis Armfield, Kane Lucas, Jeremy Laidler

Emg: Jordan Russell, David Ellard, Marcus Davies

In: Setanta O’hAilpin, Kane Lucas, Zach Tuohy

Out: Bret Thornton (Soreness), David Ellard, Marcus Davies

 

St Kilda

B: Sam Gilbert, Zac Dawson, Raphael Clarke

HB: Brendon Goddard, Sam Fisher, Dean Polo

C: Sean Dempster, Nick Dal Santo, Jason Gram

HF: Brett Peake, Nick Riewoldt, Adam Schneider

F: Stephen Milne, Justin Koschitzke, Jack Steven

Foll: Ben McEvoy, Clinton Jones, Leigh Montagna

I/C: Jason Blake, Michael S. Gardiner, Jarryn Geary, Farren Ray

Emg: Steven Baker, Alistair Smith, Ryan Gamble

In: Michael S. Gardiner

Out: David Armitage (Suspension)

 

Dan runs through all the best Captain choices for both AFL Dream Team and SuperCoach for the all-important Grand Final Week. Who will you be locking in for the big score this week?

For the all important Grand Final captain choices you’ve come to the right place, whether you’re looking for DT or SC advice Footy Tragic has you covered. Tactics are a big part of picking your captain, especially in a Grand Final. If you back your own squad, then take the more conservative route by locking in Swanny for DT and good ol’ GAJ for SC. Maybe you’re looking for a point of difference though? There’s no shortage of options if you’re straying from the norm this week, starting with a well rested Sam Mitchell vs. Gold Coast.

Before I get started, there’s a couple of warning flags over Scott Pendlebury and Chris Judd this week on their histories against their Round 24 opponents. St.Kilda could feasibly sit eight blokes on Juddy, while Pendles doesn’t have numbers that jump out against Hawthorn.

 

Dane Swan

Last five vs. Geelong: 109 DT, 112 SC

It should be pretty well accepted that Dane Swan is the go to captain choice in DT by now.  There could be a bit of foxing going on if you’re in a DT Grand Final this week, because the issue will be if you want to try and get an advantage on your opponent with someone else (or is it the old double fake – will your opponent go someone different to try and be a bit unique?). Going with Swan is the safe DT option for the week. He’s got a solid record against Geelong, it’d be unlikely they would tag him and he performed against them earlier in the year. Even though his recent Super Coach form is so hot I have him slightly back in the pack this week, but certainly a very good choice.

 

Joel Selwood

Last five vs. Collingwood: 105 DT, 100 SC

Joel Selwood is always worth a mention, but he probably doesn’t quite inspire as much confidence this week. His last two games haven’t been captain material, but his run immediately before that was fantastic, particularly in SC. He had a massive game against Collingwood last time they met with a 121 DT and 153 SC (his second highest SC for the season).

 

Gary Ablett

Last five vs. Hawthorn: 127 DT, 130 SC

Gary’s your man for SC this week with his stunning record against Hawthorn and his recent good form. If you take out his injury affected game the last time he scored less than 120 in SC was back in Round 10 against his old mob, Geelong. He scored 135 DT and 144 SC in the one time he played the Hawks as a member of the Suns. I think his DT form is not quite as safe as you’d be looking for in a Grand Final. His mark numbers are just a bit on the low side, so his big scores are dependent on 35+ touches and five of more tackles. He’s only had four or more marks on five occasions this year.

 

Sam Mitchell

Only appearance vs. Gold Coast: 132 DT, 144 SC

Here’s the sexy option for the week. If you want to try something a bit different Sam Mitchell is your man. His recent form is fantastic, with his 96 DT score in his last game the first sub ton he’d scored since Round 9. It’s a similar story in SC where you had to go back to Round 12 to find his last sub ton before the Carlton game. He’s coming off a rest and is up against the Gold Coast, who he dominated last time he played them.

 

Adam Goodes

Last five vs. Brisbane: 90 DT, 105 SC

Goodes doesn’t really have that stellar history against Brisbane, but if you consider the Lions are close to as weak as he’s ever had to encounter from them and his epic SC game last time he played them and he’s a decent outside option for SC this week. In their last meeting he had a 109 DT and 144 SC. As an aside, by playing this game it will be the 11^th time Goodes has played every game in a season, which puts him equal second with Brad Johnson and Jack Titus, and one behind the great Jock McHale.

 

Matthew Boyd

Last five vs. Freo: 109 DT, 115 SC

Boydy absolutely dominated Freo earlier in the year over at Subiaco, scoring 162 in both DT and SC. With Freo fielding an incredibly weak side you’d imagine there’s a strong possibility of 2011’s leading disposal getter could slot his ninth 35+ touch game for the year. He’s actually running a current streak of four straight games where he’s had at least 35 possessions. Perhaps this is a lazy out, but does anyone know what the record is for consecutive 35 touch games? Anyway, Boydy loves playing at the Docklands in particular, so is a strong ‘non Swan’ choice.

 

 

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

ADELAIDE

The only real fantasy relevant news for the Crows (or pretty much any other team) this week is that Ian Callinan had a good game for Central District to hopefully put himself in the selection mix for Round 24. He had 20 touches, six tackles and kicked 2.0.

Chris Schmidt made a solid return for West Adelaide after missing eight weeks with a knee injury. He had 21 disposals, three marks, five tackles and nine clearances to be named fourth best.

James Sellar made a late bid to try and keep his spot on the list with 19 touches and 10 marks in defence to be named best on ground for Glenelg. Brodie Martin had a pretty big weekend with 21 touches and ten rebound 50’s for Sturt, but he backed up the next day and played as a sub for the Crows after Michael Doughty withdrew because of illness. Richard Tambling was also impressive for Sturt with 25 touches, seven marks and eight tackles, as well as being named their BOG.

Brodie Smith and Luke Thompson were both serviceable for WWT for those who still have them on the bench. Both were named in the bests , with Smith kicking two goals from 21 touches and Thompson solid in defence with 19 possessions and five marks.

In a promising sign for the future the perennially injured young ruck/forward James Craig played his first SANFL Seniors game of the year for North Adelaide and was named in their bests with 10 touches, 13 hitouts and 1.2.

In all it was a pretty big weekend for Crows on the fringe with eight guys names amongst the bests for their SANFL side.

 

BRISBANE

Brisbane reserves had a bye in the last round of the NEAFL and they picked up the wooden spoon in the Eastern Conference.

 

CARLTON

The Northern Bullants played a rampant Fevola led Casey Scorpions and went down by 100 points. As such, it was hard to find too many positives for the Blues faithful. Brock McLean was his usual ball winning self in the midfield with 34 touches, five marks and nine clearances.

Kane Lucas was named best on ground for his 26 touches and seven marks playing across half back and up on the wing. He had a few turnovers, but overall is showing signs of getting back to his 2010 form.

Jordan Russell rebounded well with 24 touches and six marks. He struggled a bit on the defensive side of his game, but was confident with his willingness to run.

Michael Jamison played half a game to get some more fitness while Carlton had the bye. In the half that he played Fevola kicked four goals on him, with the rest of his ten on Matthew Watson and later Paul Bower.

With some word early in the week that Jarrad Waite was a chance to line up for the Bullants, unfortunately it never eventuated and he’ll be looking to return via the VFL this week and faces an uphill battle to make it back in time.

 

COLLINGWOOD

Collingwood reserves had a bye in the final round of the VFL season.

 

ESSENDON

It was a really disappointing day for Bendigo, who went down to Coburg (who went down to lowly Frankston last week). The big news is that Sam Lonergan made a very quick return from a knee injury that I thought was meant to end his season. In the end he only missed eight games and had a big impact in the midfield on Saturday. He was named second best for the Bombers from his three quarters. He was having such a good season at the time of his injury and might be a smoky to come back for Essendon’s finals series.

Ricky Dyson was named best on for Bendigo, however that’s a comment that is apparently a more relevant for GWS.

Henry Slattery was decent playing midfield and forward, in somewhat of a different role and finished with two goals. Scott Gumbleton played. I can’t reiterate how lucky those who had him in 2010 as a cash cow were because he really battles to stay on the park.

 

FREMANTLE

Wow. With Faulks, Lower and presumably Ibbotson to miss next week the WAFL action on the weekend doesn’t paint a pretty picture for what the Dockers have in reserve at the moment.

Only five Dockers played WAFL Seniors on the weekend and it wasn’t exactly a list of household names. Joel Houghton was probably the pick of the bunch with 15 touches, five marks and 0.2 to be named amongst the best players for Perth. The tall forward prospect will be a big chance to debut this week, given all of the other outs Freo are facing.

Ben Bucovaz struggled with the pace of the game for East Freo. He only had ten touches and was reported in the last quarter, potentially jeopardising his chance for a second AFL game.

Justin Bollenhagen had seven touches for Swan Districts after hurting his ankle in the first quarter and battling through. Rookie listed pair Casey Sibosado and Hamish Shepheard were the last two in WAFL Seniors. Sibosado had 11 touches, seven marks and kicked 3.0, while Shepheard had nine touches and is probably the least likely to play.

 

GEELONG

In the Cats last reserves game of the year a couple of guys did their best to stay in contention for selection in the seniors finals series. Josh Cowan knows how to get the ball, but still struggles a bit with his kicking and decision making. He was named best on ground. Simon Hogan had a similarly good game with pretty much the same strengths and weaknesses as Cowan.

At the opposite end of the scale Cam Guthrie doesn’t need to get a whole heap of the ball to have an impact because he’s so composed and makes good decisions. He’s had a good few weeks and wouldn’t be the worst back up going around.

Taylor Hunt had a bit of an injury concern during the game, but got through OK. He’d be one of the players first in line from a reserves perspective to get a look in for the Cats.

 

GOLD COAST

The Suns reserves struggled in their qualifying final against Mt.Gravatt, going down by 66 points after a competitive first half. They fielded their most inexperienced team of the year with a number of top ups making their NEAFL debut in a final!

Charlie Dixon was best for the Suns playing mostly in the ruck. Steven May could be a chance for a recall after kicking six goals, despite spending some time in defence too. If Gold Coast are a chance to break St.Kilda’s 1911 record of debuting 33 kids (Josh Caddy was the 33^rd on the weekend) you would suspect it rests with Jacob Gillbee, who was named on an extended bench this week and had another good game after a recent string of form. Nathan Krakouer and Joel Tippett were also named in the bests.

Tom Lynch missed again due to his back injury, but is a chance to return straight into the AFL this week.

 

HAWTHORN

Hawthorn’s affiliate Box Hill did a good job against the undefeated Port Melbourne, but the Boroughs kept their streak intact with a 20 point win.

Ben Stratton made his much anticipated and somewhat surprising return from his knee injury. His defensive nous was still good as gold and while he was a little rusty with ball in hand it was a very promising comeback, which gives him a big chance to be available for AFL selection in the finals.

Jordan Lisle was best on ground for the Hawks in defence. Paul Johnson and Brent Renouf were good in the ruck. Johnson was named second best and Renouf kicked three goals. They’ve missed a lot of footy through injury and are back at the right time of year.

 

MELBOURNE

Players other than Brendan Fevola played for Casey on the weekend. In fact, despite his ten goals Fev was named third best behind Matthew Bate and Rohan Bail. Bate picked up 38 touches and two goals and was simply unstoppable through the midfield and across half forward. Bail should be good to go physically after playing one VFL Reserves and two Senior games – it’s just a matter of whether or not there would be any point.

Jack Fitzpatrick is a huge chance to be blooded for debut this week after being named on an extended bench last week. He kicked four goals in an impressive display up forward.

 

NORTH MELBOURNE

It was the big showdown between North Melbourne’s two affiliates the North Ballarat Roosters and the Werribee Tigers. North Ballarat took the chocolates, with Shaun Atley the best Roos listed player for them with 25 touches in the midfield. Daniel Pratt was solid with 23 touches.

For Werribee Hamish McIntosh did enough to earn himself a senior recall after a frustrating year. He had 21 disposals, eight marks, five tackles and 23 hitouts. The cynic in me says it was very important for future father/son potential that he plays this week, as it will be his 100^th game for the club.

Ben Ross was kept out as emergency standby for the AFL game.

 

PORT ADELAIDE

It wasn’t a huge weekend of SANFL action for the Power, with only seven playing seniors and a few of those listless performances.

Kane Cornes was named fifth best for Glenelg with 29 touches and nine marks. Apparently he’s a required player, which you could also take to read as, “we can’t pay his two years of contract out.”

Rookie listed Daniel Webb has shown some signs of life of late for West Adelaide. He was named second best for them with 10 touches, seven marks, 11 hitouts and 4.0.

Daniel Stewart was best on ground for North Adelaide in their narrow loss to Sturt after picking up 22 touches, 11 marks and 6.2. If Port can’t get the best out of him then someone else might as well have a crack!

 

RICHMOND

Coburg finished the season on a good note by beating finals bound Bendigo Bombers fairly convincingly. Rookie listed Pat Contin has finished off the season in pretty good fashion and picked up 28, mostly quality possessions.

Ben Nason has been thereabouts lately, but still a bit scrappy with disposal. He had 24 touches and ten marks in a typically spirited effort. David Gourdis returned from a five week layoff and had 22 good touches from defence. Disposal and decision making has been the knock on this supremely athletic player, so it’s not a bad step for him to take.

Ben Griffiths was experimented with by playing CHB on Scott Gumbleton and kept the big Bendigo forward goalless in a decent performance.

 

ST.KILDA

Sandringham went down narrowly in their final game of the season to Geelong down at Skilled Stadium. Michael Gardiner was named best on ground, but with the Saints big men performing well he’ll have a hard time this week. He looked to have hurt himself last week, so it’s good to see it hasn’t dashed his chances at least.

Tommy Walsh was kept out of the VFL game on Saturday morning as emergency standby and after he wasn’t used ended up playing for Sandringham reserves on Sunday morning and kicked three goals. Like Gardiner, the form of the Saints talls on the weekend will work against any chance he has of a debut.

Jamie Cripps has returned from a calf injury that was set to keep him out for the season, so he could be in and around the mark to be on standby for finals action – but you’d have to think St.Kilda would dip back into the well with someone like Baker if a spot came up. It’s just not their style to experiment.

 

SYDNEY

After their impressive win against Geelong at Skilled Stadium there won’t be too many changes for Sydney this week. Mike Pyke and Mark Seaby are both ready to help in the ruck if required. Pyke has missed a lot of footy with a persistent quad injury this year, but has got some continuity into his game lately to be in the finals mix for the Swans.

Jarred Moore was named best on ground for his three goal performance and first year player Jed Lamb was named in the best players too. Lamb is another to have been held back by injury this year, having earlier missed over two months with a hamstring.

 

WEST COAST

Sam Butler returned from a calf injury for Perth with ten touches, four marks and three tackles. With the Eagles a big chance to rest a few players they’d be looking to get an AFL run into the legs of the classy Butler.

Tom Swift had a big one for Claremont with 36 touches, four marks, three tackles and 2.1. Jordan Jones was amongst Peel Thunder’s best players with 20 touches, six marks, five tackles and 2.0.

Koby Stevens will maintain his bargain price tag for next season after getting crunched early and hurting his shoulder for East Freo.

 

WESTERN BULLDOGS

Williamstown were up against bottom of the ladder Frankston, who were playing like they were still hungover from celebrating their second win of the year the previous week. Or maybe that’s just the way Frankston always look…

Anyway, the Seagulls easily accounted for them with rookie listed tall Matthew Panos kicking six goals, while also spending a little bit of time in defence too. He’s showed some good signs this year at both ends of the ground and is a good decision maker.

Mitch Hahn and Lindsay Gilbee were in the bests, with Gilbee providing plenty of drive from half back and chipping in with two goals, while Hahn worked hard, also kicking two goals.

Willy reserves genuinely racked up a defendable score in a one day cricket match with 44.16.280 with first year tall Tom Hill starring with eight goals. The strong marking forward has been in good form lately with 18 goals in four games at reserves level.

Hey All,

Firstly, the Captain’s article won’t be running on the site today (Tuesday), but will be up on Thursday instead (alongside Kristian’s TAC cup article). Unfortunately, all three of us struggled to fit in writing the article amongst other commitments.

However, we do have some exciting news in that we will be having Jay, the current overall leader in SuperCoach, on our Grand Final show this Thursday night. He currently sits in 1st place by 69 points, and with $50,000 as the first prize for SuperCoach, he is no doubt a nervous man! We will be having a chat to him about his strategies this year and what has gone right and wrong for him to get him where he is.

Check out his team here: http://supercoach.heraldsun.com.au/?p=other_teams&tid=124&lid=1

We will also spend some time on the show having a reflection on the season that’s been, discuss the teams and Captains, look at our best 2012 midfield options, whilst also chatting about some of our off-season content for the site.

To give you some basic info on off-season content, I can at least start by saying we won’t stop posting articles once the season ends as we know how important a big pre-season is for Dream Team and SuperCoach. We will focus heavily on the drafts and trade periods, whilst also analysing all 18 clubs in the competition – what do they need, who could they draft and who will get an opportunity in 2012. We will also have weekly reports on each clubs training sessions once they get back on the track later this year, making sure you know exactly what is happening down at each club as they prepare for next year. More details are still to be confirmed, but I hope you are all just as excited about this as we are!

Hope you can tune into the show this Thursday night and check out our interview with Jay! As usual, 9pm on Channel 31.

Cheers

Footy Tragic