Brisbane Lions

The Team:

The Brisbane Lions of 2010 hardly look much like the Brisbane Lions of 2009 after their mass trading in the off-season. They lost key players Bradshaw, McDonald and Hooper, but gain Fevola, Buchanan, Staker, Maguire, Raines and more! It is an exciting time of Brisbane fans with Vossy one more year into his coaching tenure (and therefore one more year experienced) and with what is arguably the best forward combination in the AFL; Brown and Fevola. The only question is how will all these changes effect the club – Will Brown and Fevola gel well together, or will they detriment the other’s games? Will injury riddled recruits, Maguire, Raines and Clarke ever even play? All this aside, Brisbane players are great to have in your dream team – Vossy’s game plan is simple and is based around the high-possession game of Geelong, meaning oodles and oodles of Dream Team points! Brisbane do have plenty of senior citizens in their line-up, so be careful selecting any of these due to their increased possibility to break down with injuries.

Who’s Hot?:

Daniel Rich ($358,400): Said to have stepped up his fitness with an even bigger pre-season last year when he was heavily monitored (due to being a first year player). The bonus of Rich is he only really started scoring highly towards the end of the season, therefore he is underpriced from his potential.

Brendon Fevola ($416,000): Has only missed one session and is training well, settling into his new home up north. He won’t be joined by Brown in the NAB cup so we will be unable to see how the combination will work.

Jamie Charman ($179,800) Having his first pre-season in six years. He will be determined to slot back into his ruck role this year, and at 27 he still has the abilities to do so.

Jack Redden ($312,600): Bulked up considerably and looking really good on the track – showed last year that he is quite a dream teamer, and just the kind of player Vossy likes. He seems determined to succeed!

Jared Brennan ($394,600): Training exclusively with the midfield group – this is very exciting news if he can still be picked up as a key-position player, or even as a ruckman!

Who’s Not?:

Xavier Clarke: I still recovering from the ACL injury he suffered at the start of last season – knowing his history, he will still take a while recovering.

Callum Bartlett: Still recovering from a knee injury so will take a while to get into full training. Due to his first year status, no chances will be made on him.

The Bargain:

Jamie Charman ($179,800): Charman only played three injury riddled games in 2009 to a total of 116 dream team points – definitely not a great display of point-getting ability! However, to get a bargain, you must take some risks – and Charman is certainly one. If fit, and so far this pre-season he is, he could fit in (at best) as your second ruckman, allowing for much more spend in other positions. The risk of course is whether his body will withstand the high-pace game of AFL, and whether he is even best 22. Even at his best, Charman was not a brilliant dream teamer, but he was at least consistent, often bringing home a score of 70 – 80. If he did this for the first 8 – 10 rounds of 2010, you may have just made yourself $150,000! He is definitely as risk, but one that could certainly pay off! Keep your eyes on his NAB Cup!

The Kid:

Jack Redden ($312,600): Redden was selected at pick 28 in 2008 as a tough as nails inside midfielder – and that is exactly what he has shown so far in his 10 games of AFL (including two finals). He throws himself under packs and tackles ferociously, but the thing I have liked about him the most is his ability to stay calm under pressure and hit up a target. He always looks composed and trusting of his own decisions and skills. This year, his pre-season has been strong – he has put on a lot of bulk (important for inside midfielders), and has an already established fitness base that has increased. Being in just his second year, his spot in the team is far from guaranteed, but watch for him to fight hard for it – I expect him to surprise many in 2010 as he was definitely one of my favourite first year players in 2009!

The Premium:

Jed Adcock ($393,000): Again, I have chosen a player on the verge of premium classification. The main reason that I see Jed stepping up this year due to a predicted role change; with Brisbane’s recruiting of half-back types Maguire, Raines and Clarke (and therefore taking Adcock’s half-back spot), I can see Adcock moving to the midfield, a position which Voss had earmarked him for since round one, 2009. Unfortunately for Jed at the time, injuries to the backline relegated him to a more defensive role in defence than he would have normally wanted. But with these new recruits taking his 2009 position from him, my money is on Jed getting his chance again at playing through the midfield. Two years ago, we saw the effect that playing midfield had on his game with multiple 100+ DT scores (and this was even in Leigh Matthews low-possession game-plan!) – So now we can watch the pre-season with our fingers crossed for getting to see Jed line up in the square.

The Smokey:

Jared Brennan ($394,600): All the reports coming from Brisbane are that Brennan has been training exclusively with the midfield group – a fact that I am VERY excited about! Brennan has always been a player who has irritated Dream Teamers with his inconsistency – one week he is flying through the midfield or off the backline, then the next he is playing as a stopper on the opposition’s key forward, resulting in a very frustrating up-and-down score line. Fortunately, Voss has decided to make this flamboyant freak of a footballer a Jack of one trade, rather than a Jack of many. Not only will this help his overall consistency as a footballer, but also the fact the position given to him is as a midfielder/ruckman it will mean his scoring potential is even greater! It’s not going to take much to convince me to put Brennan in my team for 2010 – I am very excited about his potential this year!