Dan here, filling in for Toby this week with the team selection news. Let’s see how we’re all shaping up for the first week of DT finals…

ESSENDON v CARLTON
Essendon
B: Heath Hocking, Dustin Fletcher, Courtenay Dempsey
HB: Mark McVeigh, Michael Hurley, Cale Hooker
C: David Zaharakis, Jobe Watson, Brent Stanton
HF: Kyle Hardingham, Jay Neagle, Travis Colyer
F: Angus Monfries, David Hille, Alwyn Davey
Foll: Patrick Ryder, Bachar Houli, Ben Howlett
I/C: Kyle Reimers, Sam Lonergan, Jason Winderlich, Brent Prismall
Emg: Nathan Lovett-Murray, David Myers, Jake Carlisle

In: Winderlich
Out: Scott Gumbleton (ribs)

  • Gumbleton owners have done well to get 18 weeks out of him. Kudos to him on being a fine cash cow in 2010.
  • Hardingham plays his third games this week. He adds plenty of excitement to their forward line, but is only mid eligible in DT.
  • Winderlich returns for the Bombers. He’d be a pretty crazy sort of unique to have, though I don’t mind him as a player.

Carlton
B: Jordan Russell, Michael Jamison, Aaron Joseph
HB: Dennis Armfield, Paul Bower, Shaun Grigg
C: Heath Scotland, Chris Judd, Bryce Gibbs
HF: Kade Simpson, Lachie Henderson, Marc Murphy
F: Shaun Hampson, Jarrad Waite, Eddie Betts
Foll: Robert Warnock, Andrew Carrazzo, David Ellard
I/C: Marcus Davies, Jeff Garlett, Richard Hadley, Mitch Robinson
Emg: Joe Anderson, Mark Austin, Setanta O’hAilpin

In: Hadley, Armfield, Davies, Robinson
Out: Brad Fisher, Andrew Walker, Chris Johnson, Chris Yarran (ankle)

New: Marcus Davies (Tasmania U18)

  • The new guy, Davies was one I was keeping an eye on in the pre-season. I thought he was set for some early games this year, but better late than never. He’s back eligible.
  • David Ellard plays his third game for the season (after being a late in last week). He’s back eligible too.

SYDNEY SWANS v HAWTHORN
Sydney Swans
B: Paul Bevan, Ted Richards, Rhyce Shaw
HB: Nick Malceski, Heath Grundy, Tadhg Kennelly
C: Daniel Hannebery, Brett Kirk, Jarrad McVeigh
HF: Ben McGlynn, Ryan O’Keefe, Josh Kennedy
F: Mike Pyke, Adam Goodes, Jarred Moore
Foll: Shane Mumford, Jude Bolton, Kieren Jack
I/C: Trent Dennis-Lane, Lewis Jetta, Martin Mattner, Jesse White
Emg: Nathan Gordon, Brett Meredith, Sam Reid

In: Dennis-Lane
Out: Brett Meredith

  • TDL comes in for this third game as a rookie priced forward. He’s look relatively patchy in his two games so far, but he kicked four goals in only half a game for the reserves last week (was pulled from that game half way through to be on standby for the Swans).

Hawthorn
B: Stephen Gilham, Ben Stratton, Thomas Murphy
HB: Grant Birchall, Josh Gibson, Brent Guerra
C: Chance Bateman, Sam Mitchell, Xavier Ellis
HF: Shaun Burgoyne, Lance Franklin, Clinton Young
F: Michael Osborne, Jarryd Roughead, Jordan Lewis
Foll: Brent Renouf, Luke Hodge, Brad Sewell
I/C: Rick Ladson, Garry Moss, Matt Suckling, Simon Taylor
Emg: Jarryd Morton, Ryan Schoenmakers, Brendan Whitecross

In: Moss, Taylor, Suckling
Out: Wayde Skipper, Cyril Rioli (suspension), Brendan Whitecross

  • I’ll get to the big news in the next game, but GREAT, there goes my ruck coverage! Skipper is way better than Taylor! Get a grip, Clarko!
  • Rioli will cop his two weeks at the wrong time of year for his owners. However, those owners could probably consider themselves lucky he’s only out for two. I know that my SC team was planning for a finals series without him.

NORTH MELBOURNE v FREMANTLE
North Melbourne
B: Michael Firrito, Scott Thompson, Brady Rawlings
HB: Daniel Pratt, Nathan Grima, Scott McMahon
C: Leigh Adams, Brent Harvey, Sam Wright
HF: Ryan Bastinac, Aaron Edwards, Daniel Wells
F: Ben Cunnington, Lachlan Hansen, Lindsay Thomas
Foll: Hamish McIntosh, Andrew Swallow, Levi Greenwood
I/C: Todd Goldstein, Leigh Harding, Jamie Macmillan, Cruize Garlett
Emg: Gavin Urquhart, David Hale, Marcus White

In: Pratt, Wells, Grima, Garlett
Out: Josh Smith, Ed Lower (collarbone), Marcus White, Ben Speight

  • A couple of rookie priced options in White and Speight get the chop this week. You’d be really scraping if you were looking to bring in either of them for the run home though. Speight’s interchange on the weekend was quite comical though.

Fremantle
B: Dylan Roberton, Antoni Grover, Greg Broughton
HB: Justin Bollenhagen, Luke McPharlin, Roger Hayden
C: Garrick Ibbotson, David Mundy, Nathan Fyfe
HF: Jay van Berlo, Matthew Pavlich, Stephen Hill
F: Adam McPhee, Michael Johnson, Matthew de Boer
Foll: Kepler Bradley, Nick Suban, Paul Duffield
I/C: Rhys Palmer, Anthony Morabito, Paul Hasleby, Jesse Crichton
Emg: Michael Walters, Clayton Hinkley, Zac Clarke

In: Bradley, Palmer, Roberton
Out: Aaron Sandilands (foot), Hayden Ballantyne (foot), Chris Tarrant (knee)

  • Holy freaking crap! Sandilands is out! My Trengove to Prato trade for a cash grab really stings now. I figured, what are the chances of two of Sandilands, Hille and Skipper missing in the run home? Massive DT implications. Well done to those of you who have Warnock, Roughead or Trengove on the bench (though keep an eye on the Bulldogs and Port’s final team when it’s announced tomorrow arvo)! The relieving news is that he’s only expected to miss this week.
  • Balla will be out for a few weeks with a foot problem. The annoying goal sneak has burnt his owners at the wrong time of year.
  • You could be doing a lot worse than having Roberton as back coverage. He doesn’t score that great, but he’s had a few more games than I thought he was going to get initially.
  • Jesse Crichton is in for this third game for the Dockers. The Tasweigan is an $89,500 midfield option. He could be pushed out of the team as the H & A season draws to a close, so tread carefully.

GEELONG CATS v COLLINGWOOD
Geelong Cats
B: Darren Milburn, Matthew Scarlett, Josh Hunt
HB: James Kelly, Harry Taylor, Corey Enright
C: Jimmy Bartel, Cameron Ling, Andrew Mackie
HF: Paul Chapman, Cameron Mooney, Steve Johnson
F: Mathew Stokes, Tom Hawkins, Travis Varcoe
Foll: Brad Ottens, Joel Selwood, Gary Ablett
I/C: Joel Corey, David Wojcinski, Shannon Byrnes, Tom Lonergan
Emg: James Podsiadly, Trent West, Simon Hogan

In: Bartel
Out: Trent West

  • Bartel is back after his rest/injury/whatever they were dressing that up as for this massive clash. Go Jimmy!
  • Pods? What the hell? Stuck on the emergencies list.
  • There’s been a lot of speculation about Geelong resting players in the run home, but it’s clear that they want to have a crack at Collingwood this week. Maybe next week…

Collingwood
B: Nick Maxwell, Simon Prestigiacomo, Ben Reid
HB: Harry O’Brien, Tyson Goldsack, Heath Shaw
C: Sharrod Wellingham, Dane Swan, Alan Toovey
HF: Luke Ball, Travis Cloke, Leon Davis
F: Dayne Beams, Leigh Brown, Steele Sidebottom
Foll: Darren Jolly, Scott Pendlebury, Dale Thomas
I/C: Alan Didak, Ben Johnson, Brent Macaffer, Chris Dawes
Emg: Tarkyn Lockyer, Nathan Brown, Jarryd Blair

In: Shaw, Prestigiacomo
Out: Nathan Brown, Jarryd Blair

  • Heater makes his way back in for the Pies, much to the relief of his patient owners.
  • Presti is back too! I hope you didn’t miss him too much last week.
  • Jarryd Blair has done alright in his games so far with a couple of good tagging jobs. Probably not a bad move to send him back to the magoos at this stage though.

WEST COAST v BRISBANE LIONS
West Coast
B: Will Schofield, Matthew Spangher, Brett Jones
HB: Beau Waters, Mitchell Brown, Brad Sheppard
C: Andrew Embley, Matt Priddis, Matt Rosa
HF: Brad Ebert, Josh Kennedy, Andrew Strijk
F: Mark LeCras, Quinten Lynch, Ben McKinley
Foll: Dean Cox, Scott Selwood, Tom Swift
I/C: Patrick McGinnity, Nic Naitanui, Ashley Smith, Lewis Stevenson
Emg: Callum Wilson, Koby Stevens, Beau Wilkes

In: McKinley, Spangher
Out: Eric Mackenzie (suspension), Chris Masten (ankle)

  • Nothing too interesting here…Koby Stevens name pops up as an emergency.
    Brisbane Lions
    B: Joel Patfull, Daniel Merrett, Ashley McGrath
    HB: Pearce Hanley, Matt Maguire, Cheynee Stiller
    C: Jack Redden, Tom Rockliff, Jared Brennan
    HF: Daniel Rich, Mitchell Clark, Luke Power
    F: Albert Proud, Jonathan Brown, Brent Staker
    Foll: Matthew Leuenberger, Michael Rischitelli, Simon Black
    I/C: Jed Adcock, Ryan Harwood, Todd Banfield, Aaron Cornelius
    Emg: Travis Johnstone, James Hawksley, Jesse O’Brien

    In: Maguire, Adcock, Cornelius
    Out: Xavier Clarke (hamstring), Justin Sherman, Brendan Fevola (groin)

  • Maguire is back in and could be decent coverage for those who have held onto him. You’ll just be hoping that Vossy holds onto him too in the run home.
  • As quick as he’s in, he’s out. I really feel bad for X, but his body just struggles to get right.
  • Call me crazy, but with his monumental price drop, Fev could be a pretty cheap 7th forward in 2011. Or he could be a hack past his used by date. He’ll be one to keep an eye on.

ST KILDA v PORT ADELAIDE
St Kilda
B: Robert Eddy, Jason Blake, Sam Gilbert
HB: Jason Gram, Sam Fisher, James Gwilt
C: Brendon Goddard, Nick Dal Santo, Farren Ray
HF: Andrew McQualter, Justin Koschitzke, Leigh Montagna
F: Sean Dempster, Nick Riewoldt, Stephen Milne
Foll: Michael Gardiner, Lenny Hayes, Adam Schneider
I/C (from): Ben McEvoy, Jarryn Geary, Clinton Jones, Brett Peake, Rhys Stanley, Tom Simpkin, Luke Miles

In: McQualter, Eddy, Jones, Miles, Simpkin, Stanley
Out: Zac Dawson (hand), Jack Steven, Tom Lynch

New: Tom Simpkin (Geelong Falcons/rookie list)

  • Miles and Simpkin make their way onto the extended bench. I find it really interesting that the Saints listed Simpkin as a new player, but didn’t mention Miles, who is also yet to debut. Is this a slip up indicating that Simpkin is going to get the nod?
  • If he makes the cut, the timing couldn’t be better for Stanley owners with Sandilands missing this week. However, he’s only likely to score you 20 points anyway.
  • For as much enthusiasm for Lynch’s debut as Toby had last week leading into the game, I was at the other end of the scale, and that feeling was confirmed watching his lacklustre efforts against the Bombers (I’m not a fan, if you can’t already tell).

Port Adelaide
B: Paul Stewart, Alipate Carlile, Tom Logan
HB: Nathan Krakouer, Troy Chaplin, Danny Meyer
C: Kane Cornes, Domenic Cassisi, Travis Boak
HF: Cameron Hitchcock, Jay Schulz, David Rodan
F: Justin Westhoff, Daniel Stewart, Brett Ebert
Foll: Dean Brogan, Danyle Pearce, Robbie Gray
I/C (from): Mitchell Banner, Matthew Broadbent, Andrew Moore, Jackson Trengove, Scott Harding, Jasper Pittard, Matt Thomas

In: Logan, Harding, Thomas, Pittard
Out: Nick Salter (calf)

New: Jasper Pittard (Geelong Falcons)

  • Jasper “Don’t Call Me McMillan” Pittard is named on an extended bench for his debut. The boy genius would be a sneaky chance of cracking a game just from looking at that list too. He’s listed as a defender in DT.
  • Sandilands owners looking for coverage will want to make sure Trengove is named in their final 22 tomorrow afternoon.

MELBOURNE v RICHMOND
Melbourne
B: Colin Garland, Jared Rivers, Clint Bartram
HB: Rohan Bail, James Frawley, Joel Macdonald
C: Brent Moloney, James McDonald, Jordie McKenzie
HF: Liam Jurrah, Jack Watts, Tom Scully
F: Jamie Bennell, Lynden Dunn, Brad Green
Foll: Mark Jamar, Colin Sylvia, Aaron Davey
I/C (from): Cameron Bruce, Austin Wonaeamirri, Nathan Jones, Jack Trengove, Paul Johnson, Cale Morton, Brad Miller

In: Miller, Moloney, Trengove
Out: -

  • Trengove named on an extended bench is about the only interest here, though I don’t imagine too many would have held onto him for this long.

Richmond
B: Chris Newman, Will Thursfield, David Astbury
HB: Brett Deledio, Kelvin Moore, Daniel Connors
C: Mitch Morton, Dustin Martin, Shane Edwards
HF: Ben Nason, Mitch Farmer, Jake King
F: Matt White, Jack Riewoldt, Ben Cousins
Foll: Angus Graham, Shane Tuck, Daniel Jackson
I/C (from): Andrew Collins, Andrew Browne, Tyrone Vickery, Jeromey Webberley, Robbie Hicks, Luke McGuane, Alex Rance

In: Collins, Rance, Vickery
Out: -

  • Not much interest here either. Webberley should keep his spot on the extended bench and if Hicks can crack a second game he could be a viable FWD/MID option, purely for his DP capabilities and that he’d be a live body (and after so many went nuts on trading in McNeil).

ADELAIDE v WESTERN BULLDOGS
Adelaide
B: Graham Johncock, Ben Rutten, Scott Stevens
HB: Michael Doughty, Nathan Bock, Nathan van Berlo
C: Brad Symes, Bernie Vince, David Mackay
HF: Ricky Henderson, Taylor Walker, Chris Knights
F: Rory Sloane, Kurt Tippett, Richard Douglas
Foll: Jonathon Griffin, Scott Thompson, Brent Reilly
I/C (from): Phil Davis, Ivan Maric, James Sellar, Jason Porplyzia, Brodie Martin, Chris Schmidt, Matthew Jaensch

In: Johncock, Knights, Sellar, Martin, Davis
Out: Patrick Dangerfield (hand), Jack Gunston

  • Johncock is straight back in after serving his suspension.
  • Davis gets a look in on the extended bench. It looks pretty dicey as to whether or not he’ll get named in the final 22 though. Monitor this situation.
  • Dangerfield will miss just this week, according to the Crows, with a hand injury.
  • Gunston is dropped for the second time this year. He’ll get to that third game eventually. Talented player.
  • Schmidt and Jaensch are a couple of DT bench options that could be sweating on keeping their spot in the final 22 this week.

Western Bulldogs
B: Easton Wood, Brian Lake, Dale Morris
HB: Ryan Hargrave, Tom Williams, Lindsay Gilbee
C: Daniel Cross, Matthew Boyd, Liam Picken
HF: Robert Murphy, Liam Jones, Brad Johnson
F: Jarrad Grant, Barry Hall, Daniel Giansiracusa
Foll: Ben Hudson, Adam Cooney, Ryan Griffen
I/C (from): Dylan Addison, Nathan Eagleton, Andrejs Everitt, Shaun Higgins, Josh Hill, Brodie Moles, Jordan Roughead

In: Addison, Hill, Eagleton
Out: -

  • Not much interesting here. Jordan Roughead should keep his spot this week, which is great news for his owners that also have Sandilands.