Footy Tragic

Fremantle vs Collingwood:

Looking Good:

• Michael Barlow: From a purely DT perspective, this kid is amazing to watch: He works so hard through every passage of play he is involved in that he often gets 3 – 4 touches every time the ball goes near him, thanks to plenty of handballing and handball-receives.
• Aaron Sandilands: Dominated once again in the ruck, but his work around the ground is now becoming second-to-none amongst other ruckman in the competition – he loves to bang it on the boot to clear a contest and seems to now have the ability to drop forward and kick a goal or two.
• Dane Swan: So many of his possessions did very little, but that didn’t concern his owners as he scrapped kick after kick to earn himself a very decent 131 points. He is probably not at his 2009 standards just yet, but the signs are clear that he is not far off.

Disappointing:

• Heath Shaw: Was totally shut down by De Boer and did virtually nothing to half time. This is the worry with Heath – he is a great DT player, but is too easily shut-down. Unfortunately, Malthouse doesn’t feel the need to change his positioning to allow him more freedom from his opponent.
• Leon Davis: The real disappointing part about Leon’s game was the fact he actually played a fair chunk of it in the midfield, yet still couldn’t get much of the ball. Personally, I have been totally turned off Davis this year and have a suspicion his isn’t going to bounce back.
• Hayden Ballantyne: Balla played a great team game, but unfortunately this doesn’t always translate into DT scoring. He is brilliant to watch though!

Blip on the Radar:

• Ryan Crowley: Crowly played an amazing second quarter, which amassed to more than half of his total scoring, proving that he could be a good dream teamer if moved off his tagging duties, but I highly doubt there will be much frequency to this sort of scoring from him.

Western Bulldogs vs Sydney:

Looking Good:

• Barry Hall: Booted five goals against his old club – unfortunately, it came the week that plenty of coaches  jumped off him… Talk about sticking it to the man!
• Adam Goodes: Took a while to get into the game but came good, kicking four goals and keeping Sydney somewhat competitive. He seems to be proving a consistent option for the forward line, rather than one capable of huge scoring (and equally low scoring….).
• Daniel Cross: As usual, Cross was the hardest working inside-mid on the ground and finished with 30 possessions and an out-of-the-ordinary 9 marks. Once again, Cross is a brilliant midfield option who is terribly consistent.

Disappointing:

• Mike Pyke: Considering he played the game as the first ruck (and although not much was really expected of him), 27 points was probably a bit below-par.
• Daniel Giansiracusa: After three huge games in a row and Griffen’s late withdrawal, Gia was bound to get tagged, and unfortunately he couldn’t cope. He managed only the 15 disposals for the game.
• Ryan Hargrave: Perhaps that game against the Saints was a fluke – he has shown absolutely NO form since returning from his injury and is proving to be a total waste of a trade for those who brought him in… Bitter? Hell yeah I am!

Blip on the Radar:

• Martin Mattner: 2008 was Mattner’s year – after being traded from Adelaide, he proved to be a great pick-up, being one of the most improved defenders over that season. However, since then all of Malceski, Shaw and Kennelly have become uninjured/traded in/returned to the club and have taken his points. Occasionally he will have a game like this one, but don’t be expecting him to get back to the DT status he earned himself two years ago.

Melbourne vs West Coast:

Looking Good:

• Matt Priddis: Matt Priddis is one of the best inside-mids in the competition for dream team with his ability to both rack up massive numbers of stats and lay stacks of tackles. In this game his numbers read 35 possessions and 12 tackles, equalling a round-high 154 points.
• Jack Grimes: Jack has now played a couple of very good games in a row and is seemingly moving further into the midfield after starting the year deeper in defence. He is a great ball-winner and disposes of it beautifully – highly consider him at his mid-range price.
• Adam Selwood: Continued his great season with another ton. Importantly, he proved that last week’s 64 points was just an aberration as he sacrificed his own game for the good of the team.

Disappointing:

• Colin Sylvia: Was once again stuck in the forward line, despite the fact Davey was off for long periods. Unfortunately,  he once again got very little of the ball and continues to leak plenty of cash for his owners. There is every likelihood he will turn his season around, but many must be hoping it happens sooner rather than later…
• Jack Trengove: Didn’t get too much into this game after a couple of big games the past couple of weeks. There will be no worry about him continuing to get games though…
• Nic Naitanui: With Cox back up and firing, Nic Nat spent a lot of his time in the forward line and failed to kick a goal. This doesn’t look like a trend that will stop anytime soon, so if you are a frustrated Naitanui owner, now might be the time to offload him.

Blip on the Radar:

• James Frawley: Frawley is a classy player who has become a real positive in Melbourne’s young backline. He occasionally gets the opportunity to rebound from defence, and those who watch him regularly will attest to his skills, however skills and potential unfortunately don’t always equate to good DT scores – look elsewhere in this instance unfortunately.

Brisbane vs Geelong:

Looking Good:

• Jimmy Bartel: Jimmy is great to watch – especially when he is your DT captain. When on fire, he picks up the ball consistently with ease and takes a great mark for a player of his size.
• Corey Enright: Whilst there was plenty of ball being flung around between all the Cats players, Enright often started many of the forward thrusts and worked the hardest for many of his stats. Looks to be in some good form.
• Steve Johnson: Another huge game and six more goals from Stevie J could be enough to finally shut up all those that worry that he really isn’t in form, but is simply just playing easy opponents… such as me…

Disappointing:

• Brendan Fevola: Scarlett SMASHED Fevola, allowing him just the three disposals for the entire game. Fev has always been one to mentally shut himself out of games when he knows his opponent has a great record on him – this has always happened on Scarlett and the now-retired Max Hudghton.
• Michael Rischitelli: After a great start to the year, Rischitelli could only conjure up 12 possessions. The entire Brisbane engine room was smashed by Geelong, so it wasn’t solely Rischitelli’s fault.
• Gary Ablett Jnr: Only 96 points… Rubbish! In fact, Ablett owners should count themselves lucky as he was on only 33 points to half time, yet thanks to some junk-stats later in the game he was able to nearly crack the ton without much effort – amazing.

Blip on the Radar:

• Tom Hawkins: Hawkins played his best game of the year, kicking four goals up front and rotating through the ruck. Unfortunately, the Tomahawk has proven to be a somewhat inconsistent DTer over the journey so I would not be expecting this to be his breakout game, especially with jPod due to return next week.

North Melbourne vs Adelaide:

Looking Good:

• Todd Goldstein: Was easily the most dominant player on the ground and thrashed Maric in the ruck. He has been credited by Brad Scott as being the most pivotal player in the win and he is not far wrong. Really looks to be continuing his development strongly.
• Nathan Bock: Bock finally looked back into the role that made him a DT force in previous seasons – his run from defence was great, but what makes him especially tasty from a DT perspective is his overwhelming amount of marks and kicks. He took 16 marks and had 17 kicks for the game.
• Tony Armstrong: Had a strong game, although plenty of his ball was won through uncontested possessions. After just his second game, Armstrong could be a great downgrade target, although I wouldn’t be expecting to see too many 120′s out of him!

Disappointing:

• Kurt Tippett: I don’t know whether he was injured or just uninterested, but either way Tippett could just not get into the match. He was easily beaten by Thompson early and just seemed to give up.
• Patrick Dangerfield: Notched up his second highest score for the year, despite the fact he was bizarrely tagged. Perhaps he could get tagged more to help his score… Regardless, he is getting nowhere near the pill – if you still have him, offload him.
• David Hale: Got a mark and a handball before his back suddenly went into spasms – concerns were that he may have a significant back injury, and if so he may miss quite a bit of football.

Blip on the Radar:

• Ben Rutten: “Truck” is a full-back’s full-back – he is brilliant at shutting down his opponent and gives them little room, however his rebounding skills are non existent. However, once a year (check the record books, I do not lie!), Adelaide seem to have a game where Bock and Rutten go nuts on kick-to-kick, bellying each of their scores and making them look like DT jets… It seems that THIS was that game for 2010.

Richmond vs Hawthorn:

Looking Good:

• Chris Newman: Newman played much more through the midfield than in the role he typically lines up in on the backline and it proved to be very effective from a DT point of view. He racked up 27 disposals and 7 tackles, with a bonus 2 goals. If this move upfield becomes more permanent, he could actually be a player very much worth looking at.
• Sam Mitchell: Was very good all day, despite being tagged by Jackson. He played the entire game through the midfield and will only get better as he gets more time on ground after his injury.
• Luke Hodge: Started in the backline, but as usual he eventually moved to the midfield. He is also beginning to show that he has learned the art of breaking a tag – a massive weapon in one’s DT armory!

Disappointing:

• Graham Polak: Stayed all day at full-forward and was used as a decoy to keep Hawthorn’s key defenders from attaching themselves of the likes of Riewoldt. For those tempted by the downgrade, look elsewhere – he will be in and out of the team and his role isn’t to kick goals.
• Wayde Skipper: There was a hint of wonder as to what sort of score Skipper would be capable of in his first AFL game in a few years and his first for his new club who are crying out for a ruckman to step up. Unfortunately, whilst he competed well in the ruck, his work around the ground was close to non-existent.
• Brad Sewell: Sewell seems to be taking a while to come back to full fitness and game-time after his pre-season shoulder injury. This is not to say he won’t come good soon when he builds his fitness (at least he is being played in attacking roles) – watch this space.

Blip on the Radar:

• Matt White: This was White’s best score for the year and he did play a reasonable game, however through his short career he has proven to be an inconsistent scorer who can tempt at times – don’t get sucked in.

Port Adelaide vs Carlton:

Looking Good:

• Matthew Kruezer: Kruezer proved that he is not a ruckman – he is just a bloody tall midfielder. Whilst not doing great in the ruck, he dominated Brogan around the ground with 19 disposals, 8 marks and an impressive 6 tackles for a man of his size. He also dropped forward for three good goals.
• Chris Judd: Judd is in ripping form and is clearly one of the most important and influential skippers in the league with his ability to will his team over the line. He again broke the ton with 27 disposals and 8 tackles – he is showing no signs of slowing down, despite copping a heavy tag every week.
• Jordan Russell: Getting some big scores in dream team is one thing, but delivering them consistently is another thing altogether, and this is exactly what Russell is beginning to show. Three weeks in a row now he has dominated out of the backline and is now presenting himself as one of the best current buys in the backline.

Disappointing:

• Danyle Pearce: As was the case through all of 2009, Pearce cannot handle a tag. He was shut right out of the game by Armfield, and as usual, he did not work hard enough to break it.
• Jay Shultz: Shultz seemed to have a bit of the Barry Hall’s about him, often furious with the lack of good supply being delivered to him. He finally cracked it in the last quarter, giving away a 50-metre penalty when the game was already over.
• Kane Lucus: Only the one touch for Lucas before he went down with a hamstring injury, blowing any chances of a price rise this week (in fact, he may lose a few thousand dollars). He may now be out for a few weeks and face a challenge to get back into the side.

Blip on the Radar:

• Dennis Armfield: Armfield has always been a ‘tryer,’ but never really had the skills to be much more. However, he played out of his skin in this game, making sure Pearce had no effect on the game. Lucky for him, he was able to pick up a few stats in the process, but as a player who typically plays in the back pockets, Armfield is not the type of player who will consistently deliver high scores for your team.

Essendon vs St.Kilda:

Looking Good:

• Leigh Montagna: Continually found himself free on the wing through plenty of hard work and running, and this meant he was frequently delivered the ball by his teammates. Montagna was the number one player in 2009 for disposals by foot and he is showing similar numbers this year, so it is not hard to trust him in your team.
• Heath Hocking: Enjoyed a roaming role around the backline as the third tall who frequently found himself without an opponent. Hocking hasn’t particularly had a very consistent DT year, however with injuries to Hooker and Pears, his responsibility will become more significant.
• Sam Fisher: Played the first three quarters in Riewoldt’s role at CHF and despite the team losing, I expect Ross Lyon will keep a relatively similar structure over the next few weeks as it tended to work well. He presented very well and reads the play beautifully, leading to some good marks. Could be a good smokey pick in this position.

Disappointing:

• David Armitage: After being dropped last week and subsequently carving it up at Sandringham, Armo did very little to suggest he will keep his spot. He does make good decisions when he has the ball and can win the hard-stuff, but he seems to go missing quite easily, leading to inconsistent performances and poor DT scores.
• Andrew McQualter: Ross Lyon proved by dropping Raph Clarke that even the “teacher’s pets” weren’t safe, and this will immediately draw a dark cloud above McQualter’s head. His form this year has been poor and none worse than this game – he made poor decisions and lacked any sort of composure. Needs a run in the twos to give him a kick in the arse.
• Mark McVeigh: McVeigh spent the entirety of the game in the back-pocket, shutting down Stevie Milne. He played very well, but it has absolutely ruined his DT potential. Trade him now before he starts bleeding money.

Blip on the Radar:

• Jason Blake: Blake used to be used as a “Mr. Fixit” by both Grant Thomas and Ross Lyon until 2008 when he was told to make CHB his own. He has done this role with aplomb, but occasionally Lyon will still swing him into new roles as he has proven quite a match-winner on his day (See St.Kilda vs Hawthorn Rd. 16, 2008 – Blake into the Ruck). This was another example, with Blake being swung into CHF for the last quarter, giving him plenty of cheap kicks and marks. He competed well, but with Zac out of form, and Fisher’s current form up forward, I can guarantee he will be back to the backline next week.