The Watchlist - Season started, team Angry Pirates

[Mat0369]

Gaz - The shoulder is the only real worry, if it looks good to go round 1 and he has no further setbacks then he is locked and loaded.
Pendles - The other SC star. He is cheaper then Rocky so he will be the guy I lock in as long as he isn't carrying any niggling injuries.
Sidebottom - My smokey pick, I looked at Steele's back end to last year pretty closely and he was a SC star. He averaged 122 in that time with one score under 100 and a high of 178. He had 5 scores under 100 and two of those were in the first two rounds. If he can keep pumping out those consistent scores and with his ceiling he could easily be a top 8 mid at the end of the season.
Barlow - He had a slow start when he returned from injury before hitting a purple patch. With Fyfe under a cloud Barlow is the cheaper accumulator of the pill. He has a poor bye but is one to monitor
Heppell - He has been slowly improving and the only thing stopping him from being a super premo is his disposal. He seems like the guy that will hit the next level. A poor bye is the issue here
Bryce - Bryce had his most consistent season in the league last year and appeared to have a harder edge. He had a slow first couple rounds before hitting a purple patch in the middle of the season. He could be a handy POD with his huge ceiling and I will keep my eye on him as I think he still has improvement in him
Boak - Another guy that keeps improving. He is Ports best player and their leader, but for SC I am not sure. Again another guy that could be a POD but someone I am looking at more in the draft game. Huge ceiling but too often he has sub 80 scores which will hurt his average.
Danger - He was  frustrating last year since he was carrying an injury and not scoring well in patches, but we know his ability and he wins the contested ball which is SC gold. He could bounce back for a 110+ average but with the way he plays he is prone to those little niggle. I might look at him more as an upgrade for a multitude of reasons starting with the contract year. If he looks fit and firing around the byes he could be one of my first upgrades.
KJack - I <3 him. He is up there with Eddie as my fav non Carlton player, I love the way he plays and it translates into SC points. He was carrying an injury for most of the season and eventually was pushed forward with Parker ready to take over in the guts. The big number that I noticed for Jack that was down last year were his tackle numbers. He is quite possibly the best two way mid in the comp and the fact his tackle numbers were down from about half way in the year says that something was up. If he is fit and firing I see him as really underpriced for what he is capable of, the man is a machine with a huge ceiling and could be the best available POD at that price range. He has also managed to get those clunker scores out of his game and his poor is still serviceable
Hanners - He had a horrid start to the season, but when Sydney turned there form around so did Hanners. From round 5 until his injury game Hanners averaged 124.4 which is just ridiculous. He then finished the season off with a 154 against the Tiges and 130 against the Crowley tag before a quiet prelim and GF. I see him as under priced and I am trying to flip a coin between Hanners and Jack

[Mat0369]

Griff- So Griff had the monster season before flopping. There were internal problems at the club which resulted in him being traded while he also had the back injury in the pre-season. If he is fit he could be a prime bounce back candidate at the new club. You have a strong supporting midfield, a huge ruck and he is so damaging that he can ruck up the points. At his price he is tempting
Boyd - We could say he is past it and the niggling injuries have probably killed his SC relevance, but he started the season fit last year and was back to his monster ways. With Griff gone the responsibility is going to fall back on Boyd and Libba which could see him push 110 again in his career.
Brad Crouch - He was verrrrryyyyyy good when he returned from injury and at his age you would expect him to keep getting better. The Crows would want him to push Thompson out of the team and take his role which was very lucrative scoring wise but maybe not enough to consider.
Armitage - The man has been talked about as a breakout candidate for years. He was supposed to be the Lenny/Ball replacement but never stepped up. He had injury issues last year but has demonstrated he can score well. If he looks damaging in the NAB he might be worth looking at but I don't think he can push the 110 mark so he probably is a pass. I will be looking at him for my draft team though
Jack Steven - The man is a gun plain and simple. If he can have an injury free pre-season and play most of the NAB cup I will look at locking him in. He has shown the ability to hit around the 110 mark and can go big in games which is what makes him appealing
A Swallow - He was coming off a season ending injury and was getting back into the groove of it last year. He is a proven guy that can hit around the 110 mark and fairly consistent in his performances which makes him the ideal mid 8 candidate. He also has a pretty handy bye which makes him even more appealing. The 500k price will need to be looked at as it is between him and a cheaper Jack Steven
Joey - After a hot start Joey finished with a whimper. Is age finally catching up? The thing is the man has still put up some huge scores but can he handle the attention? He tempts me, but I think I should stay away.

[Mat0369]

Scott Selwood - The youngest Selwood had a year that was a tale of poor form and injury. He is priced at an 80 average and went 105 the two seasons before. I see him as a very handy stepping stone as long as he stays away from those tagging roles. He also has a good by for this role which I like and is priced 100k cheaper then Griff. I think a Selwood/def mid price combo is likely to outscore a Griff/basement rookie combo which is making me lean towards this
Wells - Cheaper then Selwood and proven to be capable of high scores. Another guy I am considering in the stepping stone role as he has a high ceiling and that means cash quickly. He would have to be fit and played some NAB for me to consider him so I will keep an eye.
Rich - I see Rich as the poor mans Wells but the same principles apply. If Wells fails I might look at Rich for the same purpose.
Van Berlo - Cheap, verryyyyyyy cheap. If he can get his 65-70 average back it makes him worth it already considering he should have good job security.
Hallahan - Probably the 3rd option in the Wells/Rich/Hallahan trifecta.
Clay Smith - From what meow mentioned he is still nowhere near ready.
Acres - He had one of the worst performances I ever witnessed for a relatively high score. This makes me look at him as a cheap player to start with because if he can play that bad and still score decently imagine how he will score if he plays well?
Newton - Was highly rated at the Power and killed the SANFL. He goes to the Dees for opportunity and if he can get a gig in that midfield you have to consider him at his price
Biggs - Replace SANFL with NEAFL and Port with Sydney it sums up Biggs. If he is named for the Dogs he has to be considered.
Hartung - Young, pacey and cheap. If the sub vest is abolished and he looks to be lining up round 1, lock and load.
Jed Anderson - He looked the goods in the VFL game he got injured, at his price, if he is named round 1 I am locking him in. I think it will come down to one of him or Hartung


That is all of them for now

[Vinny]

Good stuff man.

The AFL has already said the sub rule is staying.

[Mat0369]

I think the final decision will come around the NAB cup time. They are always changing their mind on things so I wouldn't be surprised if they do a backflip

[fasttrack13]

Is fix your eyes on G.Horlin-Smith...! Christensen and Varcoe departures really open the door for a breakout from him!

[Mat0369]

I had looked at Horlin-Smith the last couple of seasons but I don't think he will be anything other then depth. Caddy and Guthrie have overtaken him in the midfield.

[Woppa15]

Is fix your eyes on G.Horlin-Smith...! Christensen and Varcoe departures really open the door for a breakout from him!

I'm a Geelong fan and I love the hyphen! He is a good size, strong body, good in the contest and a smart runner. However he doesn't seem to have a whole lot of pace and that is what Geelong desperately need at the moment, plenty of ball winners, which GHS genuinely is, but geelong need more outside run. I'm expecting a big year from Motlop, assuming he's over his injuries. And I think Cockatoo will get games simply because we need his pace.

I think George is in the best 22 but not sure of his SC relevance.

[eaglesman]

If named cockatoo round 1 locked in for mine

[Deadly6]

Is fix your eyes on G.Horlin-Smith...! Christensen and Varcoe departures really open the door for a breakout from him!

I'm a Geelong fan and I love the hyphen! He is a good size, strong body, good in the contest and a smart runner. However he doesn't seem to have a whole lot of pace and that is what Geelong desperately need at the moment, plenty of ball winners, which GHS genuinely is, but geelong need more outside run. I'm expecting a big year from Motlop, assuming he's over his injuries. And I think Cockatoo will get games simply because we need his pace.

I think George is in the best 22 but not sure of his SC relevance.

Where does Smedts fit into the scheme of things?

[Woppa15]

Is fix your eyes on G.Horlin-Smith...! Christensen and Varcoe departures really open the door for a breakout from him!

I'm a Geelong fan and I love the hyphen! He is a good size, strong body, good in the contest and a smart runner. However he doesn't seem to have a whole lot of pace and that is what Geelong desperately need at the moment, plenty of ball winners, which GHS genuinely is, but geelong need more outside run. I'm expecting a big year from Motlop, assuming he's over his injuries. And I think Cockatoo will get games simply because we need his pace.

I think George is in the best 22 but not sure of his SC relevance.

Where does Smedts fit into the scheme of things?

The midfield depth at Geelong is Interesting at the moment.
You've got your regulars in: Selwood, Duncan, Stokes and Caddy.

Then you've got the older guys who will spend time in there but will also be making way for the younger crop: Johnson, Bartel, Kelly.

Then there's the young guys (3-5 years at club) who you would expect to get more mid time: GHS, Guthrie, Motlop, Smedts, Murdoch.

Then there's the new comers (1-2 years at club) who they will be wanting to get more time and development into: Cockatoo, Lang, Hartman.

The issue I see Geelong having is that they have a lot of mid/half fwd and mid/half back type players and only a handful of genuine midfielders. So it will come down to opponents and game day roles for a lot of the younger guys. Will be a definite wait and see on NAB to see who they're trying to promote to genuine midfielder status.

I guess that doesn't really answer your question about Smedts though

[Deadly6]

Is fix your eyes on G.Horlin-Smith...! Christensen and Varcoe departures really open the door for a breakout from him!

I'm a Geelong fan and I love the hyphen! He is a good size, strong body, good in the contest and a smart runner. However he doesn't seem to have a whole lot of pace and that is what Geelong desperately need at the moment, plenty of ball winners, which GHS genuinely is, but geelong need more outside run. I'm expecting a big year from Motlop, assuming he's over his injuries. And I think Cockatoo will get games simply because we need his pace.

I think George is in the best 22 but not sure of his SC relevance.

Where does Smedts fit into the scheme of things?

The midfield depth at Geelong is Interesting at the moment.
You've got your regulars in: Selwood, Duncan, Stokes and Caddy.

Then you've got the older guys who will spend time in there but will also be making way for the younger crop: Johnson, Bartel, Kelly.

Then there's the young guys (3-5 years at club) who you would expect to get more mid time: GHS, Guthrie, Motlop, Smedts, Murdoch.

Then there's the new comers (1-2 years at club) who they will be wanting to get more time and development into: Cockatoo, Lang, Hartman.

The issue I see Geelong having is that they have a lot of mid/half fwd and mid/half back type players and only a handful of genuine midfielders. So it will come down to opponents and game day roles for a lot of the younger guys. Will be a definite wait and see on NAB to see who they're trying to promote to genuine midfielder status.

I guess that doesn't really answer your question about Smedts though

Fair enough, you're saying he's just one of many. He looked like he might crack it two seasons ago but hasn't progressed.

[Mat0369]

My rough first draft based on some of the guys named

Backs: Simmo, Shaw, LaBamba, Seed, R.Hendo, WhiteX, NBrown, HGoddard
Mids: Gaz, Pendles, Sidebum, Hanners, S Selwood, Van Berlo, Biggs, Boekhorst, Laverde, Freeman, Kark
Rucks: Nic Nat, Nicholls, Lobb
Forwards: Lids, BJ, Buddy, Jeffy, Kommer, Clark, Hogan, Lambert

18.2k left over

I was too tired to take a screen cap and surprisingly found it easier to type it out

[eaglesman]

I have the same rucks right now

[Ricochet]

Very unique side mate. Be careful with Hendo. With BSmith and Jaensch taking up the rebounding roles last year, plus the arrival of a new coach it's hard to see exactly what Hendo's role will be. And Nicholls, with Smith being in the frame again there are much better options imo. Also Jeff Garlett, he has only averaged over 73 once so you might need someone a bit more solid at F4. Loving the rest of the side and the unique picks like Hanners. Oh SSelwood, he's still struggling to get 100% and may miss round 1. Something to keep an eye on.