TonyK
Tash Jayasinghe
CibbuanoAFL Trade Week analsyis
October 14th 2006 01:52
With the silly season that is trade week over for another year, here we take a closer look at the major players and predict how they will fare in 2007.
Western Bulldogs
Gained: Jason Akermanis
Andrew McDougall
The signing of Akermanis which cost the Dogs the No. 34 pick in next month's National Draft may have been the most high profile one for the club but isn't necessarily the most important going forward.
The Bulldogs already have an impressive midfield, with the likes of Farren Ray, Adam Cooney, Ryan Griffen, Daniel Giansiracusa and co. likely to form the core of an impressive midfield to rival West Coast for the next decade.
While Akermanis' credentials cannot be questioned as a three-time premiership player and Brownlow medallist, he is 29 and probably only has a couple of years of good football left in him.
What the Bulldogs do lack is a genuine key-forward.
Stand-in skipper Brad Johnson finished second in the Coleman medal race behind Carlton spearhead Brendon Fevola with 74 majors, but stands at mere 182 centimetres- not a genuine target that will stand up in the pressure of September.
While McDougall isn't the solution, he does provide some relief and with Luke Darcy set to return from a knee injury as a forward- with Will Minson and Peter Street doing a more than servicable job in the ruck, the Dogs forward line takes on a more potent and less one-dimensional look.
With a classy midfield division, some luck with injuries and some height up forward you would expect the Dogs to push on from their semi-final berth this year and become a top-four contender in 2007.
Collingwood
Gained: Paul Medhurst
Lost: Chris Tarrant
It was a risky and suprising move by the Pies to give up Tarrant for a small forward and the No.8 pick in the National draft.
The Magpies already have Alan Didak and Leon Davis as small forwards and you would expect skipper Nathan Buckley to spend more time inside the forward 50 as he nears the end of his career.
With Tarrant gone and Didak likely to miss the bulk of next season as he recovers from a knee reconstruction, a lot of the pressure will go onto Anthony Rocca who struggled in the second half of the season as his fitness and attitude came into question.
The addition of Medhurst is a suprising one given the quality small forwards the Pies already have at their disposal, and the former Docker is no certainty to fire having managed only 12 goals from as many starts this year compared to 50 in 2003.
Coach Mick Malthouse will be banking on Medhurst and Rocca to fire and Sean Rusling to become the Pies second key target up forward, which is a big gamble when you consider the 20-year-old has played 11 games for six goals.
The Pies will be looking to secure a classy midfielder with pace to burn with their first pick, after they were sorely exposed for their lack of pace during their elimination final loss to the Bulldogs.
With Didak likely to miss the bulk of next season, midfielder Brodie Holland to miss the opening six rounds due to suspension and Medhurst no certainty to fire it looks like tough times ahead for the Pies and they will scrape into the bottom half of the eight.
St Kilda
Gained: Michael Gardiner
Shane Birss
The addition of Gardiner is a gamble given his off-field troubles and injury woes which have restricted him to a meagre 18 games since 2003.
However, it is a gamble new Saints coach Ross Lyon had to take considering the injury troubles which have plagued the short career of Justin Koschitzke and the fact that fellow ruckmen Barry Brooks, Michael Rix and Cain Ackland have struggled to compete.
There is no questioning Gardiner's ability and rewind the clock back three years and the former Eagle was the best tap ruckmen in the competition.
Since then he has been consumed by off-field misdemeanours and serious injuries which led to his eventual demise at West Coast.
If the 27-year-old is able to get his body and attitude right, which by all reports he is well on the way to doing, then he will be a valuable addition to a St Kilda side which in the past has placed little value on quality ruckmen in the past, which potentially cost them a flag after two preliminary finals in the past three years.
Meanwhile, Birss at 23 with over 50 games under his belt comes to Moorabbin as a ready-made player and will offer the Saints some flexibility down back and is more than capable of pushing into the midfield and providing support for the likes of Robert Harvey, Luke Ball and Nick Dal Santo.
How well Gardiner and Koschitzke work in tandem will be a key for the Saints, however their lack of pace through the midfield and deficiencies down back with defender Matt Maguire still recovering from a serious leg injury you would expect the Saints to finish in the bottom half of the eight.
Fremantle
Gained: Chris Tarrant
Dean Solomon
Lost: Graham Polak
Paul Medhurst
The addition of Tarrant, whose hard-leading style will be suited to the wide open expanses of Subiaco Oval will enable coach Chris Connolly to play Matthew Pavlich closer to goal and potentially become the club's first 100-plus goalkicker after booting 71 majors this season.
Meanwhile Solomon will offer the Dockers some much needed hardness which they were sorely exposed for against Sydney in their preliminary final.
While the Dockers secured the services of Tarrant and Solomon, they had to trade Graham Polak, Paul Medhurst and pick No. 8 in the process.
The loss of Polak and Medhurst isn't a big one when you put things into context.
Fremantle have Michael Johnson and David Mundy who already fulfil a similiar role and small forward Jeff Farmer has clearly been a better player since Medhurst was dropped from the side and was a major factor in the club's stark mid-season revival.
However, giving up pick No.8 in the draft is a big gamble by Connolly and the club.
In what is regarded as the strongest draft in recent memory, first-round and even second-round picks are considered golden.
But Connolly clearly believes Fremantle has the squad to win a flag and the signatures of Tarrant and Solomon are simply the icing on the cake as the club strives to go one step further next season.
After this year's stunning mid-season turnaround and eventual preliminary final berth, you would expect Fremantle to continue to build and be a genuine contender for the flag next season.
Sydney
Gained: Peter Everitt
It took until the dying minutes of the final day of trade week, but the Swans finally secured the services of Peter Everitt.
With the addition of Everitt the Swans have arguably the strongest ruck division in the competion, with Spida to share the load with Darren Jolly and Stephen Doyle who were comprehensively beaten by Dean Cox and to a lesser extent Mark Seaby in the grand final.
Coach Paul Roos clearly sees this as the last chance for this group to push for the premiership, with co-captains Brett Kirk, Barry Hall and Leo Barry all pushing 30.
The signing of Everitt is a major coup for Sydney and with the spirit of the Bloods firmly entrenched within this group you would expect the Swans to be around the mark again next season.
Richmond
Gained: Graham Polak
Richmond secured the key position player they were looking for, with Darren Gaspar sidelined due to injury this season the Tigers were sorely exposed for their lack of key defenders and this was no more evident than against St Kilda in round 17 when Fraser Gehrig booted 10.
The addition of Polak gives coach Terry Wallace some added flexibility and should enable him to free up defender Joel Bowden who was often forced to fight out his weight division.
The former Docker is capable of playing forward, however considering the lack of talls Wallace has at his disposal in key defensive posts you would expect Polak to start at centre half-back.
After finishing ninth this year, and uncovering gems such as Dean Polo and Andrew Raines you would expect the Tigers to build on this year's good work and secure a finals berth.
What do you think. Have your say.
Western Bulldogs
Gained: Jason Akermanis
Andrew McDougall
The signing of Akermanis which cost the Dogs the No. 34 pick in next month's National Draft may have been the most high profile one for the club but isn't necessarily the most important going forward.
The Bulldogs already have an impressive midfield, with the likes of Farren Ray, Adam Cooney, Ryan Griffen, Daniel Giansiracusa and co. likely to form the core of an impressive midfield to rival West Coast for the next decade.
While Akermanis' credentials cannot be questioned as a three-time premiership player and Brownlow medallist, he is 29 and probably only has a couple of years of good football left in him.
What the Bulldogs do lack is a genuine key-forward.
Stand-in skipper Brad Johnson finished second in the Coleman medal race behind Carlton spearhead Brendon Fevola with 74 majors, but stands at mere 182 centimetres- not a genuine target that will stand up in the pressure of September.
While McDougall isn't the solution, he does provide some relief and with Luke Darcy set to return from a knee injury as a forward- with Will Minson and Peter Street doing a more than servicable job in the ruck, the Dogs forward line takes on a more potent and less one-dimensional look.
With a classy midfield division, some luck with injuries and some height up forward you would expect the Dogs to push on from their semi-final berth this year and become a top-four contender in 2007.
Collingwood
Gained: Paul Medhurst
Lost: Chris Tarrant
It was a risky and suprising move by the Pies to give up Tarrant for a small forward and the No.8 pick in the National draft.
The Magpies already have Alan Didak and Leon Davis as small forwards and you would expect skipper Nathan Buckley to spend more time inside the forward 50 as he nears the end of his career.
With Tarrant gone and Didak likely to miss the bulk of next season as he recovers from a knee reconstruction, a lot of the pressure will go onto Anthony Rocca who struggled in the second half of the season as his fitness and attitude came into question.
The addition of Medhurst is a suprising one given the quality small forwards the Pies already have at their disposal, and the former Docker is no certainty to fire having managed only 12 goals from as many starts this year compared to 50 in 2003.
Coach Mick Malthouse will be banking on Medhurst and Rocca to fire and Sean Rusling to become the Pies second key target up forward, which is a big gamble when you consider the 20-year-old has played 11 games for six goals.
The Pies will be looking to secure a classy midfielder with pace to burn with their first pick, after they were sorely exposed for their lack of pace during their elimination final loss to the Bulldogs.
With Didak likely to miss the bulk of next season, midfielder Brodie Holland to miss the opening six rounds due to suspension and Medhurst no certainty to fire it looks like tough times ahead for the Pies and they will scrape into the bottom half of the eight.
St Kilda
Gained: Michael Gardiner
Shane Birss
The addition of Gardiner is a gamble given his off-field troubles and injury woes which have restricted him to a meagre 18 games since 2003.
However, it is a gamble new Saints coach Ross Lyon had to take considering the injury troubles which have plagued the short career of Justin Koschitzke and the fact that fellow ruckmen Barry Brooks, Michael Rix and Cain Ackland have struggled to compete.
There is no questioning Gardiner's ability and rewind the clock back three years and the former Eagle was the best tap ruckmen in the competition.
Since then he has been consumed by off-field misdemeanours and serious injuries which led to his eventual demise at West Coast.
If the 27-year-old is able to get his body and attitude right, which by all reports he is well on the way to doing, then he will be a valuable addition to a St Kilda side which in the past has placed little value on quality ruckmen in the past, which potentially cost them a flag after two preliminary finals in the past three years.
Meanwhile, Birss at 23 with over 50 games under his belt comes to Moorabbin as a ready-made player and will offer the Saints some flexibility down back and is more than capable of pushing into the midfield and providing support for the likes of Robert Harvey, Luke Ball and Nick Dal Santo.
How well Gardiner and Koschitzke work in tandem will be a key for the Saints, however their lack of pace through the midfield and deficiencies down back with defender Matt Maguire still recovering from a serious leg injury you would expect the Saints to finish in the bottom half of the eight.
Fremantle
Gained: Chris Tarrant
Dean Solomon
Lost: Graham Polak
Paul Medhurst
The addition of Tarrant, whose hard-leading style will be suited to the wide open expanses of Subiaco Oval will enable coach Chris Connolly to play Matthew Pavlich closer to goal and potentially become the club's first 100-plus goalkicker after booting 71 majors this season.
Meanwhile Solomon will offer the Dockers some much needed hardness which they were sorely exposed for against Sydney in their preliminary final.
While the Dockers secured the services of Tarrant and Solomon, they had to trade Graham Polak, Paul Medhurst and pick No. 8 in the process.
The loss of Polak and Medhurst isn't a big one when you put things into context.
Fremantle have Michael Johnson and David Mundy who already fulfil a similiar role and small forward Jeff Farmer has clearly been a better player since Medhurst was dropped from the side and was a major factor in the club's stark mid-season revival.
However, giving up pick No.8 in the draft is a big gamble by Connolly and the club.
In what is regarded as the strongest draft in recent memory, first-round and even second-round picks are considered golden.
But Connolly clearly believes Fremantle has the squad to win a flag and the signatures of Tarrant and Solomon are simply the icing on the cake as the club strives to go one step further next season.
After this year's stunning mid-season turnaround and eventual preliminary final berth, you would expect Fremantle to continue to build and be a genuine contender for the flag next season.
Sydney
Gained: Peter Everitt
It took until the dying minutes of the final day of trade week, but the Swans finally secured the services of Peter Everitt.
With the addition of Everitt the Swans have arguably the strongest ruck division in the competion, with Spida to share the load with Darren Jolly and Stephen Doyle who were comprehensively beaten by Dean Cox and to a lesser extent Mark Seaby in the grand final.
Coach Paul Roos clearly sees this as the last chance for this group to push for the premiership, with co-captains Brett Kirk, Barry Hall and Leo Barry all pushing 30.
The signing of Everitt is a major coup for Sydney and with the spirit of the Bloods firmly entrenched within this group you would expect the Swans to be around the mark again next season.
Richmond
Gained: Graham Polak
Richmond secured the key position player they were looking for, with Darren Gaspar sidelined due to injury this season the Tigers were sorely exposed for their lack of key defenders and this was no more evident than against St Kilda in round 17 when Fraser Gehrig booted 10.
The addition of Polak gives coach Terry Wallace some added flexibility and should enable him to free up defender Joel Bowden who was often forced to fight out his weight division.
The former Docker is capable of playing forward, however considering the lack of talls Wallace has at his disposal in key defensive posts you would expect Polak to start at centre half-back.
After finishing ninth this year, and uncovering gems such as Dean Polo and Andrew Raines you would expect the Tigers to build on this year's good work and secure a finals berth.
What do you think. Have your say.
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Comment by Harmony Rocks
head for threads
Harmony's Forum For You
Harmony's Forum For You
I should be coming over here more often, especially since you were nice enough to explain football-football-soccer to me.
Anyway, I came to learn something new and, by looking at the list I just made, I've learned the names of the six teams in the AFL Central.
Glad to do my part in strengthening international sports relations.
HR
Comment by TonyK
AFL Central
The only reason six teams have been mentioned is because a lot of clubs didn't do any trading during the week, namely Carlton, Kangaroos, Geelong, Melbourne, Adelaide, Port Adelaide etc.
I dont remember explaining football-football-soccer to you, I must have a short memory
Thanks for the stopping by
Cheers
Comment by Harmony Rocks
head for threads
Harmony's Forum For You
Harmony's Forum For You
I
Comment by TonyK
AFL Central
Comment by Harmony Rocks
head for threads
Harmony's Forum For You
Harmony's Forum For You
But I'm sure you're very nice, too.