Opinion 2024 AFL SuperCoach Planning Thread
- Thread starter MC's Mix
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Just a special player. Has the skills to become a uber this year and go 120+ . In my DRAFT Team. With a solid preseason will be impossible for me to leave out.
Just a embarrisng amount of Quality youth at North that will set the club up for the next decade. Everything is in place for the Club to win a premiership in the next 5-6 years.
Just a embarrisng amount of Quality youth at North that will set the club up for the next decade. Everything is in place for the Club to win a premiership in the next 5-6 years.
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Thanks again!! @Beg2Differ
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Fremantle’s backline jokes that the defenders are taking over.
“They’re saying that the more defenders they can spread throughout the field, the better the team will be,” Hayden Young said on Tuesday ahead of Fremantle’s final training session of the year.
In reality, Fremantle’s midfield is already the biggest talking point ahead of 2024.
Young’s move from the backline isn’t the only drastic change Fremantle is set to make to its on-ball division next year. Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. The Dockers also added former Sun Jeremy Sharp through the supplementary selection period.
It’s all part of Justin Longmuir’s plan to add unpredictability to Fremantle’s midfield. Premiers Collingwood had 20 different players attend at least one centre bounce throughout the season. The Dockers finished with 14, one of which was departed forward Lachie Schultz.
Fremantle is facing a selection headache in 2024, with Hayden Young set to move from the backline into a stacked midfield. Picture: Getty Images
“We want to have different looks in our midfield,” Young said. “We’ve got players like Sam Switkowski that can come through and pinch hit. Luke Jackson can play ruck and midfield.
“We want to have some diversity in there and be versatile and be a threat. Hopefully this year, with the group we’ve got at the moment, we can make it difficult for teams to scout us and play against us.”
It’s a necessary shift for Fremantle’s finals aspirations. But it also threatens to create a selection headache, one that Longmuir still has an entire summer to somehow soothe.
The midfield group at the Dockers’ second-last training session of 2023 on Thursday had all the ingredients of an elite AFL midfield. The only problem is that there are too many players to fit in.
There was reigning Doig medallist and all-Australian Caleb Serong, fellow Doig Medallist and co-vice-captain Andrew Brayshaw, two-time Brownlow medallist Nat Fyfe, young stars Neil Erasmus and Matthew Johnson, forgotten recruit Will Brodie, trade acquisition Jaeger O’Meara and Young.
Wing candidates Chapman, Sharp and Nathan O’Driscoll were there too. And rucks Sean Darcy and Jackson.
Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. Picture: Getty Images)
The majority played regular senior football last year. But 13 doesn’t fit into six.
That begs the question, what will Fremantle’s starting midfield mix look like in round one next season?
The nucleus will likely be formed around Serong, Brayshaw and Young. The trio roved together consistently in the closing month of Fremantle’s season and looked the part. Serong did the dirty work. Brayshaw was trusted to make the next decision in the stoppage chain. And Young played a negating role on some of the league’s best midfielders but his offensive skills were a major asset.
With a full pre-season with the midfield, Young is expected to become even more of a threat.
“It’s refreshing to be learning new things,” he said. “I feel like I’m back in my first year. There’s a lot of new terminology and structures I have to be aware of.
“Last year I got a bit of experience in the midfield but the good thing was I was thrown in there with not a lot of instruction. I was told just to play which I think helped me in those games.
“There’s a bit more homework for me to do and it’s exciting for me coming to work every day.
“I think the natural progression is to be a ball-winning midfielder and have the ability to negate if that role is given to me.”
If Chapman can stay fit after an injury-riddled season, he’s set to occupy one of the wing spots. Even in defence, the 21-year-old’s clean skills and decision-making were evident. The West Perth product has great endurance and with his background as a backman, the Dockers can trust him to drop back and provide support.
Nat Fyfe started 2023 as a forward but was forced back into the midfield. But where does he fit into the midfield puzzle now? Picture: Getty Images
James Aish trained with the backline on Tuesday, indicating that Fremantle may be looking to explore an entirely new wing combination. Sharp has already made an impression, smashing his teammates and even challenging Olympian Peter Bol during a set of pre-season time trials. While O’Driscoll was a revelation on the wing in 2022 but fell out of favour this year.
Darcy remains Fremantle’s number one ruck and is on track to rejoin the main group after a season-ending ankle injury. He’ll again be supported by Jackson, who is likely to start up forward.
That makes six – three rovers, two wings and one ruck. And it shapes as a worrisome equation for those left over.
Fyfe started 2023 as a forward. But when Fremantle’s midfield was pushed around in the early stages of the season, the Dockers had no choice but to reintroduce him back into the midfield. The former captain has re-signed for a further two seasons and has returned to training injury-free after a stress fracture ended his season.
Fyfe is the most interesting piece of the puzzle. His stature and ability make him almost undroppable. But he’s never been a defensively-minded midfielder and the forward experiment is yet to pay off.
O’Meara is a member of Fremantle’s leadership group. But it’s going to be very difficult for the Dockers to play both him and Fyfe in the same team as both are contested beasts. It’s the same equation Fremantle faced choosing between O’Meara and Brodie this year with the added complexity of Young.
Then there’s emerging stars Erasmus and Johnson. Erasmus has indicated that he wants to play a mix of inside midfield and up forward. While Johnson stepped ahead of Erasmus in Fremantle’s midfield pecking order this year and played 18 games.
This year, the Dockers mostly fielded a combination of no more than five midfielders at centre bounces. Serong and Brayshaw were regulars, attending at least 75 per cent of centre bounces in every game they played. And the remaining minutes were divided up between other on-ballers.
Fremantle’s desire for midfield unpredictability isn’t impossible. It will hinge on versatility.
Those fighting for a spot have no choice but to make themselves valuable in other positions, allowing the Dockers to squeeze an extra midfielder or two into the team. There’s also the option of the substitute role, albeit a bane for any player handed the vest.
On paper, Fremantle is at risk of having too many cooks in the kitchen. But the Dockers have the rest of pre-season to figure it out.
An abundance of AFL midfielders is a good problem to have. It’s just one that might give Longmuir a few sleepless nights in the lead-up to round one.
AFL 2024: Fremantle face selection headache as Hayden Young, Heath Chapman join suddenly abundant midfield mix | CODE Sports
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Was injury prone yes, but still managed to average a very good 113.... unfortunately this means he is priced at 113. Unless you think he can average 120 i would just pick someone else who isn't injury prone, even dual brownlow medalist Neale is cheaper than him and Brayshaw. For less than $20k more you could get Laird who has been very durable. If you really like him though grab him, his durability issues compared to others around his price point has me preferring others.
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Is injury prone a fair tag? Were the injuries of a contact or non contact nature? Were they all to the same region or different regions? How many injuries does it to take to receive the injury prone tag? What are the associated recurrence rates for the injuries suffered and will this have any bearing on 2024 or the remainder of his career?
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I'm not thinking that scientifically about it. There have always been players whose bodies just seem to be more injury prone for whatever reason. LDU missed games from 3 separate injuries last year. Probably to early in his career to know if he will continue to be injury prone, but historically he definitely has been.
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Fremantle’s backline jokes that the defenders are taking over.
“They’re saying that the more defenders they can spread throughout the field, the better the team will be,” Hayden Young said on Tuesday ahead of Fremantle’s final training session of the year.
In reality, Fremantle’s midfield is already the biggest talking point ahead of 2024.
Young’s move from the backline isn’t the only drastic change Fremantle is set to make to its on-ball division next year. Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. The Dockers also added former Sun Jeremy Sharp through the supplementary selection period.
It’s all part of Justin Longmuir’s plan to add unpredictability to Fremantle’s midfield. Premiers Collingwood had 20 different players attend at least one centre bounce throughout the season. The Dockers finished with 14, one of which was departed forward Lachie Schultz.
Fremantle is facing a selection headache in 2024, with Hayden Young set to move from the backline into a stacked midfield. Picture: Getty Images
“We want to have different looks in our midfield,” Young said. “We’ve got players like Sam Switkowski that can come through and pinch hit. Luke Jackson can play ruck and midfield.
“We want to have some diversity in there and be versatile and be a threat. Hopefully this year, with the group we’ve got at the moment, we can make it difficult for teams to scout us and play against us.”
It’s a necessary shift for Fremantle’s finals aspirations. But it also threatens to create a selection headache, one that Longmuir still has an entire summer to somehow soothe.
The midfield group at the Dockers’ second-last training session of 2023 on Thursday had all the ingredients of an elite AFL midfield. The only problem is that there are too many players to fit in.
There was reigning Doig medallist and all-Australian Caleb Serong, fellow Doig Medallist and co-vice-captain Andrew Brayshaw, two-time Brownlow medallist Nat Fyfe, young stars Neil Erasmus and Matthew Johnson, forgotten recruit Will Brodie, trade acquisition Jaeger O’Meara and Young.
Wing candidates Chapman, Sharp and Nathan O’Driscoll were there too. And rucks Sean Darcy and Jackson.
Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. Picture: Getty Images)
The majority played regular senior football last year. But 13 doesn’t fit into six.
That begs the question, what will Fremantle’s starting midfield mix look like in round one next season?
The nucleus will likely be formed around Serong, Brayshaw and Young. The trio roved together consistently in the closing month of Fremantle’s season and looked the part. Serong did the dirty work. Brayshaw was trusted to make the next decision in the stoppage chain. And Young played a negating role on some of the league’s best midfielders but his offensive skills were a major asset.
With a full pre-season with the midfield, Young is expected to become even more of a threat.
“It’s refreshing to be learning new things,” he said. “I feel like I’m back in my first year. There’s a lot of new terminology and structures I have to be aware of.
“Last year I got a bit of experience in the midfield but the good thing was I was thrown in there with not a lot of instruction. I was told just to play which I think helped me in those games.
“There’s a bit more homework for me to do and it’s exciting for me coming to work every day.
“I think the natural progression is to be a ball-winning midfielder and have the ability to negate if that role is given to me.”
If Chapman can stay fit after an injury-riddled season, he’s set to occupy one of the wing spots. Even in defence, the 21-year-old’s clean skills and decision-making were evident. The West Perth product has great endurance and with his background as a backman, the Dockers can trust him to drop back and provide support.
Nat Fyfe started 2023 as a forward but was forced back into the midfield. But where does he fit into the midfield puzzle now? Picture: Getty Images
James Aish trained with the backline on Tuesday, indicating that Fremantle may be looking to explore an entirely new wing combination. Sharp has already made an impression, smashing his teammates and even challenging Olympian Peter Bol during a set of pre-season time trials. While O’Driscoll was a revelation on the wing in 2022 but fell out of favour this year.
Darcy remains Fremantle’s number one ruck and is on track to rejoin the main group after a season-ending ankle injury. He’ll again be supported by Jackson, who is likely to start up forward.
That makes six – three rovers, two wings and one ruck. And it shapes as a worrisome equation for those left over.
Fyfe started 2023 as a forward. But when Fremantle’s midfield was pushed around in the early stages of the season, the Dockers had no choice but to reintroduce him back into the midfield. The former captain has re-signed for a further two seasons and has returned to training injury-free after a stress fracture ended his season.
Fyfe is the most interesting piece of the puzzle. His stature and ability make him almost undroppable. But he’s never been a defensively-minded midfielder and the forward experiment is yet to pay off.
O’Meara is a member of Fremantle’s leadership group. But it’s going to be very difficult for the Dockers to play both him and Fyfe in the same team as both are contested beasts. It’s the same equation Fremantle faced choosing between O’Meara and Brodie this year with the added complexity of Young.
Then there’s emerging stars Erasmus and Johnson. Erasmus has indicated that he wants to play a mix of inside midfield and up forward. While Johnson stepped ahead of Erasmus in Fremantle’s midfield pecking order this year and played 18 games.
This year, the Dockers mostly fielded a combination of no more than five midfielders at centre bounces. Serong and Brayshaw were regulars, attending at least 75 per cent of centre bounces in every game they played. And the remaining minutes were divided up between other on-ballers.
Fremantle’s desire for midfield unpredictability isn’t impossible. It will hinge on versatility.
Those fighting for a spot have no choice but to make themselves valuable in other positions, allowing the Dockers to squeeze an extra midfielder or two into the team. There’s also the option of the substitute role, albeit a bane for any player handed the vest.
On paper, Fremantle is at risk of having too many cooks in the kitchen. But the Dockers have the rest of pre-season to figure it out.
An abundance of AFL midfielders is a good problem to have. It’s just one that might give Longmuir a few sleepless nights in the lead-up to round one.
AFL 2024: Fremantle face selection headache as Hayden Young, Heath Chapman join suddenly abundant midfield mix | CODE Sports
Fremantle’s backline jokes that the defenders are taking over.
“They’re saying that the more defenders they can spread throughout the field, the better the team will be,” Hayden Young said on Tuesday ahead of Fremantle’s final training session of the year.
In reality, Fremantle’s midfield is already the biggest talking point ahead of 2024.
Young’s move from the backline isn’t the only drastic change Fremantle is set to make to its on-ball division next year. Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. The Dockers also added former Sun Jeremy Sharp through the supplementary selection period.
It’s all part of Justin Longmuir’s plan to add unpredictability to Fremantle’s midfield. Premiers Collingwood had 20 different players attend at least one centre bounce throughout the season. The Dockers finished with 14, one of which was departed forward Lachie Schultz.
Fremantle is facing a selection headache in 2024, with Hayden Young set to move from the backline into a stacked midfield. Picture: Getty Images
“We want to have different looks in our midfield,” Young said. “We’ve got players like Sam Switkowski that can come through and pinch hit. Luke Jackson can play ruck and midfield.
“We want to have some diversity in there and be versatile and be a threat. Hopefully this year, with the group we’ve got at the moment, we can make it difficult for teams to scout us and play against us.”
It’s a necessary shift for Fremantle’s finals aspirations. But it also threatens to create a selection headache, one that Longmuir still has an entire summer to somehow soothe.
The midfield group at the Dockers’ second-last training session of 2023 on Thursday had all the ingredients of an elite AFL midfield. The only problem is that there are too many players to fit in.
There was reigning Doig medallist and all-Australian Caleb Serong, fellow Doig Medallist and co-vice-captain Andrew Brayshaw, two-time Brownlow medallist Nat Fyfe, young stars Neil Erasmus and Matthew Johnson, forgotten recruit Will Brodie, trade acquisition Jaeger O’Meara and Young.
Wing candidates Chapman, Sharp and Nathan O’Driscoll were there too. And rucks Sean Darcy and Jackson.
Heath Chapman has also been touted as an option to replace departed wingman Liam Henry. Picture: Getty Images)
The majority played regular senior football last year. But 13 doesn’t fit into six.
That begs the question, what will Fremantle’s starting midfield mix look like in round one next season?
The nucleus will likely be formed around Serong, Brayshaw and Young. The trio roved together consistently in the closing month of Fremantle’s season and looked the part. Serong did the dirty work. Brayshaw was trusted to make the next decision in the stoppage chain. And Young played a negating role on some of the league’s best midfielders but his offensive skills were a major asset.
With a full pre-season with the midfield, Young is expected to become even more of a threat.
“It’s refreshing to be learning new things,” he said. “I feel like I’m back in my first year. There’s a lot of new terminology and structures I have to be aware of.
“Last year I got a bit of experience in the midfield but the good thing was I was thrown in there with not a lot of instruction. I was told just to play which I think helped me in those games.
“There’s a bit more homework for me to do and it’s exciting for me coming to work every day.
“I think the natural progression is to be a ball-winning midfielder and have the ability to negate if that role is given to me.”
If Chapman can stay fit after an injury-riddled season, he’s set to occupy one of the wing spots. Even in defence, the 21-year-old’s clean skills and decision-making were evident. The West Perth product has great endurance and with his background as a backman, the Dockers can trust him to drop back and provide support.
Nat Fyfe started 2023 as a forward but was forced back into the midfield. But where does he fit into the midfield puzzle now? Picture: Getty Images
James Aish trained with the backline on Tuesday, indicating that Fremantle may be looking to explore an entirely new wing combination. Sharp has already made an impression, smashing his teammates and even challenging Olympian Peter Bol during a set of pre-season time trials. While O’Driscoll was a revelation on the wing in 2022 but fell out of favour this year.
Darcy remains Fremantle’s number one ruck and is on track to rejoin the main group after a season-ending ankle injury. He’ll again be supported by Jackson, who is likely to start up forward.
That makes six – three rovers, two wings and one ruck. And it shapes as a worrisome equation for those left over.
Fyfe started 2023 as a forward. But when Fremantle’s midfield was pushed around in the early stages of the season, the Dockers had no choice but to reintroduce him back into the midfield. The former captain has re-signed for a further two seasons and has returned to training injury-free after a stress fracture ended his season.
Fyfe is the most interesting piece of the puzzle. His stature and ability make him almost undroppable. But he’s never been a defensively-minded midfielder and the forward experiment is yet to pay off.
O’Meara is a member of Fremantle’s leadership group. But it’s going to be very difficult for the Dockers to play both him and Fyfe in the same team as both are contested beasts. It’s the same equation Fremantle faced choosing between O’Meara and Brodie this year with the added complexity of Young.
Then there’s emerging stars Erasmus and Johnson. Erasmus has indicated that he wants to play a mix of inside midfield and up forward. While Johnson stepped ahead of Erasmus in Fremantle’s midfield pecking order this year and played 18 games.
This year, the Dockers mostly fielded a combination of no more than five midfielders at centre bounces. Serong and Brayshaw were regulars, attending at least 75 per cent of centre bounces in every game they played. And the remaining minutes were divided up between other on-ballers.
Fremantle’s desire for midfield unpredictability isn’t impossible. It will hinge on versatility.
Those fighting for a spot have no choice but to make themselves valuable in other positions, allowing the Dockers to squeeze an extra midfielder or two into the team. There’s also the option of the substitute role, albeit a bane for any player handed the vest.
On paper, Fremantle is at risk of having too many cooks in the kitchen. But the Dockers have the rest of pre-season to figure it out.
An abundance of AFL midfielders is a good problem to have. It’s just one that might give Longmuir a few sleepless nights in the lead-up to round one.
AFL 2024: Fremantle face selection headache as Hayden Young, Heath Chapman join suddenly abundant midfield mix | CODE Sports
Young FWD Emmett on watch also.
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Think injury prone is a fair tag, withdrawn multiple times and late with no warning (some times), and not sure any came from impacts.
From memory, first withdrawal was ankle injury, then a heel injury, the a hamstring injury and then a bit toe injury from surfing,
Add the late notice factor which is fair to blame on North Melbourne, hard to pick unless you can identify why this changes. Expect he may miss less games in 2024 (can anyone have this many injuries again), however, as TopBillings mentioned he played under duress for a few games which can see his price depreciate as you hold on that he turns it around.
For the sake of 5-10 point upside, missing 2 or more games puts him well behind other players, particularly in a year where there are 2x as many byes.
His positive is North Melb have one of the better bye's and we can all agree on his day he is a quality player.
From memory, first withdrawal was ankle injury, then a heel injury, the a hamstring injury and then a bit toe injury from surfing,
Add the late notice factor which is fair to blame on North Melbourne, hard to pick unless you can identify why this changes. Expect he may miss less games in 2024 (can anyone have this many injuries again), however, as TopBillings mentioned he played under duress for a few games which can see his price depreciate as you hold on that he turns it around.
For the sake of 5-10 point upside, missing 2 or more games puts him well behind other players, particularly in a year where there are 2x as many byes.
His positive is North Melb have one of the better bye's and we can all agree on his day he is a quality player.
One good turn deserves another (not sure how good a turn it is on my part, tbh, but fwiw...)
Basic 2024 picker for those without SC Gold:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15gEjVd9YYIttSDhhhzxEFhFiy7fxgMjKGoneW1uFVZg/edit?usp=sharing
Should work OK. Fairly basic, no bells / whistles. Google sheet, drop downs for players in each line, subtotals and sum totals etc. Nothing flash.
Basic 2024 picker for those without SC Gold:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15gEjVd9YYIttSDhhhzxEFhFiy7fxgMjKGoneW1uFVZg/edit?usp=sharing
Should work OK. Fairly basic, no bells / whistles. Google sheet, drop downs for players in each line, subtotals and sum totals etc. Nothing flash.
