Interested in coaches opinion on the following value/break out candidates as I feel that these core group of players will be pivotal in deciding our overall structure and starting team. I've provided my brief summation below as a starting point, feel free to add in yours.
S Docherty - Was on his way to becoming one of those rare SC defender capable of punching out midfield like numbers prior to the misfortune of rupturing his ACL's in consecutive preseasons. No doubt over his ability to score at Keeper level, but how quickly can he return to those lofty numbers? He's ticking all the right boxes thus far during the preseason so here's hoping.
S Coniglio - The captaincy indicates that he's invested in the club long term. Has the capacity to go big, but this is countered by his tendency to throw in some really bad scores, not a desirable traits for one of our precious starting midfield spot. Add in the too many chiefs at GWS and it makes it hard to start him with any confidence.
D Smith - A stellar 1st season in the red & black, but was that one out of the box...? Signs during his 7 games prior to his season ending injury last year points towards that being the case. Nudging towards the 150 games mark and has only 2 seasons in the 90+ range. The Bombers are crying out for more bigger body midfielders so does he fit that mould...?
J Steven - Will be 30yo in March and I'm not sure whether footy is his most important priority at this point in his life. Coupled with the 'old man' calf niggles and that's enough of a red flag for mine.
T Doedee - Averaged 82 in his first season so it's not beyond him. Could be a more than viable alternative to a high end Rookie who we know can score if he returns to his intercepting role.
D Roberton - If the doctors gives him the all-clear to start the season, then he has to be in serious discussion. Unlike other injuries, his heart condition can be treated and monitored and he's had some time to do that.
D Houston - Word is that he's going to continue through the midfield similar to his back half of 2019 where he put up some encouraging numbers.
J Dawson - Like Houston above, relished the switch to the backline post bye but no confirmation from any sources whether this is going to be a thing for 2020.
Both Houston and Dawson are in that awkward price range where the margin for success or failure is a fine one. They have age on their side and their DPP status provides some comfort. I'm of the opinion that whether you take none, one or both will be dependent on how many other from the above you're carrying in your starting team. Regardless of how confident you are with any of the above selections, they all carry an element of risk to my eyes.
This is a great question keen to give my thoughts and see if others agree
Docherty: Lock for me you just have to take the punt at that price and deal with whatever happens during the season, so many others will be doing the same so it won't hurt too much if it goes wrong.
Coniglio: I'm a big fan of him as a player think he is such a versatile mid capable of doing a bit of everything but that's his biggest weakness as an sc player and it's why i'll go no where near starting him. He can go on a hot streak of averaging 110-120 if he has a good draw but he will also have runs of 90-100 where you're going to be able to get him much cheaper than his starting price.
Dev Smith: Lock for me much like Docherty he's way too cheap, has too good of a role, just have to deal with whatever happens if things go wrong, also good that his ownership is so high so it won't hurt too much if he fails.
Steven: Again massive fan of him as a player he's one of the few players in the comp who can carry his side to victory on his own back. Can't see for the life of me why Geelong would recruit a player of his quality to not give him a consistent run in the mids if he's fit enough, but that's the concern he's currently injured and will be why I don't start him because more than anyone he needs a good preseason.
Doedee: At first I hated this pick and couldn't understand why people were interested but the more I thought about it he could be quite decent a few big intercepting games could get him to 350-400k. In the mean time he should put up better scores than your average rookie which is important, his second lowest score in his debut season was 57 which shows his floor isn't bad for the price. Don't have him currently but somewhat interested.
Roberton: Really don't like this pick, his heart issues are a real concern and it would be good news just to see him get back out there we can't expect too much of him as an sc pick imo.
Houston: Really enjoy watching him his disposal is so clean just doesn't miss targets, as an sc pick I can see the appeal but for me personally his skill set is very suited to playing on the half back line and it doesn't make a lot of sense to me why Hinkley used him as a mid so I wouldn't exactly pick him expecting mid time. Having said that I think his skill set is good enough that he can be a very reliable scorer in defence if he does play there. Wait and see for me too many question marks and will be pretty easy to trade in I assume.
Dawson: Great player but really not interested in starting him. His versatility will mean his scoring will be very difficult to predict think you've gotta just try and trade him in when he's playing half back and get some of his best scores.