Feel like after Marshall all the other rucks have issues.
Witts - quite clearly overpriced, scores came down to earth after a hot first half of the year and his DT to SC ratio was as high as it’s ever been, had better years in DT in the past than last year but never gone above 100 in SC before. Too many indicators point to regression. Run of early opponents was as easy as it gets.
Darcy - Scored well without massive ruck minutes back in 2021 but that came off some unsustainable performances up forward and he will spend even more time forward this year. Was far less impressive last year with him not looking 100% and now Jackson probably comes in to take a large chunk of the ruck share. Makes sense for them to play Darcy forward more where he’s decent and won’t get as hurt. Don’t love the pick atm but he has shown that upside in 2021 without huge ruck contests, so worth a watch. Also an injury risk.
English - Slow start to preseason, followed by a strain, followed by tightness doesn’t make me feel safe that the upside justifies the risk of injury. Concussion risk is also an issue. The scoring last year is impressive but has also been overrated, there’s only a small sample size of elite scoring and a genuinely small number of games where he went ballistic. Would pick without recent injury woes but won’t now.
Reilly O’Brien - I actually think he’s a cheaper version of Witts, pretty ugly to watch but he’s shown over 4 years that he’s a 95-low 100’s player and I think he’s a safe pick if no other options show up. Paying up for Witts seems crazy to me when ROB probably scores just as well, but don’t think ROB has any upside either or offers value.
Grundy - My pick of the bunch, which is crazy, but he has some potential value at least. With a better midfield underneath him and if he’s still as good as he was in 2021, I think he can go high 90’s - 105 with 60% of the ruck share and 70% of his game time played in the ruck. To guess this I’ve looked at previous scoring and points per minute, adjusted for a better midfield and deducted pts for every extra minute he’ll play as a forward, he still ends up averaging around 100. I do think he’s the main ruck, reports came out back in August that Gawn was willing to give up the no 1 ruck spot to get him at the club, seen word they got him in to help with Gawn’s injury concerns and workload in older age, and they’re paying him 700k a year, telling me they intend to play him in the only position he can really play. Has risks of course but the pick is better than I originally thought when looked at closely. Still don’t love it but it’s the best I can find.
****ing rucks.
