I reckon they are closer to dropping off now than they have been in years. They do have some good young players but only a couple who look very good. On the other hand, their cohort of 30-plus players are nearly all starting to look a bit off the pace.
The Cats have been blessed to get two excellent and durable key forwards in Hawkins through father and son and then Cameron wanting to return to the western districts lifestyle and live on a farm. They haven't had to find and develop a key forward for over a decade. As we know as well as any club, getting a key forward through trade nowadays is almost impossible. Hawkins is finished and Cameron is 32 or 33. The cats will be relying on Neale if Cameron gets an injury.
It's hard to write them off but they just might be about to face a reality they have avoided confronting since Hawkins fell in their lap and that is trying to find a KPF in the draft and then spending five years hoping they develop into a decent player. It's a world the rest of us have occupied forever.
The Cats have been blessed to get two excellent and durable key forwards in Hawkins through father and son and then Cameron wanting to return to the western districts lifestyle and live on a farm. They haven't had to find and develop a key forward for over a decade. As we know as well as any club, getting a key forward through trade nowadays is almost impossible. Hawkins is finished and Cameron is 32 or 33. The cats will be relying on Neale if Cameron gets an injury.
It's hard to write them off but they just might be about to face a reality they have avoided confronting since Hawkins fell in their lap and that is trying to find a KPF in the draft and then spending five years hoping they develop into a decent player. It's a world the rest of us have occupied forever.