- Nov 10, 2022
- 12,023
- 9,823
- AFL Club
- Hawthorn
2 days out and can't contain my excitement so I will share my personal reasons for optimism/players I'm looking out for that weren't covered in my first post in the thread.
- Cam Mackenzie. You do some reading on other boards and often he is talked about as a guy that hasn't worked out, and he gets essentially no love from the media. I think his smarts, clean usage, elusive side step, knack for an opportune goal, and level headedness will result in a big game that puts him on the map.
- Dylan Moore. This guy is just built for finals. Usually in finals you see a step up in intensity, especially early. We play like this all the time, and Moore is the guy who sets that tone for us. Going to have a chunk of CBAs too I'd imagine in a split with Mackenzie.
- Jack Gunston. It's almost like he is getting better with age in a weird way. So crafty and I think his smarts can be a point of difference against their defence. Jones is great in the air but can be exploited on the ground, and Lobb despite having a good impact down back is still new to the role. Not sure how this manifests but I think something to watch, which leads me to.......
- Nick Watson. Lobb 207cm, Jones 199cm, JOD 197cm, Dale 188cm, leaving only Bramble (not flash defensively but has great pace) and Duryea (smart defender but lacks pace) as out and out small defenders. We won't need a whole heap more from Chol and Dear than halving contests and using those deft taps and spoils to advantage to get the ball on the deck. The Dogs board gives barely any credit to how much this is going to be a massive problem for them.
- CJ. We don't even know if he is going to play but I'll go early on this one and say if he's fit we play him. All of Ward, CJ, and Finn are fantastic runners but CJ is the only one of those who is going to be useful in the air should we need it, and we are one awkward Sicily marking contest from needing it in a big way. We know what he is capable of and I think it's a suitable amount of risk to back him in to deliver despite having a poor season thus far. Due for a good game.
- Josh Weddle. He is going to need to run off his opponent every chance he gets. Every tall you force a chase from is a win and builds up fatigue. Defensively we will need to see him get the spoil/mark decision correct each time, something he has struggled with at times this year (even outside the obvious Hogan contests).
Or if Newk somehow repeats his lazy 40 from the 2023 game?