Retired #21: Dyson Heppell - Goodnight, sweet prince. What a legend! 🤙 - 24/8

[Lore]

Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent 2024
My Boy Draft 2024: Pick 27, Highly Evolved

 

[ghostdog]

Two top awards in two years, and some elite previous winners on that list. I see which way Hepp's going.

 

[Jobe Watson]

Gotta love North posters.

"Heppell is a kick chaser who picks up easy touches off the half back... but Atley's really fast so he mustn't pick up cheap uncontested touches like that squib Heppell does". "Atley shut down Stephen Milne that one time"... yeah, and Heppell dominated Joel Selwood. What's next? "Atley will be awesome once he goes into the midfield"... he was bloody shithouse in the midfield in 2011. If that's a preview of things to come he might as well stay in the backline

Back on Heppell, he joins some pretty esteemed company in the group of players who have won this award. Apart from Daniel Wells, you could make a case for each player on that list either being an A-grader or on their way to becoming an A-grader.

 

[Lord Nicholson]

Wells and Hill a bit flaky, but otherwise a solid group indeed.

 

[Big Blow Hard]

Luke Shuey was not eligible. He was eligible last year and came second behind Fyfe (by 1 vote), which is completely understandable.

Congrats to Heppell he has had a great first two seasons, especially in 2011.

Yeah, I was joking Mr Serious

 

[yaco55]

So we are saying that Heppell is not Samson.

 

[Essendonia]

So we are saying that Heppell is not Samson.

Indeed. Anti-Samson. Becomes stronger as a player with less hair.

 

[FedEXFalls]

He's on the footy show now... Probably won't get a word in though as Cloke is on the panel next to him.

 

[Knight Ryders]

Slips quietly into the midfield next year, very very unlikely to get a tag. Look out.

*edit, full time

 

[The Prosecutor]

He's on the footy show now... Probably won't get a word in though as Cloke is on the panel next to him.

Weren't they on the panel together earlier in the year?

 

[FedEXFalls]

Not sure, he got 20 seconds of face time tonight though.

 

[daz17]

It was like he wasn't even on.

 

[The Donners]

Heppell had second year blues, can play a lot better than he did and his lack of attack at the contest was worrying in 2012. Poor decision.

 

[daz17]

He went forward in 2011.
They didn't leave him on half back to ease into the game; he played the majority of the season in the midfield.

Definitely not second year blues.

 

[Rocky_Star_Pro]

Only took seven posts in the "Atley in the GF sprint" thread on the Norf board to mention Heppell again. Lol.
I think he will benefit if we acquire Goddard, he will get less opposition attention and will be able to play his natural game more. This all providing Goddard and co. don't get shat on by the footy gods and we suffer injury after injury in our midfield

 

[The Fact]

He went forward in 2011.
They didn't leave him on half back to ease into the game; he played the majority of the season in the midfield.

Definitely not second year blues.

Agreed while he might not have been as effective as he was on the hb line, we need him to become a midfielder and he showed enough that he should become a very good inside mid.

Heppell had second year blues, can play a lot better than he did and his lack of attack at the contest was worrying in 2012. Poor decision.

Saying he had second year blues is just a stupid comment really, if he played the same position the whole year like he did in 2011 then yes you can compare them. But he went into the middle as an undersized inside mid and i think he can hold his head high.

 

[VelvetSledge]

Only took seven posts in the "Atley in the GF sprint" thread on the Norf board to mention Heppell again. Lol.
I think he will benefit if we acquire Goddard, he will get less opposition attention and will be able to play his natural game more. This all providing Goddard and co. don't get shat on by the footy gods and we suffer injury after injury in our midfield

As soon as I saw Atley in the sprint, I thought of Heppell. Faaaar out

 

[MG MG]

Previous Winners
2003 - Chris Judd (West Coast)
2004 - Daniel Wells (Kangaroos)
2005 - Adam Cooney (Western Bulldogs)
2006 - Ryan Griffen (Western Bulldogs)
2007 - Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood)
2008 - Joel Selwood (Geelong)
2009 - Cyril Rioli (Hawthorn)
2010 - Stephen Hill (Fremantle)
2011 - Nathan Fyfe (Fremantle)
2012 - Dyson Heppell (Essendon)

Joins an elite list.

 

[The Fact]

Joins an elite list.

Agreed, no matter what some of the flogs on the other boards say heppell is in very good company and nobody can take that away from him. Also this award isn't just a media award where people can claim they are all just sheep, this is voted by alll of the coaches so there can be no complain. People just have to face up to facts heppell is going to be an elite talent. Thanks for coming mate!

 

[m7jebus]

Heppell had second year blues, can play a lot better than he did and his lack of attack at the contest was worrying in 2012. Poor decision.

That part I definitely agree with. You can say whatever you like about form and fitness and position, but Heppell needs to harden the hell up when there's a ball to be won on the deck.

 

[Essendonia]

That part I definitely agree with. You can say whatever you like about form and fitness and position, but Heppell needs to harden the hell up when there's a ball to be won on the deck.

Know what you mean, but IMO he is there for disposal after the bottom of the pack clearance, rather than winning the initial hard ball. We've seen him go back with the flight on a few occasions, so courage isn't an issue. And it's not as if he's never been underneath a pack.

Could throw his weight around more, but I would weight until he actually has some wait to throw around.

 

[Kong]

Wait, what?

Heppell is great on the inside of a pack.

I don't really care much for stats, but I'm pretty sure he'd have a healthy percentage of contested possessions during the last half of the year, once he went into the middle.

He's pretty much Pendlebury II, tbh.

 

[m7jebus]

I'm not talking so much about getting the ball in traffic and stoppages... Heppell's shown plenty there. I'm talking about when the ball is between him and an opponent, and someone is going to take a hit, he's been pulling out. Also, one of the worst tacklers in the side.

 

[Kong]

I agree on the tackling, not on the squibbing.

 

[JD11]

pendles used to get called soft on bigfooty.

 

[Rocky_Star_Pro]

pendles used to get called soft on bigfooty.

And Daisy Thomas was a little bitch according to Bigfooty. Give Heppell 2-3 years and he will become one of the top 10 players in the AFL, I'm calling it