Unofficial Preview Best 22! Who’s in the team Round 1, 2023?

[peetoo]

Worpel maginness Nash Morrison.

Hardened bodies with games experience on the cusp.


What’s the case for leaving all or even 2 or 3 out? If they weren’t in the longer term plans maybe the club keeps Mitchell omeara sheils and trades those guys out instead, while their stars are rising?

Especially Nash and maginnes who have secondary roles, can go through the midfield allowing youngsters to play through there without too much burnout

Injury and form slumps aside that is.

 

[cryptor]

The next two years is obviously the period where DGB gradually succeeds Frost...I'm hoping it could be sooner rather than later.

I may in the minority, but I'm perfectly happy with DGB's progress as a young KPD in only his first 2 years, bearing in mind his slightish frame. He has showed me plenty, based on this.

Elsewhere, I see people putting him down as a possible bust, and that he hasn't shown anything. I really don't understand this line of thinking.

Definitely set for the chance to lay claim to a best 22 spot this year.

Rocky first season with that shoulder injury but played most games in 2022. Dropped in round 12 unexpectedly, presumably just as an extended freshening up period mid-season before coming back in to round out the season by playing the remaining games.

Now he's just 9 games away from hitting that 30 game mark Sam has called out as being an important milestone for most players, who by that point have found a way to influence games regularly.

I reckon his personal goal for 2023 should be to play every game he's available for at AFL level. I'm still thinking he'll get an injury or suspension at some point given he plays like a mad man.

 

[SSSSSS]

Worpel maginness Nash Morrison.

Hardened bodies with games experience on the cusp.


What’s the case for leaving all or even 2 or 3 out? If they weren’t in the longer term plans maybe the club keeps Mitchell omeara sheils and trades those guys out instead, while their stars are rising?

Especially Nash and maginnes who have secondary roles, can go through the midfield allowing youngsters to play through there without too much burnout

Injury and form slumps aside that is.

Not sure Morrison is on the cusp.

Or Nash.

 

[peetoo]

Not sure Morrison is on the cusp.

Or Nash.

That’s your take? If people think they won’t get much senior game time (all regulars 2022 when fit) why are they on the list during an acknowledged hard rebuild?

 

[matey]

I think Finn when fit will be in every week. Adds a point of difference to the side. Big, strong, elite endurance ……. has proven that he can negate the best opposition mid/wingmen. If anyone knows what makes a good tagger it would be Mitch.

 

[Iceman!]

Worpel maginness Nash Morrison.

Hardened bodies with games experience on the cusp.


What’s the case for leaving all or even 2 or 3 out? If they weren’t in the longer term plans maybe the club keeps Mitchell omeara sheils and trades those guys out instead, while their stars are rising?

Especially Nash and maginnes who have secondary roles, can go through the midfield allowing youngsters to play through there without too much burnout

Injury and form slumps aside that is.

Competition for spots and nothing else, they will all be given equal opportunity but i don't think any outside maybe Morrison has done enough to show they will be a walk up starter each week.

 

[peetoo]

Competition for spots and nothing else, they will all be given equal opportunity but i don't think any outside maybe Morrison has done enough to show they will be a walk up starter each week.

I see a 2022 midfield where they were starters which lost the two/three oldest players and already included Ward and Newcombe

I’m pretty sure there will be heavy rotations and experimentation but I don’t see all four (even three) sidelined.

Should they be sidelined after 2023, indicates a good problem to have

 

[Tassie Cryptik]

Not sure Morrison is on the cusp.

Or Nash.

Our coach and list managers think otherwise.
Nash was a certain starter with Tom and JOM.
Coach's best 22.

 

[The Chad and I]

And we also forget that the young bloke is only 20yo, and going against powerful mature bodies. Give him two more years of physical maturity and integrate him into a defensive unit who know each others games and I personally think he will be great.

I wish people would make the same allowance for Jeka who is only 6 months older and performed better at BH and seniors.

 

[SSSSSS]

That’s your take? If people think they won’t get much senior game time (all regulars 2022 when fit) why are they on the list during an acknowledged hard rebuild?

Our coach and list managers think otherwise.
Nash was a certain starter with Tom and JOM.
Coach's best 22.

Was a misunderstanding. Thought you meant they were on the cusp of not being best 22.

I firmly believe Nash and Morrison are clear locks for our best 22 in 2023 and beyond. Mitchell loves them.

 

[swampy]

Agreed he has shown potential (especially loved his first games). If he’s fully fit it would be ideal for the young guns to play as much together in the firsts as possible. Not sure VFL will allow him to develop his defensive, intercept and rebounding game as much. But I guess he needs to be physically able to match it with the big boys playing forward in AFL. Critical year for him.

The next two years is obviously the period where DGB gradually succeeds Frost...I'm hoping it could be sooner rather than later.

I may in the minority, but I'm perfectly happy with DGB's progress as a young KPD in only his first 2 years, bearing in mind his slightish frame. He has showed me plenty, based on this.

Elsewhere, I see people putting him down as a possible bust, and that he hasn't shown anything. I really don't understand this line of thinking.

 

[HedgeFund]

I wish people would make the same allowance for Jeka who is only 6 months older and performed better at BH and seniors.

Can’t recall DGB being switched by Box Hill to the other end of the ground to get him to pull his finger out - do you?

Jeka as a forward at BH was lazy and lacked intensity.

The only thing that saved him was the coaches’ decision to send him into defence.

Yes he did perform well after that, but he’s only produced a decent 2 months as a defender in July / August after he placed himself under the pump.

 

[Mrzohs]

My side is locked pre practice games

FB:Hardwick- Blanck-Dgb
HB:Scrimshaw-Sicily-Jiath
C:Morrison-Worpel-Amon
HF:Wingard- Meek- Moore
FF:Brockman-Lewis-Greene
R:Reeves,Nuke,Day.
E: Ward,Nash,Weddle,Impey,McKenzie

Defence I have Blanck-Jeka. DgB-Frost.

Midfield - W.day and Worpel first crack. Ward first change, Nash ahead of Finn and Stephens. Weddle for versatility

Forwards - Brockman / Butler will play there is a vital role. Wingard and Moore to replace Gunners goal.
Meek is the perfect fit with Lewis. Big, clean hands aggressive, plus he will rotate well with Reeves in the ruck.

 

[TylerDurden]

My side is locked pre practice games

FB:Hardwick- Blanck-Dgb
HB:Scrimshaw-Sicily-Jiath
C:Morrison-Worpel-Amon
HF:Wingard- Meek- Moore
FF:Brockman-Lewis-Greene
R:Reeves,Nuke,Day.
E: Ward,Nash,Weddle,Impey,McKenzie

Defence I have Blanck-Jeka. DgB-Frost.

Midfield - W.day and Worpel first crack. Ward first change, Nash ahead of Finn and Stephens. Weddle for versatility

Forwards - Brockman / Butler will play there is a vital role. Wingard and Moore to replace Gunners goal.
Meek is the perfect fit with Lewis. Big, clean hands aggressive, plus he will rotate well with Reeves in the ruck.

No Breust?

 

[Mississippi]

I reckon the really crucial point is not who’s in the best starting 22 - it’s who’s not!

I’ve taken issue in the past about posters (moderators included) who’ve waxed lyrical about our talent and depth when, in my view, they've been kidding themselves, and others.

In recent years we’ve included as depth players, if not long term prospects, the likes of Whitecross, O’Rourke, Howe, Wilsmore, Brand, Hanrahan, Cousins, Heatherly, Lovell, Miles, Woodward, and several others.
Not knocking those fellas, and some of them played some good footy from time to time and others were injury prone, but they were really just list cloggers, not genuine depth players.

So, looking at our list right now, I think it’s the first time for several years that we’re starting to develop some serious depth.
Putting aside my best 22, which includes the usual suspects plus Greene (who looks like an ideal Gunston replacement) and Stephens and Meek and Amon (who should come straight into the starting 22), here are the depth players -

Nash, Worpel, Granger-Barras, Maginness, Bramble, Lynch, Butler. (I hate leaving Nash out of the best 22 but I simply can’t drop Stephens or Impey or MacDonald).

I define “depth” as a like for like replacement where the team doesn’t suffer or miss a beat when a best 22 player is replaced (as distinct from a second ranker replacing an injured player). So, for example, if Ward is injured, he’s replaced by Nash or Worpel, or Frost is covered by Granger-Barras, or CJ by Bramble.

Then there are the potentials like Brockman, Serong, Long, Morris, Jeka.
And then you have our recent draftees - McKenzie and Weddle may walk straight into the round 1 best 22! If they do, then good players like Morison and Stephens or Amon drop out.

And then there’s Max Ramsden who I reckon has stardom tattooed on his forehead.

Obviously some of those potentials won’t make the cut over the next few years but others will be stars.

in short, you can see why Sam optimistically refers to these current players as the basis for our next flag. I reckon this current list has the best long term depth we’ve had for many years.

 

[WWSD]

I don’t think Morrison has anything to worry about come Round 1. He’s coming off a career best season averaging 19.5 disposals, 6 marks and 0.5 goals per game. About 2 years ago he probably was on the fringe, but given his overall improvement both offensively and defensively last year I’d say he’s now locked in the best 22.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Not everyone can make the side.

We may have lost Mitchell, JOM, Gunston and Big Boy, but we will have any/all of Meek/Lynch, Amon, Worpel, Wingard, Bramble, Lewis, CJ, Brockman, Impey, Stephens, Kosi, Jeka and Frost will be coming into the team straight away, or vying for a spot. That's not including any of the draftees.

Posters can say it all they want, but the reality is that players like Morrison and Nash are simply not locked in starters.

We would probably have thirteen certain starters when healthy. The rest of the side will be built around them:
Sicily, Hardwick, CJ, Scrimshaw
Day, Newcombe, Amon, Ward, Reeves
Lewis, Breust, Wingard, Moore

 

[tommyk72]

So, looking at our list right now, I think it’s the first time for several years that we’re starting to develop some serious depth.
Putting aside my best 22, which includes the usual suspects plus Greene (who looks like an ideal Gunston replacement) and Stephens and Meek and Amon (who should come straight into the starting 22), here are the depth players -

I think the reason that it feels that way right now is not because we have such awesome depth. It's because we have so many untested places, and so few absolute standouts. Everyone is around a similar level (this is generally good, with a lot of potential without being superstars) that it's easy to bring someone of similar competence in for an injured player.

Once we identify who our superstars are, this will be harder. Then our depth scenario will look different.

 

[Slainte]

Not everyone can make the side.

We may have lost Mitchell, JOM, Gunston and Big Boy, but we will have any/all of Meek/Lynch, Amon, Worpel, Wingard, Bramble, Lewis, CJ, Brockman, Impey, Stephens, Kosi, Jeka and Frost will be coming into the team straight away, or vying for a spot. That's not including any of the draftees.

Posters can say it all they want, but the reality is that players like Morrison and Nash are simply not locked in starters.

We would probably have a dozen certain starters when healthy. The rest of the side will be built around them:
Sicily, Hardwick, CJ, Scrimshaw
Day, Newcombe, Amon, Ward, Reeves
Lewis, Breust, Wingard

I think that you can remove CJ, Day and Ward from that list. They are players with promise but their numbers say they are bog average. In reality they are no different to Nash and Morrison. Moore has to be included among the certain starters.

 

[Tassie Cryptik]

I like how the Nash dismissers miss the fact he played 21 games last year, whilst we had the clearance gods TOM/JOM. Yet somehow without them they think he'll play less.
Odd.
Sam sees him as central to our next premiership. If Sam didn't Nash wouldn't be here.
Remove your blinkers.

 

[SpanishBrowne]

We would probably have a dozen certain starters when healthy. The rest of the side will be built around them:
Sicily, Hardwick, CJ, Scrimshaw
Day, Newcombe, Amon, Ward, Reeves
Lewis, Breust, Wingard

Replace Ward with CMac. Ward going to have more competition this year, and yet to put his stamp on the team. Feel like CMac already did.

My 2 cents aside.. this is one of those "great problems to have"

 

[cryptor]

I like how the Nash dismissers miss the fact he played 21 games last year, whilst we had the clearance gods TOM/JOM. Yet somehow without them they think he'll play less.
Odd.
Sam sees him as central to our next premiership. If Sam didn't Nash wouldn't be here.
Remove your blinkers.

Given our dire ruck situation last year he was never going to be dropped.

That said he did have a great season, particularly given he wouldn't have been expecting to spend that much time in ruck contests. His tackle numbers were great and he's not only a big body, but he's got the AFL conditioning.

I'd say guys like Newcombe and Lewis are "central" to our next premiership. Nash is still supporting cast, but I (as I'm sure you do too) believe he's got more improvement to come. Would love to see him play the whole season playing purely as a mid to gain some more consistency and comfort.

He'd be in my round 1 side. Morrison too.

 

[peetoo]

I like how the Nash dismissers miss the fact he played 21 games last year, whilst we had the clearance gods TOM/JOM. Yet somehow without them they think he'll play less.
Odd.
Sam sees him as central to our next premiership. If Sam didn't Nash wouldn't be here.
Remove your blinkers.

My take was not that people omit a Nash from their starting 23, but some omit three or four of Nash Morrison maginnes worpel

In a team everyone agrees will have midfield issues lasting games and the season, it makes no sense, and looking at selections 2022, they were starters when fit and in form.

That’s not to say I would lock in all four as certain starters either

 

[Mrzohs]

No Breust?

Wow thanks, how did i forget Bruest.
I thought I had it all worked out, Haha. Straight in, Brockman to the bench.

I am getting excited about how our list is taking shape.

Who would you sqeeze out ?

 

[Mrzohs]

My take was not that people omit a Nash from their starting 23, but some omit three or four of Nash Morrison maginnes worpel

In a team everyone agrees will have midfield issues lasting games and the season, it makes no sense, and looking at selections 2022, they were starters when fit and in form.

That’s not to say I would lock in all four as certain starters either

Agreed, Nash was a regular in a side with more established players last year.

I think Nash will play until guys like Long or Stephens can warrant pushing him out.