At a glance: An ageing list and questions about their firepower. Missed the finals by three games last season, and it’s hard to see where the improvement comes to push them into the six.
Coaches prediction:
6th: 1 coach
7th: 5 coaches
8th: 1 coach
10th: 1 coach
Projected best 22:
| Pos | Player | Proj. |
| B | Kade Simpson CA – B | 99.5 |
| B | Jack Newnes SK – B,C | 91.4 |
| B | Jarrod Harbrow GC – B | 81.6 |
| B | Paul Seedsman AD – B,C | 80.4 |
| B | Luke Ryan FR – B | 77.8 |
| B | Nathan Wilson FR – B | 76.9 |
| C | Mitch Duncan GE – C | 111.3 |
| C | Scott Pendlebury CW – C | 109 |
| C | Nathan Jones ME – C | 102.2 |
| C | Joel Selwood GE – C | 98.7 |
| C | Bradley Hill FR – C | 91 |
| C | Jordan Lewis ME – C | 87.1 |
| C | Jared Polec PA – C | 84.3 |
| C | Touk Miller GC – C | 82.6 |
| R | Aaron Sandilands FR – R | 77.2 |
| F | Brett Deledio GWS – F | 83.7 |
| F | David Mundy FR – C,F | 82.2 |
| F | Eddie Betts AD – F | 74.3 |
| F | Taylor Garner NM – F | 73.4 |
| F | Hayden Crozier WB – F | 73.2 |
| F | Dale Thomas CA – C,F | 72.5 |
| UTL | Isaac Smith HW – C | 92.8 |
| 1903.1 |
The MVP: Mitch Duncan. He may be the Ringo Starr in his AFL midfield, but he’s not under the radar here. Having broke out dramatically in season 2017 by increasing his average by 20 points, coach McClaren will be pinning his hopes on his best (and youngest) gun.
The Breakout Candidate: Sean Darcy. Perhaps the best young ruckman in the game, Darcy showed great, and rare, scoring prowess for a player of his size under the age of 20. The list may be ageing, but it’s all set for the foreseeable future in this position.
The Bottom Line: Was an early pace setter in the competition’s history and finished the inaugural home and away season in third. Missed out on the bye narrowly due to percentage, and paid the price in an elimination final against a side with 5 less wins. Since then they’ve struggled to reach those peaks. A tough opponent every week, but not one that inspires fear. 5 of their peers say that seventh spot has their name all over it, while one still believes they can claim that last spot in the finals. In the very least they should avoid that spoon one coach has lumped them with.