Every club has its stars and it’s… guys who are good to have in the locker room. But as fantasy coaches those are the important guys to us. It’s not the 10, 15 or 19 guys we know are locks for the team; it’s the last one that we agonise over, and in hind sight makes us wonder what-if we’d selected differently. And often it comes down to the age-old question; do we hold the stars whose light is fading fast, or do we hold the raw elements and hope they burst into a star!
So without further ado, here’s a very unqualified opinion on that last keeper of each team who may have raised the eyebrows (or at least caught the interest) of other coaches:
- Charlie Constable (Puttenesca Chiefs) – We all have “that guy” right. Be it Zac Fisher, Rhys Mathieson, Brayden Sier, Will Brodie; you can see the potential. Some realise it (hello Kyle Langford) and some do not. Constable is that guy. Blessed with an innate fantasy sense, it’s as if he counts every stat and looks up at coach Buscumb and says “this tackles’ for you”. But like Cinderella; the evil step-mother Chris Scott, and the wicked steps sisters of the stacked Geelong midfield, mean he’s forever a prisoner of the VFL. Will this be the year he finally puts on the glass slipper and meets his Prince Charming? Okay the metaphor breaks down a little here, but with an old midfield there can often be injuries and injuries means opportunity, and it is that hope that keeps Coach Buscumb going. That or the hope that Constable gets traded to a team that values his potential.
Eligible Suitors: Daniel Rich, Paddy Dow, Jack Gunston, Zach Tuohy
- Daniel Rich (Defenestrators) – There are many question marks of the keeper list of this team, most notably that 5 of their keepers were not even draft picks but plucked from the pool. But even that wasn’t enough, he had to glean the dregs of other coaches lists for his final keeper spot! Why throw away a draft pick for a 30 yr old defender, when a Hurn or a Hurley are a dime-a-dozen in your team already, and can deliver a similar output? If only the author of this article could peer into the deranged mind of the coach of the Defenestrators, but I guess we’ll never know. Or maybe he just really likes Rich.
Eligible Suitors: Shannon Hurn, Michael Hurley, Jed Anderson, David Swallow, Will Brodie
- Luke Jackson (Solomon’s Soldiers) – Hard to pick this list apart, but even for a list bent on youth a raw, tall forward/ruck does stand out in a team geared for win now. With the league’s best ruckman Max Gawn, standing in his way to fantasy success, Jackson projects to be a long-haul stash. Arguably the Soldiers are one of the most willing teams to play for the long term, but they are also known to be trigger-happy when it comes to trades. Will he still be on this list before he realises that potential that saw him as a top 3 pick in last year’s draft? Especially when he had the option of holding number 2 pick, Noah Anderson or a raft of mature scorers?
Eligible Suitors: Noah Anderson, John Noble, Isaac Smith, Brad Sheppard
- Liam Shiels (Roughnecks) – Maybe it’s just me, but for a team that’s got 11 pure mids and two rucks, the 29yr old 68 pt averaging mid seems to be the odd man out. History speaks for itself, as Shiels has averaged above 90 in 5 of his past 7 seasons, so that should make this an astute selection. The question is, has the team moved past Shiels? With a need to re-build (as the lowly ranked Hawks surely do!) it often follows to blood the youth and with a bevy of talent and potential in that midfield, the question is will we see him return to his 90 average of the past, or is sub-90 the new norm? What makes it harder is that there is some high calibre talent being cast back from this list, each with their own question marks (either health or scoring ceiling) but inevitably the guy you don’t pick is the one that scores the best.
Eligible Suitors: Shaun Higgins, Bachar Houli, Nick Newman, Tom Hawkins, Brayden Fiorini
- Brayden Sier (Love Sparkles) – Sier is a sparkle through-and-through, he can’t have enough showers to get all the glitter out. Another of “those guys” like Constable, he has all the potential in the world but just needs the chance to realise it. And if he’s ever going to get one, this is the year to wrap those big bear paws around it. The absence of Treloar, Phillips and Stephenson leaves a big hole in this side; and Sier looks like the perfect guy to Phil Inn that line up. But with Collingwood’s big draft haul this year, he’ll be fighting off the bear cubs to get a lick of that sweet honey. This is a make or break year for Sier and where he stands in the league, and a big decision for the Love Sparkles, as he is their 10th pure midfielder kept on their list.
Eligible Suitors: Jack Redden, Tom De Koning, Mitch Robinson, Marc Murphy
- Charlie Curnow (MaherShalalHashBaz) – Can’t be too harsh as there’s not a lot of other viable keeper options beneath Curnow on this list (and with 2 first round draft picks this year, I don’t think coach Jordan is too worried about that either). Talented forwards are hard to come by in the AFL, let alone ones who can clunk loads of marks, kick bags and hit the ton without breaking a sweat. But 12 months on and persistent knee issues lingering, it makes you wonder if we’ve seen the best of him or if not, how long it might be until we see that best again. But with Daniher on their list, coach Jordan is clearly fond of injury-prone forwards. I just hope they’ve recruited the Brisbane Lions medical team along with him.
Eligible Suitors: Darcy MacPherson, Charlie Dixon, Harry McKay
- Sam Philp (Te Puke Pukekos) – Arguably the biggest keeper call of all, particularly considering the talent (albeit aging) they returned to the pool. A 2nd year player with no games next to his name. I guess it does happen, especially in this rookie crazed era. And as a 1st round pick, you could definitely do worse. He’s lightning quick, with a good fantasy footy background, so the potential is there. The only question is with all the mature talent the Blues have brought in will the Pukekos see their beloved keeper selection hit the park this year, or will it be 2 seasons in a row without a game. At least the Blues don’t have a precedent of withholding their first round talent (*cough*Lochie O’Brien*cough*).
Eligible Suitors: Lance Franklin, Zak Jones, Hamish Hartlett, Dan Hannebery, Jack Graham
- Rory Atkins (Lethal Vipers) – Allow my bias to give an ex-Crow a bit of airplay. And as a Crow, he was great for the previous 3 seasons notching up 80ish averages and being a very reliable draft pick/late keeper. However, a year of turmoil saw Atkins fall out of favour, an opportunity upon which the Gold Coast Suns swooped. A lot of important questions are to be asked of him here; will he return to his 80+ scoring, what is his role in the team, is he a lock for best 22 and will he be sporting his bleached-blonde hair circa 2017? Some might argue a Jared Polec plays a similar role for the Roos (albeit he’s had his own falling out with coaches as well). Honestly I would have made the same selection (maybe this is my ex-Crow bias talking again) but only time will tell if this was the right call.
Eligible Suitors: Scott Lycett, Jared Polec, Michael Gibbons, Tarryn Thomas,
- Will Snelling (Taxmanian Devils) – The much maligned and oft-criticised Snelling is a keeper, which is the first step in the success of a first round draft pick. However to remain on this list, he will need to show the potential that saw coach Bernardi draft him so high, and there is no better opportunity than 2021. With Fantasia, Daniher and Saad gone, and Heppell and Devon Smith slated for half-back roles, there is room for a mid-forward to step up. Will Snelling may be that man. With 8 forwards on this list, Max may just be wary of the weak forwards pool this year, but Snelling will be jostling amongst many to get a starting role in this line up. A selection that is once again not without its question marks.
Eligible Suitors: Mitch Wallis, Aaron Hall, Jeremy Cameron, Quinton Narkle, Luke Dunstan
- Cam Guthrie (Feeling Dusty) – Going for a different angle with this selection, so before you trolls come out of your holes to throw “He’s clearly a keeper” shade on me, hear me out. In one of the trade steals of the year, Jaye tossed aside a 7th round pick for the 23rd highest averaging player overall in fantasy in 2020. For those playing at home, that would be your team’s second best mid on average. So yeah he’s a worthy keeper selection. However, the reward was maybe he won you a few games, and hence paid back his value. But ultimately not making finals and not winning a flag, means Jaye may have lost this trade. When you finish bottom, the value of a trade like this is in the ability to flip it with a view to the future, and Cam seems like the perfect stepping stone. Easier said than done, for sure, and a 28 yr old who has rarely averaged above 80 before can be a hard sell. But guys coming off a 100+ season don’t grow on trees, and you can definitely can get more than a 7th round pick for him now. He might have missed the ideal window of the lead up to finals last year, but a few good games under his belt and he will still hold value this year. So while he’s a worthy keeper, I guess I saw this as the keeper that shouldn’t have been, because he could’ve already been traded.
Eligible Suitors: Trent Cotchin, Will Setterfield, Brodie Mihocek
Disclaimer – This article is the opinion of the author and does not represent the views of Dangergawn.com as an entity. As such, details contained within this article cannot be verified as factually accurate, and may be considered misleading (perhaps intentionally) in nature. Fortunately this article is not really news or political commentary, and hence the content in this article has not been censored by Face <Facebook has deemed this content to be news and censored this in response to Australian laws. All hail the Facebook>.