The Numbers – NAB Round 3

Numbers… it’s what DT is all about. Price changes; averages; break-evens… the list goes on. Once again, I’ve stripped the records clean and scoured the AFL for some numbers different to those we spend our days staring at… Staring at in the hope that one day we’ll all of sudden have a magic epiphany; and all of the secrets of the DT Universe will be revealed.

Let’s have a looks at this week by the numbers…

6.0 – goals kicked by Hawks ruck/forward, David Hale v Melbourne. In a promising display, he also earned 17 hitouts on his way to 107 points in a close to best a field performance. At a tempting $342,800, he could be a steal if he can hold the # 1 ruck spot in 2012.

11 – days until the opening bounce of the AFL season

13 – the final margin in the Giant’s inaugural win against the Suns on the weekend. In what would be a proud day for the club, their players showed more enthusiasm in their efforts and came away the better side.

17 – the date in May of troubled Demons’ livewire Liam Jarrah’s court date after he was caught wielding a machete during a brawl in the Northern Territory last Wednesday night.

27 – hitouts accumulated by North ruckman Todd Goldstein. In what may be the best indication of Brad Scott’s plans yet, HMac was subbed out of the game after scoring a decent (if not unspectacular) 24 – which included a few hitouts and a singular goal.

38.5 – losing % by Carlton in what was their 4^th consecutive preseason loss.

129 – DT points that evergreen Lions’ veteran Simon Black scored v Carlton.

376 – days until we’ll see young stars Brad Crouch (Adelaide) and Jaeger O’Meara (Gold Coast) make their AFL debuts. There’s my 2013 DT midfield bench right there!

914 – the total DT points scored by the Melbourne Demons v the Hawks on Saturday. Compare this to Hawthorn’s 1594 points and you can see how big the gap between the two sides really was.

63,000 – coaches who held their breath as Swans veteran Adam Goodes was slammed into the behind post in his game v Essendon the weekend. Thankfully he got back up (as champions do) and progressed to have a solid game, one they unfortunately lost by 2 points.

 

DT Whore of the Week

In what proved to be the highest individual score of the round, young Lion Jack Redden demolished Carlton with his 29d, 132 point game; including an impressive 9 tackles. He outscored fellow guns Simon Black and Tom Rockliff to hand the Blues yet another loss.

 

Value Pick

Based on a simple Dollars/Points ratio, I give you a simple way to display value (admittedly biased towards rookies due to their low starting cost).

In a week where there were plenty of low (DT) scoring games, there were few rookie delights. It’s of no surprise then to see another GWS rookie make the grade on our value scale. Early preseason popular rookie Anthony Miles scored a promising 99 points this weekend against the Suns, giving him a weekly cost of $1053 per point. This will be music to the ears of coaches, who have been waiting to see the young ball magnet in action. With another performance like that, he’ll be a lock on my midfield bench (or even on field).

 

Waste of Space

Admittedly not the best DT prospect anyway, Melbourne recruit James Sellar was hardly spotted in his team’s shellacking at the hands of Hawthorn. The big man never really made an impact with his 4d, 10 DT point game. An argument could be made here for the entire Demons team to be listed as not one player gathered more than 18 touches in what was a very one sided game.

 

From the Clouds

This player has come from nowhere and has rocketed into calculations for many coaches’ R1 teams. The last two weeks has seen Port ruckman Jarrad Redden step into the spotlight as a viable option for the Power’s ruck division. Whilst still realistically behind Renouf and Lobbe in the order, he could be a surprise R1 bolter if his form continues. With Lobbe injured for the meantime; and Renouf nowhere to be seen, we could be seeing a lot more of this kid sooner than many would have thought.

 

Closing Thoughts…

The talk of the town this week is around high possession game plans. Whilst Hawthorn showed they’re still prone to a little ball hogging, the Bulldogs appear to be following the same model in 2012 under new coach Brendan McCartney. This can only translate to higher DT scores – so get on the Hawks and Doggies this year!

I would also like to take a moment to vent my frustration to the DT gods. In almost identical fashion to this time last year, we have seen two rookie guns who were absolutely Monty’s for a R1 berth taken by injury just weeks out from the opening bounce. In 2011 it was Mzungu and Callinan – in 2012 its Freo sensation Lachie Neale and Demon magnet, James Magner. The hope will now be that they hold off their debut until mid-season (like Mzungu and Callinan did last year) in order to give us 2 excellent midseason downgrades.

To end on a brighter note, this weekend will see Adelaide face off against West Coast in the NAB Cup decider. Both teams have won every game they’ve played and will be hopeful of taking their preseason form into their respective R1 openers.

 

Cheers for reading and as always, thoughts and feedback appreciated.

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