Richmond Tigers: AFL Dream Team Picks

This series of ‘club preview’ posts are written by DT TALK regular contributors choosing their 5 players they have on their watchlist from the respective club. These aren’t who we think will be the top 5 highest scoring players… and are not necessarily in order. They are just our opinions of the 5 players who we have on our watchlist heading into the 2012 season.

Douthteez’s five from the Tigers.

1. Dustin Martin (MID/FWD) – $442,500

Probably the first picked in most DT’s. His biggest upside is the fact that he has the capacity to rip out massive scores (Round 5 V Nth Melb – 141 points) and the fact that the midfield brigade at the Tigers is looking very potent this year with Cotchin, Foley, Deledio  (rumoured to be preparing for more of a run in the midfield this year) etc likely to help negate the tag that could be applied to him. The fact that he is dual position locks him in as a no brainer now as well. Im sure you were already planning on putting him in your team anyway, so Ill just finish of right here! He registered 47 points in the first quarter alone against Geelong on Sunday, before copping the heavy tag and being subbed off some time in the second half.

Averages for the first 4 opponents:

Rd 1 v Carlton – 66.5 ppg (played 4 times)
Rd 2 v Collingwood – 78.5 (Played twice)
Rd 3 v Melbourne – 78 (Played 4 times)
Rd 4 v Geelong – 67 (Played once, but did score 97 on Sunday which is not included in the average)

Verdict – Must have.

Lock him in. going on his overall record against these teams, he would average 72.25 points per game, but this being his 3^rd and historically his break out year, plus add to that his NAB cup form, expect a 90-95 average for this period of time, which will also bring in a price rise.

2. Trent Cotchin (Mid) – $463,400

This kid is a Jet. Not only does he know how to extract the ball, he knows how to get on the end of it from the outside as well, and uses it effectively. Because he uses it so well, the Tigers will be looking to get it in his hands as often as possible, meaning higher DT scores. This will be Trents 4^th year with the Tigers and he is looking like he may be breaking a little bit into the Ablett type mould. His kick to handball ratio was 2.3 kicks to every handball which is what you want to see from a premium midfielder.

Averages for first 4 opponents:

Rd 1 v Carlton – 78.4 ppg (played 5 times)
Rd 2 v Collingwood – 102 (Played once)
Rd 3 v Melbourne – 58.8 (Played 4 times)
Rd 4 v Geelong – 85.3 (Played 3 times)

Verdict – Speculative choice.

With the amount of midfield options there are out there, there may be better options. He did however average 93.68 last year in his breakout year, and I do see improvement in him again this year. If your looking for a possible unique choice, He may be the one who you say “I told you so” to your mates. I don’t see him dropping in price in the first 4-6 weeks, put it that way.

3. Ivan Maric (Ruc) – $262,700

The Big man with the even bigger mullet has definitely caught my attention this pre season. I wont lie, when Richmond picked him up, I figured we had just got yet another big Dumb dumb who will probably keep tapping the ball to the opposition and and butchering his kicks whenever he had a chance. Im now seeing why Hardwick wanted to get him, and it excites me a lot, not only from a Richmond perspective, but a quality ruck bargain as well!

Ivan came across to Richmond this season from Adelaide, and his stats didn’t exactly set the world on fire. He is a 200cm 102kg monster who loves to get down and dirty. He is also 26 years old, which history tells us is about the prime time for ruckman. His stats at Adelaide were not crash hot, but a pre season at the Tigers, as well as the competitive juices that Damien Hardwick has instilled into him, has seen him smash it up in the NAB.

Averages for first 4 opponents:

Rd 1 v Carlton – 53.3 ppg (played 4 times)
Rd 2 v Collingwood – 56 (Played 7 times)
Rd 3 v Melbourne – 47.5 (Played 4 times)
Rd 4 v Geelong – 53 (Played 3 times)

Verdict – Value builder.

Before is 89 points against the Cats on Sunday, Maric has been averaging (using the 100 minute calculator) 78 points in NAB cup games. So it is probably closer to 84 points per game thus far. This is a rather large improvement from the 59 he averaged last year. I expect to see him average around the 80-90 mark this year which will see his value increase significantly. Spend the little bit of extra cash on him as your second ruck rather than utilize an un proven Giles from GWS. Could be the difference in the winning the car!

4. Daniel Connors (DEF) – $224,200

It was only 2 years ago that Connors was one of the most talked about DT’ers in the country. In 2010 he averaged 92.3 over the last 14 games of the season.

Then it appears ego got the better of him, and he thought he could get away with a bit more than other people. He pushed the boundaries with Authority, and he was dropped, and restricted to only 3 games for the entire season.

After spending the past 10 weeks in the wilderness the penny may have actually dropped for him and is starting to look like he may actually be back in favour at Tigerland. This is great news, and news all DT’ers should be rejoicing about!

He has only played in 1 NAB fixture for a half, and that half would have netted him about 73 points if translated into a full game against the dockers, and this was when the Dockers had taken control of the game.Not alot to go on, but if he can come back with the type of form he had in 2010, there is a big chance he could have a very productive DT year.

Averages for first 4 opponents:

Rd 1 v Carlton – 64.3 ppg (played 4 times)
Rd 2 v Collingwood – 39.3 (Played 3 times)
Rd 3 v Melbourne – 60 (Played 3 times)
Rd 4 v Geelong – 82 (Played once)

Verdict – Speculative Pick

To win DT, there are positions on your field you need to consider the smokey, the one which not everyone will have. Connors could quite easily fit into this mould. I would suggest that you wait to see if he is named in the starting 24 against Carlton, but definatly worth considering.

5. Brett Deledio (Mid/Def) – $452,100

Usually Lids is a first player picked type. But for the first time in his history, he has torn a hamstring, and missed last 4 weeks of the preseason.

We all Love Lids and his DT ability, and with all the rumours that Richmond had a backline settled enough to allow him to run more in the midfield, He was going to be a lock again especially with the DPP ability.

It will be interesting to see his output in his first NAB match against GWS, but I don’t think we will have a strong enough form line to know if he is ready to rock, or a potential upgrade target.

Averages for first 4 opponents:

Rd 1 v Carlton – 79.5 ppg (played 13 times)
Rd 2 v Collingwood – 87.8 (Played 9 times)
Rd 3 v Melbourne – 89.9 (Played 11 times)
Rd 4 v Geelong – 72.3 (Played 11 times)

Verdict – Upgrade Potential

You cant start all Premiums on the ground in round 1, you need to build cash in your rookies and do some upgrading. Lids is the perfect upgrade target. Maybe wait till after the Round 13 Bye that he is in and grab him then. With a bit of luck, his price would have dropped.

Others on the Watch List: Brandon Ellis (DEF) $116,700, the number 15 pick from last years draft looks to me to be a ready made AFL footballer. He already has a Josh Hunt type build as well as the ability to hit a target coming out of the backline. His numbers suggest he will be a great buy this year. Jumping Jack Reiwoldt (FWD) $345,600 had an off year last year with a rumoured 5 operations in the post season to get his body right. If he can get back to the 2010 coleman medal form, you may enjoy the 83.6 ppg that he had back then, a bargain basement forward at his price.

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