The Lions and myself have always had a disliking for Metricon Stadium, and today looked to be no different as 7,000 mm of rain looked destined to hit the stadium right on match time turning this into a fantasy irrelevant quagmire and injury ridden cesspool. Fortunately that didn’t occur, but it didn’t stop Cam Raynor writing himself out of fantasy contention at the same venue almost the exact same time that he did it last year.  Last year it was dreams of midfield glory being turn up by a devastating injury , while this year the same dreams of midfield glory are being torn up by just not being a very good midfielder.

Harsh ? Maybe , its his first hit out since the injury. He gets a pass mark, but where the Raynor role might be a mirage, the Bailey role might just be the Oasis, meanwhile all the writing on the wonder wall ( wow that is a tortured segue ) was about Adelaide’s J. Rachelle as he looked a class above a lot of the rest of the Adelaide rabble , kicked 3 goals and cemented himself a spot in Adelaide’s team, and your classic teams come round 1.

The old reliables in Laird and Neale both looked classy without ever really getting out of second gear, while Crouch was managed through but did enough to suggest he wont break himself every 4 seconds this year. In the Rucks, ROB wasn’t great and spent more time than I’d like not playing ruck, while Big O was serviceable and the fort combo might be less of a problem than first thought.

Rapid-Fire Relevance

Last year taught me some of you don’t like humor and memes and general awesomeness. That’s why we have this section, we’ve got CBA’s  ( courtesy @AFLStatsmate ) and tweets ( which may contain bad jokes now I think about it , oh well ) which provide an at a glance view of all the shenanigans that went down. Get it india.
I cant recommend the discord take as an alternative today, cause I also did that. But there’s a few different takes on twitter including a no nonsense @JordsFTTV that might be worth a look if your chasing a different point of view.

Unavailable : Zorko ( Ankle surgery – Reckons he’ll be fine for R1 ) , Coleman ( covid close contact ) , Devon Roberston, Hipwood, Mathieson

Cam Raynor (FWD $396K)

The hype might not have been real, and he certainly didn’t dominate, but he did play in the midfield ( 12 CBAs ) , and he did get better as the game went on, don’t expect the world but at his price I guess you can afford to cut him a little slack, maybe. Check him out next week anyway.

Zac Bailey (MID/FWD $610K)

For mine was today’s BOG and absolutely brained it in the first half , collected 13 CBAs, tackled and marked well and was everywhere. His mid field time went to forward time late which is a slight concern.

Lachie Neale (MID $792K)

Was quiet early but warmed into the game in the second half.  The concept of him playing more forward time never really eventuated ( grabbing 22 CBAs ) and looked more and more classy as the game went on.  He’s still epic value in your classic teams, and if you don’t have him in yours, then think very closely about getting him in, right meow.

Jarrod Berry (MID $725K)

Berry had a very good day and could make a case to be second best on ground behind Bailey, kicked 3 goals , 13 CBAs and looked back to his pre injury best. A draft steal and a classic watch and potential late season upgrade target.

Darcy Wilmont (DEF $250K)

The young draftee had a decent chunk of time in all quarters despite other players riding the pine all day so the coach must see something. He was serviceable and could prove value if he can get a spot in the team

Daniel Rich( DEF $823K)

Looked good back in defense and grabbed plenty of ball and kick ins. Albeit without both Zorko and Coleman who are said to be playing half back roles, which could affect Rich’s scoring.

Other mentions

Jarryd Lyons (MID $982K) : Got 15 CBAs but didn’t look his big possession number self. Wonder if its a new role or just practice match rust / not trying.

Oscar McInerney (RUCK $643K) : Had a really good day in the ruck beating out ROB most times, and didn’t seem to change out with Fort all that much ( except for later in the 4th ) , for draft coaches the threat of Fort may not be as bigger deal as originally thought.

All the lions forwards : Mcstay kicked 4, Cameron kicked 3,  Big Joe got around the ground and kicked 3  and McArthy also looked very solid. All this was quite possibly due to Adelaide’s defense being trash and their side being very inexperienced.  Still streaming lions forwards against worse teams this year could be a great play indeed.

Nakia Cockatoo (FWD $339K)  : Came on late in the game and actually looked decent ( picking up 4 CBAs ). If he keeps his body together and can nail a spot in the side he could find himself some fantasy relevance.

Unavailable : Fischer McAsey, Rory Sloane, Paul Seedsman, Jordan Dawson, Taylor Walker, Wayne Milera, Brodie Smith, Tom Doedee

A lot of the Crowds hype bubble burst when Dawson and Milera weren’t named, but there was still a little bit to look at from a crows point of view. Headlined by my new F6 J.Rachele.

Josh Rachele (MID/FWD $280K)

The real star of a disappointing day for the crows was Rachele, whether it be up front or in defense he showed poise, the ability to hunt for the ball and accurate kicking both in the field and in front of goal and while its very early the crows may have really found one here.  The only potential flag is he spent a lot of his time playing as a high forward, which could affect scoring, but we cant be too picky with out rookie forwards.

Matt Crouch (MID $649K)

Was on managed game time throughout but still managed to rack up 17 CBA’s and do alright with the ball when he did get it. Didn’t dominate but did enough to suggest he’s still got it.

Rory Laird (MID $937K)

Just quietly went about his day racking up the pill without being hugely influential on the game. Had a consistent amount of possessions in all quarters and a very solid day without setting the world on fire. At his price though your comparing him with the Macrae’s and Titches of the world and I just cant go past either of those guys.

Reilly O’Brien (RUCK $723K)

A popular R2 choice given his consistency and lower price than the big dogs, but he didn’t look good today. Lost a lot of ruck taps to the Big O and some of the second stringers, and spent a lot of time not playing ruck with Thilthorpe getting a dig. Few flags there for the ROB owners going into round 1.

Jake Soligo (MID $220K)

A highly touted draftee who got a chunk of time on the field. Didnt really do much though. Maybe he might get a run late in the season for us and be handy.

Other mentions

Sam Berry (FWD $359K): Had a great first half and racked up 17 CBAs. Might be a sneaky pick in your drafts and keeper leagues and maybe even a classic watch with the forwards being thin on the ground.

Riley Thilthorpe (FWD $429K): Rucked for a bit, kicked 2 goals and looked solid.

Harry Schoenberg (MID $582K)  : Wasn’t super impactful in the middle but did rack up 17 CBAs, that’s very interesting indeed.

Luke Pedlar (MID/FWD 210K)  : I got asked about him a few times, he played , he got 5 CBA’s but didn’t really do much.

Lachie Sholl (MID $564K)  : Got a bit of ball early in the game but faded out and didn’t look very good late.