Zac Williams – Deck of DT 2024

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Why should I pick him?

Okay, I know I find a way to talk about Z will every year, but this year it’s because he is ridiculously cheap! WARNING: I am going to flash back to his days playing in the midfield at the Giants, so if you can’t take the heat, you best get out of the kitchen.

Now I understand 2019 is a long time ago and the midfield is not a place Z Will can get a look in at the Blues given their strength in there but its nice to select players that know how to find the pill. In that year, a run of injuries at the Giants gave the running defender an opportunity to take his talents to the midfield and crikey did he make the most of it! In the last 14 games or so, he was a stat stuffing ball magnet, registering eight hundreds which included 114, 116, 120, 122 and 142 which boosted his average to a career best 93. ELITE numbers.

In his most recent season to take the field in 2022 with the mighty Blues, Williams demonstrated on multiple occasions that when he gets going, he can score with the best. From his nine matches, three caught the eye with a 98 from 27 touches, 103 from 27 possessions and ten marks and (hold you Fantasy hats) a whopping 137 from 36 touches, five marks and five tackles. I can hear you ‘Are you talking about Diesel Williams Roy?’

Finding value and players that will increase in price early in the season is the name of the game and we have a guy capable of playing at the level previously mentioned who is priced at an average of 49… Lower than his career worst average and significantly less than his recent seasons despite having low injury effected scores bringing his averages down.

Another reason we will pick him is because we will see him play in round zero, he will easily outscore his price tag despite a tough opening match up and we will all find ourselves with someone more than capable of holding down one of those dreaded mid price defender positions we always seem to need in order to make the rest of the team fit. Not to mention the steep price rise that will result following round one.

Why shouldn’t I pick him?

The main concern picking Z Will is his durability but hey, it didn’t stop the Blues paying top dollar and we are getting him on the cheap. Seriously though, he has never played a full season and he is coming off tallies of 11, 14, nine and zero games which does nothing for the confidence levels.

Not only are his injury games a worry, as we saw in 2022, when he left the ground in round nine on just four following an achillies complaint, he was having quiet games around that which included scores of 31, 62 and 64 where he found himself down the pecking order in D50 behind the likes of Docherty and Saad.

It can be hard for a player to force their way straight back into the 22 after missing 12 months with an ACL, especially when he hadn’t played a lot of footy in the season prior. And when they do force their way in, it can take a while to get their confidence at touch back. Not to mention, the Blues want him playing finals footy next year, so they are not going to be taking any risks so he will be a weekly selection and vest headache.

Williams was not yet back into full training prior to Christmas.

You may not be interested in selecting a player who has a bye as early as round 2, especially if you are locking in an under priced teammate like Sam Walsh.

Deck of DT Rating.

QUEEN

There is a lot of buzz internally at the Blues with Williams expect to rejoin full training early in the new year which gives him every chance to hit the ground running by the start of the season (one of the few benefits of suffering an ACL in the pre season). Although there is no expectation to reach those huge midfield numbers, he is more than capable of putting 25 points on his asking price, especially given the fact that Sam Docherty has moved up the ground since he last played. Previously, I’ve incorrectly said to pick him as a star, this year I’m saying to pick him as a bargain (the star talk will return prior to the 2025 season, stay tuned).

Roy

The most successful DTer out of the boys prides himself on his multiple top 200 finishes... nearly as much as he prides himself on his guns! The coach of destROY wants you to follow him on Twitter: @RoyDT.