Fremantle Intra-Club Report – 10th Feb 2012

When – Friday 10^th February

Where – Subiaco Oval

Before the Bounce

Straw – Ever since the Dockers became the biggest story of the AFL finals by knifing Mark Harvey in the back I have been looking forward to season 2012.  I was so excited to have a REAL coach take the helm I considered driving to Harves’ abode with one of my kitchen knives to add to the ones Ross Lyon and the FFC board had already jammed in there.  While the intra-club games are akin to touch football it’s an exciting opportunity to see what plans Lyon has up his sleeve for the new season.  Attending with an Eagles supporter should make for an interesting evening.  Interesting notes as of the first bounce are Ballantyne starting in the mids along with Fyfe, Pav deep inside forward 50 and Sandilands taking on a WAFL midget in the ruck.  Hopefully we all look awesome out on the track so DS will be scared into keeping his mouth shut until at least after the first Derby.  Please boys don’t let me down in front of this guy!

DS and I are going to try to focus on the DT relevant players but will see if anyone else grabs our attention.  We’ve divided the players and I’m concentrating on the Purple lads Fyfe, Barlow, Neale and Spurr.

DS – I was disappointed to read that the only REAL Western Australian AFL team weren’t going to have an intra club game before the NAB Cup kicks off this season. This meant that if I was going to do any game day DT research  in an attempt to better my overall DT ranking from last year of 459^th, Id have to go watch the Purple F*ckers. So I got my vaccinations (Purple Cooties is this countries 2^nd biggest health problem behind Man Flu), donned my Hazmat suit and headed down to Subi with my friend and fellow DT Talk tragic Straw(Docker supporter), to check out how the players are going and what changes Ross Lyon has made to the structure and game plan. At the ground I did suggest we pop into the Fremantle Team Store and ask the friendly staff to direct us to the premiership memorabilia section, but the look on Straw’s face made it very clear that wasn’t a good idea.

Players I watched – Pavlich, Broughton, Duffield, Ballantyne.

*Please note: we did our best trying to get the stats but we’re not Champion Data guys so I’m sure we missed a few, especially with the midfield guys. These stats are very close but 100%*

Pavlich

6 kicks, 1 handball, 7 marks, 0 goals(41 DT pts)

DS – I was really interested in seeing if Pav would play the “Riewoldt role” in Lyons Dockers, and he did for the most part. He started deep and came up around the centre a few times on long leads, and then pushed back hard inside 50 to present again. He stay deep 80% of the time tho, and didn’t get many marks up around the flanks 2 or 3 kicks from goal which worried me a bit. He sat out the last quarter but he wasn’t hurt. They were obviously just giving the champ a rest.

Straw – Spent most of the night in the forward 50 and didn’t really roam up the ground too often.  Took an early shower after 3 quarter time.  Nothing great from a DT perspective but early days.  A pre-season scratchy is a bit beneath him so can’t take much from his performance.  Looked fit and if I swung that way I’d totally hit that.

Barlow

5 kicks, 7 handballs, 1 mark (32 DT pts)

Straw – From the second my DT preseason tinkering started this guy was in my team.  Well under-priced from what we have seen in the past.  I spent a lot of the game focusing on him.  He played all 4 quarters in the middle which was encouraging.  As far as possessions go he picked up between 10-15 touches.  I probably missed some of his stats while I was making goo goo eyes at Lachie Neale so he most likely picked up a few more touches.  Didn’t really impact the game and seemed to be playing a more accountable game than we’re used to.  Accountability is the bane of DT performance, he’s now only got one foot in my team…

DS – I gotta say a couple of alarm bells were going off tonight and we watched him very closely. What I saw combined with a few of his comments near the start of this article is starting to make me think he isn’t as big a lock as some are saying.

ARTICLE: Docker Barlow has unfinished business.

FYFE

12 kicks, 6 handballs, 1 mark, 1 behind (52 DT pts)

Straw – For me he was best on ground (photo finish with Ballas).  Due to the delayed pre-season I was never going to start with him but I may have to reconsider.  Killed the first half with probably around 15 touches (mostly kicks!!).  He faded a little in the second half though.  Still got a bit of it.  The main things I noticed were that he spent the entire game in the middle, no moves forward or to the wing.  He was also one of the few (if not only) guys that were being forced to take a breather towards the middle of the quarter and again towards the end.  At one point one of the fitness staff was yelling at him to come off and he was waving them off so that he didn’t break the zone for the kick in.  Eventually they sent his replacement on before he’d leave the ground (somehow we got away with the interchange infringement).  He was always an upgrade target for me but now I may have to look at squeezing him into my starting side.  Has a hippy haircut which pissed DS off so I enjoyed his game even more.

DS – I had him down as an upgrade target later in the season because of his limited pre season due to his groin and shoulder injuries. I’ll have to rethink that now.

Broughton

8 kicks, 5 handballs, 2 marks(40 DT pts)

DS – Ok……if you’ve ever had Broughton in your team then this part is either going to make you laugh or cry! In the first half he played deep in defence on a lockdown role on Mayne. Had 1 kick and 1 handball and never saw much of it even when they were” switching” the ball in defence.

In the second half he literally changed jumpers (I kid you not, he went from 6 to 45) and started in the midfield (inside square for bounces) and racked up quite a few possessions. His number change threw us off a bit, since we initially thought he must have been taken out at half time, so we missed most of his stats in the 3^rd quarter, but from late in the 3^rd till the end of the game he racked up 7 kicks, 4 handballs and 2 marks. If his entire DT career could be summed up in one game this would be it.

Ross Lyon what are you doing to us?!?!?! Where is he going to play?!?!?!

Straw – I love this guy due to his loose affiliation with my footy club (he played there as a kid).  Because of that he should be in your team!  Played the first half as a lock down defender then moved into the mids in the second.  Looks like much of the same rollercoaster as last year.  I’d say buyer beware.

Duffield

7 kicks, 4 handballs, 5 marks(44 DT pts)

DS – Looks like hes playing the “Jason Gram or Sam Fisher” role in Lyons Dockers. Played Half Back and it looked like they were trying to free either him or McPhee up in defence. Used his pace to provide run and carry and pushed up to around half forward when his team had possession. If it was his turn to be the free man then he often got involved when they “switched” sides coming out of defence. In the second half when Broughton went into the midfield he moved onto Mayne and played deeper.

Straw – DS spent a bit more time watching Duffman than I but from what I saw he was loose in the back half for a lot of the game.  Picked up quite a bit of ball and could be one worth watching in the NAB.  Could really take the step forward we all thought was coming last year.  We all know Ross likes his rebounding slutty defenders

Ballantyne

14 kicks, 9 handballs, 5 marks, 0 goals (75 DT pts)

DS – He’s an annoying little twerp, but bugger me if he isn’t going to be DT relevant this season! Played midfield the whole game starting in the centre square and followed the ball while also pushing inside the forward 50. His 1^st half stats were 4 kicks, 6 handballs and 3 marks.

In the second half he switched with Mzungu and played on a wing, and while still being in the thick of it he tended to stay more defensive half and not push inside the forward 50 much. His 2^nd half stats were 10 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks.

It pains me to say it but……Ballantyne is up and about in DT this year.

Straw – Again DS concentrated on Ballas’ game but it was hard not to see him as he was in everything.  He played in the guts or on the wing for the whole game.  Best on ground would be between him and Fyfe.  He has put one foot in my team after tonight!

Spurr

3 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks, 1 bone crunching tackle (25 DT pts)

Straw – A lot of chatter pre-season about this guy so far.  Mature age recruit + Fremantle’s mature age policy over the last couple of years = a big chance.  Got very little of the ball and played as a lockdown defender.  Not great for DT but as a rookie is still one to watch through the NAB.  With no current spot on the list he would most likely be a downgrade target.  I think there are a lot of obstacles in his way to getting a game, especially early.

DS – His size surprised me. For some reason I thought he’d have a bigger body.

Neale

10 kicks, 2 handballs, 3 marks (43 DT pts)

Straw – All I can say is WOW!  There have been a few rumours coming out that Ross Lyon rates this guy.  Spent the first half in the centre for the Purples along with Barlow and Fyfe.  Made way for Broughton in the second half and switched to the wing.  Moved around the ground well and got a bit of the ball.  Picked up his kicks all over the ground.  Used the ball well too.  Really got free when he was playing on the wing.  Little nuggetty build too, so size for AFL footy doesn’t look to be an issue.  Definitely one to watch for the rookie spots.

DS – Very impressive. Straw has now claimed him as, and I quote “My boy from waaaay back!” If he gets a game then jump on. Ball magnet who reminded me of Andrew Gaff, but hopefully without the vest.

Other Observations

Straw – The main points I took from the game were……Sandilands was dominant and looked fit.  He was rucking against a guy that was about 105.5cm (i.e. half Sandi’s height).  Can’t take much from his dominance but his fitness was good to see. Lachie Neale really floated my boat.  Interesting that Lyon had him in the midfield from the beginning.  I can really see this guy getting early games. Mzungu had a great game and could increase his average from last year.  Spent time on the wing and in midfield.  Zac Dawson was a lock for me until he was dominated by one of the WAFL fill-ins.  He’s still in there but I’m having second thoughts. We all know Fyfe is a jet and he looks like he’s going to kick on with last season’s form. The story of the night for me was Ballantyne.  It looks like he will not just be running through the mids a little but will play a major chunk of his game either there or on the wing.  I had only loosely considered him before tonight but now he is well and truly on my radar.

Barlow’s lack of impact on the game scared me.

DS – The whole team is noticeably thinner this season. Even players like McPhee and Pavlich have lost a lot of bulk.  Sandilands was utterly dominant but without any real competition. Mzungu played midfield and was best afield IMO. He would easily have racked up the most possessions (also scored a goal) and I wish we’d focused on him. The first thing I did when I got home was check if he was still Mid/Fwd, but alas he’s just a mid this season *shakes fist at Champion Data*. Mcphee spent a lot of time loose in defence, often got involved in “switching” the play and was often third man up in marking contests. Zach Clarke got a corky in the calf and was rested for last quarter. Suban played in defence. Docker fans have lots of mullets and bad tattoo’s. One girl even had a tat on her neck of the old school Docker logo……as I was leaving Subi after the game I had a strong desire to take a shower.

	Purple: 8  2  50		White: 11  7  73
5	IBBOTSON Garrick	1	BALLANTYNE Hayden
7	FYFE Nathan	3	DAWSON Zac
10	LOWER Nick	4	PITT Jayden
11	SHERIDEN Tom	6	BROUGHTON Greg
17	CROZIER Hayden	8	SUBAN Nick
21	BARLOW Michael	9	McPHEE Adam
23	MAYNE Chris	13	MZUNGU Tendai
27	NEALE Lachie	15	CROWLEY Ryan
28	FAULKS Peter	22	ANTHONY Jack
30	CLARKE Zachary	25	MELLINGTON Josh
34	SPURR Lee	26	BRADLEY Kepler
35	SCHLOITHE Haiden	29	PAVLICH Matthew
37	JOHNSON Michael	31	SANDILANDS Aaron
39	MENEGOLA Sam	32	HILL Stephen
47	VAN BERLO Jay	40	DE BOER Matt
(CFC)	LEE Tom	41	DUFFIELD Paul
(EF)	TROPIANO Aiden	44	CRICHTON Jesse
(WP)	BLACK, Aaron	46	PEARCE Clancee
(SD)	LAMMIE Wes	(CFC)	BRADSHAW Jack
(WP)	BATTERHAM James	(SD)	BROAD, Nathan
(EF)	CHALWELL Tyler

Submitted by DS.