Your Starting Squad 2014 – The Mids

Written by Motts on August 22 2013

Without doubt the most important 10 positions to fill on the ground.

I cannot wait for Don Cottagers’ analysis of this one.

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54 thoughts on “Your Starting Squad 2014 – The Mids”

  1. Gaz & Pendles should be auto filled into every team next year. No real need of explanation for that one.

    One of Swan or Beams. If Beams gets a discount definitely him.

    Dangerfield. Slow start injury affected scores, slow finish.

    Marc Murphy. Will be priced on a 90 average which is ridiculously cheap for a bloke of his calibre.

    High chance these blokes will be my starting 5.

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  2. In an ideal world I would love to have Ablett, Pendles, Danger, Griffindore and K-Jack in my starting line-up for 2014. I know I’ll be a little unpopular on the following opinion. That is (with Chad Wingard in mind) the idea of taking a decent second year player who will rise in price or possibly be a player to hold for the year. Originally thought O’Meara or T Mitchell. But now looking towards Crouch from Adelaide or Curran from StKilda. Any constructive criticism would be appreciated. And Don Cottagers has all the answers soon enough anyway 😉

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  3. Players that will there abouts in my starting side 2014:

    Scott Pendlebury – showed again in 2013 why we should all have him in our SC side, averaging 126 to date. He is 25, has gone below 100 4 times in the past 3 seasons, and only one of those times has he gone below 90. Is likely to take the captaincy of Maxwell in 2014 too. The kid is a gun, and is only getting better. LOCK

    Joel Selwood – What is it about 25 year olds that make me want to fill my SC side with them. Maybe it’s because they are coming of age. Has a 5 year average of about 113. That is an average that you can take to the bank, as this guy does everything. Hard ball, goals, tackles, earns free kicks, wins games on the back of his own effort. Like Pendles, you get what you pay for. LOCK

    Marc Murphy – At 26, this guy is pushing the envelop. Forget his averages this year, he has been dealing with a new coach, new captaincy, and injury. Average 114 for the 4 seasons preceding 2013. He’ll be priced at 90, and ready to return to his best. Expect this guy to be a popular selection, but that aint with reason. LOCK

    Rory Sloane – I’m all over the place with age. 24 now. Consecutive seasons average 105+ have got me thinking that this kid is going to step it up again. He is like a freight train to watch, and is a natural born leader that gets the hard ball, kicks important goals and will never stay down. He, along with his mates Patrick and Brad, are set to be a dominate midfield group for years to come. CONSIDER

    Josh P. Kennedy – How many of us were burned this year when we were convinced that this guy was an out and out SuperCoach star of our game. I know that I was, but there is a reason for that. Loves to tackles, loves the hard ball. Who else would beleive that he is only 25!!! He will return to form as he learns from this season. Expects a 110+ point average next year. STRONGLY CONSIDER

    Scott Selwood – It’s in his blood to do great things. Great SuperCoach things. The Eagles have had a year to forget, but this 23 year old has notched up his second year averaging 100+. Expect the WCE midfield to grow, and step up, and the Eagles to win a lot more games next year, with this guy leading the way. I’ll say it again, loves tackles, loves free kicks (he and his brother are 1 and 2 in the comp for free kicks on ave), loves the hard ball. A bit of a risky selection, but no riskier than picking one of the other Weagles mids like Shuey, Gaff or Masten.
    CONSIDER

    My final mentions are all rookies, guys that I expect to step up again or return from a lowly season/injury, and I will be watching closely to see their preseason form.

    Andrew Swallow
    Ben Cunnington
    Anthony Morabito
    Jack Martin
    Rhys Palmer

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  4. All above sound good but i’ll watching players like David Swallow preseason. Seemed to play down back a bit this year but should be a midfielder all next year. Only averaging 80 odd but I think these young fella’s will go up a notch next year.

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  5. Gnna make a huge call, but don’t think i can start with gaz, he will be exspenasive as, and i have a feling his avaerage will drop with players having break outs like Bennell, Prestia taking his points

    INS/Watchlist

    Cunnington
    Beams
    Joelwood
    Pendels
    Murphy
    Ward
    Bennell
    D.Swallow

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  6. As Motts says, this is the most important line as it is where most of your scoring will come from early and where most of the best rookies will be. I think, generally, you can assume that there will be around five rookies who fit what I want in a midfield rookie: As close to that $115k mark as possible, playing round 1 and likely to avoid the vest as much as possible.

    That obviously means that you have to find five other guys to lead your team. I’m not a fan of going with mid-pricers in the guts. I’m willing to take a risk on the other three lines if the right guy presents himself to me (that doesn’t sound right at all…) but I don’t like to take that kind of risk in the engine room. Therefore, I’m sticking with the stars. Generally, I like a history of excellence.

    I should also say that this list could easily change based on the 2014 draw and bye configuration alone. There are also three players that I think are the perfect players to upgrade to over the season, one that I am avoiding due to too many players from the one side and the other two that I will likely avoid at the start due to their ability to throw out sub-80 scores and therefore drop in price, but they deserve a mention.

    Swan misses out for me and it will become clear why further on. The other two are Watson and Jack. I love both of these guys as players, leaders and SC scorers. Over the last two seasons Jobe has averaged 116.5, but this season he has thrown in four sub-80 scores. He will be 29 next season and leading an Essendon team that (AFL commission decisions pending) has a strong chance to finish in-or-around the top 4. I can’t speak highly enough of Jack. He is an exceptional leader and, in my opinion, that hardest two-way running midfielder in the league. Any side would be lucky to have him and your SC side is no different. He has averaged 111 over the last two seasons and he has played 123 of the last 130 games, despite his sometimes kamikaze style of play. Despite that, he has thrown in eight 80-or-less scores in the last two years. He turns 27 next year and as with Essendon and Jobe, I see no reason why Jack isn’t leading Sydney towards another potential top-4 finish. But with both having a sub-80 propensity, I’ll be waiting to upgrade to them.

    M1: Gary Ablett Jnr.

    Do I really need to justify it? Well I may as well… There are two potential concerns. Firstly, he turns 30 during next season and many of us have a 30-year-old rule. Secondly, there is that threat that he could be asked to spend larger stretches forward. I’ll counter those arguments with 132.2, 140.1, 129.8, 127.1, 138.1, 129.2. The other counterargument is 53. That is the number of times he has scored over 140 since he became a star in 2007. That’s 38% of the games he has played. That is just insane. He’s gone over 180 ten times and racked up a 254, 206 and 203. Yes, you will be able to pick him up cheaper later in the year, but seriously, don’t start without him.

    M2: Scott Pendlebury

    So there is a player in the AFL who has gone under 100 less times than Ablett in the last three seasons. That’s pretty impressive. Pendles has gone under the magic mark on six occasions in three years, and four of them finished in the 90s (for the record, Ablett has done it eight times). Pendlebury has also missed less games during that period (four vs five) and that came from a single injury. He even out-averaged Ablett in 2011. All of that and he is only a 26-year-old come next season. 17 140+ scores in the last three years equates to a 28% conversion rate which is also pretty special. Again, as with Ablett, just get him and watch the 120s role in.

    M3: Joel Selwood

    You know that question that commentators ask from time to time, “if you had to have a guy kick for goal to save your life, who would it be?” If you changed ‘kick for goal’ to ‘win a contested possession’, Joel would be the top of most of our lists. The consummate professional, surprisingly durable considering his style of play and turning 26 next season, Selwood is a jet. 110.8, 117.8, 111.5, 117.4, 117.3, tells you that he is consistently elite, if just a touch under the super-premiums. He also does have the ability to be tagged to a lower score from time to time. The reason that I want him at M3 at this early stage is what he has done in the last five weeks: he is going forward. The trend to rest your star midfielders forward (or move them there to avoid a tag) has been happening for a few seasons now, but Joel seems to have just clicked onto it. He has a lazy 14 goals in the last five weeks and it has translated into a 139 average. I’m not saying he will kick three goals a week, because he won’t, but that added string to his bow is massive. Before this five week stretch he had only kicked 53 goals in his last 95 matches (so around one every two weeks), but if he keeps playing forward I think he could kicked 30+ goals next year and break the 120 average for the first time ever.

    M4: Dayne Beams

    Along with Pendlebury, he is the reason that I can’t get Swan and I love Swan, so that probably suggests how highly I rate Beams. This season he has only played six games and averaged 109.5. That is off a long-term injury and, as a result, zero pre-season. He is the twelfth highest averaging mid and he has done it off zero base. That’s seriously impressive. Couple that with his 123 average from a year ago and it is pretty clear we have a potential SC superstar. Eleven of his last 27 games have been over 130, including two this year. The caveat here is a full pre-season (or full-ish) but, as with the three above, I think he can average 120+ next year. Did I mention he only turns 24 for next season, which is pretty great as well. He looks like a mini-Swan, plays like a mini-Swan and I think he can comfortably take over his elite SC scoring baton on the next couple of seasons.

    M5: Trent Cotchin

    Two things here. Firstly, if there are six rookies that I feel comfortable running with, then Cotch will be the man to miss out for me. Secondly, the numbers say Murphy at M5, but I’m sceptical. Yes he has averaged 110+ for the last four seasons and will be priced at 90, but I’m not sure of his ability to handle the hard tag each and every week. The time for tagging Judd is over, so the Blues skipper will get it every time. Geary has kept him to 57, Shiel to 73, Jones to 75, Crowley to 71 and there is also an apparently un-tagged 54 against the Pies. He tends to go big less often that the likes of Watson and Jack, so it means that the lower scores hurt his average more. Enough about the man that was beaten out for M5 though and on to Cotchin. There are a few things that I love about the Tigers skipper. Firstly, like with Ablett, Watson, Jack and Selwood, he is the kind of guy that leads by example (I do seem to like club captains for SC mids…). The job needs doing and he goes and does it. He turns 24 next season, so there is no chance of being past his prime. He has missed one game in three seasons and durability is a big thing with your elite stars. He has a 112.5 average over the last two years and I think that he hasn’t quite been 100% this year. When he was last year he only scored below 100 three times and two of those were a 98 and a 99. One score below 98 is, as Dwayne Russell would say, crazy good. He has four below 99 this year, but as I said, I’m just not sure he is 100%. If that assertion is correct, then it’s a 115 average of higher for Cotchin next year, leading a resurgent Tigers side into the finals for the second year running. He doesn’t regularly have those humongous games, but he is pretty close to a walk-up 100.

    M6: Jack Martin

    Gold Coast keep telling us that he is better than Jaeger. The NEAFL stats say he is getting more touches and kicking more goals, so while it is a huge call, they are the ones that would know. As a fan of a club other than the Suns, it does kind of worry me to think that their four leading midfielders in three to four years will consist of Martin, O’Meara, Bennell and Prestia as a minimum. It’s a hugely early call and entirely irrelevant to next seasons SC (and one that nobody will remember come next week, let alone four years times) but I’m willing to bet that that is the leagues best midfield quartet going into season 2017. Anyway, regardless of how much you love any other player in the game, when somebody asks you who your ‘first picked’ for season 2014 is, the answer should be Jack Martin. Unless he gets injured and misses round 1, there are no question marks in any way, shape or form on him. Jump on and enjoy an O’Meara like ride.

    M7: Anthony Morabito

    I really hope for his sake this happens. He will be priced with Martin and the other non-first-round draft picks but he will be 22. He is essentially a mature-aged recruit, with AFL experience, who the club and coach love. Hopefully he is able to come back from the latest knee reco (what are we up to now, four?) and just play because from all reports he is a top bloke and nobody deserves his run of luck. He has to get through the pre-season and from a personal and SC point of view, it would be great to see a return to his rookie year where he played 21 games. He is not really a huge vest threat either, so if he can manage to not hurt his knee anymore he should play early and often, which is what you want from a rookie.

    M8, M9, M10: *

    They will obviously appear throughout the off-season, likely to be matured-aged guys who get their shot at the big time. Three Barlow’s would be nice…

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  7. Ablett, Pendles, Murphy, Joel and Scott Selwood, 5 rookies. Kieran Jack unlucky but burnt me last two weeks! Possibly a 400k ish player with a soft early draw with an aim to upgrade to a fallen premium after 4 – 6 rounds. (Swan, Beams Griffen, Cotchin or Danger if not a forward).

    Murphy at his current average should improve around 15 – 20 points to 110 ish so for value, almost a must. Having a plate inserted in your face is probably more uncomfortable than fantasy coaches realize. Scotty Selwood to improve to 110+, he is so hard at it and tackles like a demon. Not the Mebourne type.

    I think the rookies who have played a season or two like B Hill and K Stevens this year are a good way to go, worked reasonably well for me this year. Guys changing clubs for opportunities are the ones to look out for also, Viv Michie possibly?

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  8. any thoughts on C Young (coll) and C Beams (Bris) as possible mid pricers?

    (not that we go midpricers cause we all know better right?)

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  9. ablett pendles and dayne beams are my walk up starts…..

    then there will be the best value priced around 500k(could be daisy if he doesnt get fwd eligibility)

    ….maybe 1 midpricer…

    rest rookie (including at this stage J Lonergan and Moribito and 3 first year rooks)

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  10. Firstly, I know they will go down in price due to rookie price corrections, but you have to have Ablett, Joelwood and Pendles or you are already too far behind by the time their prices stabilize.

    You would want perhaps another 2 or 3 more quality players in there, and 4 or 5 rookies, because the bang for buck of a $150k rookie averaging 80ppg cannot be ignored.

    The 2 or 3 more is the tough bit. Do you hope jager doesn’t get second year blues? Do you back wingard if he isn’t a dpp m/f? Will stevie j be mid only? What about Kieran Jack? Dangerfield?

    I think of all the positions, those 2 or 3 players are going to ve the biggest POD of the starting rounds, until the bounce of the ball in round 3, by which we will all have burnt trades to be near identical again.

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  11. I had Ben Cunnington at the start of the year. I was hoping to see a big jump up to the elite level. He’s got an average of 96.1 which of course just isn’t good enough for a midfielder. He’s just too inconsistent. But the least few weeks he’s stepped up and taken responsibility with no Swallow albeit still scores inconsistently. Last 5 weeks have been: 88, 151, 75, 113, 110.

    He has the ingredients to become a top, top supercoach star. He’s been on my mind for a while. Wins a lot of contested footy, (top 10 in the AFL for clearances) a very good tackler, excellent disposal efficiency for an inside midfielder, and when things click at North he’ll kick a goal or two a game because he’s got an eye for it.

    I wonder if I’ll try again with him next year. Everyone else’s thoughts?

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  12. got delidio swan pendles gaz selwood just bought chappy back in reckon he will kill the swans beams and Watson reckon I will mae my first grand final by bringing chappy in

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  13. I’m thinking Pendles, Selwood, Beams, Dangerfield and one of Murphy or Cotchin as my 5 starting mids. Not sure about Gaz as he seems likely to be pushed into the forward line a lot next year.

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  14. I decided to post my whole team in one spot; of course I’m guesstimating pricing and positioning, so this will probably change a lot…

    Final costing amounted to approximately $9.5M.

    Defenders:

    D1: McVeigh/Mitchell/Bartel/Walker
    D2: Hurn
    D3: Waters
    D4: Suckling
    D5: Bock
    D6-8: Rookies

    M1: Ablett
    M2: Pendlebury
    M3: Selwood
    M4: Cotchin
    M5: Murphy
    M6: Beams
    M7: Morabito
    M8: Martin
    M9,10: Rookies

    R1: McIntosh
    R2: Z Smith
    R3,4: Rookies

    F1: Dangerfield
    F2: Rockliff
    F3: Naitanui
    F4: Cox/Wingard/….(Unsure here)
    F5: Rohan
    F6-8: Rookies (Hogan, perhaps)

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  15. Well I went back and looked at my starting midsthis year to see how they stack up.

    Ablett, Selwood, Cotchin, Murphy, then a host of Rookies. I think it will be a similar Scenario next year and perhaps this exact four. Just depends on prices, maybe I will be able to slot one more in. Pendles would be the man.

    BUDDY If you stay a Hawk I keep you if you leave you are OUT.

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  16. Ablett, Rockliff, Beams, Hanley, J martin, J Aish, V Michie, M Honeychurch, L Dunstan, M Crouch. Good or bad? comment plz

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