The Gold Coast Effect

[Turbocat]

Guys , just wonder what you thought of the way Carlton demolished GC

No doubt they knew it was going to be hard , but with so much talent either drafted and traded for , I wonder if they thought it was going to be such a one sided blood bath result. I wonder if they now think they have got a list that is just a little to youthful. We have seen over the decades that if a team is too young it can be detrimental to their development & 12 Debutants is way over the top , its like playing an U18 side against men. God help them against the Pies.

The question is . - will the way they get thru this year adjust your methodology in assembling your list. If they continue to get crunched , will it mean you may be more willing to trade a few more picks and get a few extra senior players?
Would you really want to front up to cop that every week next year. Would prospective recuits say they want more than 6-8 sr. guys or I'm not interested?

[dlanod]

I'd like to see us get 12-16 mature bodied players rather than the eight plus Harris, Stanley and Iles that GC got. The GC had to play some prospects very early, e.g. Tape, because they simply didn't have the numbers to make up the full team.

[loki04]

Think GC should of took the full 16 senior players they were allowed too and GWS should learn from their mistake.

That would still leave a lot of spots for young players to develope in the 2nd teir and means the top 6 juniors still play AFL from day one but led by a more experienced grp and hence be more competitive and not soul destroying flogging week after week.

[AussieFTW]

It's a hard one to get the numbers right..
For 1st season wins, we'd need at least 12 experienced, strong-bodied players recruited from AFL clubs, as well as some really quality draft picks like Swallow and so forth..
but would that be sacrificing future glory my not selecting and playing as good a team for teh future as we can get?
Is it more important to the club to have a pretty solid first 3-4 seasons, or start poorly but have a better chance of winning a flag in 4-6 seasons?

[loki04]

It's a hard one to get the numbers right..
For 1st season wins, we'd need at least 12 experienced, strong-bodied players recruited from AFL clubs, as well as some really quality draft picks like Swallow and so forth..
but would that be sacrificing future glory my not selecting and playing as good a team for teh future as we can get?
Is it more important to the club to have a pretty solid first 3-4 seasons, or start poorly but have a better chance of winning a flag in 4-6 seasons?

Where is the proof you would have a better chance?

If you can get 16 un-contracted and keep all your low picks you can have the best of both worlds.

Losing culture can decimate young talent just look at Carlton, Richmond, Melbourne ect they took 10+ years to get out of the mire and still may not amount to a flag.

You need solid leaders and experience to guide the youth and protect them from mental scaring and confidence loss.

[The_Wookie]

got to get the balance right, but sheedy is the same guy who coached his baby bombers to the 93 flag so he should know what he is doing.

[Rob]

The list target should be this.

10 current AFL regulars
10 non-regulars with AFL experience
10 of the best state league players they can find
20 kids

It's the 2nd and 3rd group that the GC didnt target. That's why they're not competitive.

[2010premier]

The list target should be this.

10 current AFL regulars
10 non-regulars with AFL experience
10 of the best state league players they can find
20 kids

It's the 2nd and 3rd group that the GC didnt target. That's why they're not competitive.

Absolutely spot on!!!!

[Professor Knowall]

The list target should be this.

10 current AFL regulars
10 non-regulars with AFL experience
10 of the best state league players they can find
20 kids

It's the 2nd and 3rd group that the GC didnt target. That's why they're not competitive. Nailed it. Alas, Gubby didn't.

[AussieFTW]

The list target should be this.

10 current AFL regulars
10 non-regulars with AFL experience
10 of the best state league players they can find
20 kids

It's the 2nd and 3rd group that the GC didnt target. That's why they're not competitive.

You know, I would probably alter that just a bit, so it's 10 current AFL regulars, 5 AFL non-regulars, 5 the best state leagueies, and 30 kids.
But either way, I think that's the right direction.
Instead of having 12 AFL debutants like the Gold Coast did, I would rather see 5-6. You still have to play the kids, of course, but give the ones you play as much support as you can, and the ones that don't will continue to be tested in the NEAFL comp.

[von_wafer]

I agree that we probably don't want as many of the AFL non-regulars. If they're struggling with established players around them then they will likely struggle with so many kids around them. Not sure about the state leagues, don't see enough of it to comment but I'd be inclined to give more a chance to prove themselves at a higher level.

[UrLordUnbeliever]

I agree that we probably don't want as many of the AFL non-regulars. If they're struggling with established players around them then they will likely struggle with so many kids around them. Not sure about the state leagues, don't see enough of it to comment but I'd be inclined to give more a chance to prove themselves at a higher level.

I think a lot of non-regulars are just blokes on the fringe of their team's 22.. Not necessarily bad players, but might not fit in with the structures..
Also players that are often picked as their club's sub player could be looking for a change of clubs so they get to play out a full game each week..

[von_wafer]

I think a lot of non-regulars are just blokes on the fringe of their team's 22.. Not necessarily bad players, but might not fit in with the structures..
Also players that are often picked as their club's sub player could be looking for a change of clubs so they get to play out a full game each week..

Fair point. I suppose most fringe players at top of the table clubs are being held out be some good players. I think the biggest thing is you take depth players from teams that have depth in that area. You got Prismall from Geelong who is a good player but was trying to crack the best midfield in the league. Gold Coast got Fraser from Collingwood last year who was being held out of the side by Leigh Brown.

[Rob]

When I referred to non regulars I was more talking about players that were easily expendable by their clubs or simply delisted. As an example - players in the mould of Ben McKinley, Bachar Houli, Patrick Veszpremi or Jonathon Griffin.

I realise these aren't the sort of players that will take you to a premiership, but they will help you be competitive. And they'll be easy to attract, costing very little. Ditto with the bulk of state league players - you might find 3 or 4 out of 10 that will make it as regulars, but the rest are simply mature bodies that can play a bit, allowing the selection panel to pick kids when they're ready, as opposed to picking them because that's all they've got. By the time the kids are big enough to get a regular game then the bulk of those players will have moved on anyway.

[Unotuchable]

They should have also recruited players that are turning it up on State leagues but just can't get a look. A fine example would be Myles Sewell as he'd give both a sense of hardness to a team as well as a very good on-field leader. Sheedy should be looking to players like Ahmed Saad or Shane Valenti (to use two examples) as one is a fast goalsneak with a good sense of balance while the other is a Liston Trophy winning champion player.

[GiantForce]

I see it has 7 kinds of players
Superstars: Superstar of competition. (EG Gary Ablett)
Elite: Very good player. One level below Superstar. (EG Bock, Rischitelli, Brennan, etc)
Established: Not anything special but a player who is easily considered Best 22 at a normal club (EG Nathan Krakouer)
Young Guns: Players under 21/22. Got real potential to be a superstar (EG - Hardbrow). Heaps on the GWS radar already like Hurley, Scully, Walker, etc
Non Regulars: Someone with potential to be an established player but isn't geting the chance at their current club (EG - Fraser)
State Players: Best of the bunch currently playing at State level. These are the guys who have had previous AFL expirence but havent played in the last few years (Stanley, Iles, etc)
Rookies: Pretty much explains itself

So we're allowed 44-50 Senior Listed Players and 9 on the Rookie List.
Let's assume the number of players we will have in 2012 is 50.
Superstars: 2
Elite: 3
Established: 2
Young Guns: 3
Non Regulars: 5
State Players: 10
Rookies: 25

I think the ideal number of Superstars/Elite/Established/Young Guns you want is 10. We should sign the non regulars with the intention of playing
consistently and hopefully making them "Established". So theres 15...a good amount to choose from. There's nothing saying that none will get injured/suspended...so we need just that little more just in case we loose a few. So we should always have 11-12 at the worst of times.

There's room for a few State players to give us a few more bigger bodies if we need them. I reckon if we can field 13-15 guys with AFL expirence with other clubs per game we shouldn't have the problem GC are having now. And having 15 players who we want to play and 10 State guys who can come in/force there way in Barlow/Pods style if they're that good

And then there's 6-9 spots each week for rookies. A few will go to the top of the line rookies/ready made rookies most weeks. But majority should be rotated each week so we have a decent amount of players getting the expirence of the big time...then going back to NEAFL to work and what they could have done better

[von_wafer]

Some good points but the chances of picking up 2 superstars are low. We don't have the same pulling power of the Gold Coast and it also take us valuable cap space we need to sign other players. To drag a superstar away from there current team you will likely need to throw a lot of cash at them, unless they are disillusioned with their club for whatever reason.

[eastfreo75]

Gold Coast have 42 players out of 52 who haven't played AFL. Thats way too many young kids for my liking.

Giants should aim for 20 AFL experiences or mature age recruits and keep 32 young kids.

Caters for the short term without losing the future.

[GiantForce]

Some good points but the chances of picking up 2 superstars are low. We don't have the same pulling power of the Gold Coast and it also take us valuable cap space we need to sign other players. To drag a superstar away from there current team you will likely need to throw a lot of cash at them, unless they are disillusioned with their club for whatever reason.

GWS need 2 superstars....they dont have to be Ablett's...besides you could probaley get 2 players like Murphy/Thomas (I dont seem them at the Giants....just using them as an example) for the same price GC just got Ablett.

But GWS need more than one poster boy in the clubs early days

[Raymann]

something i post in another forum..

Potential 2012 line up?

6 x GWS 18yr olds
1 x AFL A Grader (Murphy)
2 x AFL B grader (Carlisle & Sewell)
4 x AFL Young players (Gillies, Goldsack McCarthy & Macaffer)
9 x AFL hard bodies that are struggling at their current clubs

B) J Hunt A Carlisle T Gillies

HB) Riemers T Goldsack T Murphy

C) GWS M Murphy GWS

HF) Bevan M Clarke Macaffer

F) J Moore K Bradley GWS

R) C Wood
RR) McCarthy
R) B Sewell

Int) W Minson
GWS
GWS
GWS

[AussieFTW]

GWS need 2 superstars....they dont have to be Ablett's...besides you could probaley get 2 players like Murphy/Thomas (I dont seem them at the Giants....just using them as an example) for the same price GC just got Ablett.

But GWS need more than one poster boy in the clubs early days

I understand where you're coming from.. But I'm looking at it another way.. We already have Izzy who (according to reports) is performing better in his first two games than Hunt did - he's going to be a Poster boy due to how everyone knows who he is.. And if we also have Hampton, Shiel and Stevens next year they should provide plenty of highlights as well..
I think we should really focus on getting the right players to the club so we're going to be competitive early, and stars will emerge from our playing group as a matter of course.

[Raymann]

I understand where you're coming from.. But I'm looking at it another way.. We already have Izzy who (according to reports) is performing better in his first two games than Hunt did - he's going to be a Poster boy due to how everyone knows who he is.. And if we also have Hampton, Shiel and Stevens next year they should provide plenty of highlights as well..
I think we should really focus on getting the right players to the club so we're going to be competitive early, and stars will emerge from our playing group as a matter of course.

Totally agree!!!

[CamTinley]

They should have also recruited players that are turning it up on State leagues but just can't get a look. A fine example would be Myles Sewell as he'd give both a sense of hardness to a team as well as a very good on-field leader. Sheedy should be looking to players like Ahmed Saad or Shane Valenti (to use two examples) as one is a fast goalsneak with a good sense of balance while the other is a Liston Trophy winning champion player.

Agree 100%

These sort of guys also bring an edge to the way they play and train ie, "It's now or never". Young guys have the attitude of "times on my side". This can become infectious and lead to low intensity football that becomes hard-wired.

[Tatsean]

Gold Coast have 42 players out of 52 who haven't played AFL. Thats way too many young kids for my liking.

Giants should aim for 20 AFL experiences or mature age recruits and keep 32 young kids.

Caters for the short term without losing the future.
Totally agree. Suns would have been better equipped if they had recruited 6-10 22-24yr old VFL,SANFL or WAFL players who are great players that weren't quite good enough to get drafted at 18. There are definetly more Michael Barlows out there!
2 guys I think Giants should go after on the cusp (as per Josh Fraser) are Andrew Welsh and Shane Tuck. 2 great older midfielders who can't get a consistent game at their AFL club. If GWS could recruit these 2 with another premium midfielder, the young midfielders they have will benefit immensely. I think Suns are one mature midfielder short with Ablett and Rischetelli.

[Thermonuclear]

We already have Izzy who (according to reports) is performing better in his first two games than Hunt did
Did you watch his performance? It was nothing to write home about. Their first two games are pretty comparable (aka shit :p).

[SydneyPhilly]

something i post in another forum..

Potential 2012 line up?

6 x GWS 18yr olds
1 x AFL A Grader (Murphy)
2 x AFL B grader (Carlisle & Sewell)
4 x AFL Young players (Gillies, Goldsack McCarthy & Macaffer)
9 x AFL hard bodies that are struggling at their current clubs

B) J Hunt A Carlisle T Gillies

HB) Riemers T Goldsack T Murphy

C) GWS M Murphy GWS

HF) Bevan M Clarke Macaffer

F) J Moore K Bradley GWS

R) C Wood
RR) McCarthy
R) B Sewell

Int) W Minson
GWS
GWS
GWS

You've got a lot of the names wrong. No chance Moore leaves to GWS, though I would not be fussed at all to see him go.

I think Walker is as good as gone. Home factor + big bucks = gone
Have a sneaking suspicion Scully and/or Murphy will be going to GWS. Rich going to West Coast.

Lineup as follows:

FF Stevens - Walker - Harding
HF Clifton - Bruce - Ugle
C Hampton - Murphy - XXXXXX
HB Treloar - Hombsch - XXXXX
FB Folau - XXXXXXX - XXXXX
R: Giles - Scully - Shiel

[Raymann]

You've got a lot of the names wrong. No chance Moore leaves to GWS, though I would not be fussed at all to see him go.

I think Walker is as good as gone. Home factor + big bucks = gone
Have a sneaking suspicion Scully and/or Murphy will be going to GWS. Rich going to West Coast.

Lineup as follows:

FF Stevens - Walker - Harding
HF Clifton - Bruce - Ugle
C Hampton - Murphy - XXXXXX
HB Treloar - Hombsch - XXXXX
FB Folau - XXXXXXX - XXXXX
R: Giles - Scully - Shiel

all i was trying to do is produce a potential target mature AFL team that in my opinion is gettable...

the only addition would be Taylor Walker, my mail is he has committed to GWS.

i dont think GWS will get Scully or Murphy

[zimmer86]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/greater-western-sydney-should-target-champion-players-says-leigh-matthews/story-e6frf9jf-1226049702124


All we need is players with AFL experience and who come under the tag of being good not great.throw in a couple of vfl players and we have a team who i reckon will be better the GC SUNS

[captainMyCaptain]

all i was trying to do is produce a potential target mature AFL team that in my opinion is gettable...

the only addition would be Taylor Walker, my mail is he has committed to GWS.

i dont think GWS will get Scully or Murphy


My mail is that he is a done deal as well, have also heard the same about: Rhys Palmer and Dylan Addison.

As for the like of Scully, Murphy and Thomas - all still a possiblity, but time will tell.

[zimmer86]

http://www.*********.com.au/afl/gws-and-their-list-targets-revealed

[dlanod]

If that's the same article I saw (I can't tell because the URL got starred out) it's interesting. A lot of the that have already been talked about but there's some new ones, .e.g Josh Hill, Dylan Addison, that make sense but hadn't been brought up. One thing the article got wrong was about picking up GC players. I thought we could as well but it turned out the rules explicitly exclude the GC from teams that we can get uncontracted players from.

[zimmer86]

If that's the same article I saw (I can't tell because the URL got starred out) it's interesting. A lot of the that have already been talked about but there's some new ones, .e.g Josh Hill, Dylan Addison, that make sense but hadn't been brought up. One thing the article got wrong was about picking up GC players. I thought we could as well but it turned out the rules explicitly exclude the GC from teams that we can get uncontracted players from.

Yeah for somereason the word ********* wont come up. not sure how much to read into the article but like u said pretty interesting.

[GiantForce]

The only guy that I'm fairly confident about coming to the Giants is Taylor Walker...the rest is a guessing game. I'd love a Murphy/JSelwood/Bartel/Pendlebury come up and be one of our star players. But I cant see any of those 4 leaving, sadly :(

Who is the most likely to become our Superstar or even one of our Superstars (Big fan of getting 2)

[Raymann]

The only guy that I'm fairly confident about coming to the Giants is Taylor Walker...the rest is a guessing game. I'd love a Murphy/JSelwood/Bartel/Pendlebury come up and be one of our star players. But I cant see any of those 4 leaving, sadly :(

Who is the most likely to become our Superstar or even one of our Superstars (Big fan of getting 2)

i believe Sheil will be the GC equivalent to Swallow...

He will play 200+ games for GWS

[GiantForce]

i believe Sheil will be the GC equivalent to Swallow...

He will play 200+ games for GWS
When I say Superstar I mean a already made one...like Ablett/Swan.

I have no doubt Shiel will become a star tho

[AussieFTW]

When I say Superstar I mean a already made one...like Ablett/Swan.

I have no doubt Shiel will become a star tho


It's a good question - Are there any super players who seem unhappy at their current club, like Ball was in '09 and Ablett was in '10?

It's a rare thing when that happens.. But I'd rather the Giants recruit players for their footy ability and additude rather than their ability to make the headlines.

[captainMyCaptain]

i believe Sheil will be the GC equivalent to Swallow...

He will play 200+ games for GWS


Assuming Stephen Coniglio chooses afl over cricket it far to say he is more likely to be equivalent to Swallow as Coniglio like swallow will be the number one draft pick. That said Sheil will clearly be a gun.

[Goddardisgod]

Having seen all of Gold Coast's games, I'm with Leigh Matthews. Some old heads will not go wrong.

Old Heads Target List should be:

Dean Cox
Lenny Hayes
Jude Bolton
Boomer Harvey
Simon Black
Matthew Scarlett

The first 5 are the big ones, they would form a big nucleus of your midfield group. Scarlett would be a big one in you defence.

However, I beleive only Bolton and Black are out of contract. that means you would have to trade. But with 4 young blokes who must be traded, 9 of the top 15 picks, and 10 2nd tier pickups, this shouldn't be a problem, should it?

Would leave you with only a few obvious gaps, a nuggety defender, a decent forward, and a CHB.

Taylor Walker could be your forward, but I've got no idea who'ld be your other 2.

[Alexwce]

Having seen all of Gold Coast's games, I'm with Leigh Matthews. Some old heads will not go wrong.

Old Heads Target List should be:

Dean Cox
Lenny Hayes
Jude Bolton
Boomer Harvey
Simon Black
Matthew Scarlett

The first 5 are the big ones, they would form a big nucleus of your midfield group. Scarlett would be a big one in you defence.

However, I beleive only Bolton and Black are out of contract. that means you would have to trade. But with 4 young blokes who must be traded, 9 of the top 15 picks, and 10 2nd tier pickups, this shouldn't be a problem, should it?

Would leave you with only a few obvious gaps, a nuggety defender, a decent forward, and a CHB.

Taylor Walker could be your forward, but I've got no idea who'ld be your other 2.

Black is safe at Brisbane as well especially after his mercenaries comment during the week haha

[captainMyCaptain]

Having seen all of Gold Coast's games, I'm with Leigh Matthews. Some old heads will not go wrong.

Old Heads Target List should be:

Dean Cox
Lenny Hayes
Jude Bolton
Boomer Harvey
Simon Black
Matthew Scarlett

The first 5 are the big ones, they would form a big nucleus of your midfield group. Scarlett would be a big one in you defence.

However, I beleive only Bolton and Black are out of contract. that means you would have to trade. But with 4 young blokes who must be traded, 9 of the top 15 picks, and 10 2nd tier pickups, this shouldn't be a problem, should it?

Would leave you with only a few obvious gaps, a nuggety defender, a decent forward, and a CHB.

Taylor Walker could be your forward, but I've got no idea who'ld be your other 2.

Both Hayes and Bolton would make alot of sense getting but after those two they should stick to getting quality players in there 20s. I especially like the symbolism of having Sydney boy Hayes returning to captain gws for its first couple of years. Having Hayes and Bolton to help set up the culture for gws would do wonders for the club.

[captainMyCaptain]

On the back of Matthews suggestion, Wayne Schwass put forward how we should build our team


http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/113202/default.aspx

[Black Falcon]

Black absolutely won't be leaving Lions. He will be a 300 game Lion.

Now that GC has two wins in 6 games, will GWS be aiming for the same?
Would GWS supporters be happy with that?

[Black Falcon]

I just read that article. Wincing that Adcock and Rockcliff might be targeted by GWS. Last year Lions lost Riska, Brennan, Johnstone, Sherman and they are now hammoeraging for lack of depth.

They are good players, but not necessarily the truly inspirational leader that GWS needs. I'm gonna leave this dilemna to the same guy who coined the clubs moniker. In Sheeds I believe. In Sheeds I have faith.

The other guy to do the groundwork on this is the former Geelong premiership captain now on the GWS coaching payroll. :thumbsu:

[Sunny_]

Black absolutely won't be leaving Lions. He will be a 300 game Lion.

Now that GC has two wins in 6 games, will GWS be aiming for the same?
Would GWS supporters be happy with that?

Indeed! Two wins. We could certainly be going a lot worse. :D

[AussieFTW]

Black absolutely won't be leaving Lions. He will be a 300 game Lion.

Now that GC has two wins in 6 games, will GWS be aiming for the same?
Would GWS supporters be happy with that?

In all honesty, the Suns are lucky to have those wins, as both their opponents in those games were in pretty poor form..
I can't see any established team next season being as bad as Port and Brisbane are this year..

[Black Falcon]

Indeed! Two wins. We could certainly be going a lot worse. :D

I'm a very happy GCSuns supporter.
They have raised the bar for GWS.
Realistically, 4 wins in the first year for both the expansion teams is a win for AFL. :thumbsu:

[GiantForce]

GC have so much luck in those wins, Port just stopped in the last quarter and it was pretty obvious the umps were favouring GC in the Qclash (But Brizzy still did play badly)

I suspect the Giants will have a little more expirence line up than the Suns, but I think if we can equal what the Suns do this season that'd be a good result (While I prey we get as lucky as the Suns it wouldn't suprise me if we get some bad luck). So I would be very content with 4/5 wins from the Giants in their first season

[captainMyCaptain]

Fair to say the pass mark is between 4-5 wins. But that said unlike the suns I would also expect us to be competitive in at least 50-60% of our matches as we are likely to take the full 16 uncontracted players therefore more chance to have a more balanced team then the suns. So far with the suns they either win or they get embarrassed – there is no middle ground with them at the moment.

[Black Falcon]

Its true that the Suns have gambled by taking only 8 'uncontracteds', but they also had 5 other mature bodied fellows in D Stanley, Harris, Coad, Isles and Hunt.
If GC lose any of their uncontacteds to injury or suspension they'll get smashed, until the youngins get enough games into them to compensate.
But the same can be said for GWS next year.
I'm suggesting that apart from the first gelling 6 games of next season, the GC and GWS will be comparable in their ability to win games.

[westie88]

I'd dare say Sheedy is paying close attention to how things have been done up at the Gold Coast, and learning a few lessons. We will probably go for more uncontracted players, and manage the pre-season a bit better. I would like to see regular intra-club full-length matches once the new guys are brought in, leading up to the pre-season matches. IMO, we need the starting team for round 1 to have played at least 50 hours of football together - that is certainly doable throughout the preseason.

[Black Falcon]

I'd dare say Sheedy is paying close attention to how things have been done up at the Gold Coast, and learning a few lessons. We will probably go for more uncontracted players, and manage the pre-season a bit better. I would like to see regular intra-club full-length matches once the new guys are brought in, leading up to the pre-season matches. IMO, we need the starting team for round 1 to have played at least 50 hours of football together - that is certainly doable throughout the preseason.

My sentiments exactly. :thumbsu:

[Maroon Goon]

I just wonder if there will be Room On the bandwagon here? As my team has played Brisbane-Sydney Swans and all Victorian teams i have found it near impossible to follow another team. I currently have another Victorian team membership. But thats not working, to many memories i'm afraid.

[Cap]

I just wonder if there will be Room On the bandwagon here? As my team has played Brisbane-Sydney Swans and all Victorian teams i have found it near impossible to follow another team. I currently have another Victorian team membership. But thats not working, to many memories i'm afraid.

whats stopping you?

I would imagine that GWS would take more mature players. realistically why woudn't you because you have to start culling players anyway - you can then have less youngster to try and filter through and a team of more senior players able to be competitive

[desie]

I just wonder if there will be Room On the bandwagon here? As my team has played Brisbane-Sydney Swans and all Victorian teams i have found it near impossible to follow another team. I currently have another Victorian team membership. But thats not working, to many memories i'm afraid.

Fair to say the GWS bandwagon could use every possible rider it can get!

I'm sure you'd be more than welcome, I would guess that most would carry allegiances to another club to varying degrees so you'd be amongst friends :thumbsu:

[The_Wookie]

I think 4 wins is a win for the AFL and the new teams, not just a pass. Many experts had them winless for the first year.

[Gee Dubya]

I'd dare say Sheedy is paying close attention to how things have been done up at the Gold Coast, and learning a few lessons.
We will probably go for more uncontracted players

He'll be prepared to trade more traditionally with picks for contracted players too ;)

[GiantForce]

I just wonder if there will be Room On the bandwagon here? As my team has played Brisbane-Sydney Swans and all Victorian teams i have found it near impossible to follow another team. I currently have another Victorian team membership. But thats not working, to many memories i'm afraid.

Plenty of room my friend!

[Turbocat]

As Pendleberry has signed a year deal , I wonder if that will also influence others to do the same. GWS has the Uncontracted Players for 2 years and elite players may wish to sit back and just see who are the kids and others that they recruit.

The problem is , I doubt GWS can just pick a talent bunch of kids to influence these uncontracted's for the second year. The 4 u17 picks may become key to you , allowing you to gather several reliable AFL players to compliment the kids and to then allow you to go hard again in 2012.

So as well as the GoldCoast effect , their may be a GWS effect on your second year recruitment

[Freomaniac]

I see it has 7 kinds of players
Superstars: Superstar of competition. (EG Gary Ablett)
Elite: Very good player. One level below Superstar. (EG Bock, Rischitelli, Brennan, etc)
Established: Not anything special but a player who is easily considered Best 22 at a normal club (EG Nathan Krakouer)
Young Guns: Players under 21/22. Got real potential to be a superstar (EG - Hardbrow). Heaps on the GWS radar already like Hurley, Scully, Walker, etc
Non Regulars: Someone with potential to be an established player but isn't geting the chance at their current club (EG - Fraser)
State Players: Best of the bunch currently playing at State level. These are the guys who have had previous AFL expirence but havent played in the last few years (Stanley, Iles, etc)
Rookies: Pretty much explains itself

So we're allowed 44-50 Senior Listed Players and 9 on the Rookie List.
Let's assume the number of players we will have in 2012 is 50.
Superstars: 2
Elite: 3
Established: 2
Young Guns: 3
Non Regulars: 5
State Players: 10
Rookies: 25

I think the ideal number of Superstars/Elite/Established/Young Guns you want is 10. We should sign the non regulars with the intention of playing
consistently and hopefully making them "Established". So theres 15...a good amount to choose from. There's nothing saying that none will get injured/suspended...so we need just that little more just in case we loose a few. So we should always have 11-12 at the worst of times.

There's room for a few State players to give us a few more bigger bodies if we need them. I reckon if we can field 13-15 guys with AFL expirence with other clubs per game we shouldn't have the problem GC are having now. And having 15 players who we want to play and 10 State guys who can come in/force there way in Barlow/Pods style if they're that good

And then there's 6-9 spots each week for rookies. A few will go to the top of the line rookies/ready made rookies most weeks. But majority should be rotated each week so we have a decent amount of players getting the expirence of the big time...then going back to NEAFL to work and what they could have done better



Not bad of a post there. I reckon at worst if you dont get a "Superstar" Like Judd or Ablett, I reckon GWS will get 10-14 with AFL experience Half of those elite the other half established.

Sheedy Will make sure GWS will be a competitive team from the 1st bounce in 2012.

[GiantForce]

I think 2 stars is pushing it now. We will have to land one tho.....offer GAJ style money to a "fringe superstar" and they'll take it for sure.

Taylor Walker and Rhys Palmer are all but confirmed. I think Scully is likely too. But we still need a superstar (Scully will be one...but he aint one just yet)