So we are on the very verge of a new season with a new captain and many fresh faces replacing plenty of old warriors that moved on last year. What will happen this coming season? Will we bounce back from the disaster of 2016? Will our new look team steam roll their way back in to finals and become premiership contenders once more? Will our forward and back lines still struggle and our club be in for another season at the bottom end of the ladder? Will the injury and umpire gods be on our side for once? I think one thing most people would agree on is that Fremantle's 2017 season is possibly more of an unknown quantity than any other club.
I'm in the semi-optimistic camp myself. I think our midfield at full strength is capable of being the one of, if not, the best. But there are also far too many question marks with our new look forward line and our ability to rebound from defence to become confident that we will bounce back in to the 8.
So here are some of predictions (mostly optimistically) for each of our players...
THE STARS (the 10 guys on our list whose form I think will largely determine how well we perform as a team)
Fyfe - our super star will grow considerably this year in his new role as captain. He will quickly get back his best player in the league status, winning 1-on-1s, breaking tackles and being a threat wherever he is on the ground. But it is his leadership that will transform our team in to a machine again. His biggest impact will be on our up-and-coming youngsters that will have already been inspired to have prepared well and line themselves up for break out years (eg Tucker, Blakely, Weller, Langdon, Hughes etc).
Sandi - the new no 3rd man up rule should hopefully mean at stoppages big Sandi will only need to focus on winning the tap and giving our key ball winners an advantage to win the clearance. Along with Fyfe he'll also wreak havoc for any opposition that chooses to kick indirectly inside 50. And be a get-out-of-jail option for our defenders trying to transition the ball down field. Hopefully this last resort kick to the pack will need to be used less as the season progresses though.
Bennell - all the critics will finally be silenced when Harley runs out on the park in purple some time in the first 10 rounds. His mere presence in our forward line will result in immediate contagious x-factor, releasing not only his own magic inside 50 but sparking all of our small forwards in to a frenzy. Kersten will also be a major beneficiary from the Bennell-factor up forward.
Johnson - written off and even expected to have retired last year by some, Johnson will quickly remind us why skills like his are so important for the effective transition from defence to attack. The big winners from a fit Johnno will be our many young half back options that will get an opportunity to learn from the master on field.
Neale - missed out on AA only because of questions about his game impact. With more support he can get back to his primary role of winning first possession and extracting the ball to others for the clearance. With the opposition unable to tag all of our inside talent, Neale will have extra space to work in, resulting in better disposal and him regularly pushing forward in to space to kick the biggest goal tally of his career to date.
Mundy - with both Sandi and Fyfe back in the mix, Blakely becoming a more rounded midfielder, and Neale stepping up his game impact Mundy will re-find some of his 2015 AA form, primarily as our classy distributor in the middle. With Johnson fit Mundy will need to spend less time off half back but will still rotate through there to provide some class kicking.
Walters - not needing to play as a mid this year should mean a more dangerous forward line. A lot will depend on the support from our other small forwards. If Bennell comes in fit, and Ballas manages to refocus then there is no reason Walters couldn't be pushing for AA and be our best goal scorer once again (hopefully with much more competition for that honour this season).
SHill - will spend his time between the wing and in the middle. With the addition of his brother, Bennell, an improved Langdon, and others in the middle when he is there I can see him finding space more often and working with those other runners to open up games coming in to our forward 50. Hopefully all four will be given a licence to take a ping from long range if there aren't suitable marking targets inside 50.
BHill - our ability to spread to provide an outlet was a massive weakness last year and is probably the most important thing that Brad brings to our team. He may not be a ball winner but his elite endurance, speed and skills is exactly what we need more of on the outside. If our forwards are getting silver service from our mids like Brad then they'll instantly look better than the mess that was the 2016 forward line.
McCarthy - he shouldn't be classified in the same category as the others yet but I think all the planets will align for Cam in 2017 and he'll quickly rise up as one of our most important players. Nobody should benefit more from the anticipated better inside 50 service than McCarthy. If he can find space and we can kick to his advantage (Danyle!) then he should easily be in our top 2 goal scorers. The only concern I have for him is if our other tall forwards aren't coordinating their movement inside 50. If we play 3 talls in our forward line, all three need to be viable targets for our mids to hit up. If not, Cam could find himself in the same shoes as Pav did last year and be double or triple teamed out of the game.
More to come...
I'm in the semi-optimistic camp myself. I think our midfield at full strength is capable of being the one of, if not, the best. But there are also far too many question marks with our new look forward line and our ability to rebound from defence to become confident that we will bounce back in to the 8.
So here are some of predictions (mostly optimistically) for each of our players...
THE STARS (the 10 guys on our list whose form I think will largely determine how well we perform as a team)
Fyfe - our super star will grow considerably this year in his new role as captain. He will quickly get back his best player in the league status, winning 1-on-1s, breaking tackles and being a threat wherever he is on the ground. But it is his leadership that will transform our team in to a machine again. His biggest impact will be on our up-and-coming youngsters that will have already been inspired to have prepared well and line themselves up for break out years (eg Tucker, Blakely, Weller, Langdon, Hughes etc).
Sandi - the new no 3rd man up rule should hopefully mean at stoppages big Sandi will only need to focus on winning the tap and giving our key ball winners an advantage to win the clearance. Along with Fyfe he'll also wreak havoc for any opposition that chooses to kick indirectly inside 50. And be a get-out-of-jail option for our defenders trying to transition the ball down field. Hopefully this last resort kick to the pack will need to be used less as the season progresses though.
Bennell - all the critics will finally be silenced when Harley runs out on the park in purple some time in the first 10 rounds. His mere presence in our forward line will result in immediate contagious x-factor, releasing not only his own magic inside 50 but sparking all of our small forwards in to a frenzy. Kersten will also be a major beneficiary from the Bennell-factor up forward.
Johnson - written off and even expected to have retired last year by some, Johnson will quickly remind us why skills like his are so important for the effective transition from defence to attack. The big winners from a fit Johnno will be our many young half back options that will get an opportunity to learn from the master on field.
Neale - missed out on AA only because of questions about his game impact. With more support he can get back to his primary role of winning first possession and extracting the ball to others for the clearance. With the opposition unable to tag all of our inside talent, Neale will have extra space to work in, resulting in better disposal and him regularly pushing forward in to space to kick the biggest goal tally of his career to date.
Mundy - with both Sandi and Fyfe back in the mix, Blakely becoming a more rounded midfielder, and Neale stepping up his game impact Mundy will re-find some of his 2015 AA form, primarily as our classy distributor in the middle. With Johnson fit Mundy will need to spend less time off half back but will still rotate through there to provide some class kicking.
Walters - not needing to play as a mid this year should mean a more dangerous forward line. A lot will depend on the support from our other small forwards. If Bennell comes in fit, and Ballas manages to refocus then there is no reason Walters couldn't be pushing for AA and be our best goal scorer once again (hopefully with much more competition for that honour this season).
SHill - will spend his time between the wing and in the middle. With the addition of his brother, Bennell, an improved Langdon, and others in the middle when he is there I can see him finding space more often and working with those other runners to open up games coming in to our forward 50. Hopefully all four will be given a licence to take a ping from long range if there aren't suitable marking targets inside 50.
BHill - our ability to spread to provide an outlet was a massive weakness last year and is probably the most important thing that Brad brings to our team. He may not be a ball winner but his elite endurance, speed and skills is exactly what we need more of on the outside. If our forwards are getting silver service from our mids like Brad then they'll instantly look better than the mess that was the 2016 forward line.
McCarthy - he shouldn't be classified in the same category as the others yet but I think all the planets will align for Cam in 2017 and he'll quickly rise up as one of our most important players. Nobody should benefit more from the anticipated better inside 50 service than McCarthy. If he can find space and we can kick to his advantage (Danyle!) then he should easily be in our top 2 goal scorers. The only concern I have for him is if our other tall forwards aren't coordinating their movement inside 50. If we play 3 talls in our forward line, all three need to be viable targets for our mids to hit up. If not, Cam could find himself in the same shoes as Pav did last year and be double or triple teamed out of the game.
More to come...
