AFL Player # 7: Indefatigable Zach Merrett (c) - 3x AA 🏅🏅🏅 4x Crichton Medallist 🥇🥇🥇🥇

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Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent 2027
My Boy Draft 2024: Pick 10, I Remember Bluey
 
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Holy s**t if this guy adds goal kicking to his bag look da **** out

Look out if we add 1 or 2 first possession guys that can shovel it out to him consistently, ideally he's not at the bottom of the pack, he's skirting it, grabbing the ball and hitting forwards lace out between the ****.
 

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Skipper_

Premiership Player
Sep 8, 2016
3,052
2,494
AFL Club
Essendon
Our midfield is missing two things imo:
1. Inside mids
2. Goal kicking

Merrett and Heppell have both taken steps this year to address #2. Lets hope that keeps improving
Merrett, Heppell, Zaharakis and Parish have all hit the scoreboard regularly in the second half of the season. Our contested possession and clearance differential have improved significantly but we still need an inside mid or two to complete our midfield.
 
Feb 2, 2011
3,902
6,082
Sydney
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
Minnesota Vikings, Miami Heat
Merrett, Heppell, Zaharakis and Parish have all hit the scoreboard regularly in the second half of the season. Our contested possession and clearance differential have improved significantly but we still need an inside mid or two to complete our midfield.

Just had a look at the stats, since the bye:
  • Parish has kicked 3 in 9 games
  • Zaka has kicked 6 in in 10 games
  • Merrett has kicked 6 in 9 games (with 4 from the last round)
  • Heppell has kicked 4 in 10 games
(17 goals ~ 10 games - 1.7 goals per game)

Zaka and Heppells I guess I remember more because they were key in winning games - but really none of those are good enough to consider that hitting the scoreboard often enough, more improvement required if our team wants to progress.

Compare that to say Richmond:
  • Dusty has kicked 16 in 11 games (as much as Merrett Zaka and Heppell combined)
  • Cotch has kicked 8 in 11 games (still more then any midfielder of ours)
  • Grigg has kicked 5 from 11 games
  • Prestia has kicked 4 from 10 games

(33 goals ~ 11 games - 3 goals per game)
 

JayJ20

Brownlow Medallist
Aug 28, 2016
17,147
26,109
AFL Club
Essendon
Just had a look at the stats, since the bye:
  • Parish has kicked 3 in 9 games
  • Zaka has kicked 6 in in 10 games
  • Merrett has kicked 6 in 9 games (with 4 from the last round)
  • Heppell has kicked 4 in 10 games
(17 goals ~ 10 games - 1.7 goals per game)

Zaka and Heppells I guess I remember more because they were key in winning games - but really none of those are good enough to consider that hitting the scoreboard often enough, more improvement required if our team wants to progress.

Compare that to say Richmond:
  • Dusty has kicked 16 in 11 games (as much as Merrett Zaka and Heppell combined)
  • Cotch has kicked 8 in 11 games (still more then any midfielder of ours)
  • Grigg has kicked 5 from 11 games
  • Prestia has kicked 4 from 10 games

(33 goals ~ 11 games - 3 goals per game)
I think a better comparison is Adelaide. Both of our forward 6 have kicked the most goals out of any team. I think we may have even kicked more than them.

The huge difference is our midfield compared to theirs.
 

Killer_Mike

Premiership Player
Mar 31, 2017
3,693
4,000
Ghetto Extraordinary
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
Arsenal,Knicks,Victory
Can't really compare our midfielders to Richmond because they all press up into the forward 50 create their goals which renders their forwards pretty much useless. Hence the low scores.

We allow our forwards space to operate in so the mids rarely go inside 50.
 

calyam

Norm Smith Medallist
May 9, 2011
5,834
6,784
Melbourne
AFL Club
Essendon
I think a better comparison is Adelaide. Both of our forward 6 have kicked the most goals out of any team. I think we may have even kicked more than them.

The huge difference is our midfield compared to theirs.

Correct.

Sloane hits the scoreboard often (18 goals for the season). But most of their other midfielders are not prominent goalkickers.
 
Sep 29, 2016
9,670
16,214
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
Bayern Munich
Just had a look at the stats, since the bye:
  • Parish has kicked 3 in 9 games
  • Zaka has kicked 6 in in 10 games
  • Merrett has kicked 6 in 9 games (with 4 from the last round)
  • Heppell has kicked 4 in 10 games
(17 goals ~ 10 games - 1.7 goals per game)

Zaka and Heppells I guess I remember more because they were key in winning games - but really none of those are good enough to consider that hitting the scoreboard often enough, more improvement required if our team wants to progress.

Compare that to say Richmond:
  • Dusty has kicked 16 in 11 games (as much as Merrett Zaka and Heppell combined)
  • Cotch has kicked 8 in 11 games (still more then any midfielder of ours)
  • Grigg has kicked 5 from 11 games
  • Prestia has kicked 4 from 10 games

(33 goals ~ 11 games - 3 goals per game)
Thats not a fair comparison. Both martin and cotchin spend fair chunks of the game playinf out of the goal square.
Martin especially spends probably 30-35% of his time down there. None of our mids spend that much time as a permanent forward. Richmond also has no where near as potent a forward line as we do and so we dont have to rely on mids to kick goals like the tigers rely on martin/cotchin.

Adelaide is a better comparison. Our mids stack up pretty well goal wise with them (with a potent forwardline). In saying that adelaide and richmond are both top 4 and we have made finals. So there seems to be no minimum for goals to be kicked by your midfield to be successful.
 

Dons4days

Club Legend
Dec 1, 2016
1,690
1,943
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
New York Knicks, Dallas Cowboys
I would love for him to make the AA team. He was stiff last year to not make the top 40 (much like Oliver this year)

I wouldn't be surprised if he missed based on the reputation favouritism this year with the inclusion of players like the Bont & Selwood while many more deserving players were overlooked.
 

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