2026 Trade / FA Thread

[soreplums]

Yes, we only lost by 6 points to Sydney, and there were positives given how inexperienced the side was.

But that is still one game. A narrow loss does not necessarily prove we are close to contending. If we played Sydney ten times, we may well lose most of them. It shows we can be competitive on the night, not that we are a genuine premiership threat.

That is why I would lean toward giving games to younger players rather than relying on a 35-year-old backup ruck. Cox might make us marginally better this week, but exposing Smit, Steene, or others gives us a clearer view of what we actually have going forward.

We could have still given games to Steene ahead of Cox and kept him as a back up just as Freo have done.

Personally I would have liked to have kept him for this particular reason and the changes in the ruck rules do suit him.

I’m not much of a VFL watcher, and although I’d be happy to test Smit in the ruck, many are saying he is not ready yet and will still need some development