Dusty v Gary Ablett Junior

Better Player

  • Dusty

  • Gary Ablett Junior


Results are only viewable after voting.

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Young Gun #6

Norm Smith Medallist
May 24, 2008
7,411
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I think after last night Dusty can at least enter the convo now and has a couple more years to add to his resume.

As of now who is the better player?

Dusty:
3 x Premiership player
3 x Norm Smith
1 x Brownlow
1 x Leigh Matthew Trophy
1 x AFLCA Player of the Year
4 x All Australian
2 x Club Best and Fairest
3 x Gary Ayres Medal (introduced 2016)

Averages:
25 Disposals
10 Contested Possessions
4 Marks
3 Tackles
1.1 Goals
4.8 Inside 50’s
1.4 Rebound 50’s
4.1 Clearances

Gary Ablett Junior:
2 x Premiership Player
2 x Brownlow
5 x Leigh Matthews Trophy
3 x AFLCA Player of the Year
8 x All Australian (1 x Captain)
6 x Club Best and Fairest
3 x Club Leading Goal Kicker

Averages:
25 Disposals
11 Contested Possessions
3 Marks
4 Tackles
1.3 Goals
4.5 Inside 50’s
1.6 Rebound 50’s
4.3 Clearances
 

Bald

Premium Gold
Apr 5, 2016
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Won’t be able to really make a decision on this until dusty retires, personally.
 

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RobbyRoy

Norm Smith Medallist
May 3, 2007
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As a player, GAJ. To win me a premiership, Dusty.

Dusty has time, and his resume might already be the greatest. But GAJ is the best footballer I've seen play.
 

biggiemediums

Norm Smith Medallist
WCE Wings Guernsey
Jul 20, 2010
8,179
10,821
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Tough one for me.

It’s like do you want the player who will give you an A every single game, finals included...

Or do you take the guy who will give you B+ for the year then pull out a ten inch A+ for the big finals...

For mine the two best players I’ve seen in my adulthood.
 

Virus

I’m pretty good looking
Oct 24, 2020
212
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I’ll probably go Gaz unless Dusty wins another NSM or Brownlow
 

My Tilly

Premium Gold
Jun 30, 2018
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Dusty could hang it up tomorrow and he has a fair argument.

No he doesn't. Not yet.
He's been at the top of his game since 2016-2020. Has to maintain this level of output for at least 2-3 more seasons to even get in the conversation.

And top of his game is clearly the stand out player in the game as what Ablett and Franklin were for almost 10 years.
 

Bald

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I dunno. Three norm Smith's is not too shabby. Dusty could hang it up tomorrow and he has a fair argument.
My view on norm smiths are, they are the most impressive best on ground you can receive in the league, to receive three of them is absolutely absurd but at the end of the day, they're still a best on ground award. Again, it's mighty impressive and if we were making a case for who was the best finals player of all time I'd honestly think Dusty fits that bill perfectly but we're not talking about that.
 

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Marcel Proust

"Oohh WADA ooga booga" {Jul 11 2013}
Sep 6, 2018
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No he doesn't. Not yet.
He's been at the top of his game since 2016-2020. Has to maintain this level of output for at least 2-3 more seasons to even get in the conversation.

And top of his game is clearly the stand out player in the game as what Ablett and Franklin were for almost 10 years.

Gaz was a magic. I stumbled upon an old afl prospectus and GAJ stats from about 10 years ago were almost other worldly.

That said , dusty won a NS and brownlow , in the same season.. He's also a unique beast. NS is merely a best player for the same award but it's not round 4. It's the biggest game of the year.

Finals games are much more important , like a fa cup final or NBA final series, in comparison to regular season games. And should be weighted as thus in discussion like this one.

It's a bit of a myth dusty was magically started being good at football in 17', IMHO. He was underrated for a long time.
 

RobbyRoy

Norm Smith Medallist
May 3, 2007
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I don't think there's any doubt Dusty's finals record is superior to GAJ's, but we shouldn't underestimate his output. His 07 GF wasn't great, but the two preceding finals he was excellent. Was huge in all three finals in 08 and 09, and couldn't have done much more in 10. Then his first final in 8 years was a bit of a throwback, being probably the Cat's best when the Dees eliminated them.

Dusty obviously lives for these big moments, but I would suggest if Gary was as relied upon as him, he would be able to step up when needed as well.
 
Oct 16, 2003
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Murrumbeena
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Hawthorn
Dusty has gone passed Jnr after the last GF, and he probably still has half a decade of footy to go.

Dusty definitely not in front yet IMO..

Ablett has 5 MVP's to Dusty's 1 (I think the MVP is the most accurate reflection of the best player that season).
Ablett has 8 AA's to Dusty's 4 (and Dusty has been fortunate that he can be picked as a forward pocket because some of those he would not have made if only considered as a midfielder)

Dusty's finals performances elevate him (pretty fortunate with 1-2 NS's though) but Ablett was the better player over the course of a season (Dusty not often even top 5-10 in the H/A most years while Ablett was #1 every year for a while). Dusty has time to add to his legacy but would need a couple more years similar to 2017 to pass Ablett IMO.
 
Statistically they're virtually identical, so Dusty is obviously a gun year round.

Dusty takes it up a notch in finals though, whereas Ablett has been mostly disappointing.
Are you ******* serious with the bolded?

He was bloody sensational in finals and in 2008 would have been close to the Norm Smith

His last two finals campaign as a 35 and 36 year old hasn't been great but I doubt anyone else at that age would do any better
 

Tiger08

Premiership Player
Nov 14, 2007
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Thank you Jordan McMahon. Wherever you are.. Thank you.
 
Mar 14, 2009
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Even as a biased fan, GAJ still a fair bit in front because of longevity of performance.

To make it a serious conversation Dusty probably needs to add x2 more AA's (although I think he's been robbed at least once of that particular award) and x1 more Brownlow or Norm smith.

Dusty is still only 29 and IMO is a more dynamic forward than GAJ was due to his size which means he could age well moving forward. I still see at least 3 more dominant years so anything could happen in that time.
 
Last edited:

Marcel Proust

"Oohh WADA ooga booga" {Jul 11 2013}
Sep 6, 2018
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Dusty definitely not in front yet IMO..

Ablett has 5 MVP's to Dusty's 1 (I think the MVP is the most accurate reflection of the best player that season).
Ablett has 8 AA's to Dusty's 4 (and Dusty has been fortunate that he can be picked as a forward pocket because some of those he would not have made if only considered as a midfielder)

Dusty's finals performances elevate him (pretty fortunate with 1-2 NS's though) but Ablett was the better player over the course of a season (Dusty not often even top 5-10 in the H/A most years while Ablett was #1 every year for a while). Dusty has time to add to his legacy but would need a couple more years similar to 2017 to pass Ablett IMO.

3 norm smith medals...
 
Aug 9, 2017
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3 norm smith medals...
And still not even close to Ablett, Dustys GF performances will always be what raises him to another level but he is still a long long way from Ablett.

Best player in the game for the better part of a decade is just insane and i don't care that he never achieved finals success at the Suns his output was special.
 
Oct 14, 2011
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It’s damn close. GAJ has him on longevity and accolades. 3 Norm Smith’s do carry a lot of weight though. Stats wise they’re almost identical. Dusty probably has him on his peak performance. Once both retired it’s still going to be hard to split them, like a lot of these discussions going one way or another will come down to personal opinion.

I am a big fan of GAJ as a player, however Dusty’s absolute best is a hair better than Gaz’s best for mine.
 
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