Rumour GFC 2024 Player Trading, Drafting FA, Rumours and Wish lists Pt 1

[BennyGan]

If Macrae is traded to any club I assume that doggies would be paying for some of his salary, unless they attach a good pick with him. I don't think he is the right move for us.

 

[CHAWKTS]

Have you ever heard of Riley Garcia?

Actually no

 

[D BRIDGE]

If Macrae played all year in the twos (not saying he will) that is a clear indication that the coach doesn’t want him… He also wouldn’t want them.

That would = some sort of a deal where the Doggies would absolutely pay part of his contract to move him on.

Now that is if he is playing twos most of the year… or finishes the year playing twos.

There’s definitely a few ways this could all go.

 

[D BRIDGE]

Actually no

Riley Garcia had 41 touches in the same game Macrae had 46.

That’s not my way of talking down Macraes game… it’s a way of talking down anyone who racks them up in the VFL.

Definitely a way of not being impressed by 27 from Will Phillips.

Literally have no idea who Riley Garcia is and he gets 41 in the VFL… the dude is probably an apprentice chippy.

 

[D BRIDGE]

Definitely one of my issues and everyone’s with Macrae is that he racks them up but Is known to not be overly damaging.

I think he’d be handy to have this season… but not sure what he’ll look like in a couple more years.

The Bulldogs team has been up the top of “most disposals” for a while… they share it around plenty… Lots of guys get lots of touches for sure.

It’s actually a small worry I have in the back of my head regarding Bailey Smith

6

Bailey Smith

Age

23

Ht

185cm

Wt

86kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

18.3

5star

K

8.5

3star

HB

9.8

5star

M

2.3

2star

T

3.8

5star

CL

2.7

4star

D

19.8

5star

K

9.6

4star

HB

10.2

5star

M

1.8

2star

T

3.2

4star

CL

3.2

4star

D

14.8

4star

K

7.6

3star

HB

7.2

5star

M

2.0

3star

T

3.4

5star

CL

1.6

4star

.

All these dogs rack them up but the one who is the best and most damaging… Bont, probably gets it less than most.

When you looks at Smiths stats you just seeing really good disposal numbers almost from the get-go of his career and think wow this guy must be a gun.

I worry that maybe those numbers wouldn’t look anything like that if he was playing for another club.

Just something I was thinking about.

 

[#6 Thorp #7 Selwood LOL]

Riley Garcia had 41 touches in the same game Macrae had 46.

That’s not my way of talking down Macraes game… it’s a way of talking down anyone who racks them up in the VFL.

Definitely a way of not being impressed by 27 from Will Phillips.

Literally have no idea who Riley Garcia is and he gets 41 in the VFL… the dude is probably an apprentice chippy.

Garcia has played 20 AFL games and is reasonably handy.

 

[D BRIDGE]

Garcia has played 20 AFL games and is reasonably handy.

Never heard of the guy.

If he is on the Dogs list (might not be) I really hope they name him to play against us in gather round.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

It’s actually a small worry I have in the back of my head regarding Bailey Smith.

All these dogs rack them up but the one who is the best and most damaging… Bont, probably gets it less than most.

When you looks at Smiths stats you just seeing really good disposal numbers almost from the get-go of his career and think wow this guy must be a gun.

I worry that maybe those numbers wouldn’t look anything like that if he was playing for another club.

Just something I was thinking about.

I kinda go the other way on Smith. You read his draft profiles and there's no mention of him not hurting with possession. The below profile was written before he had any association with the dogs and calls out specifically elite kicking

The complete midfielder, who dominates on the inside, outside and can also use his elite kicking when deployed across half-back or hit the scoreboard up forward. One of the best players in this year’s draft, Smith seems destined for AFL stardom, and will work as hard as any to achieve it. His huge endurance base and strong athletic base to go with his natural footballing ability make him a dangerous proposition for opposition coaches, and an exciting one for his future mentors. He is not likely to last too long on the draft boards, and will be the second Victorian midfielder to be taken in the National AFL Draft. There will be no shortage of clubs keen on Smith, who is a terrific leader both on and off the field.

Where did that footballer written about go? Because that's the footballer that got drafted. From there I put his plateaued development on the dogs coaching group. They seem to have turned him into a dogs player who plays the dogs way.

It's dangerous to trade in a player hoping he'll do better for your club than he does for his current club but I think for Smith there's a couple of things that make me think he would be

Bailey Smith

central.rookieme.com

 

[geelong_crazy26]

I hate the idea of a mid season trade period. You've got a list of players for the season. One of the challenges is to manage that list to get through the full season not just trade someone in to cover holes you didn't bother covering coming into the season.

It'll also lead to a much less competitive season. s**t teams will trade out good players for future picks once they know their season is done so they'll be even worse. And tend in contention will sell their future even more to chase the premiership now.

On another related note to that… imagine if one of your better players wanted out and the trade fell thru… imagine the tension and issues for the next 10-12 rounds… the supporters would hate their guts and also the tension with team mates.

 

[stac]

Just saw some Tom Powell highlights from the weekend.

Ahhh yeah the kid looks the goods.

I know he has been mentioned on here before as a likely type… not sure of his contract status.

He was 1 pick after Bruhn in the 2020 draft (was #13).

I don’t think North would be letting him go but they do have a million young gun mids so maybe someone will eventually tip out.

Hope Bruhn can step it up like this guy has this year.

Bit unfair on Bruhn
Tom Powell has played two good games this year and has just shaded Bruhn from his one performance

But across their careers to date l would have Bruhn ahead and if he had played a full game round 1 would probably have performed better.

Powell has also payed against two teams that don’t exactly worry to much about opposing midfielders unlike Bruhn and the saints

I think at times we are too hard on our guys in favour of opposition players based on stats or limited viewership

 

[D BRIDGE]

Bit unfair on Bruhn
Tom Powell has played two good games this year and has just shaded Bruhn from his one performance

But across their careers to date l would have Bruhn ahead and if he had played a full game round 1 would probably have performed better.

Powell has also payed against two teams that don’t exactly worry to much about opposing midfielders unlike Bruhn and the saints

I think at times we are too hard on our guys in favour of opposition players based on stats or limited viewership

Everyone knows how much a love Bruhn.

Powell looks like he has been chucked in the middle so far this year and instantly had two breakout games… in a very ordinary and young losing team.

This weekend was a big one… if Bruhn can have a few big ones like that this year it’ll be a great sign.

Powell just re-signed so he isn’t an option for us anyway.

I was hoping we’d end up with all the good players from the 2020 draft.

 

[bombersboy]

Riley Garcia had 41 touches in the same game Macrae had 46.

That’s not my way of talking down Macraes game… it’s a way of talking down anyone who racks them up in the VFL.

Definitely a way of not being impressed by 27 from Will Phillips.

Literally have no idea who Riley Garcia is and he gets 41 in the VFL… the dude is probably an apprentice chippy.

Guess this means you do not rate any of our players playing in the VFL.

 

[Cameron_Jezza]

Is dangerfield contracted for 2025.
I didn't think we could win 2024 flag before the season began, but I think with reasonable injury list we can win it. Need Swans and GWS to lose a bit of form though.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Is dangerfield contracted for 2025.
I didn't think we could win 2024 flag before the season befan

I wouldn't draw too long a bow on current form. It's a long road to September

 

[D BRIDGE]

Guess this means you do not rate any of our players playing in the VFL.

I think you might have interpreted what I was getting at incorrectly.

I don’t rate players on disposals only (especially in the twos).

There’s an absolute stack of random guys that run around racking it up in the VFL that won’t make it in the AFL.

I’d be pretty confident Conway and COS will have good careers (injuries withstanding).

I wouldn’t be overly positive on anyone else just yet though.

 

[Mr Meow]

McRae is signed on good money until the end of 2027.

Do you want to inherit that?

If the dogs wanted to move him they would either need to pay some of his contract or sweeten the deal ala Bowes deal. And I don’t see either of those things happening.

I reckon if McRae was a Cat he would be a whipping boy on those boards as someone who gets a lot of the ball, is not super damaging and can be exposed defensively. He is kind of a slightly better version of Matt Crouch, but with a far worse contract.

Crouch since his return to the Crows 1s has gotten involved in a lot more scores. Even on the weekend he was their highest for SIs IIRC.

McRae has always been an accumulator but at his peak for 2-3 seasons was a great all round midfielder. He's well past that now and carries about half the hurt factor as a 34 year old Dangerfield.

 

[Gazza Greatness]

I'm not even sure if it will stop us, but it might if we can't keep them healthy.

Call me crazy, but Guthrie, Dangerfield, Bruhn, Atkins, Blicavs and then a mixture or Clark, Holmes, Bowes & Duncan is enough if they're all fit and firing.

We realised we had to change post 2019. We don't play 3 guys through there at 85% gametime and have them rack up 30-40 every week.

We had that Dangerfield, Selwood, Ablett, Kelly, Duncan, and even Menegola...and it doesn't work.

A midfield of superstars who stuffing the statsheet looks great on paper, but when you've got an entire midfield without a defensive bone in their body, it's going to get found out in finals.

It's why Corey, Ling, & Kelly are such unheralded stars of our dynasty. They allowed Selwood, Ablett and Bartel to be so great. They may not get the plaudits, but we don't win it without them.

Ever since 2020, we've changed to a midfield by committee, and beat our opponents by sheer weight of numbers running through there, as well as players who actually chase and tackle.

You still need a Dangerfield and/or Guthrie firing when it matters for it to work, so it's not foolproof in that respect, but 2022 showed what was possible with that model.

Kobe Gryant: Exceptional post and on the money 100% as appearances and possessions are not always what they seem, especially when it comes to two way running and defensive pressures with a few of the high-profile midfielders in the comp. racking up the numbers at will but their defensive side of their game can be sadly lacking and as you also highlighted that our weakness is not going to be how highly competitive our large group of a excellent midfielders will be but rather how many injuries we have in that specialised area.

 

[bombersboy]

I think you might have interpreted what I was getting at incorrectly.

I don’t rate players on disposals only (especially in the twos).

There’s an absolute stack of random guys that run around racking it up in the VFL that won’t make it in the AFL.

I’d be pretty confident Conway and COS will have good careers (injuries withstanding).

I wouldn’t be overly positive on anyone else just yet though.

Agreed that is my read at the moment as well. I am hopeful on a couple of others but that is all it is, hope.

 

[Hamingja]

If Macrae played all year in the twos (not saying he will) that is a clear indication that the coach doesn’t want him… He also wouldn’t want them.

That would = some sort of a deal where the Doggies would absolutely pay part of his contract to move him on.

Now that is if he is playing twos most of the year… or finishes the year playing twos.

There’s definitely a few ways this could all go.

We need an A grade mid which is not Macrae but I would still have some interest.

Said last silly season that the starting point for any midfield recruit has to be are you better than Tom Atkins? The fringe mids that were available last year weren't, so better off going to the draft instead, which we did. I would say Macrae is better than Tom Atkins.

Finding 22 AFL standard players is tough these days. Adding them via any and all avenues is required. Given our likely retirements over the next couple of years we will have cap space. I'd be happy to eat Macrae's contract if it meant we got an AFL standard midfielder for negligible draft capital. That is obviously on the proviso that getting rid of the contract is more important to the Dogs than what they receive in a trade. If they would accept like P40 to dump the contract, sign me up. Macrae would add value winning the contested ball and dishing it out to Holmes, Miers & co to deliver it.

 

[Lana]

We need an A grade mid which is not Macrae but I would still have some interest.

Said last silly season that the starting point for any midfield recruit has to be are you better than Tom Atkins? The fringe mids that were available last year weren't, so better off going to the draft instead, which we did. I would say Macrae is better than Tom Atkins.

Finding 22 AFL standard players is tough these days. Adding them via any and all avenues is required. Given our likely retirements over the next couple of years we will have cap space. I'd be happy to eat Macrae's contract if it meant we got an AFL standard midfielder for negligible draft capital. That is obviously on the proviso that getting rid of the contract is more important to the Dogs than what they receive in a trade. If they would accept like P40 to dump the contract, sign me up. Macrae would add value winning the contested ball and dishing it out to Holmes, Miers & co to deliver it.

It depends on what you are looking for. There has always been a shortage of KPFs, Ruckman have been in short supply since the sub rule since they couldn't carry the understudy in the 22 for 3-4 years. Not many Dangers but no shortage of Harmes.

Clubs don't tend to draft looking for a player to fill out the 18-22 spot on their list. They draft a kid with attributes spend 3 years developing them hoping they'll turn into something resembling the elite. I think there are plenty out of the AFL who could be plug in and play for minimal investment without looking out of place, we're seeing it every year with SPP but there is a perception that they have minimal chance to become elite. Solid players look a lot better in better teams than worse ones. How would Atkins and Close look playing for WCE? How would Greg Clark have looked playing for us? These mature aged recruits used to be so valuable, 180k for 22 games every if it was below average output it was still a steal.

I like the Atkins test, when we brought him in he was the definition of a replacement player. 100 games letter he isn't that anymore but consider how Parfitt went last week give how bog standard he was last year in the VFL.

I'm generally of the view the wrong player for the right price. Last year we really struggled to get our hands on the ball without Dangerfield. We'll need something above replacement level otherwise we'll find out exactly how good some of our premiership players truly are.

 

[iameviljez]

It depends on what you are looking for. There has always been a shortage of KPFs, Ruckman have been in short supply since the sub rule since they couldn't carry the understudy in the 22 for 3-4 years. Not many Dangers but no shortage of Harmes.

Yeah, exactly. Small defenders and ok midfielders are a dime a dozen. Ruck/forwards are in high demand, fulltime ruckmen... it doesn't rain, but it does pour.

But if you can kick a goal, you are highly in demand.

 

[iameviljez]

It's why Corey, Ling, & Kelly are such unheralded stars of our dynasty. They allowed Selwood, Ablett and Bartel to be so great. They may not get the plaudits, but we don't win it without them.

Cameron Ling in particular. Guy deservedly won the B and F in 2004, then racked up stats at will for two years... before, I think, reality hit that if he won too much of the ball, he was slowing us up. So he reinvented himself as a tagger - must have been a blow to the ego, but hey, he captained a flag.

 

[dazbroncos]

I hate the idea of a mid season trade period. You've got a list of players for the season. One of the challenges is to manage that list to get through the full season not just trade someone in to cover holes you didn't bother covering coming into the season.

It'll also lead to a much less competitive season. s**t teams will trade out good players for future picks once they know their season is done so they'll be even worse. And tend in contention will sell their future even more to chase the premiership now.

Mid season trade is horrible.
Against the fabric of the game and sone more seppo bullshit they want to bring in.

In the bin with it.

Go Catters

 

[Pure_Ownage]

That almost certainly be the case but were there better options on the table for them to chase, last year was a feeding frenzy for KPD, even the VFL was picked bare.

I don't think they are that far off. Their midfield has both quality and depth. With that anything is possible they have to wrangle the role players in the right way and with a bit of luck falling there way they'd be aiming to win.

dIsagree on the 2nd para. What they needed was a big shutdown kpd (remember mckenzie being outsized by kpfs) and didnt get it. Zerk thatcher isnt that player strength wise. Sav isnt either because his best game is zoning off which is what allir is best at-stylistically they are too similar and it doesnt address their weakness. Meanwhile up forward they are still playing a GFL level player in mcentee as a small forward (plus narkle in depth as a small forward who is a. A midfielder and b. Shouldnt be on a list anymore). They didnt solve their kpd problems at all and yes i know they drafted a decent small fwd in last years draft but they needed to do it 3 years ago.
Their only decent recruit last year was soldo but they way overpaid to get him compared to equivalent recent depth ruck trades.

Their individual player selection of young players is very good see rozee butters bergman georgiades etc. But list management is all about creating balance and a structure that minimises holes and they havent done that at all.

And this is before you get to their 2 biggest problems. 1. Their coach is tactically inept and that wont work in finals-they needed to remove koch if his influence ia why they wont boot ken.
And 2. Their players are mentally soft and are great when plan A works but they arent strong enough to find plan B on the fly (or the coach isnt smart enough to pull the levers).

This will get found out in finals hence this list will never win a flag (even not withstanding how weak the comp is)

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Mid season trade is horrible.
Against the fabric of the game and sone more seppo bullshit they want to bring in.

In the bin with it.

Go Catters

Im fine with it so long as it doesnt just allow top 4 teams to raid bottom clubs.
if they are going to do it they need to lower the cap floor to 80 % so bottom teams can use the extra cap space to trade in players mid season as well. They also need to put in limits (ie if top 4 clubs bring in a player they should be trading out equivalent player value in return eg one player in one out).