If you could draft any player from history?

[Arr0w]

It is strange.......I remember guys like Dench, Doull, Matthews etc but not Southby

I'm not suggesting he wasn't great but he doesn't ring a bell with me

As a pure FB, I rate Dench one of the best I have seen. In today's game he would a 3rd tall, but his attributes would fit perfectly in the modern game

 

[Sky]

Jesaulenko was a magician with the ball and could play multiple positions at an elite level. If only there was more footage of him playing, hard to have an appreciation of how special he was if you weren't watching him live.

I was surprised when I learned he was actually a champion and not just known for one mark. Used to think he was supposed to be a more modern Roy Cazaly

 

[Meteoric Rise]

It is strange.......I remember guys like Dench, Doull, Matthews etc but not Southby

I'm not suggesting he wasn't great but he doesn't ring a bell with me

Southby was a genuine champion Full Back, very classy player, total ball player. Sadly KO’d by Neil Balme in a shocking deliberate swinging arm head high hit in play in the 1973 Grand Final. Southby was still a great player throughout the rest of his career but I think had some issues in his later playing career and post career that he attributes to the Balme hit. There were several really good Full Backs in the 1970’s. Dench, who you mentioned, and Kelvin Moore from Hawthorn, and Southby were chief amongst them. I think Southby was the best of them though.

Southby won Carlton’s B & F in both 1971 and 1972(a Premiership year.) he was 20 & 21 years of age entering those two seasons and Carlton were a strong force with many great players at the time. It would be interesting to know whether that Balme hit diminished his powers slightly, but he represented Victoria 16 times, played 268 games and is one of just 14 Carlton Legends. In 1979 & 1980 Southby finished 3rd and 2nd respectively in the Blues B & F award, again in very strong Carlton teams.

He was a serious player and imo should have been in the running along with Vic Thorp and Jack Regan for the Full Back position in the AFL Team of the 20th Century, where for some reason Stephen Silvagni was preferred. It was a poorly selected team imo, with only a small handful of players who played in the first half of the century winning selection.

Geoff Southby | Blueseum - History of the Carlton Football Club

Blueseum: History of the Carlton Football Club

www.blueseum.org

I hate Carlton with a passion but they had some tremendous champions that played in that late 60’s-70’s-80’s era when they won 7 flags. Jesaulenko, Nicholls, Southby, Doull and a slight step down to McKay and Walls. The Blues may have one or two dodgy “legends" in their list of 14(Richmond I think has about 7 players with a similar status) but Southby is not one of them.

 

[Meteoric Rise]

I was surprised when I learned he was actually a champion and not just known for one mark. Used to think he was supposed to be a more modern Roy Cazaly

Jezza was a great player in his prime and a good player later but did decline a fair bit over his career.

 

[masai tu]

Bruce Doull.. with modern tactics hed get double didget intercept marks and 30 plus kicks to advantage every week

He’d have played to 50 under the modern rules.

Oh well, he’d look the same at 50 as 30.

 

[WillHayward]

Carey minus the baggage

Baggage or baggies?

 

[Sphynx]

As a pure FB, I rate Dench one of the best I have seen. In today's game he would a 3rd tall, but his attributes would fit perfectly in the modern game

Dench basically created the "attacking" rebounding full back.

You are correct, he'd be an even better version of someone like Tom Stewart in todays game.

 

[Aristotle Pickett the3rd]

Simple question but I actually think surprisingly difficult.

This is not a "who do you think is the best player of all time" question. This is a "take any player from history and be able to draft them at 18 years old to your club for the 2023 season, who do you pick" question and I think it is different in some important ways as it requires more consideration in terms of how said player would handle the modern game compared to what the game was when they themselves played.

So for instance a popular answer could be Tony Lockett, but at 191cm and an almost non-existent tank would he be as successful in 2023 and beyond as he was in the 80's and 90's.

What about Simon Madden, the greatest ruckman of all time, he would be a good choice, but at 198cm he would definitely be on the shorter side for ruckmen of the modern game, would that hurt his chances?

Perhaps Wayne Carey, great player, but again a bit on the short side and knowing what we know would you want his personality at your club, possibly de-stablising the playing group?

What about Gary Ablett Snr? Athletic, can do freakish things and kicks a lot of goals but is only 185cm, which may have been fine a few decades ago but how many 185cm or lower Colemen medal winners have there been in the last 20 years. Would he be able to bring what made him great to the modern game as well?

What about Stephen Silvagni? Great player but again a bit undersided for a key defender in the modern game at 191cm and also what made him great are things that key defenders are not allowed to do anymore, so would that make him less influential?

So you have free choice to draft any player from history as an 18 year old into your team for the 2023 season? Who do you pick and why?

Also mods can you please not move this to the draft board as this is not a genuine draft discussion given this can't happen, but rather a best player of all time with a twist discussion.

If Hawkins can play in the modern era so can Lockett.
Carey would be good in any era as he was highly skilled.
It would be between Carey, Lockett, Ablett snr, Franklin ,Rance and Martin.
I would go Martin as you know he would dominate grand finals and win you more premierships.

 

[Jetafl]

There is something really special for me about a gun centre half forward so as he is the very best the game has seen in that position it has to be the Duck for me but really hard to answer if I could pick two Ablett Snr. for me.

 

[Shadow89]

Not who I thought I'd select when I first saw this question, but honestly, I think I'd go Selwood.

Nothing special about him. No height or freakish qualities to speak of...but a will to win from the very first day he was drafted, an insatiable appetite for the ball, and an ability to make those around him better and stand taller.

From his very first game until his last game, his standards never dropped off (apparently his BOG performance while all others in our team coasted in Round 7, 2007 or so, was the catalyst for us turning things around - given an 18 year old was outworking and outplayed some of our greatest stars at the time), and it resulted in him being the longest serving captain in AFL history and getting sent off with a 4th flag - which basically epitomized his career given he won one in his first and last year, and played finals in every single year bar one of his career.

I could list the best players in GAS, Carey, Buddy. Matthew's, GAJ, Judd, Lockett, Dusty etc. but pound for pound and for every single thing we got out of him in his 350+ games, I'm choosing Selwood every time. Voss and Hodge are others I'd consider too in the same category.

 

[WCE_phil]

On the Proviso they never do their knee it's a toss up between Paul Salmon and Ashley Mcintosh.

 

[Goomba1973]

1: Ablett Snr
2: Lethal Mathews
3: Plugger
4: Buddy
5: Dunstall
6: Ablett Jnr
7: Judd
8: Fyfe
9: Dusty
10: Cousins

 

[RUNVS]

1: Ablett Snr
2: Lethal Mathews
3: Plugger
4: Buddy
5: Dunstall
6: Ablett Jnr
7: Judd
8: Fyfe
9: Dusty
10: Cousins

Out of interest how do you imagine Ablett Snr being played in the modern game given his height (185cm)? I mean he would obviously still be extremely good but I imagine he would need to play a different role to what he actually played.

 

[Aristotle Pickett the3rd]

Out of interest how do you imagine Ablett Snr being played in the modern game given his height (185cm)? I mean he would obviously still be extremely good but I imagine he would need to play a different role to what he actually played.

Ablett had incredible vertical spring. He would play high half forward then deep forward later.
He would still be able to beat the likes of May and Lever one on one.

 

[Power Raid]

Out of interest how do you imagine Ablett Snr being played in the modern game given his height (185cm)? I mean he would obviously still be extremely good but I imagine he would need to play a different role to what he actually played.

he'd be stevie J on steroids or perhaps play the dusty role in the middle

 

[Goomba1973]

Out of interest how do you imagine Ablett Snr being played in the modern game given his height (185cm)? I mean he would obviously still be extremely good but I imagine he would need to play a different role to what he actually played.

I think Ablett would dominate in any era .... he kicked around 600 goals from the wing before he moved to a full time forward role.... 600 goas from the wing and the guy still only played 248 games. If anything Lethal and Ablett would have been suspended for half their careers by todays standard. Ablett Snr is the best player I have ever seen .....

 

[geelong_crazy26]

Easily Garry Ablett Senior.

The power speed and explosion at 185cm makes him the perfect midfielder/forward combo. Would have no issues adapting and thriving in the modern game bursting out of packs or making defenders uncomfortable isolated. He is just about impossible to match up on because he was very quick but also very strong and explosive one out.. a smaller opponent is too weak but a bigger opponent is too slow.

 

[geelong_crazy26]

Gaz Snr
Graham Farmer
Bob Skilton

Graham farmer? I can’t go that far. 180cm ruckman won’t do much these days.

 

[Falcon3518]

GAS, him and Dusty would be insane. Taking him off Cats supporters would make it even sweeter.


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[WillHayward]

Can people stop focussing on the height thing?

Clearly height is relative to the average of the era.

 

[Farang83150]

Judd and D.Cox

 

[RUNVS]

Can people stop focussing on the height thing?

Clearly height is relative to the average of the era.

Well it matters because we can't just say "well lets pretend Gary Ablett Snr is 195cm"

The assumption would be you are drafting an 18 year old 185cm Gary Ablett Snr.

 

[Agenda 21]

Matthew Richardson.

Magnificent mark, super athletic, good height, tough and would suit todays game beautifully.

Especially with my club.

 

[NonPhixion]

Buddy

 

[masai tu]

Graham farmer? I can’t go that far. 180cm ruckman won’t do much these days.

Polly >>> 2 x Madderns.

Forget relative heights, look at how they dominated their era.

No one here has seen him live, but Haydyn Bunton Snr seems to be a player that would make Ablett Snr, quiver in his boots.