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Most of you are assessing your own team so prob a good idea I do the same...

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BACKS

Bailey Williams (27 yo, 151 games)

Liam Jones ( 33 yo, 200 games)

Tom Stewart (31 yo, 171 games)

A very experienced back line led by the ever impressive Tom Stewart...

Tom has earned 5 All Australian jumpers and was a valuable member of the 2022 premiership team. He provides toughness, drive, poise... can move into the midfield if required.

Liam's courage, marking and spoiling are key components of this underrated defender's game. While 33 years old, he hasn't yet shown any signs of slowing down. The important thing here is he has only played 200 games which isn't much for someone approaching his 15th season. Sometimes it's important to determine a player's expiry date by considering how many games they have played (toll on body) rather than how old they are.

Bailey's versatility is an underrated part of his game. Last season he spent more time in the midfield but he has proven over multiple seasons he is a reliable rebounder. Coming off his best season (IMO), he finished 9th in the best and fairest although surprisingly he did finish 5th in 2021 when his team made the grand final.

HALF BACKS

Rory Laird (31 yo, 247 games)

Jake Lever (28 yo, 178 games)

Caleb Daniel (28 yo, 192 games)

Another experienced half back line comprising of a couple of versatile players...

Rory is the most accomplished of the trio with three best and fairests and two All Australian jumpers. While he plays predominately in the midfield for his team, he did earn his two All Australian honours occupying positions in the back line in 2017 & 2018.

Jake will form a reliable key defensive partnership with Liam Jones and both have similar styles which isn't necessarily a bad thing. He won All Australian honours in a premiership year and was a b2b2b representative in the 22 under 22 teams between 2015 & 2017.

Caleb has been the one of the most effective kicks of the footy since making his debut in 2015. His CV includes a premiership, best and fairest and All Australian jumper. He finished second in the 2016 Rising Star and he has had the pleasure of riding on a gorilla's back. A new team for Caleb in 2025 might reignite his career... although I don't necessarily agree he should have needed to reignite his career... Why did he fall out of favour at the Dogs???

Riding Gorillas with Jarrad Roughead

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CENTRES

Jaspa Fletcher (20 yo, 41 games)

Clayton Oliver (27 yo, 183 games)

Nathan O'Driscoll (22 yo, 24 games)

Our least experienced line but the exciting part here is I genuinely expect all three players to improve of their 2024 season...

Jaspa is entering his third season in the competition after arriving in the system as a highly rated father/son prospect. He has a bit of pace which in important for our team and the premiership player certainly has clean hands. Surprisingly he is yet to record 20 possessions in a match... that's gonna change in 2025.

Clayton is possibly the biggest high risk / high reward selections in the draft. His CV includes one premiership 2x AFLCA player of the year, 3x All Australian jumpers, 4a best and fairests, 2x Lou Richards medals and many more. 2024 aside, he was one of the best players in the comp and is certainly capable of returning to that elite status.

Nathan is an exciting prospect. He hasn't proven much yet but IMO is capable of turning into a very handy player. Despite only playing 24 games, his highlights reel is pretty impressive. There's no denying he has a tremendous work rate and is rated elite in running. He has strong hands as well which allows him to play in defence as required which he did at the beginning of his career.

HALF FORWARDS

Stephen Coniglio (31 yo, 217 games)

Peter Wright (28 yo, 133 games)

Matt Kennedy (27 yo, 118 games)

Another experienced line who all offer something different...

Stephen is captain of his team and has been a star for many seasons. He does his best work in the midfield but has certainly shown he is more than capable hitting the scoreboard with 120 goals. His 2024 season failed to reach the heights of his 2023 season but that's because he was battling injury.

Peter is an important member of the team as he provides a back up option to Grundy in the ruck. A best and fairest winner in 2022, he hasn't reached those same heights in recent years but he has shown on his day he is more than capable of kicking a bag of goals. It would be difficult to motivate yourself playing for a rabble like Essendon & I am confident his motivation to play for us will result in him being a consistent strong marking, high impact goal kicker.

Matt offers plenty to this team. Not only is he a tough nut capable of impacting in the middle of the ground and on the scoreboard, his good looks will keep keep the women away from Clayton Oliver which will allow Clayton to return to his elite form in 2025. Now at his third club in 2025, you can expect him to continue averaging around 20 disposals & 4 tackles per game while contributing to the scoreboard with a few snags.

FORWARDS

Jack Higgins (25 yo, 122 games)

Tom Lynch (32 yo, 220 games)

Bailey Fritsch (28 yo, 149 games)

Experience is a common theme with this team and our fwd line is no exception...

Jack is his team's leading goal kicker in the past two seasons. His CV includes goal of the year in 2018 & a Morrish Medal in 2017. His consistency is pretty important having averaged 1.5 goals per in the past four years. His best footy IMO is still ahead of him.

Tom has only played four matches in each of the past two seasons. It's for this reason he was able to slide to a mid round selection. There's no denying he has an impressive CV... 2x premierships, All Australian, 3x best and fairests, 6x club leading goal kicker. He has twice averaged three goals per match and IMO injury (and not age) is the only thing holding him back.

Bailey is the star of our fwd line. A pest, sure... But he's an out and out star. The premiership player has been his club's leading goal kicker for the past five seasons and he has the record of kicking the most goals in a grand final since the 1990s.

RUCKS

Brodie Grundy (30 yo, 216 games)

Isaac Heeney (28 yo, 201 games)

Jack Viney (30 yo, 219 games)

This midfield group are of a similar vintage in terms of age and games played. All are rated elite for their work rate by position. The dominant ruck craft of Grundy combined with the skill of Heeney and toughness of Viney makes this ruck unit one of the very best in the competition...

Brodie is quite clearly the second best active ruckman if every player was ranked on what they have produced in their career. 2x All Australian jumpers, 2x best and fairests, 2018 player of the year. Now at his third club, we're expecting Brodie to outperform his 2024 season due to having Dean Cox as his coach. He still has a bit left in the tank and we're expecting him to have his best season since 2021.

Isaac's 2024 season was simply outstanding earning his first best and fairest and second All Australian jumper. His AFL journey began with a plethora of awards including AFLPA best first year player (2015), AFLCA best young player (2016) and a couple of representations in the 22under22 team. He is extremely versatile with his ability to dominant in the air and at ground level. He is equally dominant as a forward as he is in the midfield. I'm surprised he lasted until pick 14 as we rated him a top five player.

Jack will thrive in this midfield set up having played alongside Clayton for years and also having some experience playing under the shoulders of Grundy. His courage, hard nut edge will complement this midfield beautifully. The premiership player & former club captain is a 2x best and fairest winner has strung together three injury free seasons after being hampered by niggling injuries previously. His tackling, pressure, clearance work and ball winning ability will propel this team to great heights.

BENCH

Sam Frost (35 yo, Australian actress)

Xavier Duursma (24 yo, 88 games)

Cam Mackenzie (20 yo, 34 games)

Nick Haynes (32 yo, 211 games)

Jack Gunston (33 yo, 260 games)

The respective surnames of our five bench players sums up our team overall...

****ing Deadly Marking, Handballing & Goalkicking...

Sam is one of our country's sexiest actresses. Hailing from Ferntree Gully, the former winner of The Bachelor will have all tongues wagging in the clubrooms after the match. She is expected to be very popular among the playing group at Mad Monday.

Xavier is an interesting player in that he isn't elite in any one category but he doesn't appear to have any weaknesses. A player like this is needed in every team. A couple of his biggest strengths are his athleticism and versatility. He is a run and carry player capable of running goal. Primarily we will be playing him on the wing.

Cam is another athletic player who will rotate through the midfield, on the wing and the occasional stint in the fwd line. He is rated elite for disposal efficiency and IMO he has a very bright season. He only missed the 2024 finals campaign due to a hamstring injury he suffered in the final H & A match. Entering his third season, the former #7 draft pick is my tip to be our team's most improved player in 2025.

Nick offers experience and will provide great coverage for our three bid bodied rebounding defenders. With Stewart, Laird and Williams all capable of playing through the midfield, Hayes can easily slot into a defensive position where his intercept marking and rebounding will be a very welcome addition to our team.

Jack is a 3x premiership player, All Australian representative and club best and fairest. He has been a very reliable goal kicker for over a decade. It's incredible to think a player who averaged 1.6 goals per game last season lasted all the way until the very last round. He has shown an ability to player as an undersized KPF so he will be a handy back up to Lynch and Wright.