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I posted this at Nicks, once again I thought I'd bring it across here to see what people though...
I've been reading alot of posts on this site and others complaining about the depth in our ruck department, so I thought I'd briefly go through the other club to see how we fared compared to them. I haven't included young players as this is more of an immediate rating and, to be honest, I don't know anything about them:
Adelaide -
Biglands-inconsistent.
Clarke-05 will be last season.
Hudson-Yet to really prove himself.
Brisbane -
Charman-Good young ruckman.
McDonald-Will struggle to overcome knee injuries.
McLaren-Dud.
Keating-Good servant, past his best.
Carlton -
French-Quality ruckman, 31 years old though.
Deluca-Just a plodder, servicable.
Bryan-Showed a bit in bursts this year.
Essendon -
Hille-Thrives when played as the no1 option, is a player of the future.
Allan-Knackered.
Cartledge-Shown very little so far.
Laycock-Looks more of a KP/pinch hitter in the ruck.
Fremantle -
Sandilands-Not overly mobile but a good tap ruckman due to his height.
Longmuir-Once again, more of a pinch hitter. Good player though.
Geelong -
King-Once the best ruckman in the AFL, injuries seem to have taken their toll. Will struggle to regain his best form.
Chambers-No more than a handy backup.
Hawthorn-
Everitt-Gun player, getting on though.
Taylor-Able backup but will never dominate.
Kangaroos -
Hale-Looks to be a player of the future.
Mcintosh-Has been dissapointing.
Petrie-Once again, primary position is not a a ruckman.
Melbourne -
White-Impact has been lessened by new rules, still an influential player.
Jamar-High hopes but has failed to come on when needed most.
Port -
Brogan-Great on his day but inconstent, needs to step up.
Lade-Rucking days are behind him.
Primus-Sadly, gone.
Richmond-
Knobel-Wins the odd hit out but ordinary around the ground.
Stafford-Probably last year in 06.
Simmonds-More of a forward struggled in the ruck in previous years.
St Kilda-
Ackland-Has been impressive this year, ruck is their weakest area.
Kosi-Thomas hopes he will develop in to a ruckman, more of a KP at this stage. Albeit a very, very good one.
Blake-Solid backup, nothign more.
Sydney-
Ball-06 will be last year if he goes on.
Jolly-Once again, a good backup, but may struggle to fill no1 spot.
West Coast-
Cox- Premier ruckman in league.
Seaby-Lots of potential, needs to do more.
Gardiner-Injury prone, best behind him?
Western Bulldogs-
Darcy-Will be used more as a key forward from now I think.
Minson-Showed ability this year, not great around the ground yet.
Street-Handy tap ruckman, poor around the ground.
So that is a very quick wrap up, I went purely from memory and didn't actually research teams so I apologise if I've left anyone out.
Lets compare the above to Collingwood:
Fraser-Was ready to burn in 05 before injury struck, has been extremely durable previously. Is only 23 so lots of room for improvement. Queries at this stage over light frame and ability to win hit outs.
Richards- Could be anything. Once again injuries cut him down in 05 but has shown he is a skilled tap ruckman and can be damaging around the ground. Has added bulk but needs to stay fit.
Fanning-Improved out of sight after only playing a handful of games against men previously. Will need to do the same over the next few years, but if this year is anything to go by, we could be on a winner.
C Cloke- Probably a bit short to be a real ruckman, is an able back up and has plenty of grunt.
My point is when you compare other teams with our division, you'll find it stacks up pretty well. In fact, I would only take the Eagles and possibly the Doggies over ours as a whole. Each club has their worries with age, injuries and inconsistency.
Granted, Richards could go either way with injuries and Fanning is a bit of an unknown, but we're not alone there. Age is on their side and, with a bit of luck, I think all three will be very good ruckman for years to come.
Things are looking good, now lets get some midfielders!
I've been reading alot of posts on this site and others complaining about the depth in our ruck department, so I thought I'd briefly go through the other club to see how we fared compared to them. I haven't included young players as this is more of an immediate rating and, to be honest, I don't know anything about them:
Adelaide -
Biglands-inconsistent.
Clarke-05 will be last season.
Hudson-Yet to really prove himself.
Brisbane -
Charman-Good young ruckman.
McDonald-Will struggle to overcome knee injuries.
McLaren-Dud.
Keating-Good servant, past his best.
Carlton -
French-Quality ruckman, 31 years old though.
Deluca-Just a plodder, servicable.
Bryan-Showed a bit in bursts this year.
Essendon -
Hille-Thrives when played as the no1 option, is a player of the future.
Allan-Knackered.
Cartledge-Shown very little so far.
Laycock-Looks more of a KP/pinch hitter in the ruck.
Fremantle -
Sandilands-Not overly mobile but a good tap ruckman due to his height.
Longmuir-Once again, more of a pinch hitter. Good player though.
Geelong -
King-Once the best ruckman in the AFL, injuries seem to have taken their toll. Will struggle to regain his best form.
Chambers-No more than a handy backup.
Hawthorn-
Everitt-Gun player, getting on though.
Taylor-Able backup but will never dominate.
Kangaroos -
Hale-Looks to be a player of the future.
Mcintosh-Has been dissapointing.
Petrie-Once again, primary position is not a a ruckman.
Melbourne -
White-Impact has been lessened by new rules, still an influential player.
Jamar-High hopes but has failed to come on when needed most.
Port -
Brogan-Great on his day but inconstent, needs to step up.
Lade-Rucking days are behind him.
Primus-Sadly, gone.
Richmond-
Knobel-Wins the odd hit out but ordinary around the ground.
Stafford-Probably last year in 06.
Simmonds-More of a forward struggled in the ruck in previous years.
St Kilda-
Ackland-Has been impressive this year, ruck is their weakest area.
Kosi-Thomas hopes he will develop in to a ruckman, more of a KP at this stage. Albeit a very, very good one.
Blake-Solid backup, nothign more.
Sydney-
Ball-06 will be last year if he goes on.
Jolly-Once again, a good backup, but may struggle to fill no1 spot.
West Coast-
Cox- Premier ruckman in league.
Seaby-Lots of potential, needs to do more.
Gardiner-Injury prone, best behind him?
Western Bulldogs-
Darcy-Will be used more as a key forward from now I think.
Minson-Showed ability this year, not great around the ground yet.
Street-Handy tap ruckman, poor around the ground.
So that is a very quick wrap up, I went purely from memory and didn't actually research teams so I apologise if I've left anyone out.
Lets compare the above to Collingwood:
Fraser-Was ready to burn in 05 before injury struck, has been extremely durable previously. Is only 23 so lots of room for improvement. Queries at this stage over light frame and ability to win hit outs.
Richards- Could be anything. Once again injuries cut him down in 05 but has shown he is a skilled tap ruckman and can be damaging around the ground. Has added bulk but needs to stay fit.
Fanning-Improved out of sight after only playing a handful of games against men previously. Will need to do the same over the next few years, but if this year is anything to go by, we could be on a winner.
C Cloke- Probably a bit short to be a real ruckman, is an able back up and has plenty of grunt.
My point is when you compare other teams with our division, you'll find it stacks up pretty well. In fact, I would only take the Eagles and possibly the Doggies over ours as a whole. Each club has their worries with age, injuries and inconsistency.
Granted, Richards could go either way with injuries and Fanning is a bit of an unknown, but we're not alone there. Age is on their side and, with a bit of luck, I think all three will be very good ruckman for years to come.
Things are looking good, now lets get some midfielders!

