Recruit of the Year (so far)

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IMO McKay and Goldstein have been the standout recruits for Essendon this year. Gresham and Duursma have been good. Their defence is really in-sync with McKay seamlessly slotting in. The return of Ridley improves that part of the ground.

Goldstein has been a revelation so it is no surprise that the midfielders are all in great form. Essendon win this by a long way.

Grundy for the Swans has been brilliant and he has helped improve an impressive midfield. Warner and Heeney the main beneficiaries.

It is amazing how much a team can be improved if the right recruits are obtained.
 
FlowersByIrene said:
Weitering has been the best key defender in the league for 5 years and still struggles to make the 40. The AFL mafia will still put Harris Andrews, Tom Stewart and Sam Taylor in before anyone else, regardless of form. And then when we speak about form, Ben McKay is certainly still no lock.
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Good thing nobody said that. Pushing for the squad doesn't = lock.

😂😂
 

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Pie eyed said:
Maybe it's the Pie in me but I never really thought Grundy was THAT good.
Not that he is not a very good player.

Just did not ever really get the hype.
Darcy Cameron replaced him seamlessly.
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Grundy's not the best ruck, but he's the best footballer of all the ruckmen. His handballing is phenomenal for a big man, his endurance is elite, you just leave him on the ball 90% of the game and he wears the opposition out.

And when I say he's not the best ruck, he's still really good. If his opponent isn't top tier then Grundy will slot every ball to advantage, he destroys sub standard rucks.

His bodywork has improved every year, and now he negates or beats taller blokes outside of the centre bounces. Not the highest jump, so those centre bounces can be a problem, and he doesn't take that many towering old fashioned defensive ruck marks (still takes a few).

Essentially he's a bustling ruck rover who runs all day, has superb hands, and wins scrappy ball ups and throw ins. A game changing player and very hard to counter, you almost have to put a large tagger on him around the ground, then hit him with the beanpole at the centre bounce, or bash him.

In the past he has struggled against big ogre types. Mumford was allowed to slap his face and punch him, and often took the honours. Of the current rucks Goldstein has the body strength and craft to compete around the grounds, but his tank has decreased.

Vs Gawn Grundy loses or ties the centre taps, but around the grounds Grundy does as he wants.
 
Maddo11 said:
I mean no disrespect to Naismith and Hickey, but really we've been using stop gap ruck options for so long that having an AA ruck has elevated our midfield group out of sight. Also his follow up work and tackling has been immense

In '19 / '20 we were forced to use Aliir Aliir in the ruck for decent amounts of time. '22 was only good because Hickey and Reid had abnormally good years at the same time.

Watch the 10 minute period after half time against Carlton a fortnight ago, we were walking it in because he was so dominant in the middle.

If Gawn wasn't also having a career year Grundy would be a lock for AA
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Has he been better than Marshall?
I haven't seen every Saints or Swans game, but I've seen Marshall dominate far more than Grundy has.
Also understand the argument that Grundy is having more impact on his teams success though.

English has dropped in output a bit.

Meek has been one of the most improved players in the competition.

Gawn still powering on like always.

Some good rucks getting around at the moment. Will be interesting to see if this season bucks the trend a bit and a club with an elite level ruckman actually wins the premiership.
 
Not sure Grundy qualifies the best so far, but probably by season end. I dont think he's hit a patch of great form yet.
Been v good and made Syd better, but hasnt really transformed anything.
I actually think Hickey made more instant impact on the midfield. From where he was and the cost, his form was a complete shock to me right from the start.

Big surprise with Grundy is how he's playing his best footy at SCG...not a result i would have picked but its great for the future.

I like McKay, Sharp, Goldy for the best recruit so far. For the price, Sharp is a special. Yes Grundy for the price is also amongst those but he's not a standout.
 
Blackhawk42 said:
Has he been better than Marshall?
I haven't seen every Saints or Swans game, but I've seen Marshall dominate far more than Grundy has.
Also understand the argument that Grundy is having more impact on his teams success though.

English has dropped in output a bit.

Meek has been one of the most improved players in the competition.

Gawn still powering on like always.

Some good rucks getting around at the moment. Will be interesting to see if this season bucks the trend a bit and a club with an elite level ruckman actually wins the premiership.
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Haven't watched too many saints games, they're often scheduled when I can't watch anyway, so I did a quick stats comparison

Marshall has more touches marks and kicks, whereas Grundy has more handballs tackles hit outs and contested possessions.

Knowing Grundy likes to get in and under if there's going to be repeat stoppages, at a glance it seems like they're playing different game styles with Marshall looking to offer more as a marking target, whereas swans have McDonald Amarety McLean and often Hayward in front of the ball to present up so Grundy can stay more midfield. Marshall having twice as many marks and meters gains would support that theory.
Grundy, well ahead in every hit out stat and has twice as many handballs.

You could pick stats to make arguments for either, depends on what play style you're looking for I suppose
 

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Lavender Bushranger said:
I just reckon that 15 average disposals and less than a goal a game is pretty meek output for a recruit on north of $700k.
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Fills the role for us that we've been lacking, crafty small forward that can push up the ground. Equal 5th in the league for goal assists and getting plenty of chances himself, just needs to snag a few more but he's been very good to date. A heavily front loaded contract when we were struggling to meet the cap and still have plenty of space available, with a contract that doesn't include built in increases when the CBA goes up.

Great pick up.
 
Very happy with Elijah Hollands. Classy footballer with a 10 year future as an on baller/medium forward.

There were obvious circumstances as to why we paid so little for him but he was basically given to us.

Newwman earlier, Acres in 2022 trade period and E. Hollands in 2023. Good business if you can add good reliable best 22 players via trades whilst pretty much giving away future 3rds and 4ths in return.
 
I would hazard a guess most at the Swans are extremely happy with not just Grundy, but also Taylor Adams and James Jordon.

Three excellent pickups in one year.

However I don’t have time to watch many non-Swans games at all, so I have no idea how that measures up to other clubs’ stories.
 
Cyclops said:
Grundy's not the best ruck, but he's the best footballer of all the ruckmen. His handballing is phenomenal for a big man, his endurance is elite, you just leave him on the ball 90% of the game and he wears the opposition out.

And when I say he's not the best ruck, he's still really good. If his opponent isn't top tier then Grundy will slot every ball to advantage, he destroys sub standard rucks.

His bodywork has improved every year, and now he negates or beats taller blokes outside of the centre bounces. Not the highest jump, so those centre bounces can be a problem, and he doesn't take that many towering old fashioned defensive ruck marks (still takes a few).

Essentially he's a bustling ruck rover who runs all day, has superb hands, and wins scrappy ball ups and throw ins. A game changing player and very hard to counter, you almost have to put a large tagger on him around the ground, then hit him with the beanpole at the centre bounce, or bash him.

In the past he has struggled against big ogre types. Mumford was allowed to slap his face and punch him, and often took the honours. Of the current rucks Goldstein has the body strength and craft to compete around the grounds, but his tank has decreased.

Vs Gawn Grundy loses or ties the centre taps, but around the grounds Grundy does as he wants.
Click to expand...


The rule change has really helped Grundy who is one of the stronger ruckman in the league he can now get under the drop of the ball and use his arms to hold out the other ruckman
 
Grundy and Jez Sharp.
Side note: What the f##k were Gold Coast doing not playing Sharp?
Goal kicking wingman with elite pace, disposal and endurance, so let's keep him in the 2's.
 
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