Mitch started the year pretty well for Woodville-West Torrens in the ones, but unfortunately fractured his sinus and missed more than a month of football. He got back into the ones but played the last couple of minor round games in the twos. It’s a pretty big jump for an 18-year-old kid from the TAC Cup to come in and play SANFL league football. We’ve seen some improvement from him, and he just needs to work on getting a bit more of the ball outside of stoppages.
Travis Boak
Trav has improved again. He had a pretty good year last year and started this season very well too. He found a lot more of the ball and his clearance numbers were up, but he suffered a knee injury in round 11, which kept him out for six weeks. He struggled in his first couple of games back, but he recaptured that good form in the last month and was probably our best player over that time. We’re really hoping he turns into a top-line onballer next year. I think he’s at that age and played enough games now to be able to do it.
Matthew Broadbent
Matt played a handful of games for us, and his performance against North Melbourne in round 22 was probably his best at AFL level. He’s a good clearance player and showed very good form for Woodville-West Torrens in the SANFL. We see some pretty big things for Matt in the future. He has the ability to rack up big possession numbers, and is also a pretty a hard-nosed onballer.
Dean Brogan
Dean’s year was very good again. He only missed the one game and led the competition in hit-outs to advantage. He’s definitely a barometer for how we play. He tackles and hunts opposition players and is a fierce competitor. Overall, it was another solid year for Dean.
Peter Burgoyne
It’s an end of an era for us with Peter retiring. He started the year very well, and then the season seemed to become very long for him. He’s a guy that’s done a lot of pre-seasons and seasons, and by the middle of the year it looked as if Peter had run his race at AFL level. It was great we were able to give him a farewell game, and he’s been an outstanding player for us. We’re going to have to find some young onballers to stand up and take his position.
Shaun Burgoyne
Shaun had a really disappointing year after injuring his knee in round three and missing three months of footy. He was able to come back and play a few good games with us late in the year, but he left a massive hole in our team for most of the season. He’s our best onballer and, arguably, our best player, so it’s tough to replace guys of that calibre. Now, he’s just got to take his time, get the knee right and - touch wood - nothing happens to him next year. His absence was a big reason why we didn’t play finals.
Alipate Carlile
'Bobby' improved again. He’s still only a young kid, but he gets the key forwards all the time and only had a bag kicked on him once or twice for the year. He does the job for us week in and week out, and the biggest thing for 'Bobby' is his leadership. He’s really matured this year and if his good form continues, hopefully he’ll be able to step up leadership-wise over the next few years.
Josh Carr
If you had have asked me at the start of the year what kind of season Josh would have, I would’ve said very good. His pre-season was great, but he got injured the week before our first game and really wasn’t able to get up and running. He was in and out of the side and his form was pretty patchy compared to what Josh had been hoping for. He looked pretty good in the first five minutes against Carlton in round 21, but then did his ankle. He’s one guy that will be going into pre-season with a point to prove. He’s an outstanding guy to have around the club, and we just need him to show us what he can do on the field next year.
Dom Cassisi
Dom had an outstanding year given it was his first with the captaincy. There was a lot of stuff going on in and outside of the club, and for Dom to handle it was well as he did was a great testament to him. His performance in terms of his leadership and also on the stats sheet was as good if not better than last year, so he can certainly hold his head high. He delivered and led the way we knew he could when he was chosen as captain. He didn’t miss a game when he fractured his forehead, and will be right up there again in our best and fairest award.
Troy Chaplin
Troy had great year for us. He really held down the centre half-back spot. He plays crucial roles on talls, smalls and is also somebody to help out with opposition’s key forwards. He had some games this year where he was best on ground by a fair way, and that means he’s become a pretty good player at the level. He’s still got a little bit of work to do on the consistency side of things, but he’s taken a big step forward and has also become a leader of our young backline. He’ll be high in our best and fairest award too.
Chad Cornes
Chad started the year well and then petered off a little bit. He had some injury concerns with his finger, knee and calf, and struggled to get back on the ball after missing so much football. We played him down back for the last month, and he showed some glimpses again of what he can do back there. He’s coming to a time of his career where he’s achieved a hell of a lot of things and is looking to cement a position on the ground where he can really dominate. We’re thinking that will be down back next year. Hopefully, he can provide a fair bit of leadership and experience for our young backs. We’ve just got to monitor him now. His body has played a fair bit of footy, and we’ve got to make sure he can get through the pre-season.
Kane Cornes
Kane had a very good first half of the year in a bit of a different role rather than just tagging all the time. He hurt his shoulder and that seemed to bother him for a few weeks. He played with a few sore spots for most of the year, but was very consistent for us again. He was able to go to the good players and put them away while still providing us with a bit of run. He’ll be pretty content with what he’s achieved.
Jason Davenport
We recruited Jase as a goalkicking midfielder who could also run. He struggled to get a game in the first six or seven weeks when we were going well, but his form for West Adelaide was very good. We wanted to play him because he’s a guy who works very hard in games and allows us to move the ball pretty quickly. He had some good games at AFL level, including one against his old team Geelong where he kicked a couple of goals. He got injured later in the year, but we were pretty happy with what he was able to do. He played 10 games and, hopefully, next year he can cement a position on the ball or as one of our forwards and play 22 games.
Glenn Dawson
We saw a bit of improvement from Glenn, but like most first-year players, the year became pretty long. Glenn is an exciting forward who has some good athletic qualities. He can jump and he’s a very powerful athlete. He wasn’t able to get into the seniors at Woodville-West Torrens, and that will be his goal next year. We see him as a project player, but in a few years time, hopefully he’s down forward giving us a lot of options. He’ll be an excitement machine if he can keep on improving.
Brett Ebert
Brett started the year pretty well. We made life difficult for our forwards in the middle part of the year when we struggled to get the ball inside 50. Brett struggled because we struggled to a certain extent, but his form also dropped away. Being sent back to the SANFL wouldn’t have been great for him, but he’ll go into pre-season knowing his last AFL game was pretty good. He had five shots and goal and kicked three in round 22. Hopefully, that will give him some momentum to have a big, consistent year next year, because he has some attributes that are pretty hard to match up on.
Mitch Farmer
Mitch had an injury-interrupted year. He’s a tough competitor, but really struggled to get any consistency for Sturt. He made the switch to South Adelaide halfway through the year and his form picked up a bit. Mitch just needs to get his body right and string some games together to put pressure on the guys playing ones in the SANFL. He played a few games for us in 2007, and he needs to work on adding a few more to that tally.
Jon Giles
Jon had a very good pre-season against 'Broges' and 'Ladey', and we saw some real good things about to come out. He started the year pretty well with Centrals, but with a few other ruckmen coming back into the senior side, he found himself going between the ones and the twos. His last month, while not being able to play in the ones, has been very good. Hopefully, he can force himself into what’s probably going to be another winning finals series for Centrals and convince us that he’s the way forward.
Robbie Gray
Robbie is another player that’s really improved. At times his body lets him down, but this year he managed 20 games for us. He’s played a bit on the ball this year instead of just being a permanent forward, and he’s a good clearance player. At times, it was a line-ball decision whether to play him or not, but he was able to get out on the ground and still play at a pretty good level. He needs to keep working on getting his body right, and we see a big future for him.
Hamish Hartlett
Hamish had his injury problems during the year, but he has an outstanding work ethic and brilliant skills. He played at half-forward, half-back, on the ball and on the wing, so he’s had a taste of everything. He’s a workaholic, so we have to make sure he gets the balance right when he’s up and going. He’s a beautiful kick, he reads the ball well and he’s tough. We’ve seen enough to suggest he’s going to be a very good onballer for the club.
Nathan Krakouer
I think 'Krak' had a pretty good year. We played him as a half-back for us, and it’s the first time he’s really played down there. At times, opposition teams tried to go through his man, but we’ve seen some special things from Nathan. He’s a beautiful reader and user of the ball, and he’s just going to take a couple of years like the rest of our backmen. We’ve been pretty impressed with how he’s been able to handle his body. He needs to work on his fitness over the pre-season, but that’s about it. Hopefully, he becomes a key component of our backline over the next 10 years.
Brendon Lade
'Ladey’s' had an outstanding career, and I think he was one of only three players to play every game with us this season. He had a pretty good year and he’s going to be sorely missed. He’s been a great teacher for our young players and also been a great player for our club. He’s going to leave a pretty big hole, but hopefully some of our young ruckmen and emerging leaders can take his spot.
Matthew Lobbe
'Lobbes', like Jon Giles, had a pretty good pre-season up against 'Ladey' and 'Broges' but really wasn’t able to get going with the Magpies in the SANFL. He played a couple of games in the ones, but was sent back to the twos and decided to make the shift to West Adelaide. He played senior footy in the second half of the year and his last month was very good to the point that he was named emergency for our last game. Matt’s a very good runner and a smart guy. He’s still only young and has to put on a bit of size, but we think there’s a position there for Matthew, and if he wants it bad enough – and I think he does – hopefully, we’ve got another Brendon Lade or Dean Brogan coming through the system.
Tom Logan
Tom does the job every time we ask him to come into the team. He missed the first few games of the season, but broke back into the side and played the rest of the season apart from a couple of injuries. He’s done a variety of roles for us and had as good a year - maybe just a little bit down – as last year. He’s certainly looking forward to the break and making sure that he’s ready to go once pre-season starts because he wants to cement a position in our midfield. He has the attributes to do it. He just needs the belief that he’s in our best 22.
Nick Lower
Nick played a few games for us this year. His form in the SANFL, especially, in the first half of the year was very good and probably the best of any of our players in that competition. He played a few games down back, but wasn’t able to hold his position. Nick’s an outstanding guy around the club, but with Krakouer, Steve Salopek, Paul Stewart and Jacob Surjan all playing in defence, he wasn’t able to get in there. He’s been on our list a few years now, and he needs to see there’s a position there for him.
Daniel Motlop
'Motts' was probably our best player in the first 6-8 games. He was doing a lot of work in the forward line, kicking goals and also up the ground delivering the ball inside 50. He got a knock on the ankle up in Darwin and had to have an operation. He missed nine weeks, and when he came back his ankle still wasn’t great. 'Motts' and Shaun Burgoyne, two of our best players, missed huge chunks of the season and that had an impact on our results no doubt.
Marlon Motlop
Marlon showed some good form for North Adelaide at the start of the year and was able to come in and play three games for us. He got to play a game up in Darwin, but he suffered a groin injury and ended up getting osteitis pubis. He tried to manage it for a few weeks, but couldn’t get on top of it and his season finished prematurely in round 17 or 18. He started his break early to get the injury right, so it doesn’t hang around during pre-season. Marlon is a very talented kid. He’s a beautiful kick and he’s still only young. We think he’ll add some class to our side either in the midfield or down back.
Danyle Pearce
Danyle definitely matured a hell of a lot this year. He had more inside 50s than any other player at the club and ranked fourth in the league overall in that category. He would’ve been tagged in 20 of the 22 weeks, and because of that was able to go and help his teammates out. He didn’t get enough kudos for doing that all year. Last year, a few taggers got on top of him but I thought he dealt with that very well this year. He took his game to another level in that regard, and just needs to know he can still have a huge impact even when he is getting tagged.
Michael Pettigrew
'Petters' also started the year well. He had a bit of an interrupted pre-season and got injured again during the season. He was fighting an injury battle since about the halfway mark of the year and wasn’t able to string enough games together to force his way back into our side. He’d be very disappointed with his second half of the season. He needs to fix his groins/hamstrings up and make sure they’re ready to go for the start of pre-season.
Jarrad Redden
Jarrad is very raw, but he showed some pretty good signs this year in terms of his ruck work and marking ability up forward. He played a few senior games for Woodville-West Torrens, but also missed a bit of footy with an ankle injury. He’s worked really hard on his fitness, and that’s probably made it a long season for him. We see Jarrad as a big project player, but hopefully Jarrad starts to dominate at SANFL level over the next couple of years and can slide his way into our team.
David Rodan
David led our clearances for the year, and was a player that opposition teams tried to shut down on a few occasions. He was dropped a few times, and it was mainly a consistency issue for David. He had a patch from round 10-16 where he was, arguably, our best player. He was able to play pretty well in some of our big games, and we need him getting a lot of the ball because he certainly helps our ball movement. We see 'D-Rod' as a player who needs to fight through the tight tags or when things aren’t going well. He found himself under more pressure with Shaun Burgoyne out of the side, but it’ll be a pretty good mix if they’re both up and running next season.
Steven Salopek
We tried 'Sal' in a different role across half back this year and he was doing that really well until, like Kane, he injured his shoulder against North Melbourne in round seven. He only missed a week, but his shoulder would pop out on occasion and it had an impact on his form and confidence. He really wasn’t able to get back to the level he was at earlier in the year or even last year when he had an outstanding season. He’s had a shoulder reconstruction and, hopefully, he can get himself right for next year because he’s an important player for our side.
Nick Salter
Nick had a few injury setbacks and took a little while to get into our senior team. He’s a very good contested mark and he’s a beautiful kick. Nick’s second half of the year for Woodville-West Torrens was very good, and when he came into the side he was able to have an impact with a few shots on goal. Hopefully, Nick has an injury-free pre-season because he needs to really stamp himself on our forward line and our club.
Paul Stewart
'Stewie' was probably fighting with Michael Pettigrew for a position in the first half of the year. He was held out because of Michael’s form, but was able to keep putting pressure on with his performances in the SANFL. He forced his way into our team in round 14 and only missed two games after that point. We see him as the modern-day backman. He has the ability to defend, but also to run off and attack. He can play on talls and smalls, and we see a big future for him.
Jacob Surjan
'Surj' had an outstanding season. He played on the opposition’s best small forward week in and week out. He had his best year at Port Adelaide and also stepped up in becoming a voice around the club. He could also finish fairly high in our best and fairest, so he’s another guy that can hold his head up pretty high.
Matt Thomas
Matt’s a guy that’s always getting these freak injuries, but he was actually able to have a very good pre-season. He started the year okay for us, but got reported once and then injured his knee, which kept him out for a couple of months. Matty just needs to put some games together to allow him to feel comfortable at the level, which he hasn’t been able to do since he’s been with us. Matt had a couple of good games towards the end of the year, but it was another frustrating season for him.
Toby Thurstans
Toby has been another great servant of our club over the years. He struggled to get into the team early in the season because of the form of Alipate Carlile, Michael Pettigrew and Troy Chaplin. At times, we brought him in against teams with taller forward lines, and he did some good jobs on guys like Daniel Bradshaw. Toby also had the ability to play a bit in the ruck, so we’ll lose some flexibility with him going out of the side.
Warren Tredrea
'Tredders' was brilliant. Over the past couple of years we kept thinking his knees would eventually give way on him, but he was able to look after them in the early part of the season. 'Tredders' led the club’s goalkicking again and was a huge target in our forward line. He missed the last game of the year which he was disappointed about, but he had an outstanding season given what kind of shape his body’s in. He showed what a champion he is, and I’d say he’ll finish high up in our best and fairest, which is a remarkable effort.
Jackson Trengove
Jackson came to us with a massive hamstring/knee injury. We waited four or five months until we got that cherry ripe and allowed him to play. He worked his way back from not playing at all to getting a few games in the twos to force his way into the senior team. He’s a beautiful contested mark, and he’s as hard as nails. 'Wacko' goes for the ball and the man pretty hard, and we see a big future for either in the backline or in the ruck. He’ll be looking forward to getting into a full pre-season, and in his second year at the club, I dare say we’ll see some big improvement in him.
Justin Westhoff
Justin started the year very well. Over the pre-season and in the first couple of games, he provided us with a really strong target up forward. Unfortunately, in round two he got a stress fracture in his foot and he missed eight or nine weeks. We missed his defensive work and his ability to run most of the game out. We brought him straight back into the team and his form was okay, but he did struggle with spending so much time out of the game. 'Westy' will get the screws out of his foot in the next couple of weeks, so when he comes back hopefully he can work on adding some size to his body, which is always a battle for him. We see him as having a big future as a key forward, especially with 'Tredders' sooner or later getting towards the end of his career.
Matthew Westhoff
Matt got a taste of it this year playing three games, but with 'Tredders’ and 'Motts’ good form, we probably didn’t go with as many talls up forward. He went back to Centrals and was able to put some pressure on our forwards, but couldn’t keep that consistency up and got dropped back to the twos. He’d be hoping to get himself back into the ones before finals. He has some similar attributes to his brother Justin and it’s his second year on our list, so we’d be expecting some big improvement next year.
Rookie list
Jesse Laurie
It was a big move for Jess coming over here from WA to be on the rookie list, but he went out to West Adelaide and forced his way into the ones. He played some good footy as a half-back/winger even though it was a big jump up for him to play SANFL senior footy. He’s a great guy to have around the club, and he fitted in really well.
Matthew Martin
We drafted Matt as a backman. He’s a beautiful kick and we thought he had some attributes to play at AFL level. He probably didn’t have the season he had last year when we watched him play for West Adelaide. His form was up and down, so he needs to deliver on a daily basis at training and really become a professional AFL player.
Danny Meyer
Danny was a bit injury-prone during his time at Richmond, but he was able to play NAB Cup and handful of games for us after being elevated onto the senior list. He just needs to demand the ball and make sure he stays in the game 100 per cent of the time instead of drifting in and out. He has a great ability to kick, run and carry the ball, so we think he could really dominate games if he chooses to. If he can find that belief, we see him as being a pretty special AFL player.
Daniel Stewart
'Stewie' didn’t have a great start to the year, but his last 6-8 weeks have been pretty good in the league side for North Adelaide. He’s kicked a bag of goals and done some special stuff in the ruck. He’s a beautiful mover of the ball. He runs well and he’s a great kick for a 200cm guy. We see some things we can work with and, again, with 'Ladey' going, there’s an opportunity there for whoever wants to take it.
Wade Thompson
Wado had a great start in the NAB Cup. He played a couple of games for us early in the year, but then drifted out of games a little bit. Most small forwards in their first, second or third year in the AFL don’t get much of the ball, and when they do they have to make sure they’re kicking goals or setting them up. Wade has amazing speed and an uncanny knack to kick goals. We believe he can add something to our forward line or midfield that we don’t really have. There’s some work to do, but Wade’s got a taste of it now, and hopefully he sees what kind of work ethic he needs to make it at this level.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
