But Sydney Swans co-captain Adam Goodes was willing to back himself in when it came to selecting his squad of 30 in this year’s competition.
“I haven’t chosen myself as captain; I’ve got Luke Hodge as captain at this stage,” Goodes told afl.com.au.
But could the dual Brownlow Medallist be tempted, should he again hit a hot streak, to lock himself in as skipper?
“It always depends on form, doesn’t it?” Goodes said.
“It’s all about having that inside knowledge and I suppose that’s an advantage we’ve all got.”
Goodes, a known Dream Team points scorer, will this year be part of a league comprising some of the game’s biggest names – such as Richo, Hodge, Matthew Pavlich, Dean Cox, Chris Judd and Dale Thomas.
“Most of those boys are with the same management company as I am, so I know quite a few of those boys very well,” Goodes said.
“A few of those boys are in my team, as well … so I might have to do a bit of changing there and try to figure out if I can get a player of the same sort of ability, but not them, who they might not have in their team. That might be a nice strategy.”
Goodes was part of an AFL Dream Team competition last year but said a lack of diligence when it came to team management cost him late in the season, with injured players failing to register points.
This season he knows he’ll have to stay on the ball and hopes he has the line-up to make it through to September.
“I went for a predominately Indigenous team last year … I’ve got a few of the brother boys in my team [again this year],” Goodes said.
“I’ve got Andy McLeod, myself, Buddy [Franklin], I think I’ve got Cyril [Rioli] down there in the forward line as well and also one of the Burgoyne boys.”
As for team loyalty, well, there was also room for a couple of Swannies.
“I think I’ve got Jarrad McVeigh in my midfield and I might have Mick O’Loughlin in my forward line,” he said.
“A bargain I’ve gone for is Jesse White in the ruck. Maybe [that’s] because of a bit of inside knowledge.”
Goodes did have a word of warning, however, to pre-season bargain hunters.
“You can go on pre-season form but once you get in-season, it’s a lot different.”
Dream Team watch – Sydney Swan Adam Goodes is rated a $359,200 midfielder in Toyota AFL Dream Team 2009.
