You basically answered your own question. Goldy staying instead of another ruck is so that he can mentor Draper and Bryan. He is being eased into the ruck coaching position and l don’t have a problem with that. Another ruck would be competing against them for a spot, Goldy won’t be doing that.
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My question is, why does he need to be on the list to do this? This year we saw Goldy get way too many games at the expense of Bryan when he was supposed to be mentoring. How much mentoring can happen on gameday? They are usually at least 50m away from each other if they are playing in the same team. Might as well just skip to being a coach.
yeah Keefe or Preuss would be far better
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Preuss? lol
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yeah he’s only 29 he’s got another 8 years in him easily
■■■■■■■ dodoro strikes again
This is a fantastic decision
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This is Brad Scott decisioning
Wasting a list spot.
If Draper and Bryan are both injured than how much more will Goldy give us over 2MP… Honestly…
I don’t want 2MP playing as a first ruck.
Ideally we don’t have to cross that bridge as we need Draper and Bryan to stay fit for their own development.
Was there an obssession with Skipworth?
Or was he just a normal assistant coach, and the weird thing was that Blitz turned on him all of a sudden, and never let it go, because on poster said his 3 Qtr time huddle talk at the VFL was uninspiring?
Another example of a bizarre piece of commentary running away into established lore on Blitz. The fact that many players have spoken highly of him as a development coach and that he’s being considered for the WCE job says that like many Blitz memes, this one was probably wrong.
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Ideally we don’t play 2mp at all
Sure. But Goldstein, as limited as he is now, still is a better first ruck option than 2MP if it gets to that.
Ideally it doesn’t.
Id baptise Vigo by fire
He isn’t AFL standard yet. He still gets pretty well beaten as a ruck at VFL level.
I reckon he will get there but needs a chunk more time.
Weirdly I’ve half come around to this. That is, as long as every fibre of everyone’s being is committed to aiming for him to play 0 games next year, and expecting that he plays < 3. I say that without knowing if there’s some 20-something state leaguer who represents a clear and obvious superior alternative as depth (with some upside), but I suppose there should be no such thing sitting around without any interest from anyone that we can just pick with our last rookie pick.
The real travesty is that 2025’s approach wasn’t in play in 2024.
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If teams who are in the hunt for the Premiershjp can get by without an experienced third ruckman, then why can’t we?
People say he won’t cost much, but the cost is a list spot that could be used to find the next Martin, Durham or D’Ambrosio. We need to be using every resource to find quality players, not waste them on a cooked third ruckman who isn’t up to the task of competing with AFL rucks.
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He could always retire mid season and give us a (or an additional) MSD pick.
Could that be part of the plan? It’s harder, if not impossible, to manipulate that with a younger player.
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Veteran ruck Todd Goldstein will line up for his 19th AFL season after committing to Essendon on a one-year contract extension.
With 329 games to his name, Goldstein provides the Bombers with a wealth of experience and guidance.
In his first season in the red and black, Goldstein played 14 games and was a guiding support to fellow rucks Nick Bryan and Sam Draper.
Goldstein played 14 games in his first Essendon season. (Photo: AFL Photos)
Before joining the Bombers, Goldstein played 17 seasons at North Melbourne, establishing himself as a premier ruck within the competition, claiming an All-Australian blazer and Syd Barker Medal in 2015.
Goldstein said he was eager to continue building the ruck partnerships with Draper and Bryan.
“I’m excited to continue to work with Sam and Nick. I felt like we were able to build a great relationship over the last 12 months, and I think a bit more continuity of working together is only going to benefit everyone,” Goldstein said.
“To have three really viable options to play in the ruck is going to create a really competitive environment to hopefully drive us all to improve and give us multiple options next year.
“I am really excited by what I have seen over the last 12 months and feel like we have all the capabilities in the room to be a successful side. I am looking forward to seeing what we can all achieve together and continue to push ourselves and each other to get us where we want to get.”
In round eight this season, Goldstein became the first AFL/VFL player to accumulate a total of 10,000 career hitouts while also still holding the record for most hitouts in a game, which he achieved in round 12 of the 2015 season, where he tallied 80 hit outs against GWS.
General Manager – AFL Daniel McPherson said Goldstein’s leadership and experience have been influential throughout his first year at the NEC Hangar.
“Todd is the ultimate professional who holds himself and his teammates to high standards on and off the field. With 329 games to his name, Todd’s knowledge of the game, and specifically his ruck craft, has been extremely beneficial to fellow rucks Sam and Nick. He has also been a great support and mentor for first-year tall Vigo Visentini,” McPherson said.
“To have someone of Todd’s calibre and experience at the club is an asset for our players and coaches. On the field, he also provides us with great flexibility through the partnerships he has built with Sam and Nick. All three players have different ruck styles and characteristics, allowing us flexibility when coming up against different sides.
“We look forward to seeing Todd in the red and black for a second season.”
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Backup and mentor role only is fine, surely he won’t keep Bryan out of the senior side from now on.
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Why waste a list spot on someone who everyone is committed to play 0 games for the year? Why don’t we use that spot to look at another winger, back pocket, forward pocket etc?
Everybody think about the 2024 games post round eight and Goldys performance… Will he really give much more than 2MP ?? Is that slight difference (may not even be a difference in 2025 considering how much Goldy slowed down) worth a list spot???