IMO Merrett already lifted his defensive game noticeably last year. Expect to see him get better again this year. Also, Parish alone is a good player. Parish in combination with Merrett is often an amazing player. So I think we’re better off with those 2 working together when possible. However, we all know what happens when we have a centre bounce with Shiel added to those two, so I’d be happy not to see all 3 of them at a centre bounce.
There’s more mids at all ball ups that aren’t centre bounces, so there’s easily room for a defensive and offensive players working together then.
I think I’d rather see a more dour center bounce set up in 2024, we need to learn how to defend, we try get real attacking in the middle and when it works it’s good, problem is our defenders often get exposed if we don’t win it, watch area for sure, hopefully we set up better all over the ground.
IMO Goldy will be Ruck in round 1. He is a top level Hit To Advantage ruckman, and if our inside mids manage to develop a synergy with him, players like Parish and Hobbs will benefit greatly in terms of first use. Just how BDB manages our rucks remains to be seen. But I think he will want to phase Draper back in slowly.
Nic Martin likely in the top 10 too that year out of that years admissions. It would be a hard choice between Hobbs and Martin, both likely 150+ gamers.
yeh not a pile on but he also often dives out of a pack to get the handball out which means he is on the ground and cant link up on the next play. he definitely is working on it as by the end of the season he wasnt doing it as much.
Gary Ablett Jnr: 182cm 87kg
Ben Hobbs: 183cm 80kg (Footywire)
Hobbs probably needs to build his core strength and overall muscle mass to consistently break and stand up in tackles ala GAJnr. Hobbs to get to about 86 to 87kg perhaps. The height to heavier weight differential didn’t seem to hinder GAJnr from finding the footy too much.
Nor does a height to heavier weight differential impede our own Zac Merrett from consistently being at the drop of the ball.
The player he’s been likened to, Selwood, played at 184cm, 84kg. The difference between GAJnr and Selwood being, in tackles, Selwood often went to ground - and got rewarded for it.
I’d be thrilled if Hobbs became 75% of the player Selwood was at his prime.
Watched a couple of 2008-2013 era Geelong games on Fox Footy recently. Joel Selwood at his prime was an absolute fkn beast, I genuinely forgot just how good a footballer he was.