This has been kept pretty low key for some reason, hardly a mention on the shows or in the rags.
Thought we better acknowledge what a solid, continually improving & at times stellar 5 years Dyson has had since we pulled a nice little swifty to get the lad to the club he loved through all his boyhood, the club he lives & bleeds for.
Crichton & AA selection in his 4th year on the big stage, & the stand out choice for fill in Capt when the skipper went down in his 5th.
It’s been a wonderful start Dyso, we look forward to what’s yet to come. Good on ya mate, well done.
Junior Clubs: Leongatha
Debut: 2011
Recruited from: Leongatha/Gippsland U18
Brownlow Votes: 31
Player Sponsors
Patron
Spencer Panels
Benefactors
A & M Galbraith Pty Ltd
Danielle Valvo
Arbour Landscaping Group
Supporters
Essendon Fans (Amy, Lorraine, Lyn & Richard)
2013
Continues his ascent as an emerging star by finishing third in the best and fairest; his second consecutive top-three placing. Having played his first two seasons largely off half-back, Heppell moved into a ball-winning role in the midfield in 2013. He did it with ease, too, averaging 24 disposals. He won three Brownlow votes for his 36-possession and two-goal effort against Melbourne in round two and was terrific in the comeback win over Carlton in round 11. Heppell’s season ended prematurely with foot surgery, but he is expected to be available for the start of 2014.
2014
Heppell’s brilliant young career stepped up another notch in 2014, as the midfielder won his first Crichton Medal as the club’s best and fairest and was named in the All-Australian team. The 22-year-old established himself as one of the premier young midfielders in the competition, averaging 28 disposals and five clearances a game. Heppell has continued his rise in his four AFL seasons and looks certain to be a star for a long time to come.
2015
Named Captain in the absence of the amazing Jobe, & has taken that step up in his stride, like a duck to water… like a solid Sth Gippy boy.
Essendon’s Dyson Heppell believes he is ready to take over captaincy
July 22, 2015
Ronny Lerner
Essendon’s Dyson Heppell believes he is ready to take on the captaincy if skipper Jobe Watson decides to hand it over.
With Watson ruled out for the remainder of the season after shoulder surgery, Heppell has been appointed the Bombers’ fill-in captain.
Watson admitted recently to falling out of love with the game as a result of the club’s ongoing supplements scandal, and earlier this month he publicly contemplated whether giving up the captaincy might be the spark that re-ignites his passion for footy.
“I’m really enjoying the role at the moment,” Heppell said at Tullamarine on Tuesday.
"And we’ve got another seven games to go this year to see how I fit.
“But I think Jobe’s got plenty left in him and I’d love for him to be skipper for the next couple of years.”
Heppell stressed that he had not discussed the possibility of captaining the team beyond this year with the club.
Club legend Kevin Sheedy believes it should be up to Watson whether or not he carries on as captain next year.
“I remember saying to Terry Daniher, ‘I think you’d want to consider at some time letting Tim [Watson] be captain’,” Sheedy said.
"And he came back two years later and said, ‘I think it’s time that Tim could be captain’.
“I always like captains relinquishing the role to the next person, when they get that opportunity.”
Sheedy suggested Watson’s shoulder reconstruction could be a blessing in disguise.
“Sometimes you need to step back, and this injury might be really great for him. [He could] have a really good look at what he wants to do with his footy,” Sheedy said.
"He’s got a lot of good footy left in him and this forced rest might just really re-energise him.
“Look what’s happened to Gary Ablett since he’s been back. He’s playing fantastic footy again but [he was] out for most of the year.”
Heppell is due to play his 100th game against Port Adelaide on Saturday night and Sheedy described the All-Australian midfielder as a steal at pick eight in the 2010 draft who should have been selected in the top three.
The 23-year-old has only played in two finals so far, both of which were losses, and the desire for September success is driving him.
“That’s what you play footy for,” he said. "[We are] striving very hard as a group to improve.
“Going forward in the future and blooding a lot of the young boys at this stage of the year, the more games we get into them the better off we’ll be so I certainly reckon over this next period of years we’ll certainly push deeper into finals.”
Heppell admitted the club’s older players such as Dustin Fletcher and Paul Chapman would find it hard to get a game this season if the youngsters continue to impress.
“If they keep performing, they’ll stay in the side … the staff have no choice but to play them,” Heppell said.
Meanwhile, Heppell remained confident that out-of-contract forward Jake Carlisle would stay at Essendon.