Depends on the time of year you put them together
According to Champion Data , we have no elite players. Bulldogs, GWS and the Eagles have 6, Geelong and Hawthorn have 5.
So the question is how many of our players will be regarded as elite by the end of the season. 2-3 maybe,
Zerrett seems like the only lock, and 2-3 maybes to jump into that category.
I think it wouldnât be unreasonable to rate what the AFL players think above Champion âHouli is eliteâ Data.
We know they rate Heppell, Zerrett, Jobe and Hurley as top 50 and are backing JD for a breakout year and if Hooker hits his straps he could be another.
So we are a chance for 6, and some like Parish and Raz could also be a chance IMO.
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Assuming itâs only because our best players didnât have data from last year.
Heppell
Zerrett
Hurley
Hooker
Watson
Daniher
by years end
so 2-3 definites and a few possibilities
It doesnât take a lot of imagination to start considering Fantasia in that realm.
Kelly is the other that I have right up there in my mind. But I do appreciate he has a lot of years in the legs, and it is a bit silly to consider a bloke that was forcibly retired from another club elite. I do love him though.
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I wish Iâd thought of that.
Lack of Tippa in these discussions.
I wonder how many Bulldogs players were rated âeliteâ at this time last year. Predictive models are models. Time will tell as to whether Champion Datas model is good for 2017, but I have serous questions with most models this year. They donât seem to be making any attempts to incorporate the effect of Essendon on the models, and are treating them based on last year as if itâs a meaningful data point for next year.
We all know that Essendon is âdifferentâ. How you treat that in a model is very difficult, but most seem to have taken the âitâs too hardâ approach, which could lead to very large errors.
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I donât doubt that there is a depth to Essendon this year caused by the suspensions, we have tended to run out of key players towards the end of each year for some time. This is after a number of promising starts to the season.
Woosha and the EFC football department learnt a lot about managing players last year and I think we will tend not to play injured players like we have in the past.
I believe our list bats down to at least 35 players before we start to taper off and even then a couple more players may rise into contention bringing that number up further.
Essendon is definitely different, and if we can gel as a team we could surprise a lot of people.
I predict we will win more games in the second half of the home and away season than we did in the first half since I donât know how long.
It may never have happened this century, and even in 2000 we won more games in the first half of the home and away season than the second half.
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It happened last year.
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Haha.
The point is there though. Weâve been awful after the middle of the year this decade whereas this year we should hopefully improve as we work out the best mix.
Though if we win 10/11 then 8/11 I wonât be complaining.
Managing players because we can⌠cos we bat deepâŚ
âŚas long as theyâre not ruckmen⌠I mean our ruckMAN.
Yes, I realised that shortly after I posted it, but couldnât see the text to edit it on my Android phone, which is a bit of a glitch to bring to @Riolio 's attention.
Yes, a bit ironic to argue that our first wooden spoon season since 1933 was improving in the second half where the best season ever in AFL / VFL history was âgoing downhillâ in the second half (10/11), although the last 3 games had the same results.
**Essendon coach John Worsfold says development will be a priority at the footy club in 2017**Sarah Olle
March 8, 2017 5:50pm
SARAH OLLE@sarahjolle
Source: FOX SPORTSESSENDON Coach John Worsfold says younger players will be favoured over their older counterparts if their form is on par this season.
With 10 suspended players back at the club, the list at Worsfoldâs disposal is barely recognisable to the makeshift one he was dealt in 2016.
Jobe Watson, Dyson Heppell, Michael Hurley and Cale Hooker headline the returning players, with Worsfold indicating all four â including the injured Hooke â were on track to play in Round 1 against Hawthorn.
Despite this, Worsfold told Fox Footyâs AFL Tonight youth would be preferenced over experience, with the Bombers looking to develop its next crop of stars
âA young player that can contribute at the same level as one of those senior players really should be getting that opportunity,â Worsfold said.
âBut thatâs not taking away from the respect that the older players have.
âThat will be communicated: that if we have a young player knocking the door down and not getting an opportunity and one of those older players are just chugging along and we know that kid can offer as much â or potentially more â they need to get an opportunity.
âWeâll be working through those issues as we go. But INITIALLY weâll be selecting the best team, the team we think will perform the best for the Essendon Footy Club in Round 1.â
While the Bombers have started their âcomeback storyâ, Worsfold said trust was still being rebuilt with the players.
The Essendon coach said transparency was key, with the club ticking everything off to accommodate the playing group.
âCommunication is a massive thing,â Worsfold said.
âEverything we do, we tell them why weâre doing it, how itâs going to fit for us. We get a lot of feedback from them and make sure theyâre comfortable with the direction we tell them weâre going in.
âThe club put a lot of things in place over the last three or four of years to make sure that we mitigate risks and donât ever face the situation that weâve just come out of.
âThat means we do have to tick a lot of boxes in bringing in new ideas to the footy club, and thatâs really how it should be. The players are seeing that and that gives them a level of comfort.â
Worsfold urged all supporters to descend on the MCG for the clubâs first hit out against the Hawks, in what will be the first match in a year and a half for a plethora of Bombers.
âItâs going to be a special night for the footy club and those guys running out,â Worsfold said.
Good rocket for the senior players who will get first crack at it, good incentive for the the younger players to play well and force their way into side.
Fire up boys. We going for the round1 W!
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So, the Round 1 team is going to be mostly hard nut old campaigners. Hawthorn is bound to be âunsociableâ It should be a decent stoush.
Hawthornâs unsociability index has dropped substantially with Mitchell and Lewis getting shipped out.
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Essendons Depth up to 37 players IMO.
Using my best 22 from February
B: Baguley, Ambrose, McGrath
HB: Kelly Hurley Goddard
C: Zaharakis, Watson, Colyer
HF: Parish Daniher, Tippa
F: Fantasia, Hooker, Green
Foll: Leuenberger, D Heppell, Z Merrett
Bench: Hocking, Stanton, Gleeson, Langford
Depth
23 Laverde
24 Howlett
25 Dea
26 Hartley
27 Bellchambers
28 Myers
29 Begley
30 Francis
31 McKenna
32 Long ÂŽ
33 Brown
34 Bird
35 McKernan ÂŽ
36 Stewart
37 J Merrett
Kids - Mutch, Ridley, Clarke, Morgan, Redman, Draper, McNeice
I believe McNiece is ready made too
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Love this, Laverde and Hartley are must ins for me though. Hartley to replace Ambrose - not only is he just as adequate defensively, Hartley is fantastic offensively with a deep penetrating kick.
Laverde - Just think he is too talented not to be playing seniors - maybe a swap for Hocking or Stanton. Probably Hocking.
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