NAB League: Western Jets’ best 20 players of all time ranked
A long list of famous names have enjoyed decorated AFL careers after coming out of NAB League club Western Jets. We’ve had a crack at ranking the best 20. Did we get it right?
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The Western Jets have produced several AFL champions since their inception in 1992.
We’ve ranked the best 20 players the NAB League club has produced, meaning current day players in the formative stages of their careers are likely to be placed higher in coming years as they make their mark at the elite level.
20. TRENT MCKENZIE
The Altona junior is at his second AFL club after switching to Port Adelaide in 2018. McKenzie was one of 12 17-year-olds the Gold Coast could pre-list prior to the 2009 draft before it joined the AFL in 2011 and he made 106 appearances for the club over seven years before being delisted. He was then picked up by the Power as a delisted free agent and is nicknamed ‘Cannon’ because of his raking left boot out of the defensive half. He managed just one game in each of his first two seasons with Port but has established himself as a senior regular this year with one of the league’s pacesetters.
19. ZAK BUTTERS
Like Rayner, Butters is set to have a much higher ranking in coming years after bursting on to the AFL scene. He managed 19 games with Port Adelaide in his first AFL season playing across half-forward and has backed that up by playing all 10 matches in 2020. He has contributed 18 goals for the Power since being taken at pick No.12 in the 2018 national draft. The Darley product is rated among the most exciting young talents in the competition and his best-afield performance against the Western Bulldogs on Monday night showed why as he gathered a career-high 24 touches.
18. CAMERON RAYNER
Like Butters, the 2017 No.1 draft pick would be much higher on this list if he wasn’t in only his third season at AFL level. Rayner has shown glimpses of his unquestionable ability during his two and a half seasons with the Brisbane Lions, with 22 disposals against Richmond in Round 4 of the 2018 campaign his best return in a match during his short career, while he has also shown an ability to wow the crowd with a thrilling mark or kick a clutch goal. Rayner drew comparisons with the likes of Brownlow medallist Dustin Martin, Christian Petracca and Robbie Gray before securing a spot at the elite level and is a product of Hillside Football Club. From seven games for the Jets in the NAB League in 2017, Rayner earned five mentions in the best and booted 10 majors. The forward is likely to spend more time in the middle in coming years.
17. CRAIG ELLIS
Ellis managed 122 AFL games at the Western Bulldogs and Melbourne, and it could have been many more had he not been hit hard by injury through his nine-year career at the top level. A dependable defender, he established himself as a fine player in the 1997 season as the Dogs advanced to the preliminary final. He ultimately moved to Melbourne in 2002, where he played 15 games before retiring at the end of the season.
16. DANIEL WARD
The Hoppers Crossing product put together a fine career at the top level, playing 136 games for Melbourne across 11 seasons from 1997-2007. Regarded as a great team man, Ward made his reputation by exhibiting plenty of dash out of defence and setting up attacks. He featured in the Demons’ grand final defeat in 2000 and was among their better performers against an all-conquering Essendon.
15. LIAM DUGGAN
Duggan arrived at West Coast as a player who had displayed maturity beyond their years at Western Jets and a born leader. Since making his AFL debut in 2015, the Bacchus Marsh junior has been nothing but impressive across half-back for one of the league’s top teams as he closes in on the 100-game milestone. The half-back flanker featured in the Eagles’ 2018 premiership team alongside another former Jet Daniel Venables – who just missed out on a spot in this list – and has wasted no time establishing himself as a senior regular, playing 12 games in his first season followed by 14, 20, 24 and 15 in the past four campaigns. He racked up a career-best 31 touches against Fremantle in July, 2017, and could be a future captain.
14. ADAM KENNEDY
The Melton junior has endured his fair share of injury setbacks at AFL level but has established himself as a member of GWS Giants’ line-up. Kennedy has managed 116 games since graduating from the Jets, displaying his skill as a hard-runner out of defence or on a wing. Overlooked in the 2010 AFL draft, Kennedy was snapped up by the Giants the following year before making his debut in 2012. He made his mark in his first match at the top level, accumulating 28 disposals which remains his career high. He played 23 games for GWS in 2019, including its grand final loss to Richmond.
13. WILL HOSKIN-ELLIOTT
The North Sunshine junior is in his fourth season at Collingwood after spending five years at GWS. He was taken at pick No.4 in the 2011 AFL draft and has gone on to play 128 games, averaging exactly a goal per match. Hoskin-Elliott’s most productive season came in 2018 as he played a key role in the Magpies’ run to the decider, bagging 42 goals from 18 games, including a career-best haul of six against Fremantle in Round 11.
12. JAMES PODSIADLY
After toiling away for Werribee and Geelong for several years in the VFL, Podsiadly got his chance at the elite level as a 28-year-old in 2010. He was snapped up as a mature age rookie in 2009 and went on to produce six impressive seasons for Geelong and Adelaide, finishing his career with 195 goals from 104 matches. His most prolific season came in 2011, where he booted 52 goals from 23 games and was a member of the Cats’ third premiership during their golden era.
11. MICHAEL RISCHITELLI
The midfielder departed the AFL system after a 16-year career at the end of 2019, displaying durability and doing everything possible to be the best player he could be. Rischitelli started his AFL career at the Brisbane Lions in 2004 – the end of the club’s golden era – and got to rub shoulders with the likes of Michael Voss, Jonathan Brown and Simon Black. He left the Lions at the conclusion of 2010, when he was crowned their best-and-fairest winner. Rischitelli went on to manage nine season at the Gold Coast Suns, punching out 132 games and providing valuable wisdom to the club’s youngsters.
10. JAMES SICILY
Sicily landed at Hawthorn with pick No.56 in the 2013 draft as a talented player who could fill a role in the forward half or midfield. “He’s certainly got a high degree of talent, he wants it so much and, ultimately, it will be up to him to make sure he works as hard as possible to get the results,” former Jets coach Torin Baker said at the time. “From what he’s shown at TAC Cup level, he’ll make a real success of his AFL career.” Baker and Hawthorn nailed it, with Sicily now a genuine draft steal and one of his club’s most important players after 91 games at AFL level. The 25-year-old from Keilor has developed into one of the AFL’s elite defenders and was named in the All-Australian squad in 2019, reward for averaging 21 possessions and seven marks per game. Will demand a higher ranking in years to come.
9. LACHLAN HUNTER
There was plenty of hype around Hunter for several years before he was snapped up as a father-son selection by the Western Bulldogs in the 2012 draft. The prolific ball-winner, whose father Mark played 130 games for the Dogs, has since justified that hype at AFL level, averaging almost 24 disposals from 131 games. In recent times, he has become a damaging wingman and was put up as an All-Australian contender last year. Hunter featured in the Dogs’ drought-breaking flag of 2016 and enjoyed a memorable season, averaging close to 28 possessions a game – the sixth most in the competition – and finishing third in the best-and-fairest. He claimed the Charles Sutton Medal in 2018.
8. DANIEL GIANSIRACUSA
The 1999 AFL draft was a good one for the Western Bulldogs, with the club netting five good players – Robert Murphy, Lindsay Gilbee, Ryan Hargrave, Mitch Hahn and Giansiracusa. The forward had a stellar 14-year career, notching 265 games and booting 331 goals for the red, white and blue. One of the Dogs first picked, most reliable and durable players during his career, he bagged 45 goals from 20 games in an impressive 2011 campaign as the Dogs progressed to the preliminary final. He also kicked more than 30 majors in 2008, 2010 and 2013.
7. HEATH SCOTLAND
The midfielder was a highly-skilled player and rated highly for his smart decision-making. A Darley product, Scotland started his career at Collingwood, where he made 53 senior appearances over five seasons and was part of back-to-back grand final defeats in 2002 and 2003. He was traded to Carlton in 2004, where he would spend 11 seasons and was crowned the best-and-fairest winner in 2012. He was a member of the Blues’ leadership group for four seasons and made a life member in 2011.
6. CALLAN WARD
The tough-as-teak midfielder out of Spotswood has gained universal respect across the AFL and is one of the competition’s most consistent performers. Ward was a co-captain at GWS for the club’s first eight seasons in the league and claimed the Kevin Sheedy Medal in 2012 as the Giants’ best-and-fairest. He has played 221 AFL games, with his first 60 coming at the Western Bulldogs from 2008-2011. Ward had a superb 2015 campaign, averaging 25 possessions from 22 games and polling 19 Brownlow votes.
5. BACHAR HOULI
An elite rebounder out of half-back, a superb kick and boasting elite running power – Houli is a star of the AFL. The 32-year-old Spotswood product has featured in Richmond’s 2017 and 2019 flags and also earnt All-Australian selection last year. Many viewed him as unlucky not to win the Norm Smith Medal three years ago as the Tigers snapped their premiership drought with grand final victory over Adelaide. Houli showcased his ball-winning ability last year, averaging almost 28 disposals a game. He has averaged 20 disposals or more in his past 11 seasons, underlining his consistency. Houli started his career at Essendon, where he played 26 games in four years.
4. SHANNON GRANT
The midfielder started his AFL career with three seasons in Sydney before producing a sparkling 11-year stint at North Melbourne. Grant played in a losing grand final side for the Swans against the Kangaroos in 1996 but he was on the right side of the result three years later as his second club triumphed over Carlton in decider, with Grant claiming the Norm Smith Medal for best afield. He also won North’s best-and-fairest in 2001 and was named in the All-Australian side in 2005. He finished with 301 games and 361 goals before coaching in the VFL and at local level.
3. DUSTIN FLETCHER
The man known as ‘Inspector Gadget’ was in his final year of high school when he featured in Essendon’s 1993 flag-winning side. Fletcher became a dual premiership player in 2000, claiming the best-and-fairest in the same year as the Bombers lost one game in one of the most dominant seasons in AFL history. He was also a two-time All-Australian (2000, 2007) but his enormous skill in the defensive 50 was complemented by remarkable longevity, with Fletcher playing 400 games across 23 seasons before retiring in 2015. Fletcher was opposed to some of the games greats in the formative stages of his career and made a habit of causing headaches for rival forwards. Only three players – Brent Harvey (432), Michael Tuck (426) and Kevin Bartlett (403) – have reached the 400-game milestone.
2. BRAD JOHNSON
‘The Smiling Assassin’ gave defenders nothing but nightmares during a decorated 17-year career at AFL level, notching 364 games and booting 558 goals. The Hoppers Crossing product left the Western Bulldogs in 2010 as a three-time best-and-fairest winner and six-time All-Australian (he was named captain in 2006). Johnson was the Dogs’ leading goalkicker on five occasions and was skipper of the club for four seasons from 2007-10. He was a superb overhead mark despite standing just 182cm and was good enough to kick 74 majors from 24 games in 2006, while he finished with 59 goals the following year and 50 in 2008. An undisputed superstar.
1. MATTHEW LLOYD
Lloyd was unstoppable in his prime, finishing his 270-game career with 926 goals – the eighth most in AFL history. He booted more than 100 goals twice (109 in 2000 and 105 in 2001) in a season in a stellar 15-year career. Lloyd claimed the Coleman Medal for the competition’s leading goalkicker three times and earnt five All-Australian nods (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2003) in six years at his peak. He was a member of Essendon’s 2000 premiership team, topped the Bombers’ goalkicking a staggering 12 times and captained his club for four seasons. Lloyd’s marking on the lead and overhead made life more than difficult for backmen, while his left foot was deadly accurate. He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
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