Can Dustin Martin repeat his 2017 heroics, can Collingwood improve and will Jake Stringer rebound
WE thought 2016 would be hard to top but 2017 hit it out of the park. Can 2018 one up it again? Jay Clark looks at the big storylines awaiting us in the new year.
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WE thought 2016 would be hard to top but 2017 hit it out of the park.
Can 2018 one up it again?
KNOWLEDGE: THE 2017 FOOTY QUIZ
BIG YEAR: YOUR CLUB’S NEW YEAR RESOLUTION
IN REVIEW: SCANDALS, HISTORY AND HEART-WARMERS
2017’S BEST: WEIRD STORIES YOU MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN
The Herald Sun’s Jay Clark looks at some of the big storylines awaiting us in the new year.
From Dustin Martin’s follow-up and Gary Ablett’s homecoming to Collingwood’s development and Jake Stringer’s redemption.
THE 11 BIGGEST STORIES OF 2018
DUSTIN MARTIN
He is now the biggest ticket item in the game after pulling off what Leigh Matthews described as the best individual season in the game’s history. The man was simply unstoppable. And he got paid for it, too.
So how much fire is there still in the belly? And how will the opposition try and handcuff him? We’ll expect him to tear apart Carlton in Round 1 but the second instalment against Adelaide away will give us a greater indication into Dusty’s intentions of 2018. Every move will be examined.
GARY ABLETT
It’s the homecoming which has been in the making for the past two years and Ablett’s return to the Cattery will give Chris Scott a supreme midfield unit in 2018. Dangerfield to Ablett. Selwood to Dangerfield. All three combining in the same play.
Cats fans will get giddy watching these three toy with their opposition, especially when Ablett plays his first Friday night game in seven years in Round 7 against Greater Western Sydney. If Dangerfield plays more forward, and Ablett puts plenty of balls lace-out out on his chest, Danger is going to kick a career-best goal haul this year.
TOM LYNCH & RORY SLOANE
You thought the queue for the family’s annual Santa photos was long. Every Victorian club is currently doing their homework on the likely availability of gun free agents Lynch and Sloane at the end of the season. Collingwood, Richmond, Hawthorn, Geelong and Melbourne, in particular.
At the moment, the best information suggests both stars are taking a wait-and-see approach. Lynch wants to play finals, which may or may not happen anytime soon at the Suns, and Sloane has family considerations at the front of the decision to come back to Victoria or not. Adelaide was largely unfazed by the clutch of star players which have left the club in recent years but Sloane’s situation is surely another huge headache if he is seriously considering moving elsewhere in 2019.
DAMIEN HARDWICK
Hardwick deserves a bumper contract extension and he’s going to get it early in the year. “Mrs Hardwick will be happy”, you can imagine him saying at the press conference to announce a three-year, million-dollar-a-season deal, or something in the vicinity.
We take our hats off to a man who has shown incredible resilience and preparedness to change after a rough 2016. But can he reinvent the Tigers this season, Alastair Clarkson-style? ‘Dimma’ knows they have to stay ahead of the pack. Essendon’s John Worsfold is also poised to sign a new deal.
COLLINGWOOD
A familiar spotlight will descend on Olympic Park, again. After four years outside of the eight, and a searing examination of the football department, the Pies have made some key changes to give Nathan Buckley every chance to succeed as senior coach.
There’s some fresh blood in the coaching box, Darcy Moore is on the move to centre half-back, the balls have come out super early in pre-season training and Daniel Wells has spent the off-season on the treadmill. There was a key change in the fitness department. But can that gold-plated midfield fill its potential? Not yet, it hasn’t.
JAKE STRINGER
The Bulldogs have gone all-in on this one. And there will be plenty of angst west of Melbourne if the All-Australian and premiership forward fires early at his new club after getting the boot from the Bulldogs. The Bombers are delighted with his first few months at the club. He’s dropped about 4kg, been open about some of his mistakes and is ready to earn respect from his new crew.
It’s an exciting time to be a Bomber fan. Their trade period haul, adding Adam Saad and Devon Smith, was designed to help catapult them into the top-four. And is Joe Daniher ready to take over the mantle from Buddy as the game’s most exciting and athletic key forward.
WESTERN BULLDOGS
We can handle one year out of the finals. Last season was a bit of a hiccup. But things will quickly get more intense at the kennel if the 2016 premier fails for the second-straight season.
Of course, we are backing Luke Beveridge and Marcus Bontempelli to steer the Dogs back up towards the top-eight where they belong, so we can watch this gun young outfit somewhere near its peak. The manic tackle pressure, swift handball game, defensive intercepting and more importantly, the overall hunger, has to return. We are looking at you Tommy Liberatore.
POWER SHOPPING SPREE
We loved what Port Adelaide did in the trade period, topping up the squad with Tom Rockliff, Jack Watts and Steve Motlop. It was a bold move designed to give the club a genuine crack at winning its second flag.
But this blockbuster movie can’t flop. They have all the weapons and Charlie Dixon, Robbie Gray and Chad Wingard should hammer the scoreboard in 2018. Every chance to start the season strong, too.
CHARLIE CURNOW
Probably the most-hyped young player in the game heading into his third season. He went pick No.12 in the 2015 draft, but in hindsight, he’s looking like a top-three talent. The versatile half-forward has become the face of the Carlton rebuild after last year showing that he has quality marking power, mobility and creativity. These are tools to become a serious midfield-forward weapon.
If he builds a bigger tank, he can be anything, as the Blues look to climb up the ladder with a turned-over list. Carlton says it’s time now to settle the list so all these young kids can build some consistency and chemistry. They will be more stable from here after making massive change.
SMALL FORWARDS
Richmond paved the way last season with the manic small forward pressure. We thought the lack of a second key forward would hurt them in September, but how wrong we were. The mobile, mid-sized goal kicking options such as Josh Caddy and Dustin Martin combined with the speed of Daniel Rioli, Dan Butler and Jason Castagna, plus Jacob Townsend provided more than enough firepower.
Now we will watch rivals potentially try and do something similar to give their attacking setups more of a dynamic edge. Tackles inside forward 50m are an absolute priority.
HAWTHORN’S CUTS
Are Clarko’s men coming or going? The jury is split, it seems. They struggled early last year but regained their mojo and even briefly re-entered the finals mix. They will get back Jaeger O’Meara, Cyril Rioli, James Frawley and Grant Birchall from injury and Jarryd Roughead will have shaken off some rust after taking time out of the game to recover from a cancer scare.
We know they want to have a decent crack at this year’s draft, and will prefer an early pick or two, and would also like to snare Tom Lynch from Gold Coast. In a nutshell, they will be active again at the end of the year. And there will be more retirements, too. Paul Puopolo is probably in his last season at Waverley.
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