Who tops Mick McGuane’s list of the league’s 10 most watchable AFL players right now?
The high-flyers and explosive goalkickers are hard to miss but it’s the football mind of a Geelong defender that captivates Mick McGuane. See his top 10 most-watchable.
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It’s a tantalising task to try and pick my 10 most watchable AFL players out of more than 700 players.
Champions such as Dustin Martin, Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood, Buddy Franklin, Nat Fyfe and Tom Hawkins almost pick themselves on past and present deeds.
The next wave of Marcus Bontempelli, Christian Petracca, Sam Walsh and Ollie Wines have taken their games to a new level.
They are eminently watchable players and it would have been easy to just choose them.
But for this exercise in picking the 10 players that currently keep me transfixed — whether it is at home on the couch or dragging me to a neutral game when crowds are allowed — I went a little left-field.
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The essence of being watchable comes down to some key indicators — good decision making; kicking ability; composure; mental toughness; X-factor qualities; the capacity to focus on your strengths, not your deficiencies; a sense of confidence; and a versatility/adaptability that others don’t have.
I love watching players who don’t let what they can’t do interfere with what they can.
Leaving aside the champions of the game such as Dusty (the most watchable player across the past four seasons) and Buddy (so watchable across a decade and a half), I wanted to highlight some of the lesser names; the emerging talents that are so watchable right now.
It’s subjective, of course, but for a variety of reasons, I can’t take my eyes off these 10 guys during games.
1. Toby Greene (GWS)
If we are talking about the entertainment industry, this bloke is a box office smash hit. He is aggressive and plays his best on the edge; he is unpredictable, instinctive, and has exceptional skills in the air or at ground level.
He has a rare ability of kicking goals when it matters most.
Almost every time he touches the ball something happens, hence the reason why he has the most scoring involvements for GWS in 2021.
Toby isn’t a key forward, but plays like he is, despite his size. He has had 70 shots at goal (35.32) this year and can sometimes win a game off his own boot, which he has done for the Giants time and again.
The amount of negativity surrounding Toby early in his career seemed like water off a duck’s back to him. That highlights his mental toughness.
I love watching Nick Haynes at the Giants, too, but Toby’s the man.
2. Liam Ryan (West Coast)
How can you not gravitate to the TV when this bloke is in full flight!
He’s a star, and the Eagles will miss their excitement machine for the next few weeks after a hamstring injury.
There is always a sense of anticipation when the ball enters the West Coast forward line. You are never too sure if Ryan will jump on someone’s head or soar over a pack, or lead with precise timing to get separation from his opponent to provide an option for a teammate.
He can extricate himself from precarious situations and would-be tacklers almost in an instant.
This bloke could lose people in a phone box.
He plays with a free spirit, yet still has the skill and composure to slot through important goals.
His ability to prey on unsuspecting rebounding defenders as he pounces on them from nowhere is admirable.
3. Max King (St Kilda)
Key forwards take more time to develop than other players, but King’s six-goal haul against West Coast last week might prove the circuit breaker needed to fulfil his promise.
His journey was always going to take some patience, but he can be breathtaking to watch at times.
With Max, you get a mixed bag. He has great athleticism, an incredible leap, inconsistency and inaccuracy and at times frustration that comes with young players.
But he has just turned 21 and is only 35 games into an AFL career, so we can expect to see him displaying that wow factor for a long time into the future. He is a matchwinner! He just needs to believe he is.
4. Tom Stewart
You may ask why would I gravitate to a defender? It’s easy. Tom Stewart is so much more than that. He has a creative midfielder’s mind.
Stewart’s ability to read the play and intercept is arguably the best in the competition. Not only does he stifle teams in scoring, he is also the architect of setting up the Cats’ offence.
His ball use is elite, he is beautifully balanced and rarely goes to ground. His courage can be never questioned.
His form rarely fluctuates and nothing seems to faze him.
It is almost like he has a sixth sense and is always focused on his strengths — aerial supremacy, kicking, and decision-making.
To go from a player at South Barwon to an elite AFL footballer in five seasons is remarkable.
He can play as a high defender yet can still be trusted to play out of the goalsquare on the opposition’s best player. Gee, he is good to watch.
5. Shai Bolton (Richmond)
His evolution from a VFL player in and out of the AFL team to one of the most sought-after players in the game has been something to watch.
Richmond must make re-signing Bolton its priority now as he would be an asset to any AFL rival.
Only elite players can play two roles in a side and you don’t know which is their primary role.
Bolton can go forward and dominate. He can also play in the midfield and change the fortunes of a game.
Just watch him at stoppages!
When it goes into a loose ball situation that he can’t influence, he watches and observes so that he can become an attacking option or a defensive one, depending on who wins the ball.
In doing that, he puts himself into a position of power, which is invaluable for his team.
If opposition players ball watch and lose sight of him, it is at their own peril. If Richmond wins the ball, he has that capacity to run and carry, to penetrate and to kick goals on the run.
6. Isaac Heeney (Sydney)
I love watching players who have gears because time stands still around them, as it did for Greg Williams and David Rhys-Jones.
At times it looks like Heeney is floating around in neutral, but he can go from first gear to top gear in an instant, which leaves opposition players in his wake in an instant.
He possess great courage. Going for his marks is an asset.
Heeney’s mark last week wasn’t a one off. He has been doing that for years. He is a great contested mark, is a one-on-one beast who is rarely beaten and while there has been some criticism of his consistency, his flashes of brilliance cannot be questioned.
He is capable of kicking a steadying goal when required and he can be a matchwinner for his team at a time when they need him.
He is 25 and is entering the prime of his footy life.
7. Jordan De Goey (Collingwood)
You never know what you are going to get from the unpredictable De Goey.
He is frustrating to some, exhilarating for others. He can be unfit in the eyes of some and others are screaming for him to be given more midfield time.
At times, he has even had comparisons to the almost incomparable Peter Daicos for his sheer matchwinning abilities. Who could forget De Goey’s five-goal haul against Geelong in Perth last year that lifted the Pies to victory? Just 12 hours after that, he was undergoing finger surgery which sidelined him for a period.
He is compelling viewing.
Almost the first question I ask at the start of a Collingwood game is ‘Where’s Jordy?’ Is he going to start in the midfield or is he going to start forward?
He almost has a swagger, but there is a difference between confidence and arrogance for me. He is not arrogant, he just has an inner confidence in his own ability.
I just want to see him translate his attributes into more of a consistent performance which I know he can do.
If I was the Pies, I would be making his signature a priority. I’d be offering him a four-year deal because match winners don’t just fall out of trees. It’s the same with Darcy Moore.
8. Tarryn Thomas (North Melbourne)
Before you think I am mad, sit back and observe Thomas’ personal growth this year.
He has gone from a player many perceived as a forward only to a starting midfielder which has been impressive.
The No. 8 draft pick from 2018 can become an elite player of the competition. It is no coincidence that North Melbourne’s rapid improvement in the second half of the season has come off the back of their young players stepping up a gear or two.
His increased fitness levels and his sense of belonging have helped and he has grasped the midfield opportunities presented to him.
He oozes class, composure, elite kicking, but also has a toughness about him.
Look at the sidestep he took around Jeremy McGovern recently when he bamboozled the Eagles defender and then hit up a target.
Can’t wait to see where he can go from here.
9. Kysaiah Pickett (Melbourne)
The young Demon’s inexperience meant he was always likely to hit a few peaks and troughs in performance.
He is going through one of those slumps at the moment.
At his best, he provides great energy and intent, forward 50 pressure and goalscoring nous. But he now needs to overcome the inconsistency that has frustrated Demons fans in recent months.
Can he do it? Yes. Will he? We hope so, because it will be fun to watch.
Melbourne needs him to get back to that frenzied pressure and that X-factor style he had earlier in the season.
Just think about the crowd response earlier in the year when Pickett went anywhere near the ball. There was A buzz that lit up the stadiums and fired up his teammates.
If the Demons want to break a 57-year flag drought, they need Kozzie back to his best.
10. Cody Weightman (Western Bulldogs)
Good coaches let players play to their strengths, and that’s what Luke Beveridge does with Weightman.
Bevo just lets him play, and it is working for the Bulldogs.
The 20-year-old has only played 13 games — 10 this year — but he has quickly established himself as a cog in the Bulldogs’ machine.
He is a footballer in the true sense of the word. He plays on instinct.
He has kicked 17.9 this season, he is a good ball handler and crumber, he has an uncanny goal sense, but he can also take a big mark overhead. Just ask Max Gawn about that!
The other attribute about Cody is the fact he is always in the contest and stays in the game when others don’t. He is a great rundown tackler, because his mind is always ahead of the game as he runs down poor awareness defenders.
He does not need a lot of the ball to make an impact. He can have 10 disposals and kick a few goals and really impact the game.
I love watching him play … if you follow him, you know something is going to happen.
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