By Andrew Wu and Andrew Stafford
In today’s AFL Briefing, your wrap of finals news:
- Swan Taylor Adams is in danger of enduring more pain in September, no guarantee to replace injured skipper Callum Mills.
- Hugh McCluggage says dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale, who has been managing a foot injury, would be able to cope with the complaint.
A repeat of bad luck for Adams?
Andrew Wu
Sydney’s jack of all trades and a first-season Swan stand in the way between Taylor Adams and a chance to realise his premiership dream.
After two years of finals heartache, Adams is in danger of enduring more pain in September, no guarantee to replace injured Swans skipper Callum Mills, who hurt his hamstring last week.
Caiden Cleary is a chance to earn a recall to the Swans team.Credit: Getty Images
Robbie Fox and Caiden Cleary are the two biggest threats to Adams returning to the Swans 23 while ruckman Peter Ladhams is considered an outside chance should Longmire’s match committee opt to throw a curveball at Port Adelaide.
Adams’ best hope of reviving this September campaign is if Longmire, who is not known for left-field plays at selection, decides to reshuffle the magnets to fill the void left by the hamstrung Mills at halfback.
One scenario likely to be considered at the selection table is moving either one of Jake Lloyd and Oliver Florent from the wing into defence, where both have excelled as attacking running backs.
Running machine Justin McInerney would then take one wing, leaving an opening in attack for Adams to play as a half-forward who can pinch-hit on the ball.
But that role is already filled by veteran Luke Parker, who is a more damaging forward than Adams. This move would also create disruption in every third of the ground.
Adams and Mills were both part of a Swans midfield which struggled late in the season. The Swans’ fortunes improved after both were relieved of their on-ball duties. In Adams’ last game in the final round against Adelaide, he failed to win a centre clearance from 12 attendances inside the centre square.
Former Magpie Adams missed Collingwood’s premiership last year due to a hamstring strain at training, and was ruled out the previous finals series after a serious soft-tissue injury in the qualifying final.
Cleary gives the Swans extra speed across half-forward, an area Geelong exposed Port in the qualifying final. A Swans academy graduate taken in the first round of last year’s draft, Cleary was unlucky to be the man to make way for Tom Papley after impressing late in the home and away season.
If Longmire decides a like-for-like replacement is the best option, then Fox shapes as the man most likely.
The 185-centimetre Fox can play multiple roles in defence and has proven he can stand up on the big stage of finals.
He was one of the Swans’ few winners in their grand final hammering two years ago when he held Geelong superstar Jeremy Cameron to two goals and 18 disposals while getting 26 possessions himself.
Capable of playing as a high half-forward, Fox’s versatility also makes him an attractive option as the substitute.
Braeden Campbell could not have done more for a promotion into the 22 after his game-changing performance against Greater Western Sydney starting in the vest, though he may also have played that role so well he becomes their specialist September super-sub.
Ladhams is the bolter. Despite playing his only game this year in the round 21 rout against his old club Port, the specialist ruck impressed in a scratch match last week, but it would be a major shock if he came in to support Brodie Grundy, who prefers to ruck solo.
No worries for Brownlow winner over foot, says McCluggage
Andrew Stafford
Brisbane Lions midfielder Hugh McCluggage said dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale, who has been managing a foot injury, would be able to cope with the complaint for the rest of the finals series.
Neale was in a moon boot after the Lions’ come-from-behind win against Greater Western Sydney on Saturday night, in which he was held to 19 disposals by Toby Bedford.
He had been more productive in the elimination final against Carlton, accumulating 27 touches and making nine clearances.
“Lach probably hasn’t been training too much on Tuesdays for seven, eight, nine weeks,” McCluggage said, ahead of a session at the Lions’ home base in Springfield on Tuesday.
“There’s a few different guys in that position as well. Every team will have niggles at this time of year. We expect Lachie to be able to push through what he’s got, like he has for the last couple of months.”
With Neale subdued, it was second-year gun Will Ashcroft who came to the fore and ended up leading the Lions’ charge home against the Giants.
Ashcroft was in just his 11th game back following a knee reconstruction, after tearing an ACL against Geelong in round 19 at the Gabba last year.
McCluggage said Ashcroft’s performance so soon after returning from a long layoff would be “remarkable for anyone but Will Ashcroft”.
“The work that he puts in, the work we see him do behind the scenes – he worked as hard as anyone during that time when he was in rehab,” he said.
“It’s not just the physical side of the game, it’s the mental side as well, in a final, when people can tighten up.
“As an older player you can probably be thinking a little bit about the result and what’s on the line, and he just played with freedom, you could see that.
“He’s so strong, he willed himself into the contest in the second half, and we’re pretty happy we’ve got him in our side.”
McCluggage would not be drawn on whether Ashcroft would play more minutes in the starting midfield, which usually includes himself, Neale and Josh Dunkley.
“Yeah, not necessarily. He’s only in his second year. He’s going to have an impact when we manage those minutes, and we’ve been getting him in there quite a bit,” he said.
“We’ll keep mixing up who we’ve got in there and he’s also had an impact for us forward … I think we’ve had a good mix of players running through there throughout the year.”
But McCluggage said Ashcroft was trusted by the senior players when sent to work inside the contest.
“It’s probably built off the back of the defensive stuff and the contest stuff as well; it’s not necessarily the amount of touches he’s been having.
“I think the week before against Carlton he played a really impactful game as well. He might have had 20 touches but probably half of them led to a score, and the rest were really clean.”
Brisbane were chasing the Giants’ tails for most of the night against the Giants, and McCluggage said the Lions were focused on the first quarter against Geelong.
“It’s probably no different to every final. We try to go out there and put the heat on early and pressure well, and test out the opposition.
“We’ve had a real emphasis on first quarters, and we’re going to do the same thing, but I’m sure the Cats will be ready for the fight early on.“
But McCluggage said his team was emboldened after coming from 44 points down against the Giants – the equal-second-biggest comeback in a final alongside Carlton’s legendary 1970 grand final win over Collingwood. Geelong came from 47 points down to beat Carlton in the 1931 preliminary final.
“I’m still trying to get my head around it. It’s not every day that you have a comeback like that, and especially in a final,” he said.
“We probably didn’t play our game style for the majority of the game. We were playing a bit of turnover footy; it was up and back, but we were able to get the job done.
“When you come back from 40-odd points down you know you can score quickly and that you can win from anywhere, so we’ll carry that through the finals.”
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