In warm conditions, the Crows finished off their pre-season in style with a commanding win over the Eagles. With the scoreboard blown out early, the sting was gone out from the game but there was still plenty of fantasy take aways.
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Reuben Ginbey
Played the predicted role of bouncing between half back and on ball and looked great doing it. He was seen everywhere and brought a physical game laying 5 tackles. Role and job security look strong, an easy cash cow to pick.
Elliot Yeo
Basically, swapped with Ginbey between half back and on ball and looked solid without setting the world on fire. Kicked a raking long range goal late in the game showing the strength is back in his legs. He didn’t have huge time on ground numbers, likely indicating the Eagles want him fresh and ready for round 1. Lock and load.
Liam Duggan
Played a very fantasy friendly game in the backline where there was lots of pill to be had. Took 12 marks and continued on from his high scoring finish to season 2022. Could be a nice point of difference if you’re confident the role is secure. There’s a heap of players tipped to spend time in the rebounding role, Yeo, Ginbey, Shuey, Hurn, Witherden. The ball will be down there a lot this season again for West Coast but that’s a lot of mouths to feed.
Dom Sheed
Similarly to Yeo, if you were considering him pre-match, then he did his job. He had a heap of centre bounce attendances and tried hard in a losing cause. The role is good and he’ll remain a popular mid-pricer.
Andrew Gaff
Nope. I thought he’d be an interesting watch considering how cheap he is and the Eagles need for some experienced heads. But he played on a wing and was rarely sighted.
Shannon Hurn
He just keeps on keeping on doesn’t he! Another huge game stat-wise as the Eagles backline was under assault for most of the game. 25 touches, 11 marks and 6 tackles. The guy’s a freak. Only pick him in Drafts though.
Campbell Chesser
Low time on ground but looked a likely type when he got his chance. He should be named for round 1 but will be a wait and see.
Alex Witherden
Was not used at all in the first half which was a surprise considering how strong a pre-season he has had. He racked up his 8 touches pretty quickly, joining in the backline’s attempts to control the footy. Hard to know where he fits in still.
Rory Laird
Performed like the Laird we saw explode last year and is likely to replicate it this year. 32 touches, 10 tackles and 2 goals. He’s worth the money.
Sam Berry
Was a constant figure in the centre bounce setup for the Crows and played a terrific game, even adding a couple of goals from midfield. Still remains to be seen if he can add enough to his average this year to justify picking in classic formats, but he’s a great get in drafts.
Ben Keays
Forward status looks very likely because even though Keays was used at times in the middle, he did most of his work forward of centre, including a handy 4 goals! It’s a stacked forward line in fantasy this year and Keays may complicate things later by adding to the options.
Become a Patron!Izak Rankine/Josh Rachele
I put these guys together because they played similar roles, rotating between a small forward role and running through the midfield. Rachele looked the better of the two on the night, and whilst there’s no interest just yet in a fantasy sense, Crows fan would be licking their lips.
Luke Pedlar
Excellent performance that has all but guaranteed a round 1 gig. He looked tough around the ball and found himself in some good spots. He won’t be a high fantasy scorer but will serve us well as an F7 or F8
Jordan Dawson
The newly appointed Adelaide skipper cruised around intercepting the ball and distributing with class. Set for another great season.
Matt Crouch
Similar to Witherden, was surprisingly not used until the last quarter despite having a strong pre-season. Collected 9 touches in just 15% game time which proves what we already knew, Crouch is a magnet when he plays. The unanswered question remains, though, does he play round 1?
Reilly O’Brien
Did what he was expected to do against such an inexperienced West Coast ruck division, but he looked great doing it. He did plenty around the ground, collecting 17 disposals and resting forward at times. Not a crazy pick at R2 this year but there are those worried about his place in the team. I don’t think that’s an issue at this stage, particularly early in the season.
Darcy Fogarty
The breakout continues as Fogarty picked up right where he left off last season in a dominant performance. Kicked 3 goals in the first quarter to effectively end the contest and finished with 4. Not a terrible late pick in drafts.
