Essendon Bombers AFL News

2010 AFL Season Preview - Western Bulldogs
By Allblack The Doggies werent too far off last year. They recruited the key forward they were craving in the off season to give themselves one last real shot at a flag before their aging players sign off. Their backline always looks undermanned and undersized. Lake is obviously quality and is their most important player. Should he go down for any reason at all you can put a line through the Dogs. Morris is undersized but still reliable. They have some young KP backs in Everitt and Williams but neither have shown enough at this stage to put a lot of faith in them. Runners from the backline have never been an issue for the Dogs, last year saw Harbrow start to come of age and Griffen finally looked like he may start to show why many rate him above Franklin as the best player of his draft although he generally belongs in the midfield. Hargraves was solid and Callan looks like a good find. Eagleton is important and probably playing his last year. Gibee saw a little more time upfield last season but he should still be around the half back line and there for kickins. He is a great user of the ball. The midfield is where the strength of the Doggies lays. Cooney gets better each year and with a trouble free preseason may really announce himself. Boyd last year stepped up and showed that he is one of the best inside/outside mids in the competition. Ward and Picken look like players as does Addison although he needs to work on his sloppy disposal. I think Higgins will move more into the middle last year and if he builds on a great year in 09 he will star. Daniel Cross is another without great footskills but again one of their real important players. Their midfield will also see rotations of the likes of Gia, Griffen and Hill to boost them when needed. It is an A grade midfield. Strangely they had the highest scoring forwardline of 09. What they did lack though was a player who could impose himself when the game started to slide. A big man to make an impact which they would hope they have now in Barry Hall. A lot relies on him. Small forwards like Gia and Hill whilst classy players arent made to be primary targets. Murphy needs and injury free year, Johnson showed last year the first signs of age catching up with him and seemed to have lost his explosive pace on the lead. One player who seems to defy age is Aker. He was outstanding last year. Hahn should find it easier this year with Hall taking the spot of first forward. So much rests on Hall staying of sound mind and body this year that you could mount an argument he is the most important player after Lake. The rucks are passable. Not in the top half dozen in the comp but enough to make a contest. Hudson is aging but quality and Minson makes a contest and may improve from not spending so much time up forward. They have a couple of good young kids in Roughead and Cordy who we may see a little more of this year. The coach is astute. He took the Doggies further than most expected last year and despite being known as a defensive coach he let the team off the leash and we saw some good scores from the team without too much sacriface of his defensive structures. I rate Eade prett highly, higher than some coaches still going around with premierships to their name. Footy can be a cruel sport like that. The doggies are in do or die mode. So many of their important players are in the last years of their careers that if they dont win one this year or possible next then it is too late. The Dogs have thrown their weight behind Hall as the answer and despite thinking earlier it may be enough I have changed my mind. He will make a difference if he stays on the paddock but not enough of a difference for mine. I think they will drop a little. Nothing frightening… yet.. 4-5 for mine. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

2010 AFL Season Preview - Collingwood
By Allblack So Collingwood. I have to take the blinders off and try and look at them honestly. They scare me though and the potential is there for a very good year. They had the second best performed defense in the AFL last year. This was on the back of Presti returning to career best form, the only question mark would be around his age but he is a little like Fletch in not really showing signs of dropping off. Maxwell has thrived with the captaincy and has already exceeded my expectations. They have solid young KP players in Brown and Goldsack as well as Toovey in a stretch. O’Brien solidified his reputation last year andseems to find a way to get the job done without infringing. I do think though that a tighter interpretation of holding the man rules could find him struggling a little. I think Shaw was found out a little last year when he was forced to play on a man but still a very good player off half back. The midfield has talent. Swan had his best year last year, I am not convinced the hype matches the output and not sure he does enough damage to teams but he finds the ball and distributes it well. Pendelbury is apparently training well (isnt everyone this time of year) and give the midfield a lot more class when he is up and running. Ball will be a handy addition this year and will be dangerous with a point to prove. Sidebottom and Beams announced themselves last year and would expect more from them this year. Sidebottom in particular has a lot more upside still to come. O’Bree and Johnson may struggle to break into the team this year as the young players start to stake their claim but both are still solid contributors. If O’Bree cant play regular football you know the Pies will be flying. Didak will be around the middle a lot again this year and he is a genuine match winner. The forward line is probably the main worry for the Pies but the talent is there as well. Medhurst had a poor year last year but is still a quality player. Leigh Brown for mine will probably struggle for a game this year. Travis Cloke would have been a massive disappointment last year but the potential is there and I would expect him to bounce back. Anthony had his best year but I think needs to be a second or third target rather than the first one which is why they need Cloke to find some touch. Dick showed glimpses last year but is fighting to get fit. Davis is under immense pressure after another disappointing finals series, he is 28 and needs to build his reputation come December. Lockyer was good last year around the forward line and see no reason he wont continue to perform. Dale Thomas needs to step up and realise the potential he has been sold on, his habit of going missing for large portions of games is going to wear thin eventually. They woudl love to have Rusling and Dawes running around and who knows, they may. The ruck stocks look good all of a sudden. After trying to find a ruckman over the past couple of years they now have options. Jolly is one of the best rucks in the league, Wood still has growth left as a player and Fraser who will probably play more as a forward is still there if needed. the coaching situation is a strange one with Mathouse serving his last couple before Buckley comes in. I think Mathouse needs a premiership now to solidify his reputation. He has been a long time without one. This year he enters his 16th season since he last win a big one. Not many coaches get that sort of opportunity. I am scared by Collingwood this year. If they can make the forward line work then the sky is the limit this year. They didnt miss by much last year and have added Jolly and Ball to the line up. No one wants to believe it but this could well be the year for Collingwood. Top 2 for mine. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

Calf injury sidelines Laycock
Bomber Jason Laycock will miss at least half of the NAB Cup as he recovers from a calf injury »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: AFL.com.au

Hille, Gumbleton shine in Bombers' hitout
David Hille and Scott Gumbleton made strong cases for inclusion in Essendon's round one side with good showings at Shepparton »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: AFL.com.au

2010 AFL Season Preview - Adelaide
By Allblack I like Adelaide this year. They remind me of Port a few years ago when they finally broke through and won their premiership. They have been around the mark but unable to close in the finals but I think their time is close. Their backline is reliable, the third best performed last year. Rutten is the general down back and gets his job done consistantly. They will miss Andy Otten last year who had a fantastic break through season. Bock will finally be building some confidence in his body and will be a better player for it. Mcleod is still one of the best distributors of the ball in AFL football. They have few more important players which is a worry with him being 33 and entering his last year or two. I think McKernan may see some time back there this year as well as Goodwin who will provide some good ball winning abaility around the half back line. I thought Symes was ok last year, I worry about Johncock and think his influence just seems to be waning. Stevens can play as a bit of a swingman but with the riches up forward will probably spend more time down back. Their midfield is class. It is probably under rated but there are some real players there. Van Berlo continues to improve. Vince had his best year last year and looked fantastic. Edwards has lost another yard of pace but is still effective. Thompson is a really solid ball winner and influences games consistantly. I think Doughty is a little under rated but again finds his share of the ball and gets the job done. Losing Shirley will create an opportunity for Sloane who only played one game but I thought he showed a lot, tackled like a machine and showed a real hunger. We will see more of him this year. Their forward lne really started to find its feet towards the end of last year. In no small part due to Tippett finally clicking how good he is. If he can reproduce that form consistantly then it could get scary. Porplyzia is such a strong forward it is hard to see him not following up lastyear with another 50 odd goals. Very handy player to have. Knights took to life as a forward well and is a great shot at goal. Expect he may even improve this year but 40 goals from the HF line is a pretty good outcome anyway. Dangerfield improved last year in his first real year of footy and he should spend some more time in the middle this year but he gives their forwardline and alternative target and a bit of a harder edge. He has Riccuitto about him. The wildcard for the forward line may be Hentschel who by all reports has had a good preseason and is a very good player if he gets his body right. Burton is a similar proposition and will be very handy if the body gets right. Walker is still young but showed a lot of promise last year. Their ruck department is probably underrated. Maric was solid last year. Tippett can get around the bounces when he is freed up. Moran was ok last year when he got on the park and after that they have Griffin who will be ok and Sellar who is more of a mobile option. The coach is probably missing finals success from his resume but he has kept the team at a pretty high level for his time in the job. Towards the end of last year he relaxed a little on the defensive side and showed a more attacking game plan. this is the key to their success. They already have a solid defence so if they can let the players off the leash a little and back in what looks like a very good forward line full of options then the sky is the limit. Whilst I say all the above it is hard to predict too high a climb up the ladder. There are a couple of teams you would think are immune from the drop so I would at this stage put Adelaide in the mix to finish between 3 and 5. They are a genuine premiership threat this year though. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

2010 AFL Season Preview - Brisbane
By Allblack So how to preview Brisbane. Voss either a genius or a madman for his trading and drafting at the end of the year. There is no doub they still believe the premiership window is well and truly open. Their backline for mine looks a little sparse. Merritt has been a very good performer for them, I think Mitch Clark may find himself back this year and they have recruited Maguire as backup. Small defenders are good. Drummond, Patfull and Adcock are very handy, you can add in Raines who the Lions chased. I am not sure he is good enough. Sheldon looked a player last year. They do look to lack a little depth back here and think this could be their undoing if they lose control through the midfield. The midfield mind you is strong. Lead by Black who seems to just keep getting better. Daniel Rich is only going to get better. Power is probably losing some of his effectiveness but still gets the job done. Sherman last year improved but needs to build on it again. I am not sold on Stiller who still has a lot of work to do. Johnstone is supposed to be the polish on the midfield but in my opinion whilst they were cleaning out they should have sent him off as well. Just doesnt work hard enough. I like the look of Proud if he can keep his head straight. Selwood is reliable to get his job done most weeks. Rischitelli is due for a big year and should build further on last season. The forward line is really interesting. You lose your second best forward but replace him with the best Full Forward in the competition. They will need time to learn each others game but the thought of Brown and Fevola in the same forward 50 will give most teams the cold shivers. You never know what Brennan will give you but with third best defender he should be dangerous this year Buchanon and Staker should give them a little more bite as well. I think we will see a little more of Rockliff this season as well. I rate him. McGrath could be at either end but suspect more forward this year. Thier rucks are as good as anyone in the league. Perhaps even the best ruck division if Charman can stay upright along with Luenberger and Clark if needed. The depth is the key there after last season when Clark was awesome. Voss is still a coach in learning and after a pretty good year last year, he has traded heavily and made the list his own. If it succeeds we may see a lot more clubs following the trend but for mine I am not sure they improved the list enough to justify all the movement and have sold their future for a short term chase of success. Brisbane has the list to improve slightly on last year. I dont think they can crack the top four but should be around the edge of it. 5th or 6th should do the job for them and they could be dangerous around September. Not a genuine premiership threat but you still wouldnt want to meet them without your best defensive unit up and running. Will be one of the more interesting teams to watch. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

2010 AFL Season Preview - Carlton
By Allblack It is hard to pretend this isnt the review I have been most looking forward to. Carlton has lost their most important player in a move they really had no choice about. The message sent to the list obviously hadnt got through during a preseason filled with misdemeanours. Where does this leave them? Their backline is not top 8 standard. Waite I would expect to play down back a fair bit this year but he will also be needed up forward as well. He is a very good player when fit. Thornton is hard to judge as he always went alright against us but he is still undersized and not coming off a stellar season. Jamison is held in high regard down at Carlton and should develop further this year. It gets pretty skinny after that. OhAilpin started to play up forward last year but suspect he will be sent back again and still is an average performer. They found a reasonable running backman last year in Armfield but his skills arent yet AFL standard. Carrazzo will play down back more and should see a bit of the ball along with Scotland who is on his last legs. They will be hoping for a full 22 games from Walker and that he finally has his body right. Houlihan plays the role off half back but there is always a question mark over his attack on the footy. Their midfield is good. Judd, Murphy and Gibbs are all class acts. Murphy and Gibbs should be better players again this year. Judd is still the best midfielder in the competition when his body lets him. The addition of Brock Mclean to do the grunt work wont hurt at all and should free Judd up a little. Joseph did well last year in the run with role and another year in the system will improve him. They dont have great depth in the midfield when you go down to the next rung being players like Grigg, Hadley and Simpson (who I understand some people rate highly but I am not really one of those). They will need Judd, Murphy, Gibbs and McLean to have relatively injury free years but then most teams drop away after their first three or four. They will miss Stevens even though he was dropped last year. The forward line is going to be a struggle. Losing Fevola who kicked 89 goals last year would hurt any team but seeing who they have to replace him has to be a worry. Henderson is a good kid but still young and not in the same postcode as Fevola in terms of talent. Betts is going to find it harder without a forward the quality of Fevola to crumb off. I think Kruezer will play more forward this season and will certainly help if he does but they dont have a good enough ruck department to send him forward permanently. Fisher gets another year after losing Fevola and Wiggins is still floating around with Russell after showing some reasonable touch in periods last year. They will expect Yarran to step up this year but we dont really know where his head is at. Garlett and Robinson are young and will be around the mark for depth. The ruck department has potential. Warnock looked a talented kid for Freo but playing second fiddle to Sandilands makes life a little easier. Kruezer is needed elsewhere but may find himself at first ruck for a lot of this year. Hampson is a plodder (I could be under rating him but he doesnt impress me) but at least provides depth. The coach is still a little bit of an unknown quantity. He doesnt seem to show great tactical nous and the behaviour we have seen in the offseason may ten to reflect he is too close to the playing group. They are not as simple to measure as some might imagine as they have the potential to be flat track bullies and beat the teams with weaker midfields pretty comfortably. The loss of Fev though is just too big for me and no longer allows them to cover up their deficiences elsewhere. I think they will drop out of the 8 and will sit somewhere around the 10-11 mark. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

2010 AFL Season Preview - Hawthorn
By Allblack Now to look at Hawthorn, a team who according to most last year underperformed and missed the eight after winning the premiership the year before. There has been a bit of player turnover and this year will be an interesting one to see if they have covered their gaps enough to climb the ladder and challenge again. Their backline is a big worry. The shortage of quality KP defenders lead them to trade aggressively and land Gibson from North. At 189cm he is not their answer but he is a good player. Gilham seems to be st6ruggling to get his body right and Croad has given up on his ever being right. Murphy is the Hawthorn equivilient of Henneman. They have Schoenmakers who looks like a good player in the making but still young and probably a couple of years away from a genuine impact. They have good running defenders though and like to set up from down back. Ellis, Guerra, Hodge and Birchall do this well. Brown will be interesting this year after being shopped around in the off season and hard to believe he could play KP again at his size. Their midfield is an interesting one. In their premiership year they played as well as a unit as any team I can remember. They hunted in packs and won the battle most weeks. Last year they played selfishly and makes me wonder if losing Crawford wasnt a much bigger loss than most expected. Still there is class there and the recruiting of Burgoyne is a good one. He will add that run and can get in and under if needed. His body is the only question mark. They developed some good younger players in Muston, Sheils and Moss. Osborne, Mitchell and Bateman were solid if a little down on previous years form. It was amazing to see Jordan Lewis being shopped around to Port as I think he is the most important player in the Hawks midfield along with Sewell. I think Rioli may play more mid roles this year after the recruitment of Hooper to play small forward. I think Tuck and Young still have improvement left which leaves them with a midfield that could only be described as quality as long as it performs to its abaility. The forward line never really worked last year. Every team in the 8 outscored them last year which is an indictment on a team that has Franklin, Roughead and Rioli amongst its talent. They seemed obsessed with playing Franklin up the field last year which was a luxury they couldnt afford. They tried Brown up forward which on occasion looked alright but he is not the answer. Dowler showed a little bit but he has only ever showed a little bit. Morton has promise but hasnt delivered. Hooper joining the team is an interesting one as it smacks a little bit of desperation. He is there to try and relieve the pressure on Rioli but I would think someone on their last chance who wouldnt even turn up regularly at training to a club who first threw him a lifeline probably isnt someone you want around your team. This team has enough ego already. The rucks are dire. Someone mentioned Port having the worst rucks in the league. I dont think Hawthorn are far away. Bailey is out again, doubtful he will ever be right. Taylor is not good enough to be a first ruck but he will be one again. Renouf has massive question marks both on output and attitude. Skipper was pulled in as back up but he struggled to get a game at the doggies who are crying out for talls. The coach is hard to read. He has provided the blueprint most clubs seem to follow now in list development, he has won a premiership but still goes largely unrated. He lost the plot in the final game of the year when he let emotion get the better of him. He needs them to bounce back this year and he is going to have to go deeper into his bag of tricks to make it happen. The Hawks should be a top 8 team and I think this year they can be back there. I have them finishing around the 6-7 mark which is probably not as high as they would like to go but for all the talent on their list they still have some pretty big holds. Mostly down back and in the ruck. It is going to be hard work at hawthorn this year. Click Here for the BomberBlitz.com Forum Thread »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: Bomber Blitz

Lloyd becomes AFL Life Member
Matthew Lloyd will join Ray Allsopp, Neil Balme and Laurie Dwyer as AFL Life Members at next month's annual general meeting »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: AFL.com.au

Dons rely on tall attack
MATTHEW Knights wants his big men to provide plenty of Essendon goals this year as he assembles his new-look forward line. »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: News.com.au

Bombers to unveil new attack
ESSENDON fans will see the Bombers' all-new forward set-up in action for the first time in the club's first practice match for the year next week. »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: News.com.au

Bombers' early call on forwards
Essendon coach Matthew Knights says the players who line up in attack against West Coast in the NAB Cup should have those roles for the season »
Added: 1 month ago, Source: AFL.com.au