Did anyone else notice chappy testing out his groin after kicking a goal on fridya night? I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere but it appeared to have all the hallmarks of the dreaded OP to me. His scoring has been down since the week I got him in (v the kangaroos) - in that match he spent significant time on the bench once the cats had put the result beyond doubt ( second quarter). Coming up against the suns this week I have conerns he'll be either rested or eased through the match with limited tog/ early sub out. Is this just me being paranoid in the wake of the sandilands injury and swan rumours?
First 4 games - 24.75 disposals a game, 115.5 SC points per game Last 3 games - 22 disposals a game, 89 SC points a game Stats say he's been down, but I think also you need to take into account the opposition and the venues. Didn't have to do a lot against North in Rd 7, had Collingwood in Round 8 and traditionally doesn't play well against Carlton (Round 9). I would've expected him to be down across these three rounds. Earlier games saw him play Hawthorn - who he traditionally plays well against, Freo and Sydney on a hard tough night perfectly suited to his style of play. His game against Port was a downer, but he didn't really need to do much as they were that far ahead. Not sure if you can read a whole heap into the groin rubbing. Something to note, but to directly relate it to a downturn in scoring is probably ignoring a few other factors that could've contributed as well.
Certainly making me think Steve Johnson is a more reliable option this year. And that in light of previous seasons is saying something.
I guess for those who don't have him this may be a watch and see week. I certainly won't be giving him the "C". But I'd love him to show me up and smash out a 150. But my guess is his TOG will be down this week after the cats are 10 goals up at quarter time.
It was mentioned somewhere that the cats had their choice of 3 niggles to rest him with- bloody Chapster!