Its everyones lucky day today with the West Coast review. Why you ask, well the simple answer is because I have 2 different reviews from 2 different people. Which if i must say is brilliant because it gives us 2 different views on the West Coast season. Considering their remarkable turn around this year, from wooden spooners to top 4 it makes for interesting reading. The first review is done by JPK & the 2nd one by silacious. So get yourself a cuppa and get comfy and join us over the break for both the reviews.

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I’ve been asked if I can do the West Coast Eagles 2011 season review, so I thought I’d give it a crack and we’ll see how it works out.  I should clarify that I’ve been living in the footy-blackspot that is South America all year, so I basically haven’t seen any footage of the footy, nor attended any games, training, or anything else footy related (unless the round ball counts???). This however does mean that I have been rather focused on the names and the stats, more than on the heart.  So, here we go:

Its fair to say that the Eagles were the surprise packet of the AFL this season, going from 2010’s wooden spooners to the top four and a genuine, although outside, shot at the cup.  I’m actually writing this after the loss to the Pies, which while sad was probably expected, but at least the boys showed enough heart to fight the entire game and not get blown away by the toughness of finals footy or the dominance of the Pies players.  Actually, the AFL website has a great line with a small quote from Mick Malthouse, simply saying that the win was “one of the "gutsiest" in his time at the club”.  Clearly Mick thought the Eagles boys came to play!  The big thing is that to most Eagles fans, this season did not come as a huge surprise – we were rather decimated by injuries last year (not in the same way as the 2011 Dockers, but still), and we didn’t quite have the list going that we needed. Woosha stuck to his guns though, even with all the noise around that it was time for him to go, and finally got the support of the board to follow through with his rapid rebuild plan after the exodus following our 2007 season.  Woosha’s plan was a simple one, get some game time and match experience into as many players as will be required over the next 5 years, and get the core group used to each-other.  He also followed the course of our qualifying finals conquerors, in building a team who can manage a killer forward press.  Clearly it all worked, as the 2011 Eagles outfit came together, knew the game plan and the playing styles of their teammates, and now we’re back where we belong at the top of the table. So, how did we get there?

THE GOOD

Dean Cox – The competitions only elite ruckman!  There isn’t much more to say.  A fit Coxy is an integral part to our side.  Even with the continued emergence of NicNat, Cox is the number one ruckman, and while he was helped out by the inflated points scoring of rucks this year, every other ruckman had the same benefit, but it was only Big Cox who managed to maintain an average north of 120ppg.  I do however feel that Coxy won’t be the same man next year.  He’s getting older and slower, and more injury prone.  Naitanui is becoming a much better ruckman, and will shoulder more of the burden next year, so Cox will probably fall away from his elite status, but will still play every game (barring injury) and still be good for 100ppg, but is he worth it at greater than $600k? Probably not.

Matt Priddis – While Priddis has been a premium for the last couple of years, this was the year that he showed he can be a first-choice selection, and not just a back-up.  Finishing the year with a 114 average, and with only three games below 100 points (the lowest being 92) he also showed that he has the consistency to keep churning out the points you want and expect from a premium midfielder.  While some of his points were earned munching on Kerr’s portion of the pie, having Kerr back, and players like Gaff and Shuey stepping up to support him in the mids, I tip that Priddis will be able to maintain his scoring output next year.  This will likely improve if he ever bothers to kick the thing, rather than handballing at every opportunity, as he’s currently got one of the worst kick to handball ratios in the league.  He will be expensive, but the superstars always are.

Luke Shuey – I’m fully expecting to get a few people argue with me here, but I honestly think that for a second year player who cost $320k at the start of the year, to go on and average 94ppg is a great effort and a great return on investment.  While he was a little up and down during the year (low of 59, high of 154), he did play every game.  As the team continues to improve, Shuey’s scoring will probably rise towards the premium range, and with some consistency coming into his game, along with playing every game, you’d be hard pressed to find a better 3rd year player for this price, with this potential.

Jack Darling – A great rookie pick this year, he was a perfect cash cow from day one until he hit his peak around rounds 8-10.  He fell away during the second half of the year, but then came back for a couple of games at the end.  Was a great F8 who saved a few peoples skins during the season, and with some more experience next year, should see an improvement in both his output and consistency.  Worth a look next year, but probably in that average price range where he’ll be wasted cash if he doesn’t improve, but a great bargain if he can.

Andrew Gaff – This years supersub for the Eagles, spending more time in the green jacket than on the   field, but when he finally got his chance he went and got the footy himself, then used it very well!  Averaged 63ppg for the season, but did the job when he was on the park.  Given that next year he should be playing full games, starting in the midfield, he’ll become a point-scoring machine, and a definite value pick at around $300-350k – which will probably be too good for a true GNR strategy to refuse!

THE BAD &amp; THE UGLY

While it is tempting to put Daniel Kerr in this list, I’m going to avoid that, as we all knew he was coming into the season with a big injury cloud, and unless you closely followed the Eagles, most people would have expected the team to do rather poorly, thus would have expected his relatively poor season.  Having said that, there are others who do deserve to be labelled as bad this season:

Shannon Hurn – With the lack of quality defenders found out over the course of the year, this was really Hurns chance to shine, he however continued his steady decline from the cusp of premium territory in 2009.  While not shockingly bad, ruin the team, Heath Shaw problematic, he still would have caused his owners a fair amount of heartache throughout the season.  Playing every game was the best thing you can say about Hurn, as his topsy-turvy season saw him lose nearly $100k, only to make it all back again and then some, to then lose all of that again and finish the year nearly $100k down and with an average of just 82.  While up and down seasons are expected from defenders, you could have achieved this consistency and a better average from a Stefan Martin or a Matt Suckling this year, and saved $200-300k in the process.

Adam Selwood – After spending a few seasons learning the ropes, and building himself up, with a pretty slow but steady rise in the average and in the consistency over the last five years, big things would have been expected of this particular Selwood this year.  Coming off an injury interrupted 2010, where the team performed miserably, he pulled out a very good 91 average.  The improved team performance should have seen Adam Selwood join his Geelong brother in the premiums, especially seeing as he played each game, and there was no Daniel Kerr most of the year, and a poor Andrew Embley to boot.  Unfortunately, Selwood did the opposite, and decided to ungraciously lose nearly $200k and 30ppg over the course of the season, finishing on $260k and a 64 average!

Andrew Embley – After being a regular premium up to 2005, and then a consistent 80-100ppg over the subsequent 5 years (aside from an injury-affected 2007), no-one really would have known where to class Embers.  He had the consistency to play nearly every game each season aside from 2007, which stood him in good stead.  He then became one of the big surprise packets at the start of this season, pumping out 5 consecutive tons to see himself up near the top of the points tables.  Unfortunately, old-man inconsistent Embley returned to the fold, and while there were six more tons for the season, a litter of 70’s ruined it for his owners, and his 96 average for the season flatters his effectiveness. He now looks too old to ever get back to premium status, and will likely be overtaken by the Shueys and Gaffs in the Eagles midfield.

Bradd Dalziell – He had a great first couple of years with Brissie, and came to Perth with high hopes, but is yet to deliver.  This year was an absolute shocker for someone who was touted as much as Dalziell, with just the one game netting 16 points!  Since I don’t get the chance to go to games or training I’m not sure if there is a real good reason for this, or if he’s just been passed over in favour of the incoming rookies.  I’d recommend staying well away from Dalziell, and if you find someone in your leagues considering him, do them a favour and tell them not to!

AN EYE TO NEXT SEASON

BACKS – Personally, I’d be staying away from Eagles backmen.  They do a fine job on the footy field, and a lot of them are great players, but they’re just not the right pick to score you points in Supercoach.  If somehow there is a change to the stats and scoring criteria for backs next year, that involves completely shutting down an opposition forward, but not actually touching the ball yourself, then by all means, load up on Eagles backs, such as Darren Glass and Mark Nicoski, but until this time, stay well away.

If Hurn gets himself a bit more consistency, he may be an ok mid-pricer, and if Waters can stay away from injury and suspension then his run out of the backline may be a valuable point scorer, but these ifs are too big a risk without some history to back it up.

MIDS – As a premium midfielder that might not be the first choice selection of most SC’s, you can’t go past Priddis.  If he gets his kick ratio up, and gets a little more support from the young midfielders around him, he’ll be an elite next year.  Definitely should be on your radars.

A couple of fallen stars in the way of Kerr and Embley might be worth a look in if the price is right, but only if you’re on a mid-pricer strategy.  Embers will probably be overpriced for what you should expect to get out of him, but no risk no reward.  Meanwhile a fit and firing Kerr, playing every game, will be very close to premium status next year, especially if the team continues its strong run (as I would expect over the next 3-5 years).  Both selections contain a fair amount of risk, but they’ve proven in the past that they can deliver, its just a matter of whether they can return to that form.

Younger players such as Luke Shuey and Andrew Gaff should definitely be on your radars.  Shuey may be a little overpriced, but his second year in the game was clearly a good one (season average of 95ppg), so if he continues to improve then his third year could very-well be the commencement of a stint as an elite midfielder.  Gaff on the other hand has averaged 63ppg this year, in his first year, with many of them sub-effected, so if he can play full games next year he will be a star.  He’s had a very high disposal count for his time on the ground, and goes in and gets his own ball (in the mould of Kerr), so those hard-ball gets statistics will help to boost his effectiveness and point scoring ability.

RUCKS – As stated, Dean Cox is clearly the best Supercoach ruckman running around, and has been consistently for many years now.  The question marks will start to be raised over his susceptibility to injury, and his ability to maintain full-time rucking with a 30yo body and a younger, more energetic NicNat chomping at the bit.  He’ll be very expensive next year, and may struggle to maintain his elite status.  You can definitely do worse than selecting Cox at R1, but it may just be that you can survive the season without him in your teams next year.

One of the many reasons for this is the continued emergence of Naitanui.  As he further develops his understanding of the game, and where to position himself, he’s going to be the new number 1 ruck at the Eagles, and quite possibly in the competition.  His ability to out-leap his opponents and palm the ball off to advantage more often than not is worth a lot of points to your side.  Couple this with his ability to win his own centre square clearance, run on and kick to a leading forward, or even kick the goal himself, is the stuff that SuperCoach dreams are made of!  Just imaging the dying seconds of a game – there’s a centre square bounce and the Eagles are down by less than a goal.  NicNat leaps head, shoulders, and waist above his opponent, grabs the ball out of the air, and clears the arms of the opposition taggers.  He spins out of trouble, and takes a running bounce towards the 50m arc, then loads up with a huge drop punt that goes sailing through the goals just as the siren sounds! Not only do my Mighty Eagles win the game, but your Supercoach side just got a HUGE points boost!

FORWARDS – The Eagles are full of mid-priced forward options that will definitely compliment your team.  There is the ever-developing Josh Kennedy (who is clearly better than that hack we traded him for!) who next year should be given a licence to just kick for goal whenever he’s even close, and should be able to score some hefty points just off of pure goal scoring.

Mark LeCras may be fortunate to be given MPP status (mid-fwd) next year, which may make him an even more valuable pickup, and making a good floating player between F6/7/8 and M6/7 as required.  His pricing may be awkward though, as there should be an abundance of $450-500k MPP’s next year.  If he’s a pure forward, then he may make a good POD, as there are plenty of fallen premiums that people will take some risks on next year, and I’d hazard to guess that with some good inside 50 delivery to Lecca on the lead, and from Lecca to a leading forward, he should be a consistent performer.

Most other forwards should be avoided, as they’ll either be over-priced for what you’ll likely get out of them (Darling, unless he kicks a ton; Q-Stick, unless he kicks them from the centre square), or just be too average that a GNR strategy shouldn’t consider them.

SUMMARY

So at the end of all of that, who should you pick?  Well, that all depends on your strategy and risk profile, but there is an Eagles player for every taste!  If you’re going with a mid-pricers strategy, then maybe look at Hurn down back, Shuey in the mids, and LeCras or Darling up forward.  If you’re going a GNR strategy then Priddis and Cox or NicNat should be close-to locks in your team.

If you’re looking at high risk players, then a Gaff or a Kerr will be well up your alley, as will NicNat as a starting ruck.  A low risk profile should look towards a Priddis for a close-to guaranteed ton each week, and either of the Eagles rucks to keep the points ticking over.

The five Eagles players that everyone should be looking at are: Dean Cox, Nic Naitanui, Matt Priddis, Andrew Gaff, and Luke Shuey.

And now its over to Silacious

On a personal note has been a great year for my side coming from wooden spooners to Top 4, has seen a lot of improvement across the board from a lot of players. Not sure if we can beat Collingwood, Geelong and Hawks. But you never know there are no certainties in life. I have seen a lot of improvement from a lot of players but it hasn’t really translated into SuperCoach gold. The big star of the year for West Coast is Dean Cox reminding the world of his class.

The Good

Dean Cox has had an enormous year averaging 122 SuperCoach points per game also averaging 18 disposals. He had a massive Season high 213 Sc points against the bullies taking two game saving marks. He has also benefitted from the inflated Champion Data scores for Ruckman. Huge season as we all though his best days were over been a good reason why the eagles have risen up the ladder. A soda for Best and Fairest this year.

Matt Priddis has had a fantastic year averaging 115 SuperCoach points per game and averaging 27 disposals. Been ultra consistent this year only scored under 100 points in 3 games this year. Gets in and under packs to dish the ball out. Just wish he’d kick the ball a bit more then he could score bigger like Sam Mitchell. Was a genuine good POD this year.

Daniel kerr has rediscovered his mojo in 2011 coming off his bad hamstring tear last year he has averaged 90 SuperCoach points and 24 disposals across 15 games. His clearance work with Nic Nat has been great he has returned to his bullocking best

Andrew Embley had a cracker 2011 season played all 22 games for the season Averaging 95 SuperCoach points a game with 22 Disposals. He has cranked out some decent scores and some real average scores also. Started the season off with a flyer but being 30+ sort of tailed off during the season also.

The Bad

It’s pretty hard to find any bad finished 4th on the ladder, been a lot of improvement from many payers. Only one glaring Bad

Shannon Hurn he has played all 22 games this season averaging 83 SuperCoach points a game and 18 disposals, but there has been too many sub 100 point scores, only passing the 100 mark in 5 games this year. Tthis year due to copping a forward tag like all running defenders. This has burnt a lot of SCers this year picking him as one of their POD’s

Chris Masten he has only played 10 games this year which were way beyond sub par, has come on as sub in a lot of games haven’t helped his scoring. Has Averaged 57 SuperCoach points a game and 14 disposals with that inflated score of 182 and 137 in Rounds 23 and 24.  Where he had the games of his life.

There has always been a query on the effectiveness of his disposal since being drafted in 2007. I reckon he is headed to GWS at seasons end. Many players are ahead of him in the eagles best 22.

Break out season

Josh Kennedy has had a break out season if you ask me he has averaged 88 SuperCoach points and just under 3 goals a game. He is really starting to develop into an imposing forward who has a great motor, scored a 190 SuperCoach point game against the hapless bulldogs in round 9. Same as other big forwards can also have some shockers mixed in with some big scores.

He has done well to be in the top 10 goal kickers this season. The carlton supporters will start crying when he gets even better in 2012

Luke Shuey has been sensational this year after only playing 6 games last year due to injury. Has averaged 94 SuperCoach points a game and 20 disposals, which is pretty good for a “Rookie”. Was unlucky not to pick up the NAB rising star, as he has been crucial to our rise up the ladder

Nic Naitanui definitely a defining season for Nick Nat as he has shown more often his freakish skills he has averaged 92 SuperCoach points and 12 Disposals this season, the thing that helps his scores is his clearance work around the ground.

He has kicked some sensational goals this season my favourite was when he burnt off Paddy Ryder and slotted the goal from 50m. He has also taken a contender for mark of the year against Carlton.

Keep an eye on the off season

Andrew Gaff he started off as being a sub in a lot of games early in the season before being dropped to the seconds to find some form. A bit hard getting into form being a sub every week at best only getting half a game he averaged 46 SuperCoach points a game averaging 10 disposals a game.

Since returning in Round 17 he has averaged 81 SuperCoach points a game and 25 disposals a game. He has also shown he can rack up the possies and use the ball well. His season high of 118 SuperCoach points was against the bulldogs in Round 19. He would be a good tip for the mid-pricer to premium strategy.

Dean Cox would be one to look out for during pre-season  as I’m not sure if this year where he has dominated is a once off, where his body will start to fail him or not. Not sure if he’s a lock in for next year.

Gone

Not really SuperCoach related just my opinion of list.

Bradd Dalziell – hasn’t done anything since coming from Brisbane, should be delisted at the end of the year a lot of young players have gone past him

Brett Jones – Premiership player in 2006 but his best days are long behind him. Too slow and turns the ball over too much

Darren Glass – He may retire once the season is finished, has been a fantastic warrior for west coast, kept Barry Hall goalless in 2006 grand final.

He has done a great job leading the team through the dark days of 2008-2010, when there seemed to be no light at the end of the tunnel. He has been fantastic teaching our young backs Mackenzie, Schofield and Mitch Brown the finer points to defending.

Jarrad Oakley-Nicholls – A waste of time picking him up from Richmond, he has never played a game for us and kept a spot on the list ahead of a young kid

Callum Wilson – He hasn’t played a game all season, there is no spot for him in our best 22, when you have Brad Ebert and LeCras up forward picking the crumbs from Kennedy, Lynch and Darling. Spent all season in the WAFL