With Matt Carroll being officially listed I'm not sure if that's our finalised list for the first part of the year, but I thouught it would be interesting to break down the best 23 for 2025.

This is assuming everyone is fit and in-form. I'll include Newman and Cincotta for the sake of completion.

Our most experienced 23 (by games played):

B: Haynes - Young - Newman*
HB: Saad- Weitering - McGovern
C: Acres - Cripps - Docherty
HF: Fogarty - Curnow - Walsh
F: Williams - McKay - Durdin
R: De Koning- Hewett - Cerra

INT: Fantasia - Silvagni - Pittonet - Cottrell
sub: Kemp

* next most experienced: O. Hollands

Most games: Haynes has played 211 games
Least games: Kemp with 44

Our oldest 23:

B: Haynes - Young - Newman*
HB: Saad - Weitering - McGovern
C: Docherty - Cripps - Acres
HF: Williams - Curnow - Walsh
F: - Fogarty - McKay - Silvagni
R: Pittonet - Hewett - Cerra

INT: Cincotta* - Fantasia - Boyd - De Koning
sub: Cottrell

* next two oldest: Kemp, Durdin.

Oldest: Haynes is 32
Youngest: Walsh is 24.

Our youngest 23:

B: Cowan - O'Farrell - Charleson
HB: Carroll - Kemp - Wilson
C: Binns - Cerra - O. Hollands
HF: E. Hollands - Lemmey - Cottrell
F: Motlop - Moir - Durdin
R: De Koning - Walsh - Smith

INT: Monahan - O'Keefe - Lord - Duffy
sub: B. Camporeale / L. Camporeale*

*they're the same age

Oldest: Walsh is 24.
Youngest: The Campo twins are jointly the youngest players on the list at 18 years old.

I guess we should classify Silvagni as a defender and Kemp as a forward since that's how they're training (last I heard). I'll leave out Nic and Cinc because they won't play the first half of the season, and it makes my choice easier

B: Haynes Young McGovern
HB: Saad Weitering O.Hollands
C: Acres Cripps Walsh
HF: E.Hollands McKay Kemp
F: Fogarty Curnow Williams
R: TDK Hewett Cerra
I: Smith Cowan Motlop Silvagni
S: Moir

Hmm... bit of a slow bunch, might need Cotters.
Not sure where Doc fits in. I'm still bitter about the way his story was elevated above the team last September.
Motlop on thin ice, wouldn't take much to promote Durdin.

I reckon that’s pretty close. But, for team balance, I think either Young or Silvagni should come out of that side for Doc (wing rotation). I’d also go Cottrell ahead of Motlop at this stage.

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It's never as good as it looks and it's never as bad as it seems.

My take with some changes for discussion:

B: Boyd Weitering McGovern
HB: Saad Haynes O.Hollands
C: Acres Cripps Walsh
HF: E.Hollands McKay Cottrell
F: Fogarty Curnow Williams
R: TDK Hewett Cerra
I: Smith Cowan Docherty Kemp
S: Motlop

Yeah, Boyd lowered his colours for mine last season, but I'd consider him ahead of Young on a horses/ courses basis. One thing about your lineup is that it requires H to play relief ruck, which I'm not sold on. I wonder what the club's intentions are if SOS is being used as a key back?

i’m not so much bitter ‘bout the Doc saga as concerned it reflected profound immaturity on the part of the coaches and the club’s wiser heads to a) select him and b) make such a bug fuss about it BEFORE he had even shown it was the correct call. i said it was too risky a call the time given he hadn’t play a single game in almost a season, and with the benefit of hindsight, he did two thirds of bugger all during the first half of that sad final fadeout (i don’t think it was a primarily a fitness issue) and his first few possessions were “L”s it was the wrong call IMHO.

Apparently Motts is lighting up the track in match-play-simulation. good he read the room correctly and went away and trained the house down, reconnected with what he loves about the game or whatever it was. now if only a few more patchy boys would do the same.

One or two controversies here…

B: Saad Weitering Cowan
HB: McGovern Haynes O.Hollands
C: Acres Docherty Walsh
R: De Koning Cripps Cerra
HF: E.Hollands McKay Cottrell
F: Kemp Curnow Fogarty
I: Boyd Moir Lord Smith Williams

I think there’s only room for one of George or Doc. George is better at the stoppages, Doc has him covered in transition. Doc has a bit more ‘go forward’ about him… horses for courses, I think.

Similarly, if there is a bit of tall timber to deal with, Silvagni or Young will come in at the expense of A forward with Ollie Hollands back to a wing. If Hollands can be a 20 possession, 500m player across half back, his role on the wing (when called) might become a bit more dynamic & less of a shepherding act.

Cincotta or Lord as the stopper. I’ve got high hopes for the Lord/Cerra/Cripps combo.

Just my preference to see Moir in the side over Fantasia. Fogarty is rusted on & Willams is a ball winner, but Moir has the all-round tricks. It’ll be hard for Motlop & Durdin to get in the side without bags of goals in the VFL.

I’ve got Walsh on a wing, but that’s just giving him space to operate. I think it’ll be Hollands, Cottrell & Docherty working that far wing again, with the difference being a bit of growth from Hollands. In my mind, Walsh will be more of a centre/forward type… More than likely, he starts on the ball & racks up 40, but I really would prefer to see him as the post-clearance guy. His kicking has been shite, but that’s not a true reflection of him as a player.

Between Cripps, McKay & Kemp, the second ruck is taken care of, but the #1 has to be in the game for 85% or more. With any luck, this will be the year that ‘ruck hard ball gets’ and ‘score launches’ finally take over the ruck conversations on Monday mornings.

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"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter" - Winston Churchill.

B: Cowan Weitering Haynes
HB: Saad McGovern O.Hollands
C: Acres Cripps Docherty
HF: Fogarty McKay E.Hollands
F: Williams Curnow Kemp

R: TDK Hewitt Walsh

Inter: Boyd, Cerra, Cottrell, Smith
Sub: Motlop

Obviously the above assumes everyone else is fit, except for our LTIs (Newman & Cincotta).

Preferring Haynes over SOJ at this point, given SOJ is coming off an ACL and is unproven as a defender.

I’m taking a punt by not picking another KPD (ie. Young) and hoping that Haynes & McGovern can punch above their size if isolated against a gorilla. The alternative I considered was to play Young, drop Boyd and have Cowan as the 7th defender.

I considered including Pittonet, and doing the two ruckman thing, but ended up going for Kemp as 3rd tall forward/swingman with Harry taking 2nd ruck duties.

I’ve gone for Docherty ahead of Binns, but it wouldn’t surprise me if that gap closes soon.

I would have liked to include another small forward but I couldn’t resist picking Smith over the likes of Motlop, C.Durdin & Fantasia.

B Team

B: Charleson Young O’Farrell
HB: Wilson Silvagni L.Camporeale
C: Binns B.Camporeale Fantasia
HF: Monahan Lemmey Duffy
F: Moir McMahon O’Keeffe

R: Pittonet Lord C.Durdin

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It's never as good as it looks and it's never as bad as it seems.

Realistically
O Hollands Weitering Haynes
Saad McGovern Boyd
Acres Cripps Walsh
Walsh McKay Williams
Kemp Curnow Motlop
De Koning Lord Smith
Cerra Cottrell Docherty Hewett Moir

For those who think HOKBALL is some new magic formula I present this rant:

There are those who think HOKBALL shows that the game is now a game for speed and/or endurance athletes. As long as you have at least VFL level skill and extreme athleticism you will be a handful. This is what separates HOKBALL from conventional football as we have known it.

So what if we went a team of uber-athletes? No Weitering, no Cripps, no Docherty. Now of course you don't leave those sorts of players out in real life, but in real life injuries will reliably open up at least those 3 spots. If not, a rotation policy can be applied to prevent the athletes totally burning out from my new concept:

BluesBlitzFußall (TM pending).

Of course, you still need to keep structure, so atI have one Ruck-sized defender, another genuine KP-size defender and someone who can at least at a pinch play 3rd tall Then three marking and three crumbing targets up forward. A genuine ruck-sized ruckman, a relief ruck of genuine ruck height, some inside grunt on-ball and all the electric speed we can cram in.

So here it is, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN !!!!

My high-summer
heat-stroke-induced
run-em-off-their-feet
and therefore unbeatable
athletes 23
(with emergencies).

Let's see the piss-n-poo guernseys keep up with this lot:

Cowan-Monahan-O. Hollands
Saad-McKay-Boyd
Acres-Lord-Walsh
Moir-Curnow-Williams
Kemp-McGovern-Fantasia
De Koning- Cincotta-Smith
Binns-Cottrell-Wilson-Young (23rd player Duffy)
Emergencies: Charleson-E. Hollands- O'Farrell

HOKBALL that you brown and gold pretenders!

Walsh is good runner but I don't think he quite has the tank to cover two positions at once. Cottrell to HFF.

Semantics but Cerra in our starting midfield and Smith to the bench. Cerra was our best player by a mile in 2023, I'm backing him to get to that level this year

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B: Haynes Weitering Saad
HB: O.Hollands Silvagni Cowan

C: Acres Cripps Docherty
F: DeKoning Hewett Cerra

HF: E.Hollands McKay Walsh
F: Williams Curnow Kemp

I: Smith Cottrell Motlop Boyd
Sub: Fantasia

E: Fogarty McGovern Lord Moir Carroll

I think we will see some semblance to this team this Saturday v Saints and the following Friday vs GWS. Can't wait to watch the boys live.

Been a fantastic preseason.

I still prefer the 2 rucks. I don't want TDK rucking 80% GT. He will be targeted by opposition rucks if he's on his own. Silvagni preferred FP/Ruck, but with Kemp/ Moir in a FP, Harry can go into the ruck given we will have 2 targets in forward line, instead of Charlie the silo.

Gov can look after smalls, but feel Boyd is better at ground level. We have enough strength in the air with Weiters, SOS and Haynes.

I don't think we bat as deep as some think. Lord, Carroll, Campo, Binns, Charleson and Durdin have had good preseasons but still developing imo.

McMahon for SSP pick, and if Newman doesn't get up, come on down Willie White. Both will be depth.

Young is my preferred KPD, but believe Silvagni has the strength to make a success of his move back. Young has had an impressive preseason.

Heard someone say Lemmey gave Young a bath in last Saturday's game sim, but it was the young O'Farrell who was on Lemmey, who kicked 2-3 snags. Young has been playing on Harry, playing with antisocial traits. Great to see from both. Kempy has been playing a defensive forward role on Weiters. Both going hard at it and at each other. Great to see. Similarly, Hewett and Crippa have been at each other all preseason. Hewett is a lock. He is so strong. Many fans look forward to some younger blokes to take his spot, but they have a long way to go to reach Hewett's footy IQ and strength imo.

Boys mean business.

Silvagni has done really well in sprint work since his return this preseason. He's not as slow as some suggest. He will surprise at CHB.

Hoping O'Keefe takes the next step this year, and stakes a claim for the FP/ 2nd ruck. He's in good form and strong to hold his own. Mobile too. If not this year, he will likely be there in 2026. Moir has to fight for a spot in this very strong first 25.

Go Blues. Lets break this 30 year drought in 2025. May the footy gods be kind to us.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

How deep is deep?

I was thinking about this just the other day. I’ve got my 23 above & none are there by default. Boyd & Lord are in to replace Newman & Cincotta, but they have claims on their spots… so, call it a 25.

The difference between yours & mine is Silvagni, Hewett, Motlop & Fantasia. Without question, AFL players. That’s 29.

Pittonet, Young, Durdin, Binns… still no bum squeak there. That’s 33 ready-to-go players (when healthy).

Lemmey, Wilson & Carroll, if introduced without urgency, could find themselves in a decent stretch of games. Even big Skull O’Keeffe could come in as a #2 ruck and not completely suck… nervous, but still un-puckered.

Four draftees - Camporeale x2 were born for it, O’Farrell will grow into it & Charleson (for me, at least) has a really safe vibe about him.

I have no idea about the two Irish.

All in all, we’re +10 for players on a match day side. Almost two full XVIIIs.

Seems pretty deep to me.

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"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter" - Winston Churchill.

I added a bit to my last post Cru after lunch. You must have posted whilst I was typing.

Ready to go players imo are a different status to the finished product they are replacing. That's all. I agree they are depth, but a lot are unproven imo. The names you mentioned are mature, and depth. I agree.

No doubt imo this is the best list we have had since 2000. I love the quality of some of the no names Charleson and Carroll. Both showing a lot.

But, as for the young players you mention, yes they can play a cameo here and there, and have shown great aptitude for the game plan and their endeavour has been incredible, and one or two might play a block of games (not all at the same time), but they are young and have a lot to learn and I feel Lord is on the cusp, but not a starting 23 player yet. He doesnt replave Hewett....not this year imo. Lord started his preseason flying and has not really stood out in the recent sim games.

Yes its depth. I'm happy to call them that, but the young are all very young, and expectations should be tempered.

Will be interesting to see where Fantasia plays. He has really stood out since xmas. Outstanding.

If injuries are minimal this year, and in particular, TDK stays fit for the year, we will win the flag, or, you can take the view, we do have the cover for any injuries. IMO TDK, Weitering, Harry and Charlie can't be replaced. We have a great midfield group.

I am very confident. The most confident I have been for 25 years, and maybe some nerves are getting to me

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

FWIW, I don’t think it’s just the speed that is the key to Hokball. Not even the main ingredient.
I think it’s how they position themselves and how they move the ball.
When they smashed us, you could see our players had no idea where or who to run to. They were looking around dumbfounded.
Mitchell has conceived a way to move the ball that has many teams confounded. We need to solve that (and hopefully use some of it ourselves). Speed alone won’t do the job.

The way I see it Hokball is running ahead of the footy in packs, by hand, till one finds a clearway to pass. There's a bit of kamikaze about it.

We did it for a while in 2022, and in 2023, then were forced to change things when we were found out.
They have a good running brigade with good skills. Sometimes they are forced back, by hand, then they're off again.

I think we just have to hit them harder than we do to shake them up a bit; close their space. I think we have the big bodies to jit up any other midfield.
Our youngest is Walsh and he turns 24 this year. He's a man. A proven Finals player. Add Cripps, Hewett, Cerra to that pack, and we are BIG.
Jagga is the apprentice. He will be protected and have time to add his flair and nimbleness to our pack.

Its going to be interesting facing the Hawks this year. We will not underestimate them, and maybe this year, they endure the injuries as we did when we last faced them.

I'm sure Mitchell has more layers to his pack than my simple view, but he doesn't have TDK / Crippa combo to start proceedings.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

Yes, if they don't get the ball, then HOKBALL< SMOSHBALL

The praise for Motlop is undeniable. Teammates, coaches, track watchers… sometimes you’ve just got to open your ears & listen.

I can’t see Frank the Tank unseating anyone just yet, but he’s obviously got something going for him.

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"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter" - Winston Churchill.

My best excluding Newman and Smith is still:
Cowan Young Weitering
OHollands JSoS Saad
Acres Cripps Docherty
EHollands Curnow Williams
Kemp McKay Motlop
TdK Cerra Walsh
Hewett Boyd Fantasia/Durdin(one sub) Haynes/McGovern

My best 23:
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability SubjectToAvailability
Sub: JectToAvailability

Disagree.

I'd have SubjectToAvailabilty on a wing and play SubjectToAvailability out of the guts.

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Congratulations CK95