Well here we are again. Another footy season ready to get underway and the rumours about clubs are already being sprouted, but as per every year people are writing off the Cats.
“They will slide”. How many times have we heard this before the Cats make the top four? Too many times is the answer.
Let’s go through their list.
Backline: The old key defenders and legitimate stars of the game are Tom Lonergan and Harry Taylor which has been probably the best defensive paring in the league for the last five years and I don’t expect anything to change this year.
Andrew Mackie is always a good contributor who can play tall or small and has the knack of kicking important goals. Jared Rivers is very much a similar type, youngster Jed Bews could be thrust into the lock down defensive role this season.
Cam Guthrie can play as a defender but I think he will spend more time in the midfield this year, James Kelly will be the rebounding half back this year and is a reliable veteran.
And of course the superstar Corey Enright rounds out one of the best defences in the league.
Midfield: The leaders of the Cats midfield are the captain Joel Selwood who is probably a top three midfielder in the league and the former Brownlow medalist James Bartel.
Mitch Duncan is a very underrated player in the league for what he provides to his team and is still developing. Josh Caddy is also underrated. Caddy seems to play well in big games which is a big asset to his game. It drops away a bit after that though, Stevie Johnson only plays a limited amount of time in the middle now. as does veteran teammate Mathew Stokes.
Steven Motlop can push through there with x-factor at times, and youngsters Jackson Thurlow and excitement machine Nakia Cockatoo should be getting a run this year.
Rucks: This has been a major problem for the cats in recent years. Their main ruckman seems to be Hamish Mcintosh but I don’t see him as up to AFL standard anymore.
Big Dawson Simpson is a very promising player but seems to be injured all the time, as does Nathan Vardy. Young Tom Read has a bit of hype about him but is very roar. Former saint Rhys Stanley can push through there as can big men Mitch Clarke and Tom Hawkins.
Forward line: Last year the Cats seemed to have only one option in the “hulk” Tom Hawkins, which served them OK considering they finished in the top six – but it was a definite problem.
They have seemingly fixed this by getting Mitch Clarke who is one of the most talented big men in the game, they also traded in for Rhys Stanley when they lost important player Alan Christensen.
The Cats have a raft of small forwards to choose from. Injury prone Daniel Menzel and Sam Blease, star Stevie Johnson, exciting Steven Motlop, veteran Mathew Stokes and youngster Nakia Cockatoo.
There is plenty to like about the Cats this year.
Ladder prediction: second
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