The Roar
The Roar

AFL
Advertisement

Is the 'prime' playing age for AFL players going up?

Roar Guru
5th October, 2015
7

Look back 10 or even five years and you’d be forgiven for labelling the 30-plus brigade in the AFL past their best, apart from the rule destroyers like Brent ‘Boomer’ Harvey, Duncan Fletcher and Adam Goodes.

Even this year I have made comments about my beloved Collingwood Magpies and their senior stars, and thought that in another three seasons (when they’re over 30) they would be not at their best. Yes, still in the 22, but not career best.

The general ‘prime’ age is between 24 to 30, give or take one or two years either side depending on the player. Or so I once thought.

While watching the Hawthorn’s victory in the 2015 grand final, the one thing that stood out was the influence that Jordan Lewis, Jarryd Roughead and in particular the skipper Luke Hodge and Sam Mitchell had; sure it was a complete team effort but no one can deny the mark these four had stamped on the game.

Only Roughead (28) is under 30 in that group of four. That is big; the pressure of the grand final; exquisite disposal to break the web and Hodge’s on-field leadership – it speaks volumes.

In this year’s top four we have three ageing lists that many consider will still figure in September next year, Hawthorn, North, Fremantle throw in a Sydney and that’s half of the top eight with what is considered “senior” lists.

You may have the opinion that Sydney and Freo (and Hawthorn for some) are past their best and the window is closing but the general consensus is that they’ll all be fighting for it come September 2016.

Five years ago it would look like these lists would be too old to be in contention but I’d personally like to see the current Hawks seniors play the second youngest flag team in history, inside a goal either way I reckon!

Advertisement

But enough on the premiers, the reason I mention these 30+ players from the grand final is that it got me thinking of the other 30+ players around the comp this year, or more to the point how many there are producing quality footy regularly.

I’ll start with the All Australian skipper in Bob Murphy (33) running around with likes of Matty Boyd (33) and Will Minson (30). You can’t say he’s had a bad year; certainly not someone who looks past their best.

How about Corey Enright, Stevie Johnson, and Andrew Mackie – sure they may not be there next season but to say they were playing at career low this season well you’d be laughed at, and maybe punched in the face depending on who’s in earshot.

Dane Swan (31 and 17 Brownlow votes this year) looked like he was done last year, but has had a very consistent year. Adam Goodes, Jarryd McVeigh, Rhys and Heath Shaw, David Mundy, Scott Thompson, Brent Reilly. Of course I cannot go past Boomer Harvey, even though he is and always was an exception to the rule; but it seems more and more that what was once the exception is now becoming the rule.

The point here is that it seems the prime age is now widening past 30 into 32, 33 and sometimes 34 and maybe 35+ for the exceptions like Boomer, Fletch and Goodes.

Gone are the days of a ten-year wow factor career for the league’s seat fillers. Nowadays it’s not uncommon for 15, 16, 17 seasons of quality service to their respective clubs. Ten years ago there were players in the 15th and 16th seasons but now those twilight years are of more influence, impact and presence.

I wrote a two part article earlier in the year on the young lists in the comp at the moment and how their immediate to medium/long-term future would look; at that point I did not see a window for the men from the Holden centre in three seasons from now based on the fact that their current senior group will be 30+.

Advertisement

Given the performances this year of the current 30+ players in the comp well I’ll eat my words with a good dose of humble sauce, It’s hard to imagine that a player like Scott Pendlebury will be past his best at 30 along with Goldsack, Varcoe, Cloke (delivery to the big bloke will get better with experience for the young team), Toovey, Greenwood etc.

Take that into consideration and think of the lists like the Dogs, Giants and GC – could we see in 10 years from now teams with 10,12, more! 30 year-oldline up for the first bounce week in week out? Could you imagine the quality of footy! Could it make the current Hawthorn efficiency and Footscray’s visual spectacle minimum standard by then?

Based on what we’ve seen certainly this year from the proven elders, I for one am excited to see more and more 30 year-olds and then some A graders still dishing out performances in the very memorable calibre! And I’ll still be able to see and hear.

close