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If 2016 was a unique season for the Essendon Bombers, 2017 will be just as bizarre.
Questions surround the returning ten players from the controversial drugs ban and how they will fit into the side. So far, few answers, if any, have emerged.
Captain Dyson Heppell, speedster Travis Colyer and former skipper Jobe Watson have made solid starts but are yet to return to their pre-2016 form. The same can’t be said, however, for key pillars Michael Hurley and Cale Hooker.
Hurley, who earned All-Australian honours in 2015, has looked off the pace and was comprehensively beaten by Taylor Walker in Round 4. The Adelaide spearhead kicked four goals in the first quarter alone, before Patrick Ambrose was given the job for the rest of the night, keeping him to just one goal.
Hurley’s closing speed has always been a strength of his, but in one-on-one marking contests he looks uncomfortable, often choosing to stand off his man before leaping and attempting to spoil. In the first quarter alone last week, Walker beat him on the lead at least three times.
Maybe that’s too harsh on Hurley. After all, he missed an entire year of footy, and his defensive group has drastically changed since 2014-15.
In 2014, the Bombers conceded just 78.8 points per game, considerably their best result this decade. Their opponents averaged goals for every 31.1 disposals and every 4.13 inside 50s. That season, Cale Hooker was named in a back pocket of the All-Australian side, with Michael Hibberd, Courtenay Dempsey, Mark Baguley, Martin Gleeson and Ariel Steinberg providing support.
While Baguley has remained a constant, Hurley is now learning to gel with Andrew McGrath, Michael Hartley, Patrick Ambrose, James Kelly and Mitch Brown, among others. Across four games in 2017, they are conceding 96.2 points per game.
Which brings me to Hooker.
Midway through 2015, former coach James Hird made the move to station Hooker permanently forward of centre, in order to improve scoring and lend support to Joe Daniher. In a side that really fell apart in the second half of that season (the Bombers won just two of their last ten games, leading to Hird’s resignation), Hooker was a shining light, averaging 17 disposals, seven marks and two goals per game once shifted forward.
But 2017 has not been as profitable for the swingman. Injury late in pre-season saw him miss the JLT Community Series, and the lack of match practice, in what is a new role for him, has been noticeable.
So far he has kicked just six goals, averaging 4.5 marks, 1.8 contested marks and ten disposals per game. Compared to his All-Australian year as a defender in 2014, he is averaging 8.4 less disposals and 2.9 less marks.
Hooker kicked three goals and looked excellent in Round 1 against Hawthorn, but as the Hawks have shown us so far, they are no longer the side that has won three of the past four premierships. Yes, it’s only been four games, but the question must be asked: where is Hooker most valuable?
In a competition that shapes to be extremely tight, cut-throat moves need to be made for the sake of the team, and at the moment, the team would be better off with Hooker down back.
In 2017, Essendon are averaging 89.2 points per game, scoring goals every 30.5 disposals and every 3.6 inside 50s. Across the competition, they rank 11th in scoring, 13th for goals per disposals and equal third for goals per inside 50.
Aside from the last stat, it’s hardly a set of figures that’s going to keep opposition coaches awake at night.
Should Hooker play in defence again, Essendon have other tall options to support Joe Daniher up forward. James Stewart was recruited from GWS last year and despite being 199 centimetres, has the speed and mobility to compliment Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti, Orazio Fantasia, Jayden Laverde and Josh Green in Essendon’s mobile forward line.
Similarly, Shaun McKernan could force his way back into the side after an impressive first two games of the year. Another tall but mobile option who could give a chop-out in the ruck, if required.
Alternatively, Tom Bellchambers could be called upon to make his return from the supplements ban. In 2013, Bellchambers kicked 28 goals rotating with Paddy Ryder as resting ruckman/forward, including a bag of five against Port Adelaide where he also took ten marks.
Given it’s only Round 5, Hooker should get a few more games as a forward to prove that he is up to the task. But if he struggles, the time may come for him to return to the backline.
Marcus Uhe is a sports journalism student at Latrobe University. You can follow him on Twitter, here.
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