Some experienced commentators are coming over to the view that the 211 centimetre giant from the West is towering over the rest of the competition not just in height, but now in effectiveness.
Saturday’s night game against Carlton may have confirmed what Dockers fans have been saying for a while, that when Aaron realised his own potential, he will be virtually unstoppable. He racked up an incredible 42 hit-outs in a dominant display.
However, it was the effectiveness of the taps that was most impressive. If there has been a criticism of Sandilands, it is that much of his good work is ‘sharked’ by opposition midfielders. Rucking to a rejuvenated Hasleby, the tallest man in the league found his target, frustrating Judd and other Carlton midfielders.
When not involved in the ruck, Sandilands was making life difficult for opposition back men, positioning his long reaching arms in the forward 50. With new rules prohibiting the chopping of the hands, Aaron pulled in some great marks, and kicked goals, building his tally to 25 touches.
With Cox far from his best, spending most of time building up statistics and not much else in the back half, Aaron may finally be getting the recognition Freo fans have been clamouring for.
Kick2kick
Guest
I agree that Sandilands is finally getting the attention he deserves but the best ruckman? Not quite yet, easily the second best and both WA ruckman are miles ahead of any other ruckman in the competition. Thing with Sandilands is that he has only been effective for the last two/ three weeks where Cox has done it for the last four years.