To say that the two Queensland clubs had very different trade periods in 2013 is an understatement. The Brisbane Lions had a lot of activity, while the Gold Coast Suns were not sighted.
How this particular trade period will define the next two to four years for each club will make for fascinating viewing.
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions were forced to be active due to five players claiming homesickness as the reason they wanted to depart the club. Whether genuine or not, it is was still interesting to observe that some players nominated the club they wanted to go to and basically forced the club to salvage what it could.
Lions National Talent Manager Rob Kerr stated that the Lions entered the trade period basically “not wanting to get ripped off”.
Pearce Hanley took a swipe at the players who had left, finishing his now infamous tweet with “#mummiesboysarehomenow”, a not too subtle dig at those who departed.
It was a tough time, and that is not even getting into the chaos that was developing at board level.
What this trade period leaves the Lions with is picks 7, 22, 25, 28, 33, 34, 63 and 81. They also bought in Jackson Paine from Collingwood and Trent West from Geelong.
Losing four first round draft picks from 2010 and 2011 is going to hurt – there is no denying that.
What this will also do is place further pressure on the current midfield leaders – Rockliff, Redden, Moloney, Rich and Zorko. A number of the players that have left were expected to push for game time in the midfield and provide the Lions with valuable depth.
This was topped off by the retirement of Simon Black, a truly modern day great of the game.
Two players who should see plenty of game time next year are Sam Mayes and Marco Paparone, who have showed glimpses of what they may become as AFL footballers.
Mayes in particular had a number of impressive games towards the end of season 2013, and with another solid pre-season under his belt should enjoy greater responsibility in 2014.
Another problem area for the Lions is their forward line, and in particular finding a replacement for Jonathan Brown.
Brown has been a stalwart for the past decade and had the benefit of starting his career with both Lynch and Bradshaw around him, so he was able to play as the third tall. He now has possibly the 2014 season left before it is all over.
The Lions have so far failed to find the next key forward to drive the club up the ladder and into the finals. This process will now have to be accelerated.
This is where Paine might ultimately benefit, with plenty of game time and training sessions right next to Brown.
This draft is important for the Lions. Pick #7 should bring a quality player to the club, and after that the picks they have from 22-34 must be used wisely. All is not lost when your picks are predominately in the second round.
A number of club recruiters have stated that this is one of the most unpredictable drafts in recent years. The belief is that picks 1 to 12-14 are unlikely to have any major surprises, but the next group of picks up to #30 will generate a lot of interest and intrigue.
The view from the recruiters is that clubs will start drafting on a needs basis earlier than before, having a ripple effect on the entire draft. Quality midfielders may slip down the order as clubs pick taller players on a “needs” basis rather than on a “best available” basis.
A quick scan of recent drafts shows the following players were picked later in their respective drafts:
Jack Darling (West Coast, #26 in 2010)
Jack Gunston (Hawthorn, #29 in 2009)
Mitch Duncan (Geelong, #28 in 2009)
Jake Carlisle (Essendon, #24 in 2009)
Nat Fyfe (Fremantle, #20 in 2009)
Jackson Trengove (Port Adelaide, #22 in 2008)
David Zaharakis (Essendon, #23 in 2008)
Dayne Beams (Collingwood, #29 in 2009)
Daniel Hannebery (Sydney, #30 in 2008)
That is one talented group of players and if the Lions can unearth two or three such players in this draft (or the next) they would be thrilled.
There are signs that slowly but surely the Lions are getting themselves set up for the future. A new coach (with some apprenticeship experience under his belt), a new board and plans for a new training facility in Springfield are all positives.
The Lions won’t make the finals next season, or the couple after that, and I think they will end up with somewhere between eight and 10 wins again.
The difference will be that Leppitsch will have begun to put his processes and plans into the players, bringing all the experience he has garnered through his apprenticeship time in the AFL system.
Gold Coast Suns
The Gold Coast Suns obviously view the players on their list as the group that is going to take this club to the finals, and possibly its first grand final appearance. They had no players come into the club during the trade period and had no players leaving either.
They have picks 5, 20, 27, 61 and 79, but I have a feeling they will probably only use the first three of those. That’s potentially three more quality kids into a club, and system, that is oozing talent and also confidence.
They had a sharp improvement in their third season in the AFL and managed to claim eight wins, despite an injury toll that kept them from being able to consistently field their best 22.
The Suns are getting fitter and stronger in all areas of the ground.
They have a plethora of talls for the ruck, key back and key forward positions. Smith, Day, Gorringe, Thompson, Lynch, Nicholls, Dixon and May are a stack of talent which the Suns will be hoping to keep on the park as much as possible in 2014.
The midfield is probably the greatest strength of the team at the moment. Led by their inspirational skipper Gary Ablett Jr, it also includes O’Meara, Bennell, Prestia, Swallow, Stanley, Shaw, Hall and Rischitelli.
Being added to this group is Jack Martin, who has huge wraps on him after starring in the NEAFL last season as he was too young to play AFL.
For the Suns, it is about consistency of effort throughout the season. They are going through another pre-season so fitness and strength should continue to increase, meaning they will stay competitive for longer in all matches.
Coach Guy McKenna should be trying as hard as possible to eradicate from the group the ‘shocker’ match that pops up from time to time – it will be the difference between playing finals and missing out.
My prediction is that the Suns will win somewhere between 10-12 games in season 2014 and they might just sneak into eighth position, but will probably finish ninth or 10th.
The Suns will also win both QClash games next season to bring the ledger back to 5-3 in favour of the Lions. I have a feeling that the Suns are set to dominate this fixture for the next few years and will be ahead on the ledger after their first meeting in 2015.
The Brisbane Lions will be hoping stability at board level, a grant of $1.8 million from the AFL for football department spending, along with a six draft picks inside the top 35 can put the club back in the right direction to build towards finals in 2016.
The modern day inspiration for the Lions will be Port Adelaide of 2013. They put the right staff into the club at board and coaching level and it brought renewed hope and confidence, taking the players to the second week of the finals in 2013 after finishing 14th with five wins the previous years.
The Gold Coast are moving full steam ahead as they hunt for a historic finals berth, only seeing the need to top up their young and talented list.
The two Queensland clubs could not be in more different positions leading into the 2014 season.
josh
Roar Rookie
sorry was Monfries not stanton.
josh
Roar Rookie
Possibly not. But there is that old saying takes four years to reach top level. But at the same time I don't think he needs to be able run all the time with Ablett and co. He can float forward for a spell. He has a solid and accurate kick to be small forward. I'm a big fan of his. His efforts in 2012 were outstanding, he played his role well; that hit on Stanton, the game against North Melbourne. Kicking the goal after the siren, even his first goal from 50. The AFL investment well and truly payed off. Will also add statistically the most effective tackler the AFL.
bilbo
Guest
"When the knuckle-draggers appear Timmy, turn a blind eye, and thank above you were not made like them." Lions actually have a stack of talls incubating in reserves -Bourke, Clarke, Close, Michael, Paparone, with Lisle and Martin already 'blooded' in Lions firsts. To add Jonathon Freeman and young Paine from Pies, and Trent West addeded to Louie in ruck, the Lions could quickly click into a formidable force again. Some of these talls are rookies and zone/Academy selections, so they may be a bit raw, but that never stopped Daryl White or Daniel Merrett becoming the players they are - central to the spine. Paparone #23 and Close #32 are the highest draftees, Bourke-Clarke-Michael are outright rookies. When other clubs are clambering for any talls at all in the coming draft, Lions will be bringing theirs on line in '14. As much as it will be heartwrenching to see Jono Brown retire, I look forward to Lions rollling out their tall brigade under coach Leppitsch.
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
Josh - problem in a nut shell right there, if K is not a long distance runner and hasn't been able to develop this aspect in 4 pre-seasons at AFL level then I have a feeling he probably never will. Hope he goes very hard and injury free this pre-season before the first bounce in 2014
josh
Roar Rookie
It appears his issue more physiological than cardio per se. I believe the club have tried to tailor a conditioning program for him, but some people just aren't long distance runners.
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
And therein lies the problem - With not having a big cardio base Hunt cannot effectively shadow any of those players for the entirety of a game because he cannot run out games. This pre-season for Hunt should be all about cardio and skills, he has more than enough strength so the gym work should be firmly third in line for his attention. As I said above, 2014 is make or break for Hunt and I truly hope he makes it.
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
Ronny - I managed to also get myself to a few Southport Sharks game during season 2013, one particularly memorable game against the Lions Reserves sticks in the mind as Southport should have wrapped it up early but were shocking in front of goal, which allowed the Lions to win with many many less opportunities. It is a healthy scene in SEQ at the moment and with the opportunity to get into the academies at either the Suns and Lions they will hopefully in time start generating talent to fill their teams with. The next step for the Suns will be to build a training centre to match the rest of the teams in the league, including their local rivals the Lions. As an aside have a read of what West Coast are building: http://www.westcoasteagles.com.au/news/2013-09-06/eagles-poised-for-new-home
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
TomC - I just saw on afl.com that they have rated the draws of all respective clubs and apparently the Lions have come out with the hardest draw for 2014!
josh
Roar Rookie
It's not his cardio strength. From What I know, he's a bit of the no frills players coaches want. His real role should be like in 2012 to shadow Gary, or Jack or Jaeger around the pack and just act an an enforcer around the loose ball.
TomC
Roar Guru
Hmm. I think you're conflating the board issues with the on-field issues. Not sure that's the right way to look at it. One way or the other I think the Lions will take a reasonably strong team into 2014, but with a tougher draw and so many coaching changes it'll be hard to improve on 2013's performance. On paper, the team is still significantly stronger than the Suns though, at least right now. I think you might be overemphasising potential and underemphasising proven performance.
Ronny
Roar Rookie
Would disagree entirely, Aussie rules in QLD has a very bright future, if anything, your ludicrous post, made me post. The Lions and Suns both have QLD talent academies with around 4/500 players in each, the Lions used one of their top draft picks to get a local, so no interstate team could. The Lions currently are paying off very quicly a licensed venue ( Lions @ Springwood) which will see their coffers increase significantly when they do, they are also building, (or in the process of) a huge Center of excellence at Springfield worth many millions of $$, right next to the train station there. The GC Suns have a fantastic stadium deal, and are financially set, their young team is taking shape, and they are set for a run at the finals in the next couple of years, maybe even a premiership. The GC junior league continues to grow at 10% a year, as well the Senior and junior leagues in Brisbane , Sunshine coast etc . In fact the whole QLD AF scene is pretty healthy. Plenty to be excited about,
kunming tiger
Guest
dave – stick to the tab that interests you mate, no need to troll onto an article that you have nothing to contribute to. SportsFanMelb said | October 31st 2013 @ 2:09pm Agreed
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
dave - stick to the tab that interests you mate, no need to troll onto an article that you have nothing to contribute to.
davo willmot
Guest
there is nothing interesting about aussie rules in queensland, nothing!
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
Hi TomC - from a Lions perspective their issue is going to finding a quality long term power forward to fill the J Brown void coming in 2015. The draft this year and the trade/draft periods of 2014 are crucial for the club. They are putting things in place now for stability ie Coach and Board and hopefully the Springfield training facility gets the green light also which will all certainly help to attract and retain talent. From a Suns perspective they have a lot of talent, more so than the Lions and younger which is why I think they will surpass them for the next few years. Winning on the road is key, they need to put away teams like the Demons and GWS but will need to start beating others to play finals. I think there is going to be some pretty interesting footy played at Metricon and the Gabba next season which I am looking forward to.
TomC
Roar Guru
Good analysis, SFM, but I reckon it might be a touch early to write the Lions out of finals contention in 15/16. Still plenty of youngsters who have yet to hit their ceilings, so the team’s prospects might change quite quickly. The Suns just have so much young talent that even if only 40% of them get somewhere near their potential they would still have a very strong team. It’s just a question of when that talent emerges. The real challenge for them in 2014 is starting to win games on the road; their only victories came against Melbourne and GWS in 2013. That’s part of why I reckon it’s too early to say the Suns will dominate QClashes in the coming years. Since the fiasco of the first meeting in 2011 the Lions have comfortably won each of these matchups at the Gabba.
SportsFanGC
Roar Guru
I actually forgot to add a little note about Karmichael Hunt in my summary of the Suns. I honestly think that this will be the toughest season that Hunt has faced to date in his AFL career. While he is immensely popular with the players and fans on the Gold Coast he is still struggling with aspects of the game. He has been playing for the Suns for 4 seasons yet has failed to get his cardio fitness to a level that means he can consistently run out games or seasons at AFL level. The competition for midfield places will be immense this year at the Suns with the addition of Jack Martin and a fully fit list and I also expect Swallow to move back towards a predominately midfield role in 2014. Hunt has this pre-season to get his body right and get his cardio up to AFL standard or he risks getting left behind by the emerging superstars up here on the GC. I absolutely respect the guy and love what he has been able to achieve through the NRL, Rugby Union and AFL but season 2014 is make or break for him in my opinion.