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As VFL/AFL football gears up for its 122nd season, it becomes harder to climb over the ‘bar’ and make it into the top 100 greatest game players of all time.
At the end of the 2018 season, Brendon Goddard was forced to retire when he was not offered a new contract by Essendon.
With the loss of the second most experienced current player (21st overall), it meant that nine of the 100 most experienced players of all time are left to play on into the 2019 season.
The least experienced of these nine players is Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin who snuck into equal 98th position with Bill Hutchinson (Essendon) and Dean Cox (West Coast Eagles) courtesy the one final played by Sydney.
These three champions sit on 290 games, and it is interesting to contemplate who could join them, or replace them on the top 100 list in 2019.
The three players likely to replace Hutchinson, Cox and Peter Everitt (St Kilda, Hawthorn and Sydney) in the top 100 are Heath Shaw (Collingwood and Greater Western Sydney), Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood) and Jarryd Roughead (Hawthorn).
If these three players are all injury free and in good form, then they could join the list in Round 8, Round 13 and Round 16 respectively.
By Round 16, the bar may have risen to 292 games with Matthew Boyd (Western Bulldogs), Anthony Stevens (North Melbourne) and Darren Milburn (Geelong) all sharing the ‘hot seat’ and requiring Joel Selwood (Geelong) to string together 20 games for the season to make the list.
With a good prospect of finals matches to add to his tally, he may be a chance.
Amongst the goal kickers, the retirement of Mark LeCras – who finished his career in a tie with Bill Brownless (Geelong) in 83rd position – means that the 2019 season will start with seven top 100 goalkickers out to improve their standing on the list.
They should be joined early in the season by Adelaide’s Taylor ‘Tex’ Walker who requires only six goals to join the elite list.
Hawthorn’s two 50-plus goal scorers (Luke Bruest and Jack Gunston) are also strong prospects to join the ‘club’ later in the season.
(AAP Image/Rob Blakers)
If they do, they will join current captain and cancer survivor Jarryd Roughead on the list. Roughead – one of three players separated by only one goal on the list – is just outside the top 40 goal kickers of all time and no doubt will be competing with Josh Kennedy (West Coast Eagles and Carlton) and Eddie Betts (Adelaide and Carlton) to be the first to dislodge Melbourne’s icon Norm Smith who is currently less than 10 goals ahead of the pack in 40th position.
Speaking of Melbourne, it was sad to hear of the death of Colin Sylvia, a player at the Demons from 2004 until 2013 before his unsuccessful move to the Dockers.
He features prominently in Melbourne’s top 100 lists: Number 46 on the most games played list and equal number 59 with current player Jeff Garlett and 1950’s player Geoff Tunbridge.
It was only late in the 2018 season that he was passed as a goal kicker by current captain Nathan Jones.
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