Almanac Teams: In a state, twenty-eight (1980- )

 

 

 

This is a team of best players to wear the Number 28 jumper since 1980.

 

• Starting 18 will be one player from each club. I have tweaked it after the Number 3 team. Brisbane Bears and Brisbane Lions will be one club, with Fitzroy, Gold Coast and GWS competing for the last two spots in the starting 18.
• Teams will try to be as balanced as possible but if a number has several rucks as its best player an alternative will be picked. I will explain my selections below the team.
• Players may appear under multiple numbers, for example Eddie Betts number 18 and 19.

 

 

Stats are based on their time in that number.

 

 

I also have two teams per number, one is a best of and the other is based on players picked for different obscure/unusual reasons like cameos, unknown brothers, fathers, known for other reasons.

 

 

FB:              Michael Reeves (Fitz)                 Tim Darcy (Geel)                        Paul Weston (Ess)

 

CHB:           Steven Koops (Freo)                   Oscar McDonald (Melb)           Byron Pickett (NM)

 

C:                 Jared Crouch (Syd)                     Chris Lewis (WCE)                    Spiro Kourkoumelis (Carl)

 

CHF:           Tim Membrey (St.K)                   Barry Hall (WB)                         Lewis Taylor (Bris)

 

FF:               Jake King (Rich)                          Jay Schulz (PA)                          Paul Puopolo (Haw)

 

Ruck:          Jarrod Witts (C) (GCS)              Gavin Crosisca (DVC) (Coll)     Kane Johnson (VC) (Adel/Rich)

 

Interchange: Paul Dimattina (WB), Ashley Sampi (WCE), Michael Taylor (Coll), Toby Thurstans (PA)

 

Emergencies: Andrew Demetriou (NM), David Johnson (Geel), Chris Langford (Haw), Craig O’Brien (St.K)

 

Coach: Peter ‘Percy’ Jones

 

No player from GWS.

 

 

Games in Number 28 (Years Played)

Michael Reeves 40 (1983-1987)

Tim Darcy 176 (1982-1994)

Paul Weston 60 (1983-1985)

Steven Koops 78 (1996-2003)

Oscar McDonald 82 (2015-2020)

Byron Pickett 120 (1997-2002)

Jared Crouch 223 (1998-2009)

Chris Lewis 215 (1987-2000)

Spiro Kourkoumelis 61 (1982-1986)

Tim Membrey 130 (2015- )

Barry Hall 39 (2010-2011)

Lewis Taylor 112 (2014-2019)

Jake King 69 (2010-2014)

Jay Schulz 123 (2010-2016)

Paul Puopolo 196 (2011-2020)

Jarrod Witts 82 (2017- )

Gavin Crosisca 246 (1987-2000)

Kane Johnson 104 at Adelaide (1996-2002) 39 at Richmond (2003-2004)

Paul Dimattina 131 (1995-2003)

Ashley Sampi 78 (2002-2006)

Michael Taylor 92 (1981-1984)

Toby Thurstans 110 (2003-2009)

 

 

The Number 28 team has some very good players in the side like Pickett, Lewis and Crosisca and players that were perhaps better at other clubs like Pickett at Port Adelaide or Barry Hall at Sydney and Kane Johnson who might be better known as Richmond captain wearing the famous Number 17. It also features two players in Paul Weston and Michael Taylor who were better known in the SANFL. Both Weston aged 26 and Taylor aged 27 debuted much later than most but still made a significant contribution for their clubs with Weston having a starring role when moved up forward in 1984 Grand Final. There is also some unfilled talent due to injury like Koops or loss of form after a great start to their careers like Lewis Taylor and Ashley Sampi.

 

 

Clubs with multiple options were Brisbane with Ben Robbins, Troy Selwood and Lewis Taylor, Carlton with David Kernahan and Spiro Kourkoumelis, Collingwood with Michael Taylor and Gavin Crosisca, Geelong with Tim Darcy and David Johnson, Hawthorn with Chris Langford and Paul Puopolo, North Melbourne with Andrew Demetriou and Byron Pickett, Port Adelaide’s Toby Thurstans and Jay Schulz, St Kilda with Craig O’Brien and Tim Membrey, West Coast with Chris Lewis, Ashley Sampi and Tom Cole and the Western Bulldogs with Paul Dimattina and Barry Hall.

 

 

Tim Darcy is FB and while only 186cm tall, he did play there for Victoria when the Cats were at the peak of their form between 1989-1992. Oscar McDonald is at CHB and is the only defender taller than 190cm. McDonald along with his brother Tom showed promise early at Melbourne and had a very good season the year Melbourne finished top four in 2018 before he slipped out of favour. Michael Reeves in one back pocket is a player who could play on the third tall forward (which I think he did at Fitzroy, which allowed Pert or Serafini to play FB). Paul Weston was another that could play FB or CHB. From memory Weston was pretty mobile so could be an intercept marking player or even play on a small forward; his mobility showed when moved to CHF in the 1984 Grand Final when he had a great impact and kicked a goal. Byron Pickett at North Melbourne started his career as a small defender before playing as a forward for Port Adelaide. Pickett is the smallest defender here but there are options named in other positions and he could swap with Jake King or Paul Puopolo on the ground. Koops is a skilled half back that could play as a tall defender or intercepting marking defender, as he did like to take a hanger. Other options as defenders are Toby Thurstans as a tall defender, Jared Crouch, Paul Dimattina. Michael Taylor, Spiro Kourkoumelis, Jake King and Paul Puopolo – the latter could play as small back pocket, running or negating defender. Gavin Crosisca also started off as running HBF.

 

 

Jarrod Witts is a very good ruck who struggled for game time at Collingwood with Grundy in the side and his mobility meant that he could not play key forward but since the move to the Gold Coast he has flourished as one of the best tap rucks in the league and is now co-captain. Crosisca, Johnson and Chris Lewis make a very good midfield composing of some run, tight defending and class, though it does lack some contested ball winners. Crosisca started his career at HBF but was able to play midfield/wing or HFF often changing with Mick McGuane in that role. Kane Johnson was a big name recruit for Richmond after a great career at Adelaide. Johnson was an elite runner who tagged Robert Harvey very well in the 1997 Grand Final but was also capable of finding his own ball and is the best contested ball winner in the midfield. Johnson only wore Number 28 for two seasons at Richmond before he received the Number 17 as Richmond skipper. Chris Lewis was a super skilled centre for West Coast in his early days before the arrival Dean Kemp pushed Lewis to the HFF/midfield. Lewis was a brilliant player when he was on and adds class and goal kicking from the midfield – he kicked 259 goals. Jared Crouch and Spiro Kourkoumelis named on the wings are rather small. Crouch is perhaps best known as a small tagging back pocket having great duels with Akermanis, and with that ability he could play also a tagging wing/midfielder. Kourkoumelis probably best known as a changing rover/midfielder who can play forward but struggled for opportunities in that position with Carlton’s mosquito fleet of Marcou/Ashman/Buckley and Sheldon; Spiro did come fifth in the 1983 Best & Fairest. Thurstans and McDonald would need to help out Witts as second ruck while other midfield options are Dimattina, Michael Taylor, Lewis Taylor and Pickett.

 

 

Jay Schulz is named as FF for his stint at Port Adelaide, he won the goal kicking at Port four time with 275 goals and a best year of 66. Barry Hall is named at CHF. Though Hall only had two seasons at the Bulldogs and Dimattina possibly had a better career, Hall gets in for team balance. Hall and Schulz are both mobile and can change between FF and CHF during the match, Hall kicked 80 in 2010 and was selected as All Australian. Tim Membrey has shown in his career at St Kilda he is a very dangerous and mobile third tall at 188cm, St Kilda’s leading goalkicker three times with a best of 44 in a season. Lewis Taylor is a very small HFF who started his career extremely well winning the Rising Star award in 2014. As a player he was compared to Brent Harvey and spent time between HFF and midfield. Taylor’s career has stagnated since Brisbane rose to make the finals and was traded to Sydney 2019, but even at the Swans he has not progressed to the levels of his first few years. King and Puopolo in the forward pockets both started their careers as mature aged draft picks in the back pocket before becoming dangerous forward pockets that were cult figures. Puopolo became a very good crumber and also a high mark with a best of 34 goals in a season. King was more of a high pressure small forward known for his tackles and chasing with his best being 25 goals in a season. Other forward options are Ashley Sampi, Toby Thurstans, Tim Darcy, Paul Weston, and Chris Lewis.

 

 

The bench has a good degree of balance that also caters for some of the side weakness with Chris Langford the most unlucky player. Langford started his career in Number 28 and played 78 games and a premiership before he moved to Number 24 and another 200+ games. Langford missed out as I thought I had a good range of tall defenders from other teams. Toby Thurstans is the spare tall I picked as he could play second ruck, tall defender or as the 2004 Grand Final showed when he kicked three goals, he could play as a tall forward. Ashley Sampi had enormous talent and took over the Number 28 from Chris Lewis but we only saw a small sample of his potential. Sampi was capable of kicking goals and won the Mark of the Year in 2004. Taylor didn’t come to Collingwood until he was 27 after a great career in the SANFL but had an impact and was vice captain able to play on ball or HBF. Paul Dimattina is another player that can provide run from wing or half back or play a tagging role to allow Kane Johnson to be more attacking.

 

 

The side only has one club captain in Jarrod Witts so he is captain of the side. Kane Johnson captained Richmond for four seasons and won a Best & Fairest as captain, however the policy at that time was Richmond Captain wore Number 17 so as there are no other candidates he is vice captain. Barry Hall captained Sydney but not Bulldogs, so I went with Crosisca who was a long term vice captain at Collingwood as deputy.

 

 

The unlucky players were: Troy Selwood (Bris), David Kernahan (Carl), and Tom Cole (WCE).

 

 

 

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