Almanac Teams: Players in 31 flavours (1980- )

 

 

 

This is a team of best players to wear the Number 31  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:        Tom Alvin (Carl)                                  Jamie Shanahan (St.K)                 Dustin Fletcher (VC) (Ess)

 

CHB:    Will Schofield (WCE)                          Harris Andrews (Bris)                   Paul Wheatley (Melb)

 

C:          Matthew Dent (Fitz)                            Jarrod Lyons (Adel)                       Ricky Henderson (Haw)

 

CHF:    Chris Dawes (Coll)                               Corey McKernan (NM)                  Jeremy Finalyson (GWS)

 

FF:        Barnaby French (PA)                          Kelvin Templeton (Foots)             James Podsiadly (Geel)

 

Ruck:    Aaron Sandilands (DVC) (Freo)      Brett Kirk (C) (Syd)                         Chris Hyde (Rich)

 

Interchange: Bailey Dale (WB), James Clement (Freo), Bayley Fritsch (Melb), Paul Spargo (NM)

 

Emergencies: Max Crow (Ess), David Hale (NM), Matt Maguire (St.K), Jeff Sarau (St.K)

 

Coach: Ron Barassi

 

No player from Gold Coast.

 

 

Games in Number 31 (Years Played)

Tom Alvin 218 (1984-1994)

Jamie Shanahan 125 (1992-1997)

Dustin Fletcher 400 (1993-2015)

Will Schofield 194 (2007-2020)

Harris Andrews 136 (2015- )

Jarrod Lyons 55 (2012-2016)

Matthew Dent 47 (1994-1996)

Chris Dawes 71 (2008-2012)

Corey McKernan 182 (1993-2001)

Jeremy Finlayson 66 (2017-2021)

Barnaby French 62 (1999-2001)

Kelvin Templeton 143 (1974-1982)

James Podsiadly 83 (2010-2013)

Aaron Sandilands 271 (2003-2019)

Brett Kirk 241 (1999-2010)

Chris Hyde 93 (2002-2008)

Bailey Dale 85 (2015- )

James Clement 84 (1996-2000)

Bayley Fritsch 85 (2018- )

Paul Spargo 81 (1985-1992)

 

 

Number 31 is another team for the key position players with limited options for midfield spots and small forwards. In fact I have no small crumbing forward and was serious looking at Ian McMullin for Collingwood who had a good debut finals series in 1984 but only played 22 games. I can possibly defend an opposition small forward and just have to hope for clean passes and marks in our forward line.

 

 

Teams with multiple options are Brisbane with David O’Keefe and Harris Andrews, Essendon with Max Crow and Dustin Fletcher, Fremantle with James Clement and Aaron Sandilands, Geelong with David Mensch and James Podsiadly, Melbourne with Paul Wheatley, Jack Grimes and Bayley Fritsch, North Melbourne with Paul Spargo, Corey McKernan and David Hale, Richmond with Brendan Bower and Chris Hyde, St Kilda with Jeff Sarau, Jamie Shanahan and Matt Maguire and the Bulldogs with Kelvin Templeton and Bailey Dale.

 

 

The defence is probably the strongest part of the team with four options for FB and CHB. I have Jamie Shanahan listed at full back, not probably mobile enough for another spot but was a very tight FB who was hard to kick goals on. At CHB I have Harris Andrews who at 202cm is very similar to Dustin Fletcher (198cm) named in the back pocket. Both Andrews and Fletcher are multiple All Australians, very athletic, can play key position but also capable of playing on smaller forwards having seen them on the likes of Eddie Betts and Dustin Martin for example. Andrews and Fletcher also have played as loose defenders to be the intercept marker in defence. Will Schofield is the other tall defender in the side at 196cm who can play as key position defender, third tall/intercept marking defender if Andrews/Fletcher required to play on a small forward. Tom Alvin is named in the back pocket and was a very good small defender who had an attacking flair and play for Victoria. Paul Wheatley is named on half back flank as running half back and was known for his long kicks. Other options that can play in defence are Bailey Dale, James Clement, Matthew Dent and Chris Hyde.

 

 

The ruck is very strong with Aaron Sandilands as first ruck. Sandilands is the tallest player to play AFL and was a dominant centre square ruck and still relatively mobile around the ground. Other options in the ruck are Barnaby French and Corey McKernan. Brett Kirk is the best midfielder in the side, he started as tagger but was capable of getting his own ball. In the side he will be required to be a major ball winner. Chris Hyde is first rover, who started as a wing but did spend time on the ball as a run-with player. Jarryd Lyons is in centre for his stint at Adelaide at start of his career. Lyons has blossomed into important midfielder at Brisbane, at Adelaide he was depth midfielder who went to Gold Coast for better opportunities. On the wings are Ricky Henderson who was a genuine wing at Hawthorn and Adelaide and Matthew Dent who was at Fitzroy and Western Bulldogs who could also play HBF. Other options are James Clement, Paul Spargo and Tom Alvin.

 

 

The forward line has some good players there but has no small forward. Kelvin Templeton is at full forward, who kicked 494 goals for the Bulldogs winning the Coleman medal in 1978-79 and the Brownlow Medal in 1980 as a CHF. At CHF I have Corey McKernan who could play anywhere on the forward line with Wayne Carey and was also a mobile ruck. Playing this role McKernan nearly won a Norm Smith Medal in 1996 and would have a Brownlow and Rising Star award except for suspension. James Podsiadly is the next best goal kicker in the team – he played four years at Geelong as a mature aged recruit and kicked 52 goals in a premiership year. Chris Dawes was a key forward for Collingwood along with Travis Cloke their 2010-2011 grand final years and kicked 30 and 27 goals as CHF/FF. I was initially thinking Ian McMullin, but he only played 21 games in four years; though he kicked five goals in an elimination final as a small forward. Jeremy Finalyson has played most of his career as a third tall at GWS as he was reasonably mobile, but at 196cm he is still tall. His best year was 44 goals in their 2019 campaign that ended in a GF. Barnaby French is Port Adelaide’s representative in the forward pocket; he is most known as a ruck but would be the second stringer to Sandilands. French, who would more than likely come off the bench, has kicked three goals in a match. Other options up forward are Bayley Fritsch who kicked six goals in the 2021 Grand Final and at 188cm would need to play a smaller forward role (though he is not a crumbing forward). Paul Spargo, Chris Hyde, Bailey Dale and Tom Alvin in the latter half of his career have played at various times as a small forward.

 

 

With the bench I left out Maguire, Crow, Hale and Sarau as even though they were very good players, I already had plenty like them in the starting 18 and wanting some balance to the side to cover some weaknesses especially in midfield and smaller forwards. Bailey Dale at 187cm was an All Australian in 2022 on a HBF, though he started his career as a forward and has kicked five goals twice before. Dale you suspect could also play in the midfield or wing. James Clement the Fremantle version at 190cm was very mobile wing/HBF or forward having kicked 27 goals in 1998 and kicked five goals twice. Bayley Fritsch at 188cm is a midsized forward, he kicked 59 goals in 2021, from 2018-2020 he played 61 games for 59 goals as forward or midfield option. Paul Spargo was a hardnosed midfielder at North Melbourne but did kick 109 goals in 81 games including a bag of six.

 

 

There is only one club captain in the side in Brett Kirk who is the captain of this side, Dustin Fletcher and Aaron Sandilands who were long time leadership players are vice-captain and deputy.

 

 

The unlucky players were Brendan Bower (Rich), David Mensch (Geel) and David O’Keefe (Bris)

 

 

 

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