FEARLESS 2023: End of season wrap – by club.

 

FEARLESS 2023 End of season wrap – by club. The culmination of a tough year…

 

 

After a nail biter Grand Final, overdue in the eyes of many, Collingwood claimed the flag over Brisbane in a game which theoretically pitted 1st v 2nd teams of the year. Whilst Port Adelaide had a claim for much of the season to being the 2nd best team, the truth revealed it differently and Ports finals record took another hit. Much of Craig McRaes positivity shine through the finals efforts of the Premiership team.

 

Adelaide – robbed. Purely and simply robbed of a finals berth. That aside, Coach Nicks’ Crows have definitely improved and much of that had to do with the resurgence of superboot Taylor Walker. For the resurgence to continue into finals campaigns, the Crows will need to develop contingency plans built around the ageing Walker’s longevity. The defence might need a bit more height into subsequent seasons.

 

Brisbane – Runner Up by 4pts. Harsh realities don’t come much harsher! Once the season hit the home stretch, the Lions roared into serious contention as others fell by the wayside. Not much wrong and even an alleged MCG phobia proved to be a furphy. Like everyone they fall to the bottom of the 2024 mountain, but this time have the confidence to know they can win the flag.

 

Carlton – nothing like a mid season slump to test the mettle of coach Michael Voss. And what a way to respond..there’s little shame in losing at the Gabba, but even less so in a preliminary final. Are they finally close to serving what they’ve been cooking? Some consistency for the big H would be a key ingredient to going further, as would Elijah Hollands on a tight leash! His cooking nearly broke bad!

 

Collingwood – hot Pies. We’re the champions…no time for losers…actually I doubt coach Craig McRae would allow that L word into their playbook (take note Steven May!) The Pies were hot hot hot and indeed hotter than the members of Kiss post Pre GF entertainment! If they were any hotter, they’d trade out Jack Ginnivan for Lachie Schulz! Back to back?

 

Essendon – coach Brad Scott now searches for answers as to how to convert what was a 2/3 good season into a fully good season of 23 rounds plus finals wins. From the start of his tenure, Scott strongly stated that standards weren’t high enough with players nominating when they would start. Enter preseason 2024…no such latitude. Recruiting and drafting will occur with that in mind. As will a perpetual reminder that the season goes for much longer. Near enough is never good enough for Scott, but team needs more pace.

 

Fremantle – a year of promise began to unravel at the start with 2 unexpected losses. Especially the loss to Clarkos joeys in Perth would’ve cut deep in the purple psyche. Good wins over Geelong, Melbourne and a resurgent Bombers coupled with two comprehensive Derby wins to be the good. The narrow loss against the lions in Perth a sign of what was promising. The rest was substandard and matched by the loss of Henry and Schulz to the eastern seaboard. Time to give inconsistency the heave ho!

 

Geelong – entering the year as the reigning champions was almost a poisoned chalice for the Cats. Whilst it was a significant achievement, maybe it proved a bridge too far for an ageing list. Coach El Chappo needs to reorient the team towards youth..the task lies ahead!

 

Gold Coast – a year where stability could bear fruit suddenly turned pear-shaped when Coach Mountain Dew got given the lemon and sarse by the Suns hierarchy. At season’s end, many good team performances got overshadowed by the power game above the coaches head. 9 wins still short of a finals berth but hopefully the switch can be flicked by new coach Dimmer. Much to like going forward if the recipe gets perfected.

 

GWS – after Carlton, the best in-season turn around was from the mango and charcoal, culminating in an All Australian captaincy for former AFL bad boy Toby Greene, coach of the year status for novice Guns Kingsley. And a rusty start morphed into a heartbreaking preliminary final loss. The chinks got ironed out and the machine emerged. A great team effort by a team that was fearless and willing wherever the games were played.

 

Hawthorn – 7 wins was a reasonably bold showing for a team that was not expected to do much. Even the coach was very pragmatic about any expectations. Fair to say that it was a stepping stone to the future and the removal of much playing experience allowed youngsters to gain confidence and improve. Job done. Let’s see what the cagey coach has in store for season 2024.

 

Melbourne – coulda, woulda, shoulda, didn’t. When defender Steven May said Melbourne was a better team than Collingwood, the club made the trip to officeworks to bulk buy gaffer tape! For May and for Joel Smith and any other miscreant that stopped the Demons from reaching the heights. You gotta make the Grand Final to win it – a second straight sets exit from the finals indicates a few problems. The most glaring was an ineffective forward line. If the Demons ever want to win one again, Coach Goodwin has to fix a few things, starting with Clayton Oliver and his bad haircut.

 

North Melbourne – Clarko’s return to Arden Street wasn’t quite what was anticipated.. abandoning his post temporarily allowed Brett Ratten a chance to resume senior coaching with great influence, albeit no wins. Another season near the bottom was followed by another mass exit of players and assistant coaches . However, 1st yearers Harry Sheezel and George Wardlaw set the tone for the Joeys to progress, along with several soon to be Joeys. Credit to full forward Nick Larkey for keeping his cool and signing on for another 5 years with his first All Australian blazer and 71 goals. The  way forward is obvious..to quote Ted Lasso: believe!

 

Port Adelaide – for much of 2023, Kenny’s Power was the rightful challenger to the Magpies juggernaut. A trip to Marvel to face a resurgent Carlton brought the year to a screeching temporary halt. It was a shame that Port lost its momentum and a few injuries threw out the balance. The mould is definitely there for success but it becomes a new season where everyone is again on the same page. Will that happen? Who knows. They’ve certainly thrown everything to attract new players.

 

Richmond – eras end. Coaches depart, having gone stale. So it was for the Tigers… big names began to retire and the assistant coach in charge from mid season gets overlooked when the new coach gets announced. What happens next? Watch this space! New coach XYZ will get a years latitude but if GWS is anything to go by, success might return quicker than expected …or not..

 

St.Kilda – an underrated side with the worst injury list in the comp starts the year with 4 straight wins. The cult of Ross Lyon returns with gusto, despite the messy exit of Ratten. Names like Owens, Windhager Wanganeen-Milera, complement the otherwise vanilla-ish midfield. Jack Sinclair has stamped himself and his mullet as a superstar and the captain led from the front.

 

Sydney Swans – gifted a finals spot because of the goal umpire error against Adelaide, the Swans went close to knocking out Carlton but didn’t. Poetic justice of sorts..however the finals probably exposed the question that will be integral to Sydney in 2024… namely how to replace Buddy Franklin. Fix that and more finals could be on offer. The ever evolving rebuild of the Swans continues.

 

West Coast Eagles – yep indeed. We all know the story. Injuries, poor form and a reliance on the 2018 premiership, which by the way, was 5 years ago!!! To chase Tim Kelly with the gusto that was to lead to another flag, proved folly. No flag and minimal draft picks and lots of older injury-prone players have a rebuild on the cards at Eagle HQ…however they’re well resourced and hopefully patient enough. But are the fans patient? Time will tell…

 

Western Bulldogs – the question arises: who let the dogs out? And becomes which dogs did they let out. An enigma wrapped in a riddle and covered by a layer of mystery. The potential for finals is offset by the potential for spontaneous combustion. The individual brilliance occasionally overridden by inexplicable brain fades. The talent meets the inexcusable. Under the pump in 2024…nomination #1 – coach Luke Beveridge. Their time could equally be now or never! The Dogs should have their day.

 

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