Patch flicked me the keys to his yacht (how does he afford these things?!) and I headed on over to UTAS Stadium in Launceston to cast my eye over some Hawthorn vs Richmond JLT action. My Tiger boys looked mighty impressive and hot and sexy and it was very hard to do this writeup one-handed but I am a professional so here we go!

Hawthorn gave Box Hill a rest and brought their first team over to Tassie so there wasn’t much happening on the rookie front. Same with the Tigers, having Ross play over RCD is probably an indication Ross has got the inside running.  

Somehow Richmond pinched this game. Switched from water to whiskey at half time as a blow out looked on the cards but Richmond finished 8 points victors.  

Rule change impacts

6-6-6: Not much to report here. At the risk of sounding like a broken record centre clearances were clean and there weren’t many secondary stoppages. 

Kick-ins: Both sides were pretty conservative tonight. Sic had some long bombs but it looks like teams are just returning the ball back into play rather than having specific set plays.

Notable absentees

Hawthorn: Birchall, Tom Mitchell, Tom “The other Tom” Scully, Patch’s boy Chadly Wingard, Jack Gunston, Daniel Howe

Richmond: Shaun Grigg, Jason Castagna, Tom Lynch, Josh Caddyshack

Hawthorn

Oliver Hanrahan – FWD – $123,900

Didn’t see a lot of the action tonight, playing only 44% of the game. Unlikely for round 1.

Dylan Moore – FWD – $123,900

Hawks are pretty right for small forwards. Had 6 touches in a bit over a half of footy.

Mitch Lewis – FWD – $149,000

Backed up his 7 marks last week with 5 tonight. The way he goes about attacking the footy is impressive but I suspect he needs a few more games under his belt at Box Hill.

Jack Scrimshaw – DEF – $149,800

Had a huge first term with 11 disposals, 4 marks, and a goal. Faded after that but may have played his way into a few teams if he’s there round 1. Consider, but don’t tear up your backline to get him in.

Richmond

Jack Ross – MID – $117,300

Not the quickest guy going around but a handy player. Was part of the midfield rotations but I suspect his job security isn’t as rock solid as we’d like from a midfield rookie. Sat out the second half after 7 disposals and 5 tackles.  

Noah Balta – FWD – $123,900

Looked a world away from the guy we saw last week. Played out of the square which doesn’t seem to suit him. Might see a bit more ruck work is there’s no Soldo in round 1.

Liam Baker – FWD – $162,100

Sat out most of the game.

Hawthorn

SicDawg – DEF – $570,400

Was swinging everywhere in the first half. Wasn’t the designated kick out guy but took his fair share and looked to go long. If he was still a DPP I might have some more interest in the guy but we’ve got about 784 options in defence. Wouldn’t be disappointing if you landed on him in your draft leagues. 

James Cousins – MID – $219,900

Faded after a scintillating opening term. He’s an interesting one, Cousins. Expensive yes but this is he’s third year on Hawthorn’s list, compared to say a similarly priced rookie that certain Victorian media outlets have already inducted into the Hall of Fame. 

Started and stayed in the guts. Followed up his 29 disposal, 8 marks, and 4 tackles last week with 21 disposals, 5 marks, and 4 tackles tonight. 8 clangers is gonna hurt. 

Silk Burgoyne – MID – $484,200

Did his usual stuff. Seemed to be popping up a bit more in attack tonight than usual. Is this a thing or Clarko just throwing the magnets around? Either way, as a mid only, don’t pick him.

Jaegar O’Meara – MID – $503,200

Just in case we didn’t have enough 500k midfielders with a terrible injury history’s having 30+ disposals already, here’s another for your consideration. Finished with 35 and a handful of other impressive stats. Consider.

Still harbour hope that Jaeger O’Meara could yet become the best player in the game in the next year or so. #JLTSeries

— Paul Nolan (@pwnolan) March 9, 2019

Liam Shiels – MID – $498,600

Was good over four quarters tonight. Will have his days but not for long-form SuperCoach. Oh, and he did this

Isaac Smith might want his time again…#JLTSeries pic.twitter.com/jqqgvFgoQM

— AFL (@AFL) March 9, 2019

Worpedo – MID/FWD – $395,700

Was stationed at the feet of Big Boy and had 9 clearances tonight. Still some question marks on his disposal though. Had 6 clangers among his 24 disposals. Awkward price but F3 is impossible right now. Could he sneak in?

Richmond

Trent Cotchin – MID – $486,900

Trent Cotchin appreciation tweets

You star, @tcotchin9 ⭐️

— Richmond FC 🐯 (@Richmond_FC) March 9, 2019

Trent Cotchin 10/10 would bang 😍😍😍😍😍😍 #JLTSeries

— Kevin Horton (@SC_Kev7) March 9, 2019

TRENT COTCHIN IS ON FIRE!#JLTSeries pic.twitter.com/fOVv8oHCxd

— AFL (@AFL) March 9, 2019

That is all.

Alex Rance – DEF – $448,100

Let’s get the good stuff out of the way first. 23 disposals. 8 marks. 5 R50’s. 8 1%’s. The bad? The 6-6-6 stuff leaves him horribly exposed at times. We are told approximately 158 times per game that Rance is good at peeling off his man, when it fails it will cost goals. 

So do you pick him? At the end of the day his SuperCoach score is the only thing we’re after, maybe just see how he goes for a few weeks before committing. 

Houli Douli – DEF – $399,600

Houli gave a perfect lesson tonight in not falling for JLT hype. If you caught his game against Melbourne last week he looked like a 550k defender. Tonight he was every bit of his sub-400k price tag. Only played two and bit quarters, but still, pass.

Jayden Short – DEF – $465,600

Weird game from Short tonight. Thought he was quiet but still had it 20 times. Not a lot there elsewhere. Only 2 R50’s is a worry for a guy that is setting up the play. I wouldn’t say look elsewhere, just be aware it’s not always going to be sunshine and lollipops. 

Meatball Prestia – MID – $482,600

Contested beast but that d.e is going to hurt his scoring. Doesn’t do enough on the peripheral stats to be a good POD option. Pass

Snags Higgins – FWD – $392,700

Kicked 3 in the second half and was a big part of the Tigers comeback. Started deep forward but worked his way up on a wing. With Caddy, Lynch, and Castagna to return, does Higgo get more time on the wing? 

Interesting move from Damien Hardwick in the final term. He threw Jack Higgins into the centre bounces (4 CBA's for the term) after failing to attend any in the opening three quarters. #SuperCoach #AFLFantasy #JLTSeries #AFL

— Fantasy Freako (@FantasyFreako) March 9, 2019

Jack “Mr Brightside” Riewoldt – FWD – $504,100

Pretty well held by Chip Frawley tonight. Kicked 3 and I know we’re struggling for an F3 right now but Jack isn’t the one you want. Bit too up and down for my liking.

Dusty – MID – $563,800

How good is this guy when I considered it to be a usual Dusty game? Had half a dozen more touches than the next best Tiger and a lazy 10 clearances. Clangers still an issue though and his d.e sat at 66%. Wasn’t part of that frantic final term which will keep his score down.

Honourable mention: 8 tackles for Jack Graham tonight. Loved, loved, loved his game. Fire him up with confidence in Draftstars.