Don’t Argue: 2013 Pre-season Top 50 AFL Players
Posted by Ben WoodsMar 11. 2013 8:36 am
Guest contributor Ben Woods returns with his popular “Don’t Argue” column, this week taking on the massive challenge of pulling together a list of the Top 50 players in the AFL. People are bound to disagree with the names and the order so it’s just as well that Ben has a thick skin.
LET me start by saying that you don’t know how hard this is until you actually do one. I’d almost go as far as saying I feel sorry for Mike Sheehan, but I really don’t.
I’ve based this Top 50 on not only what we have seen from players in the past, but also on what I expect to see from them this season. That’s why you will find guys like Luke Shuey on the list and it’s the exact same reason that superstars of the past, such as Nick Riewoldt, haven’t made the cut.
Obviously, this is a very subjective topic and I’m more than happy to cop a bit of stick. Don’t forget to post a comment with any queries and I’ll do my best to explain the logic behind my decisions.
Let the debate begin!
2013 Pre-season Top 50 AFL Players
1. Gary Ablett (Gold Coast)
2. Lance Franklin (Hawthorn)
3. Scott Pendelbury (Collingwood)
4. Jobe Watson (Essendon)
5. Trent Cotchin (Richmond)
6. Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide)
7. Dane Swan (Collingwood)
8. Sam Mitchell (Hawthorn)
9. Marc Murphy (Carlton)
10. Josh Kennedy (Sydney)
11. Dean Cox (West Coast)
12.Joel Selwood (Geelong)
13.Scott Thompson (Adelaide)
14. Matthew Pavlich (Fremantle)
15. Aaron Sandilands (Fremantle)
16. Kieran Jack (Sydney)
17. Taylor Walker (Adelaide)
18. Chris Judd (Carlton)
19. Dayne Beams (Collingwood)
20. Darren Glass (West Coast)
21. Luke Hodge (Hawthorn)
22. Brett Deledio (Richmond)
23. Heath Shaw (Collingwood)
24.Nic Naitanui (West Coast)
25. Callan Ward (GWS Giants)
26. Andrew Swallow (North Melbourne)
27. Tom Hawkins (Geelong)
28. Brendon Goddard (Essendon)
29. Matthew Boyd (Western Bulldogs)
30. Travis Cloke (Collingwood)
31.Cyril Rioli (Hawthorn)
32.Ted Richards (Sydney)
33.Matthew Priddis (West Coast)
34. Sam Jacobs (Adelaide)
35. Adam Goodes (Sydney)
36. Brad Sewell (Hawthorn)
37. Scott Selwood (West Coast)
38. Ryan Griffen (Western Bulldogs)
39. Steve Johnson (Geelong)
40. Jack Reiwoldt (Richmond)
41. Luke McPharlin (Fremantle)
42.Harry Taylor (Geelong)
43.Nat Fyfe (Fremantle)
44. Luke Shuey (West Coast)
45. Beau Waters (West Coast)
46. Dale Thomas (Collingwood)
47. Drew Petrie (North Melbourne)
48. Lewis Jetta (Sydney)
49. Lenny Hayes (St Kilda)
50. Andrew Carrazzo (Carlton)
I was going to do a special mentions part to finish off but I worked out there were another 15 guys I wanted to fit in but just couldn’t!
For those of you who like to look at things on a club by club basis, here is the list of Top 50 Players organised by team:
Adelaide
6. Patrick Dangerfield
13. Scott Thompson
17. Taylor Walker
34. Sam Jacobs
Brisbane
Nil
Carlton
9. Marc Murphy
18. Chris Judd
50. Andrew Carrazzo
Collingwood
3. Scott Pendelbury
7. Dane Swan
19. Dayne Beams
23. Heath Shaw
30. Travis Cloke
46. Dale Thomas
Essendon
4. Jobe Watson
28. Brendon Goddard
Fremantle
14. Matthew Pavlich
15. Aaron Sandilands
41. Luke McPharlin
43. Nat Fyfe
Geelong
12. Joel Selwood
27. Tom Hawkins
39. Steve Johnson
42. Harry Taylor
Gold Coast
1. Gary Ablett
Greater Western Sydney
25. Callan Ward
Hawthorn
2. Lance Franklin
8. Sam Mitchell
21. Luke Hodge
31. Cyril Rioli
36. Brad Sewell
Melbourne
Nil
North Melbourne
26. Andrew Swallow
47. Drew Petrie
Port Adelaide
Nil
Richmond
5. Trent Cotchin
22. Brett Deledio
40. Jack Reiwoldt
St Kilda
49. Lenny Hayes
Sydney
10. Josh Kennedy
16. Kieran Jack
32. Ted Richards
35. Adam Goodes
48. Lewis Jetta
West Coast
11. Dean Cox
20. Darren Glass
24. Nic Naitanui
33. Matthew Priddis
37. Scott Selwood
44. Luke Shuey
45. Beau Waters
Western Bulldogs
29. Matthew Boyd
38. Ryan Griffen
If I have overlooked anyone or if you think I was on drugs when I wrote this get involved in the discussion. A bit of footy banter will make the arrival of season 2013 feel real.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @TigerWooda and post your thoughts about the list to the comments box below.
Image appears with permission by Jack McClane (Exclamat!on Photography). All rights reserved.
Tags: Pre-season, Preview, Top 50
Filled under: AFL, Football Nation Feature, Latest News
6 People have left comments on this post
Looks like a very fair and reasoned list. Very happy to see Carrazzo slip in at the end, I reckon he’s an underrated player. How highly did you consider elite taggers? because he is the only genuine one to make the cut, with guys like Crowley and Jones missing out.
Also- Redden, Rockliff, Stanton, O’Keefe, Dal Santo. Any of these guys come close to the list?
Thanks mate. Appreciate the feedback.
I dont even see Carrazzo as a tagger anymore. While he does shut down, he is now a genuine ball winner and has really cleaned up his disposal. Very important to Carlton’s structure.
TBH I didn’t consider Crowley or Jones. They both play their role well but i just cant consider them in the top echelon of players.
Every player that you named was in my initial squad of about 75 players with ROK the stiffest to miss the cut at 54.
Nice list. I don’t 100% agree with the order (except for the top 2), but I think you pretty much got the players right. Obviously it’s pretty subjective though – for example, I couldn’t imagine not having O’keefe or Bartel on my list
What about Luke Dalhaus? Where would he be ranked? And throw Cooney in there aswell.
@MN
To be honest neither of them were in my calculations. Whilst Dalhaus is on the rise Cooney is probably heading in the other direction and is a shadow of the player that he once was. Dalhaus is improving but i cant find room for him in the top bracket of players just yet. Very handy player though and I’m sure he would slot nicely into any team. I’d love him at the tiges!
Not bad. Luke Hodge making it is a little strange. Will never be what he was back in 2008.