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Team Analysis

Team Analysis 2021 – Fremantle

The Dockers have a great up-and-coming list, and good up-and-coming lists usually have some keeper league gems hidden away in them.

Let’s see if we can find some…

Sean Darcy (R)

Sean Darcy is breaking The Breakout Tracker, but not in a good way.

He has gotten worse in every season since 2017, going from an 83 average in his first season, to 51.7 (64.6 BCV) in 2020.

However, he’s a player you can’t disregard due to his potential.

He’s only 22 years of age. If you compare him to other rucks at his age, a lot of them probably wouldn’t have 40 games under their belt, and if they did, their numbers probably would be comparable. So he’s worth giving a chance, knowing that he still fits the mold of a developing ruckman.

Despite his lowest career average last season, he finished off the year on a positive note, averaging 71.3 (89.1 BCV) from his last three games. Just enough to keep coaches interested for 2021.

If things fall into place and he gets his body right, this could be his year. Especially when you compare him to other rucks and the average age of when they break out from a fantasy perspective, there’s a lot to be optimistic about.

However, he has recently suffered a knee injury at training, so he’s going to be underdone heading into 2021. Keep this in mind when drafting your rucks.

If you’re starting a keeper league in 2021, he’s going to go late in drafts so you might be able to pick him up quite cheap.

There is still a lot of upside to Sean Darcy, so keep that in mind if he’s available in your leagues. But he’ll need to show something this year to keep him from falling out of favour.

Tobe Watson (B)

This guy made his debut in 2020 and managed three games for the season.

In his first game, he scored 26 points, which is nothing to write home about, but we liked the way he looked by his style of play. In his second game, he scored 66 (82.5 BCV) AFL Fantasy points and looked like he could have some fantasy potential. But unfortunately, he was dropped the following week.

He managed another game in Round 17 against North Melbourne, where he scored 54 (67.5 BCV) in another positive performance.

I feel like Watson has the attributes to be a good fantasy scorer, but everything hinges on him getting a game. Fremantle’s defense seems to settled with players like Luke Ryan, Nathan Wilson, and Hayden Young already providing run out of defense, it’s hard to see where he fits in.

If he can find a place in the best 22, he’s worth looking at, but we have our doubts on him doing so.

Matt Taberner (F)

Taberner is a player who gets close to #2G4P status every year, so he’s definitely one to consider.

He averaged 58.6 (73.3 BCV) AFL Fantasy points last season after averaging 86 points in 2019.

He’s a player that’s likely to slide in drafts as you rarely hear about him outside of Western Australia, but he’s definitely worth picking up. When fit, he’s Fremantle’s number one target inside 50 and he puts up some reasonable numbers.

He had three BCV scores of 100+ last season, but did have some lean games that drove the average down. But this isn’t unusual for key forwards.

At 27 years of age, he’s in his prime for a key forward, and has shown he can score well from a fantasy perspective in the past.

If he’s available in your draft, he’s definitely worth picking up.

Hayden Young (B)

Get on board the Hayden Young train!

If he didn’t get injured last year, I truly believe he would have gone close to #2G4P status.

He debuted in Round 2 and started slowly with 39 AFL Fantasy points. His second game wasn’t amazing either, as he could only muster up 32 points in this game. But in Round 4, he went bang with an AFL Fantasy score of 77 (96.3 BCV). He subsequently scored 58 (72.5 BCV) the following week, before getting injured in Round 6.

Whilst he only averaged 41.6 last year (51.2 without the injury affected game), he looked like he belonged in Fremantle’s side from the start. He’s a smart user of the ball and make great in-game decisions, and I firmly believe he’s a player Fremantle will lean on to drive attacks from defense for many years to come.

He might take a few years to reach his full potential, but I truly believe he’ll be one of the premium defenders in the competition when he does.

Lachie Schultz (F)

This small forward really impressed us last season.

He played every game in 2020 for a respectable average of 50.4 (63 BCV) but raised some eyebrows towards the end of the season with some of his performances. After Fremantle’s bye, he averaged 57.4 (71.8 BCV) which included some great scores of 93 against Sydney in Round 13 and 72 AFL Fantasy points against North Melbourne in Round 17.

Brandon Matera’s delisting in the off season tells us the Lachie Schultz is firmly planted in Fremantle’s best 22 going forward, which is positive for prospective owners.

Watching him play, he appears to have a big tank in the way he pushes up the ground to attack the contest. His possession numbers aren’t huge, but he hits the scoreboard and puts up good tackle numbers. He also averaged 4 marks per game in 2020.

He’s a player who will be picked late in drafts and will provide you with good forward cover for the time being, with the potential of more as he develops throughout his career.

Luke Valente (C)

Where is this kid at?

He’s coming into his third year in the AFL system and we haven’t seen him yet, despite being a highly touted member of the 2018 draft class.

He was taken at pick 32 with a known groin issue that he hasn’t since been able to get right. He did not complete a preseason in his first two seasons at Fremantle but apparently hasn’t missed a beat this year.

Looking at his underage numbers, he was one of the leading fantasy scorers in 2018. He averaged 117 points per game in the SANFL Under 18s and was the fifth best fantasy scorer coming into the draft behind Max King, Aaron Nietschke, Bailey Smith and Sam Walsh).

He also averaged 87 AFL Fantasy points at the National Under 18 Championships, making him the 10th best fantasy scorer of the competition.

On top of his junior fantasy scoring prowess, they obviously rate him at Fremantle as they handed him Matthew Pavlich’s number as he walked in the door.

Playing as an inside midfielder, he’s looking to break into the side this year to play alongside an already stacked midfield of Nat Fyfe, Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong and Adam Cerra.

If he can remain fit, we should see him debut this year and should be a reasonable fantasy scorer once he gets a few games under his belt.

Kaes’ take on Fremantle’s best 22 for 2021.

Take a listen to our latest podcast: Pre-season 2021: Collingwood, Essendon and Fremantle

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