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…
Take a listen to our latest podcast: Pre-season 2022: Collingwood, Essendon and Fremantle
Hayden Young (B)
It’s breakout season for Hayden Young!
He only averaged 66.1 last season, but I can assure you this kid is an absolute jet.
Young has been Hampered by injuries in his first two seasons but finally got a decent run of games together at the end of 2021. He also put up some decent scores and averaged 90 points from his last three games. If we expand the sample size, you’ll also find he averaged 79.2 from his last five, which is respectable from a defender in his second year of football.
So on the back of the last few rounds of 2021, the trajectory is looking good for Hayden Young.
My one concern about Young is his ceiling. So far in his career, his top score is only 93. Whilst there’s no reason to worry about that just yet when you look back to his junior scoring he was more of a quality over quantity type player. He only averaged 85 in the NAB League in his draft year, and 84 at the NAB Under 18 Championships. So even though juniors, he failed to put up big numbers.
On the flip side, he’s one of the best users of the footy to come into the AFL system via the draft in recent times. This tells me that Fremantle will want the ball in his hands which will give him plenty of opportunities to score. He also reads the play exceptionally well, meaning he’ll win the footy from intercept possessions which should equate to fantasy points.
Get on board Hayden Young in 2022.
Lachie Schulz (F)
We love Lachie Schulz on The Keeper League Podcast.
He’s not the fanciest player and is never gonna be the biggest fantasy scorer going around, but he does some nice things on the field and puts up a few good fantasy scores from time to time.
He only averaged 58 AFL Fantasy points last season but demonstrated he has a decent ceiling with a top score of 119 in Round 2. He also put up another big score in Round 10 against Sydney, with 13 kicks, 2 goals, and 5 tackles for an AFL Fantasy score of 101. He also had two separate scores of 85 throughout the year.
Now whilst we profess our love for this guy quite often, he’s not a player that’d you’d want to trust on the ground each week. But we do like him as a streamer option (even though it can be hard to stream Fremantle players at times due to an abundance of Sunday afternoon fixtures) as you might be able to loophole one of his scores when he goes big. He also makes good cover too because he’ll play most weeks.
Consider snapping him up in the later stages of your drafts.
Jordan Clark (C)
Heading across to Fremantle from Geelong, Jordan Clark will be seeking more opportunities in 2022.
He made the AFL Fantasy world go crazy last year with his AAMI series performance with 29 disposals and a fantasy score of 135 from 66% time-on-ground. Unfortunately, this provided us with a false economy for Jordan Clark and his 2021 season didn’t live up to expectations.
Clark averaged 56.4 from 8 games in 2021, going at just 8 kicks, 7 handballs, 3 marks and 3 tackles per game. The biggest issue for Clark was he couldn’t stay in Geelong’s team and lock down a role. And when he did play he had low time-on-ground, averaging just 69% for 2021.
This season he should be looking to secure a permanent spot in Fremantle’s senior team. He should increase his time-on-ground as only two players averaged under 70% time-on-ground at Fremantle in 2021 (Bailey Banfield and Joel Western), so we should see a scoring bump from this instantly.
Despite what his numbers tell us, he does look like a fantasy type. He put up some good numbers in the backend of 2019 (his debut year) but has since struggled for the opportunity under Chris Scott.
There’s talk he’ll play on a half-back flank at Fremantle this season, which should suit him to a tee.
Keep an eye on him in the pre-season because the sky is the limit for this guy.
Liam Henry (F)
Henry hasn’t done a lot fantasy-wise to date. He only averaged 37.8 AFL Fantasy points last season, playing primarily as a small forward.
In fact, he only makes this article as there’s talk of him playing on a wing this season.
Throughout the offseason, Justin Longmuir has said that his strengths are more suited as a winger and he’ll get opportunities there this season.
Listed as a forward, Liam Henry could be a handy option.
Add him to your watch list this pre-season and see if he’s given this opportunity in the AAMI series.
Will Brodie (C,F)
Will Brodie is another new recruit for Fremantle coming across from Gold Coast.
He is a player that has always excited many after he averaged 88 AFL Fantasy points in 2019. People in fantasy circles thought he was going to be the next big thing. He was also given forward status too after that year, so it’s fair to say owners were pretty happy to have him on their lists.
Unfortunately for those owners he only averaged 56 and 51 AFL Fantasy points over the next two seasons. He couldn’t get a game under Stewart Dew, and when he did he was either played predominantly up forward or didn’t see much time on the ground.
He is another player who I think will see an immediate bump due to that time on ground factor mentioned above, but Justin Longmuir has said he plans to play him as an inside midfielder – the position he is most comfortable with.
In the worst-case scenario, I feel like he’s a good fit for a wing role at Fremantle too. They were playing James Aish there along with Adam Cerra (who left to Carlton), and Michael Frederick in patches last season.
Either way, Fremantle need another quality midfielder and he provides that.
Arguably the best thing about Will Brodie is his forward status. He’s worth the punt for this factor alone.
However, I think he’ll have a good season regardless and should average around the 80 mark if everything goes to plan. Worst case, he will be a forward who averages 70 which you’d take in a shallow pool.
Darcy Tucker
A few years ago, Darcy Tucker showed a lot of promise in the AFL Fantasy world.
He averaged 72.6 in 2019 and had some genuinely impressive games where he knocked up a few 100+ scores. He also had several other good scores in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
Ed Langdon left Fremantle after that season and everyone assumed Langdon would jump on the wing he vacated and become a reasonable scorer. However, Justin Longmuir came in as senior coach and recruited James Aish to play that role, leaving Tucker to play in defence.
He showed some good signs in 2020, but suffered a hamstring injury in the early part of the year and missed the rest of the season after requiring surgery. He played a similar role in 2021 but couldn’t find his groove.
There are reports that he’s raining with the midfield group again, and as I have said earlier, I think there’s a hole to fill on a wing at Fremantle. Hopefully, he can play a similar role to his 2019 season and continue his progressions as a midfielder.
Tucker is another player to monitor in the pre-season. There will be a bit of competition for midfield spots at Fremantle, but if he can lock one down he might be able to put up some handy scores listed as a defender.
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