Fremantle and Richmond have named their squads for Friday’s NAB Challenge match at Rushton Park
Fremantle v Richmond, Rushton Park
Friday 19 February at 4.10pm AWST
FREMANTLE
1. Hayden Ballantyne, 3. Zac Dawson, 5. Garrick Ibbotson, 6. Danyle Pearce, 7. Nat Fyfe, 8. Nick Suban, 9. Matt de Boer, 10. Michael Walters, 11. Tommy Sheridan, 12. Jonathon Griffin, 13. Tendai Mzungu, 14. Lachie Weller, 16. David Mundy, 18. Darcy Tucker, 19. Connor Blakely, 20. Matt Taberner, 21. Michael Barlow, 23. Chris Mayne, 27. Lachie Neale, 28. Brady Grey, 29. Matthew Pavlich, 31. Aaron Sandilands, 32. Stephen Hill, 33. Cameron Sutcliffe, 34. Lee Spurr, 36. Alex Silvagni, 38. Jack Hannath, 40. Sam Collins, 46. Clancee Pearce.
RICHMOND
1. Nick Vlastuin, 5. Brandon Ellis, 6. Shaun Grigg, 7. Ben Lennon, 11. Jack Batchelor, 12. David Astbury, 17. Daniel Rioli, 21. Jacob Townsend, 23. Kane Lambert, 24. Ben Griffiths, 25. Troy Chaplin, 27. Sam Lloyd, 29. Ty Vickery, 30. Reece Conca, 31. Oleg Markov, 32. Corey Ellis, 33. Kamdyn McIntosh, 34. Liam McBean, 35. Nathan Broad, 36. Callum Moore, 37. Connor Menadue, 38. Steven Morris, 40. Dan Butler, 41. Mobior Chol, 43. Todd Elton, 44. Adam Marcon, 45. Jayden Short, 46. Jason Castagna, 47. Ivan Soldo.
Five talking points
- Nat Fyfe – fit and firing despite back concerns! “He’s had a full summer and he’s back early so it couldn’t have been too bad,” Coach Ross Lyon said.
- Richmond draftees Daniel Rioli, Oleg Markov, Nathan Broad, Callum Moore, Mabior Choi and mature-age recruit Adam Marcon could all debut in the yellow and black
- Richmond have a good record playing at Patterson’s Stadium (Old Subiaco) but have never played at Rushton Park, Mandurah which is the home ground of the WAFL’s Peel Thunder. The ground has a capacity of 10,000 people and is a hell of a long way from Punt Road!
- Rugged Tiger defender Nick Vlaustin will captain the side in Trent Cotchin’s absence. Is this a sign he’s in for plenty of playing time?
- From a DFS stand point the Tigers seemed to be the team with the most potential upside with key players Trent Cotchin, Jack Riewoldt, Brett Deledio, Alex Rance and Dustin Martin all not playing there are a lot of goals and possessions up for grabs that the Moneyball prices have not accounted for.
Consider these guys for your Moneyball contests
Ben Lennon (Richmond) $4,600
Lennon was brutally unlucky to be left out of Richmond’s finals loss to the Kangaroos last season. Hardwick learnt the hard way and expect Lennon to be a permanent fixture across half forward for the Tigers this year. He’s fit and could be the player that bobs up and kicks a mini-bag of goals.
Nick Vlaustin (Richmond) $5,100
Vlaustin fits the term ‘hard as a cats head’ better than almost anyone in the AFL. He gets to captain the side this weekend and despite it being a NAB Challenge match he will be eager to make a big impression. A natural leader who makes great decisions with the Football. Vlaustin’s now had a few preseasons under his belt, expect more drive off the backline from him this year and more fantasy points!
Sam Collins (Fremantle) $3,500
Collins is a mature aged recruit who should be ready to make an impact right from the word go. Dubbed ‘the man you can count on’ by his former VFL club the Box Hill Hawks Collins can play at either end of the ground and as mentioned has had a few years in a semi-professional environment that gives him the leg up on some of the guys fresh out of the AFL draft. At $3,500 he’s worth a throw at the stumps!
