Carrazzo fit, no sweat

Carlton insist Andrew Carrazzo will play. Picture: Wayne Ludbey Source: Herald Sun

CARLTON insists there's nothing sinister about midfielder Andrew Carrazzo missing yesterday's final training session.

"He's fine. He will be there," Blues football manager Andrew McKay said.

Carrazzo was the only absentee from the 25-man squad named to play Richmond at the MCG tonight.

McKay said the vice-captain often didn't join the last workout on the day before a game.

"He has had a heavy workload in the pre-season and the sports science people keep a watch on that," he said.

The decision to rest Carrazzo seemed strange because the players barely raised a sweat during the leisurely 30-minute run-around at Visy Park.

Carlton's young key forward Sam Rowe is also listed as an emergency.

Coach Mick Malthouse was glowing in his praise for Rowe, who fought back from testicular cancer last season to rejuvenate his career.

"He's an intelligent young man who has been through a lot," Malthouse said.

"He will play a lot of football, I believe, because he has got an ingredient that's exactly what you want. He's a massive contester.

"He wants to play good football. He has been through a journey and he has tasted enough of floating around and has overcome a change of clubs. And now, of course, I suppose, a scare.

"And he's one of those players who's very easy to coach because he has got massive ambition. When you've got that, you virtually coach yourself."

Richmond named experienced defender Troy Chaplin, who joined the Tigers during the free agency period following nine seasons with Port Adelaide.

Nick Vlastuin, the Tigers' first-round draft pick, was named among the emergencies.

Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said former Port Adelaide backman Chaplin would add defensive steel.

"He's a very good player, but he's also got outstanding leadership qualities," Hardwick said on the club's website.

"He will further help guys such as Alex Rance, Ben Griffiths, Jake Batchelor, all these types of players around him."

The Tigers are missing defenders Dylan Grimes and David Astbury, along with midfielder Nathan Foley through injury.

They decided against giving a Richmond debut to AFL-experienced recruits Aaron Edwards (from North Melbourne) and Chris Knights (Adelaide).

with AAP

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Steven Baker cops life ban

Former St Kilda hard man Steven Baker has been banned from playing football for life.

Former St Kilda hard man Steven Baker. Picture: Nicole Garmston Source: Herald Sun

FORMER St Kilda hard man Steven Baker has been banned from playing football for life.

Baker was last night found guilty of unduly rough conduct by the Mornington Peninsula Football League after just one practice match with new club Sorrento.

Baker, who played 203 games for the Saints, was called before the MPNFL tribunal after an incident that left Red Hill player Blake Thompson with a broken jaw on March 9.

The former AFL tagger was found not guilty of striking and not guilty of charging, but was found guilty of a rough conduct charge despite a lack of video evidence. The three field umpires also told the hearing they didn't see anything.

Baker is strongly protesting his innocence and is understood to be shattered by the decision. He last night told the tribunal it was the only time in his career that he wished he had been caught on camera.

"I ran to intercept the Red Hill ball carrier, but a couple of seconds before I got there I noticed another Red Hill player (Thompson) was moving to shepherd his ball carrier,'' Baker said in his statement.

"I braced myself and we made contact. We clashed heads and we both went to ground. I did not raise my arm or fist.''

Baker was given a six-week suspension, but because that ban took him beyond a nationwide 16-week career suspension limit he was told he coudn't play football again at any level.

Baker was suspended for a total of 28 weeks in his controversial AFL career, but that total is halved at amateur level - placing him on a career total of 14 weeks when he joined Sorrento.

Baker copped several big suspensions during his time at St Kilda, including a seven-match ban for striking Fremantle forward Jeff Farmer and a nine-match ban on four separate charges after a stoush with Geelong's Steve Johnson in 2010.

Sorrento has already lodged an appeal.

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Who is your Most Important Player?

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Scott Pendlebury is one of the best players in the AFL. But is he the most important player at Collingwood? Picture: Wayne Ludbey. Source: Herald Sun

WHO is the player your club could least afford to lose?

Here is your chance to vote for the most important player on every team's list.

Keep in mind that "most important" and "best" aren't necessarily the same thing.

While you could make a good case that Gold Coast would be in huge trouble if Gary Ablett wasn't in the side, it isn't so clear-cut when it comes to the likes of Scott Pendlebury or Chris Judd.

Those guys are genuine stars, but how crucial are they to their team's fortunes?

The answer comes down to the role they play in the side - and that word you hear so often from coaches: "structure".

When Pendlebury broke his leg in Round 10 last season, the Magpies didn't rush him back - because they didn't want to risk one of their best players, and also because they had plenty more midfielders who could do his job while he was out. The Pies lost just one of the five matches Pendles missed.

Covering Nick Maxwell in defence isn't so easy. He has three career Brownlow votes (compared to Pendlebury's 81), but of the five matches he was missed last season through injury and suspension, Collingwood won two and lost the other three.

So who gets your vote?

Another way to look at it is to consider opposition teams - which player would you like to be missing when they play your side?

Have your say on every club by clicking the team logo on the interactive above.

Read our quick profiles of the four candidates for each team selected by SuperFooty writers and click on the green button to cast your vote - then see how your vote compares to all the other SuperFooty readers.

We may have got some wrong. If we have, feel free to leave a comment in the box below.

So tell us, who is each club's Most Important Player?

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Chappy to make Tigers debut

Shane Crawford reveals his bargain ruck strategy and why Brett Deledio is a better SuperCoach pick than Trent Cotchin

Troy Chaplin at Richmond training. Source: Getty Images

FORMER Port Adelaide defender Troy Chaplin will be the only new face when Richmond and Carlton face off at the MCG tonight.

Chaplin was picked up by the Tigers as a free agent at the end of last season. The 27-year-old played 140 matches for Port.

"He's a very good player, but he's also got outstanding leadership qualities and will further help guys such as Alex Rance, Ben Griffiths, Jake Batchelor, all these types of players around him," Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said.

Another free agent Chris Knights was named as an emergency, while former Demon Ricky Petterd was ruled out by groin soreness.

The Tigers' first round draft pick Nick Vlastuin is also an emergency.

Carlton couldn't find a spot for forward Sam Rowe, who was pushing for selection after recovering from testicular cancer.

The Blues also left out experienced defender Jeremy Laidler.

Both have been named as emergencies.

TEAMS

Carlton
B: Chris Yarran, Michael Jamison, Lachie Henderson
HB: Zach Tuohy, Nick Duigan, Bryce Gibbs
C: Kade Simpson, Andrew Carrazzo, Mitch Robinson
HF: Chris Judd, Andrew Walker, Jeff Garlett
F: Eddie Betts, Levi Casboult, Shaun Hampson
R: Matthew Kreuzer, Marc Murphy, Brock McLean
Inter: Dennis Armfield, Josh Bootsma, Aaron Joseph, Kane Lucas
Emerg: Tom Bell, Jeremy Laidler, Sam Rowe

Richmond
B: Steve Morris, Alex Rance, Troy Chaplin
HB: Jake Batchelor, Chris Newman, Bachar Houli
C: Shaun Grigg, Trent Cotchin, Reece Conca
HF: Brett Deledio, Shane Edwards, Daniel Jackson
F: Luke McGuane, Jack Riewoldt, Robin Nahas
R: Ivan Maric, Dustin Martin, Shane Tuck
Inter: Ben Griffiths, Jake King, Tyrone Vickery, Brendon Ellis
Emerg: Matt White, Nick Vlastuin, Chris Knights

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Buddy on straight and arrow

Hawthorn superstar Lance Franklin. Picture: Daniel Wilkins Source: PerthNow

HAWTHORN star Lance Franklin has unveiled a revamped set-shot routine after his costly Grand Final performance.

The dynamic Franklin was Hawthorn's best player alongside Brad Sewell but his lack of accuracy was a key factor in the Hawks' loss.

He kicked 3.4 and a shot out of bounds just before halftime, with his confidence in his set-shot action falling away badly.

He played on at all costs - even from directly in front of goal - and badly hooked a set shot in the last quarter that would have put Hawthorn 17 points up.

For many years Franklin's routine has featured a sudden diversion to the left or an arcing run before he kicks at goal across his body.

This pre-season Franklin has noticeably bent further over the ball with a less free-flowing run up, with no sign of the hard cut to the left.

Franklin still drifts fractionally left but he looks to be kicking straight through the ball rather than across it.

Hawthorn is adamant there has been no deliberate revamp but a video comparison from last season shows a clear difference.

Hawthorn legend Shane Crawford said improved conversion for Franklin was the difference between "the ultimate success for Hawthorn and making up the numbers".

"I have noticed he is running straighter at goal and it will be interesting to see if it works," he said.

"Everyone has a different way of kicking the football and you work with them, you don't try to totally change them.

"But he averages something like nine shots at goal a game. If he can get himself converting at a better rate, that's enormous.

"It becomes two or three goals a game. He becomes a hundred-goal-per-season kicker again, and it's the difference between winning and losing close games."

The obsession with Franklin's run-up would be trivial and obsessive if it were not so important.

His Grand Final performance was mighty, with two bombs from 50m on Ted Richards as well as another goal on the run.

But Franklin was joined by Jarryd Roughead (0.3), Sewell (0.2) as players who did not seize the day in front of goal.

Sewell, who missed two snaps in the final moments, spoke later about missed opportunities.

"We have had a good year but we lacked a bit of polish today. We ended up kicking 11.15 and that's the story at the end of the game - they kicked straight and we didn't," Sewell said.

Franklin has kicked an amazing 520.385 (905 scoring shots) in his eight years of football, not including shots at goal that did not score.

But after an encouraging 82.61 in 2011, he kicked 69.64 last year at a conversion rate of 52 per cent, excluding shots out of bounds.

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Roos are now believers

North Melbourne's Andrew Swallow is one of best tacklers in the game. Picture: George Salpigtidis Source: Herald Sun

NORTH Melbourne captain Andrew Swallow says the confidence gained from beating Collingwood late last season will help the club in Sunday's Round 1 clash at Etihad Stadium.

The Kangaroos broke a four-game losing streak to the Magpies in Round 21 last season which helped propel them into the finals for the first time since 2008.

Swallow hopes the lessons of last August and a growing maturity from the North Melbourne side can get the Roos off to a perfect start on Sunday.

"Look, it's a new season, so anything can happen, but hopefully the confidence we got out of beating Collingwood last year will help us," Swallow said.

"We hadn't beaten them for a long time and we had struggled at times against the top four sides.

"But you get confidence out of knowing we matched it with them last year and we know we have improved from that.

"It probably doesn't get much bigger for us than taking on Collingwood in Round 1."

Swallow said North Melbourne had learnt lessons from the 96-point loss to West Coast in last year's elimination final.

"I think we were just so happy to get there (the finals), even though it was a shock to end up with a result like that," he said.

Swallow can't wait to get started on his second home-and-away season as North captain, saying the experiences of 2012 taught him a lot about the position.

"When you are given a role such as that, you want to make sure you are leading from the front," he said.

"I spent a lot of time thinking about how the group was, and probably spent less time on myself, so the fact that I managed to be really consistent was good."
 

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Hired gun in praise of Pies

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley. Source: Getty Images

THE man hired by Collingwood to help drive a cultural shift says he is highly encouraged by the club's off-season progress.

Leading Teams boss Ray McLean is credited with honing Sydney's "Bloods" culture, and was called upon by Pies coach Nathan Buckley to help arrest slipping standards.

Leading Teams is also working with Fremantle and the Swans this year, and will have input at Hawthorn.

The Pies have sanctioned several players for minor incidents this year including Travis Cloke for repeatedly parking in CEO Gary Pert's carpark and Dane Swan for an unauthorised TV interview.

McLean says clubs that embrace honest feedback and set rigid goals can reap the benefits.

"I think Nathan is just driven to find any way he can to improve the team," McLean said.

"He is a strong believer in empowering the players and my take on it was he wanted assistance with that.

"Perhaps the capacity of the players to be rigorous with one another, they realised that had dropped away.

"And they have really improved that in a short time."

The company's philosophy also caters for left-field personalities like Matthew Scarlett and Dane Swan.

"Those blokes bring you rigour. They challenge you.

"There are also people who will influence the group almost exclusively through performance."

McLean says the peer assessment element of Leading Teams heavily criticised by sacked Bulldog Jason Akermanis is overblown and only a minor part of the company's role.

But if players at any club are not willing to confront each other about standards, he does not believe teams maximise their potential.

It is that potential to improve on-field that has seen influential players, including Scarlett, buy into the Leading Teams philosophy.

"The most important thing we are about is growing high performance," McLean says.

"If you are going to be a high-performance team, you will have very clear rules around your behaviour and be prepared to grow really strong relationships between key people, and you will have much more open dialogue than can happen in some players."

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Stevie J back in two weeks

Geelong star Steve Johnson will miss the start of the season. Source: Getty Images

GEELONG'S Steve Johnson says he expects to be back in two weeks after undergoing surgery on his troublesome left knee.

The Cats star, who is suspended for Monday's blockbuster clash with Hawthorn at the MCG, had knee arthroscopy this week.

The decision was made in the long-term interest of both Johnson and the club this year.

Johnson's problems stem from the knee injury suffered in the 2011 preliminary final.

Despite looking like he would miss the premiership decider, he got up to star in the grand final win over Collingwood.

But it has come at a price, revealing he had managed the injury all through last year.

"There have been a few problems with his knee, which have been around for about two years," he told the Nine Network's Footy Show last night.

"It has just come to a point where I am sick of waiting for it to settle down after each match.

"I had a small incident last week where it got a little sore and didn't settle.

"We just had to make a decisive decision to get it right knowing I can't play next week and I don't want to be chasing it all year."

The Geelong forward said he was optimistic he would return in no time.

"He didn't give me a definitive time frame, but he said he was surprised how good a shape the knee was in," he said.

"I can walk around fine now and there wasn't much to the operation.

"Hopefully only a few weeks."

The Cats enter Round 1 with several big names on the injury list, most of them ruckmen.

The club announced this week it had promoted young talls Mark Blicavs and Josh Walker from the rookie list.

Geelong's Round 1 opponent Hawthorn also this week placed knee victims Matt Suckling and Alex Woodward on the long-term injury list.

No replacements have been named at this stage.

The Barometer: Updated injury list for every club

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Suns, Giants need work

AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou at Metricon Stadium with Suns Coach Guy McKenna and Suns CEO Travis Auld this week. Picture: Richard Gosling Source: Gold Coast Bulletin

AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou says the expansion clubs are his top focus this season, with regular reviews of Greater Western Sydney and Gold Coast in place.

Demetriou hoped a 30,000 crowd would be at ANZ Stadium on Saturday for the clash between Sydney and the Giants, but he was prepared for a smaller turnout.

"The key drivers of our strategy going forward are without doubt making sure we continue to monitor the expansion clubs," he said.

"The job's not even one-third done there. We've established the teams, but there's a hell of a lot of work to go on.

"We're going to work with the two clubs to make sure they are given every opportunity to succeed."

In a Fox Sports News interview, Demetriou said the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority investigation into Essendon had damaged the reputation of those involved.

"It's a serious issue. They're dealing with it. Everyone would like them to deal with it more expeditiously but that is not to be, so we accept the way it is," he said.

"I think the issues of damage to people and to brand and to reputations is something that is very, very unfortunate.

"It's impossible to quantify the long-term damage that that may cause if something wasn't to eventuate and I'm sure there'll be ramifications if nothing's turned up."

Demetriou said:

THE league would have to look at starting next season earlier.

EQUALISATION was a priority with a "need to bridge that gap" between clubs.

THE league had closely consulted players and coaches about the controversial interchange rotation cap.

SYDNEY'S cost of living allowance was under review.

"It was reviewed about three years ago and it was justified," Demetriou said.

"I don't think the Sydney Swans won the premiership last year because they had a cost-of-living allowance."

He said Hawthorn free agent Lance Franklin would be welcomed at any club.

"He's doing what players of his ilk do in the last year of their contract, he's milking it," he said. "Making it sound like he hasn't decided ... he'll probably extract a few more dollars out of it and good luck to him."
 

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We're not too old, says Watters

St Kilda coach Scott Watters. Picture: George Salpigtidis Source: Herald Sun

ST KILDA coach Scott Watters denies emphatically his side is too old.

And despite having a raft of players with fewer than 25 games to their names, Watters also insists the Saints are not too inexperienced.

He does admit there is an age gap at Seaford and, in his second year as coach, Watters has the second-oldest list in the AFL at his disposal.

Six players on the Saints senior list are over 30 (the equal most of any club) and five players have played more than 200 games (also an AFL high).

But at the other end of the scale, the club has a lot of kids who are yet to play many games.

"Twenty-six of our 45 players are under 23 years of age and 60 per cent of our list have played less than 50 games of football," Watters said.

"So you've got to be careful, stats can be quite misleading.

"How do we handle it?

"We're really fortunate to have six or seven experienced players that are really good role models, terrific mentors.

"We're a better club for having those players involved so we really promote the interaction between those players and the younger group that, for many of them, have just arrived on the doorstep."

Three players in the 50 to 99-game bracket - David Armitage, Ben McEvoy and James Gwilt - are key to the team's development, Watters said. "Those sorts of players really need to stand up," he said.

"And we need to really quickly push through the likes of Ahmed Saad, Terry Milera, Arryn Siposs - some of those guys that played games and got a great taste of senior footy last year."

The Saints went from scoring an average of 84.3 points a game in 2011 to being the fourth highest-scoring team in the AFL last year with an average 106.7, but the defence lagged.

In 2011, the club conceded an average of 76.1 points a game, but in 2012 that blew out to 86.5.

Watters said the club was working on balance.

"You can't really train one without the other, offence and defence are the virtual yin and yang of the game," he said.

"It's not like all of a sudden you go out and say: 'We're just going to train defensively'.

"Your ball movement sets up your defence and the quality of your defence impacts on your ability to provide good offence, so you're always training both."
 

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