TOPIC:

With the Bye this week its a good chance to review how the players have been going individually this year. Without doubt the strength of the SDFC in 2014 is the team ethos and the mix of experience and youth but in the middle of this many individuals have had good seasons. Here is my rating out of 10 for each of the 29 players who have represented the club so far this season;

Tallan AMES (12 games 8/10) Nearly 90% of his kicks and handballs go to a teammate!
Aidan ANDERSON (10 games 7/10) Very promising, heaps of pace and poise
Connor BLAKELY (8 games 7/10) Like Anderson a top draft prospect
Nathan BLAKELY (14 games 8/10) has carried the ruck this season. Good around the ground too
Jarrad BLIGHT (11 games 6/10) Solid defender, generally does his job
Blaine BOEKHORST (14 games 8/10) pace to burn, more consistent this season
Nathan BROAD (6 games 4/10) has appeared a little out of his depth but deserves
further opportunities
Jacob BURNHAM (4 games 5/10) has looked really comfortable and will play more regularly later in the season
Ricky CARY( 14 games 7/10) a real find, great leap and an accurate kick
Travis CASSERLY (8 games 5/10) was going pretty well until injured
Jason DANIELS (1 game) Did OK in his only game
Ryan DAVIS (14 games 9/10) Outstanding. The barometer of the team. Swan Medal favourite IMO
Aaron ELARI (14 games 8/10) Real gutsy player. Never stops trying
Adam FAULKNER (13 games 7/10) ditto to Elari. Turnovers can sometimes hurt him
Tim GEAPPEN (13 games 7/10) classy player. So glad he reversed his retirement decision. Will be critical in the finals
Laurence GRESCOS (7 games 6/10) has slotted in nicely in defence
Alex HOWARD (14 games 8/10) outstanding young player,reads the play very well
Brandon JETTA (7 games 5/10) showed a lot of dash in early games but has been injured
Graham JETTA (13 games 7/10) crucial part of an excellent defensive structure
Matthew JUKES (14 games 6/10) a bit hot and cold but has been brilliant in some games
Joshua KIRKUP ( 4 games 4/10) has shown enough to deserve further opportunities
Brent LATCH (13 games 4/10) seems to lack confidence but I think he has the ability to play league
Jesse MANTON (7 games 5/10) clever player, just needs to find a bit more consistency
Tony NOTTE (14 games 7/10) has been OK and played a number of roles in the team but is certainly not in the Swan Medal form of 2013
Rudy RIDDOCH ( 3 games 4/10) limited opportunities but has competed well in the games he has played
Matt RIGGIO (14 games 8/10) Has been very consistent, another Swan medal contender
Matthew ROGERS (14 games 8/10) Best field kicker in the team. Keeps the pressure on the opposition
Justin SIMPSON (14 games 9/10) versatile player who has been ultra consistent this year
Kirk UGLE (14 games 8/10) Has been far more at ease in his defensive midfield role this year as opposed to being up forward in 2013

The coach Greg Harding scores a 9/10 in my book. His tactics, enthusiasm and belief in his players has inspired everybody including the supporters

Pretty good summation of the season so far Mike, a couple of players I would have different ratings for but not too different from your account.

Swans have 6 games to go and I figure they would need to win at least 4 of these to have a chance to hold on to the double chance. Subiaco are one game behind us but have a better percentage and the Sharks are 2 games behind with a considerably lower percentage. In the last 6 rounds, Swans play the following

Claremont (A) - Tricky one
Perth (H)
West Perth (A)
East Perth (H) - big game
South Freo (H)
East Freo (A)

So if Swans can win the games against the teams outside the four and maybe pinch one of the games against the teams in the four they should be OK

Subiaco play

Perth (H)
South Freo(A)
East Perth (A)
Claremont (H)
South Freo (A)
East Freo(H)

4 of their last 6 games are at Medibank Stadium and their other two games are at Fremantle Oval ( interesting fixturing!) They would fancy their chances of winning all these games and grabbing 2nd spot


East Fremantle play

Peel (H)
Claremont (A)
South Freo (H)
West Perth (A)
Swans(H)
Subiaco(A)

They would fancy their chances of winning the first 4 so their position on the ladder will be determined by the last two games.

All this is based on the assumption that East Perth will finish on top and they should do unless Subiaco and Swans both beat them but even if this happens they still have the largest percentage so that will be an advantage if they finish equal on points with another team.

IMO The big battle will be between the three G7 clubs for 2nd spot and the double chance or 3rd spot and a home final.