Club
North Shore
Key players
While getting on in years, Ronald Wason continues to be one of the best leaders in AFL Sydney. In the modern era of swing men, Wason fits this mould and can be a rock in defence and a real target up forward if required. To compliment Wason this year is the key signing of Selby Lee-Steere. Arguably the most valuable player in the competition, Lee-Steere can play anywhere on the ground (2013 saw him play key forward, ruck, ruck rover and key back) in a similar mould to Roughead for Hawthorn. His transfer to the Bombers can be seen as a real coup for the club. While there are many other key players at North Shore, its hard to go past the diminutive Sam Carruthers as one of the men to watch in 2014. Carruthers went within 1 vote of claiming the Phelan Medal in 2013 and his early season form in particular was sparkling. If he can remain injury free this year he could well play a key role in taking the Bombers beyond the semi finals, and maybe even go one spot better in the League Best & Fairest. There are a few names in the inbound transfers which are of much interest also.
Star on the Rise
North Shore are another side blessed with an abundance of youth coming through the system. 2013 saw the Bombers blood a number of youngsters who will show immense benefit from this experience in 2014. Heading up this list is defender Daniel Schacher who is already proving to be one of the key defenders in the competition. Lachlan Hayres is another youngster with big wraps on him and will play a key role for the side when not on representative duties with the NSW/ACT Rams TAC Cup side. Throw in Matt Varjavandi and Jake Monk, not to mention the four other TAC Cup listed players and it looks like an exciting few years ahead for the Bombers.
Strengths
As mentioned above, the Bombers looks a very evenly balanced side with a great mix of quality experienced players with a nice blend of youngsters coming through and the side is well drilled under Jon Hayres. The strengths are everywhere for the Bombers. Names that could well be listed as key players above include the Fitzgerald and Davis brothers and Doug Hadden. They have recruited extremely well also and if anything look stronger on paper this year. Their list looks more than capable of being a huge chance this year but they will be hoping that Lady Luck looks on them more favourably in 2014 and they have a better run with injuries than last year.
Weaknesses
Last year the side probably struggled for an avenue to goal outside of veteran Daniel Roberts. Roberts enjoyed a champagne season where he finished the year in second position in the Stan Milton trophy with 58 snags. There was however only one other Bomber with more than 20 goals during the season (Jack Davis – 22 goals) so another target up front would be a big plus. The past two seasons the Bombers have exited the finals race early and while they will no doubt have learned from the experience, they really need to take the next step in the big games. The transfer of Jared Shattock is a big loss and he will be hard to replace in the middle.
Season defining month
Rounds 15 – 18
Its the back end of the season where the Bombers have struggled in the past two years so there will be no better guide to their finals chances than in the last month where they are on the road three of the four weeks. Round 15 they will take on Western Suburbs at Picken. The Magpies look a real contender so this will be a good test. They then travel to Village Green for a matchup against 2012 Premiers the Bulldogs before returning home to take on the also fancied Dragons. They round out the season with a trip to the heavily tipped Pennant Hills. The Demons bundled a depleted North Shore out of the finals last year and there will be no better time to send a message to their finals opposition than with a win here.
Notable Transfers
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INS
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Name
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Surname
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Association From
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Club From
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Selby
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Lee-Steere
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AFL Sydney
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Balmain
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James
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McKenzie
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AFL Sydney
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St Ignatius, Riverview
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Matthew
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Adamson
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AFL Sydney
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Illawarra Lions
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Cameron
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Holmes
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AFL Sydney
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Sydney University
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Jake
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Saunders
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AFL North Coast Seniors
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Sawtell/Toormina
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Scott
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McKay
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AFL Queensland
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Kedron AFC
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Ari
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Mitchell
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AFL Sydney
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UNSW/ES Bulldogs
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James
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Musial
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AFL Canberra
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AINSLIE FOOTBALL CLUB
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Todd
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Alexander
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Yorke Peninsula Football League
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WALLAROO
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Jackson
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Dwyer
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AFL Sydney
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Sydney Hills Eagles
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Jason
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Smith
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AFL Sydney
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Macquarie University
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Charlie
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Parsons
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South Australian Amateur Football League (SAAFL)
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Adelaide University
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Alex
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Kane
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Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA)
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St Bedes / Mentone Tigers AFC
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Edward
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Strudwick
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North East Australian Football League (NEAFL)
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Sydney Hills Eagles
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William
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Clarke
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Sapphire Coast AFL
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Bermagui FC
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Ryan
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Copping
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AFL Sydney
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Manly Warringah Wolves
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Joshua
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David-Wright
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AFL Sydney
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Illawarra Lions
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Matthew
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Clarke
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AFL Sydney
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Sydney University
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Predicted finish – 3rd
There have been varied opinions from the ‘prediction panel’ for the Bombers but there is agreement that they could be a genuine contender. Anything other than finals would be a huge disappointment but for mine the Bombers are one of the teams to beat this year. 2013 saw them hit their straps from Round 1 before fading away towards the end so we could well see a different approach this year to ensure that the side is fresh and firing at the business end of the season. A huge chance in 2014!
Last Modified on 21/03/2014 09:25
