Powerful Ruck Recruiting By Carlton
It wasn't that long ago when Port Adelaide had both Barnaby French and Cain Ackland. Number 31 and number 30 for the Power, they were behind the oft-injured pair of Lade and Primus in the ruck position. During those days the Power also had a former-NBL player on their list who was yet to play a game, Dean Brogan.
French and Ackland would depart the Power, Barnaby being traded to Carlton and Cain going to the Saints through the national draft. While Primus didn't play in the Power's premiership, both Lade and Brogan did and those two are still an outstanding ruck combo for the Power. So the Power did the right thing by sending out French and Ackland.
But French and Ackland also got opportunities with their new teams. French was a welcome addition to the height-starved Blues. He played a lot more with Carlton than he ever would with the Power. After joining the Saints, Ackland would be one of a number of ruckmen that St. Kilda would try. He did enough to get his career total past 50 games, he also led the Saints in total hitouts in 2006.
Barnaby retired and Carlton was left with McLaren and Bryan, and the first pick in the preseason draft. Gardiner was not going to be acceptable to some at Carlton, but the Saints were happy to have him. The expected return of a fully-recuperated Koschitzke was another thing that would affect Ackland's role. While it has been said that Ackland would not be delisted by the Saints, he decided to leave as he is a good chance to play every game for Carlton and if he had stayed with the Saints he was a good chance to be playing a lot at Casey Fields.
So while French and Ackland are both former Power ruckmen, some might think there is not a connection to Port Adelaide for Dylan McLaren. But just as French and Ackland had their careers changed due to the presence of Lade and Brogan, so too did McLaren. In the 2004 AFL Grand Final, McLaren got his chance on the big stage but was no match for Lade and Brogan.
One interesting note, if the Saints had kept Ackland they might have delisted Barry Brooks. Brooks, another former-Port Adelaide ruckman, would have then been a possible choice for Carlton in the preseason draft.
The Blues have said that the acquisition of Ackland won't change what they are doing in the national draft, but if they were thinking Gibbs or Leuenberger then logic says the chances for Gibbs at pick 1 just went up. That means Essendon are really on the clock now, not just for the national draft but also the preseason one.
French and Ackland would depart the Power, Barnaby being traded to Carlton and Cain going to the Saints through the national draft. While Primus didn't play in the Power's premiership, both Lade and Brogan did and those two are still an outstanding ruck combo for the Power. So the Power did the right thing by sending out French and Ackland.
But French and Ackland also got opportunities with their new teams. French was a welcome addition to the height-starved Blues. He played a lot more with Carlton than he ever would with the Power. After joining the Saints, Ackland would be one of a number of ruckmen that St. Kilda would try. He did enough to get his career total past 50 games, he also led the Saints in total hitouts in 2006.
Barnaby retired and Carlton was left with McLaren and Bryan, and the first pick in the preseason draft. Gardiner was not going to be acceptable to some at Carlton, but the Saints were happy to have him. The expected return of a fully-recuperated Koschitzke was another thing that would affect Ackland's role. While it has been said that Ackland would not be delisted by the Saints, he decided to leave as he is a good chance to play every game for Carlton and if he had stayed with the Saints he was a good chance to be playing a lot at Casey Fields.
So while French and Ackland are both former Power ruckmen, some might think there is not a connection to Port Adelaide for Dylan McLaren. But just as French and Ackland had their careers changed due to the presence of Lade and Brogan, so too did McLaren. In the 2004 AFL Grand Final, McLaren got his chance on the big stage but was no match for Lade and Brogan.
One interesting note, if the Saints had kept Ackland they might have delisted Barry Brooks. Brooks, another former-Port Adelaide ruckman, would have then been a possible choice for Carlton in the preseason draft.
The Blues have said that the acquisition of Ackland won't change what they are doing in the national draft, but if they were thinking Gibbs or Leuenberger then logic says the chances for Gibbs at pick 1 just went up. That means Essendon are really on the clock now, not just for the national draft but also the preseason one.
