The first XI of this year’s AFL retirees have a host of premierships and honours to their name, but as is often the case, it’s the key forwards who stand out above the rest.
If the AFL’s retiring class of 2023 was a high school cohort, Lance “Buddy” Franklin would be the valedictorian. Measured over their careers, Franklin is as far ahead of the next player as Sam Kerr in the Matildas in terms of on-field value.
But reticent Franklin would not be delivering the valedictorian’s speech for the class that’s graduating from playing into the real world.
Riewoldt’s ranking ahead of Naitanui and his triple-premiership teammate Cotchin is founded on the spearhead’s incredible value and consistency in a more difficult position. In ranking the departing class of 2023, it is striking that the West Coast Eagles did not extract as much from their club greats, in large part because of durability, compared with Richmond; West Coast arguably left a premiership on the table, which the Tigers grabbed in the 2017-2020 period.Buddy Franklin tops the class of 2023 retirees.An easy call. Buddy is the player of his generation, a unique figure in the game’s history and player who transformed the fortunes of clubs and the code.
Castagna’s career, while less discussed or heralded, warranted ranking ahead of others who’ve left the game, including the star-crossed 2014 No.1 draft pick Paddy McCartin, whose passage to Sydney from St Kilda saw him find his calling as a key defender, but the
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