SEN says it's Dusty.
Your club's best first year player of the last 20 yearsAndrew Slevison
SEN
29 April 2020Who is your club’s best first year performer of the last 20 years?
We’ve gone back through the history books of all 18 clubs to work out who had the most significant immediate impact.
For this list, we’re considering every single player regardless of age, so long as it was their first year in the AFL system. For example, Tim Kelly at Geelong counts despite being a mature-age recruit, but James Podsiadly would not count as he was originally drafted by Essendon in 1999.
We’re also basing this solely on performance in their first season. Career performance post season one is irrelevant, which is why you won’t see the likes of Patrick Cripps or Scott Pendlebury on this list.
All of these guys hit the ground running in their very first year in the AFL.
RICHMONDDustin Martin (2010)No surprises here.
Martin is one of Richmond’s top few players of the last two decades and it all started in his debut season back in 2010.
He amassed 425 disposals (third at the club) in 21 games (at 20.2), had the second most inside 50s, won the most clearances and picked up six Brownlow votes in a true sign of things to come.
Unfortunately, Martin was farcically ineligible for the Rising Star award even though he was not suspended but rather accepted a reprimand after he plead guilty to a high bump.
The Tigers were bang average, winning just six matches, but Dusty was the shining light.
Next best: We must not forget the debut season of
Brett Deledio.
He won the Rising Star award in 2005 and remains the only Tiger to do so. He played all 22 home-and-away games in which he averaged 15.3 disposals and kicked 14 goals.
The Tigers battled into 12th position with a 10-12 record but Deledio vindicated the club’s decision to select him with pick 1 in the 2004 draft.
Nick Vlastuin was impressive from day dot. In 2013 he played 18 games, gathered 294 disposals and won the Bill Cosgrove/Harry Jenkins award for best first year player, just like the two names above.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2020/04/29/your-clubs-best-first-year-player-of-the-last-20-years/
