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Shock horror - actually having to think about a captain this week adds a little bit of spice to Round 16. With a fair few top 8 teams playing each other, most of the games you'd assume would be pretty tight affairs - making captain selection pivotal this week.
So for the first time in 08 - barring Ablett - here's a run down of your likely options:
Adam Goodes
Against the Blues this week and likely to get some attention from..whoever their main taggers are - Gibbs, Bentick and co perhaps.. Goodes has been a model of consistency this year, having a plethora of games in the 100+ region. A good bet this week as your skipper however something to bear in mind is that traditionally Goodes hasn't been all that impressive in recent years despite the Blues' struggles. Averaging just under 80 against the Blues with a 90 last time they played, he'll cop a fair bit of attention but hey, in the SC form he's in - I'd happily put him as captain if I had him.
Luke Hodge
Taking on the Saints midfield, Hodge has been good in the last few weeks, sidling up to be in the top 5 midfielders-SC-price-wise. With his last 7 games played all seeing him get 100+, I reckon he's due for a big one, Ablett-esque. With a good record against the Saints, despite some of their matches being dour, hard-fought contests, Hodge is as good as any option this week. Averaging just around 100 with 112 and 87 in their last two meetings, its not a bad option.
Adam Cooney
Disappointing SC wise in the last few games - dropping off a bit but still in the top 5 average wise for SC mids - you can't really complain. However with the last two games failing to crack the ton - you'd be looking elsewhere - especially with the tight tussle anticipated against the Cats. Still, with Ling out and Ablett missing, Cooney may have more free reign to roam, meaning better SC scores. Cats have had it over the Dogs in recent times, including an absolute smashing last time they met late '07. With a shocking 18 (that's right) last time they played but 109 before that - CoonDog's a risk in my view.
Jimmy Bartel
Back in a little bit of SC form after dropping in value significantly over 08. Having said that, his actual stats have not been that far down from his 07 Charlie year, so make of that what you will. Boyd may go to him to go a tagging job considering there is no Ablett, so Jimmy may have a bit of a tough time, but tagging really doesn't seem to slow down the Geelong mids these days. With scores of 146 and 96 against the Dogs recently, straight swapping from one premium Geelong mid to another isn't that shabby an idea
Roo Riewoldt
Back in top gear after a bit of a downturn due to injury and poor team form, Riewoldt has come back into calculations as a premium forward captaincy option, especially considering the injury cloud that is over J Brown, and the indifferent and inconsistent scores from Pav and Buddy that have burned this year. Doing well against the Hawks backs, and an average of well over 100 against the Hawks, with a top score of 122 (last year), there are worse places to put your 'C'.
