Coinciding with this year’s 22Under22 concept, each voting fan had the chance to win the ultimate players’ prize pack awarded to the side that best resembled the final 22.
And we’re happy to announce that two fans were able to select 21 of the final 22 picked in 2016’s 22Under22 side.
Patrick Fisher and Andy Ringin are this year’s winners and they tell Aflplayers.com.au how they went about selecting their 2016 team.
Patrick Fisher – 22, Customer Service Advisor, Tasmania
Firstly, I’m also a Swans supporter so Callum Mills and Isaac Heeney were the first two guys picked in their respective positions.
I saw the link on Twitter and had a crack after work at making a team. I do it most years, especially the last couple of years.
It didn’t take me too long to make a side. It might have taken me around 10 or 20 minutes and I probably thought the forward line was the hardest to pick whereas the midfielders and defenders pretty much selected themselves.
That last spot — the forward position — on the bench was probably the hardest decision I made with the team. I figured the forward line was already so tall and full of marking power with Darcy Moore, Joe Daniher, Jesse Hogan and Jake Stringer, so I thought instead of someone similar like Tim Membrey, I’d go with Peter Wright who could also pinch-hit in the ruck. This proved to be the wrong move in the end.
Marcus Bontempelli was an obvious choice as captain and has skippered the Bulldogs already throughout the season when Bob Murphy and Easton Wood were out of the side.
I’d think he’d be the next captain of the Bulldogs. He’s an impressive footballer and leader in the way he goes about things.
Andy Ringin – 29, Sales Manager, Victoria
I follow AFLPA on Twitter, but my good mate MJ stirred me up to select a side as well. I also selected a team last year.
I watch the majority of games most weeks, listen to a lot of 1116SEN and read a fair bit. I didn’t look up any stats, but I play Supercoach, so had a pretty good idea on players and their numbers. I picked my side based on who I would want running out in a real game, and also tried to select players in their actual positions.
My only mistake was selecting Jack Macrae over Lachie Hunter. I based it on Macrae’s bulk of work over his last three or four seasons, but Hunter has no doubt had a better year this year out of the two.
Bontempelli obviously captained a winning side this year, and is no doubt the next captain of the Bulldogs. I’m a Carlton man, so would love to have selected Cripps as the skipper, but I think Bontempelli (as evidenced in last week’s final against the Hawks) could be one of the best players we’ve ever seen.
Being a Bluebagger, Cripps, Sam Docherty and Jacob Weitering were my first selected, and rightfully so. They all had great years, and Docherty was very unlucky not to be an All Australian half back.
So there you have it. To pick a 22Under22 team you need to watch a fair bit of the sport, pick with your heart and select a side that is most likely to go out and win you a game over the weekend.