We like to cover off all areas of the AFL, here at The Mongrel Punt.
Rolling All-Australian Team? Check.
Wingman of the Year? Check.
Defensive Player of the Year? Check.
Rising Star? X-Factor Rankings? Player Ratings? Mongrel of the Year? Midfield and Ruck championships? Check, check, check, check, check, and check!
However, there was always one group of players that were missing out on assessment against their peers, and that group was the recruits. Which player was having the largest influence on their new clubs? How much of an impact does Adam Cerra have at the Blues compared to say… Robbie Tarrant at Richmond, or Hugh Greenwood at North Melbourne?
We all dream of the big recruit coming into the club we support and making a huge difference, but in 2021, it was blokes like Tom Hickey in Sydney, playing on his fourth team that made the largest impact – who will replicate his form in 2022?
Here at The Mongrel, we’re here to chart these players as the season progresses. Who will be the 2022 Recruit of the Year? Let’s jump in and see.
Will you look at that… you’ve hit our paywall. Yeah, I know it sucks, and really, I should just do everything for free all the time. But I don’t, and this is the second of six or seven members-only columns this week. Yep, you pay for the Footy Record, get 40 out of 60 pages full of ads and very little footy content – makes investing in The Mongrel look like a bargain. Want to join?
