Nick Blakey is the Swiss-Army knife every coach swears they need, and every opposition coach quietly circles in red texta before the bounce
At 25, he’s already played 150 games, spent time on every line, been named All-Australian, and still somehow feels like the piece that never quite fits. That’s the harsh truth heading into 2026: for all the athletic brilliance, his greatest strength doubles as a weakness.
Blakey’s versatility makes him “undroppable” but is continually placing him in situations where his strengths are being underutilised, and his weaknesses exploited.
The numbers are flattering.
Blakey averaged 21.4 disposals and 557 metres gained in 2025, elite for a half-back flanker. He can drift forward and kick three, play key defence, carve a team up through the guts, or be the main rebounder as the Swans transition the footy.
And in a way, that’s the rub.
Because Blakey can do a bit of everything well, he has not settled into one role. He has been asked to do everything – unfortuately this includes being the victim of mismatches as a key defender – when doing one or two things brilliantly, would likely be enough.
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