After rupturing an ACL in round 1 last year, Alex Rance announced his retirement in the off season to spend more time with his family and his faith. The debate immediately began as to where Rance fits in the pantheon of all-time great defenders. At minimum, he was the best since Matthew Scarlett.
Rance into the west
After rupturing an ACL in round 1 last year, Alex Rance announced his retirement in the off season to spend more time with his family and his faith. The debate immediately began as to where Rance fits in the pantheon of all-time great defenders. At minimum, he was the best since Matthew Scarlett.
One chance to beat Rance
It took just two rounds last season for someone to figure out how to nullify Alex Rance: take him to the goalsquare and make him play back-shoulder instead of his preferred role in traffic. Josh Jenkins booted five that day, and that template was also used by Jordan De Goey to win the prelim. His tackle rate dropped by one to produce his worst fantasy average since 2010, significantly below the back baseline. Rance has been named multiple times at full back in the All-Australian side, so it was perhaps surprising that this tactic hadn't been tried before now. His speed off the mark on the lead is one area of his game where full forwards can beat him, as they usually can't when sitting under a high ball. He turns 30 after the season finishes, and won't be gaining a yard. He is best left to fantasy leagues with exotic scoring.
Alex Rance is the bedrock of the Richmond defence and, with David Astbury coming in under a cloud after some hospitalisation with an illness, he will probably be the key to the match. If the small Collingwood forwards can put him off his game, the Magpies go a long way towards winning. If Rance stands like a colossus like he did in last year's grand final, it's goodnight nurse.
Alex Rance has featured in the last four All-Australian teams and played CHB in the grand final last year, and is generally regarded as the best defender in the game. However, opposition analysts have dissected his game and decided that they will nail him to the goalsquare this season, dragging him away from much of the action and nullifying his intercept prowess. This has led to a drop off in his fantasy production, as while his quality has not diminished he has struggled to maintain quantity of involvements. This concerns his nearly 10% ownership in AFL Fantasy and AFL Supercoach.
The romance of Rance
They give most of the individual awards to midfielders in the AFL, but Alex Rance deserves something more than just a premiership medal. He dominated the MCG in the grand final as much as any CHB ever has, justifying his four consecutive All-Australian selections. Unfortunately, that game control doesn't flow through to basic stats, and his fantasy average dropped to baseline levels in 2017. Rance is still a gun in exotic scoring formats, and has been ever since his breakout in 2011. He had his worst mark average since before that time last season, as he stayed in his position a fair bit while others ran away from defensive 50 on the rebound. This puts his value in draft leagues at such a low point that he may only be drafted very late on name recognition only.
