Melbourne picked up Harley Bennell as a preseason supplemental player, only a week after he had pinged his calf while training with them. He has a long, long history of calf problems across two clubs, and it is an even longer time since he looked like a million dollars playing for Gold Coast. This is a desperation move by Melbourne, to be honest, as they think they have a free swing to see if they can navigate Bennell past the minefield of soft tissue injuries that have ruined his career. Odds are definitely on the downside of this one, and it would be a waste to even burn a flier on him.
Harley and those calves
Melbourne picked up Harley Bennell as a preseason supplemental player, only a week after he had pinged his calf while training with them. He has a long, long history of calf problems across two clubs, and it is an even longer time since he looked like a million dollars playing for Gold Coast. This is a desperation move by Melbourne, to be honest, as they think they have a free swing to see if they can navigate Bennell past the minefield of soft tissue injuries that have ruined his career. Odds are definitely on the downside of this one, and it would be a waste to even burn a flier on him.
Harley still in the shop
With a combination of off-field indiscretions and recurring calf problems, Harley Bennell has only played two senior matches for Fremantle since joining three years ago. His last four years at the Suns were impressively productive with an elite ceiling, including a career-high 156 plus eight scores of 120+. He was on modified training duties due to his injury history, but put together a solid block of training before Christmas. There are two reasons not to pick Bennell: he has not played a full season since 2012, and he’s probably one indiscretion away from a contract termination. If 2019 is finally the year he straightens up his career, Bennell is the ultimate high-risk, high-reward pick. If everything goes right he will be a steal with a late pick, but that is a seriously big if.
Rusty Harley
Against long odds, Harley Bennell was nursed through the WAFL and played the last two AFL games in 2017 after persistent calf problems (and behavioural setbacks) put him out for a year and a half. He has two seasons averaging 24 disposals on his CV from his five years at Gold Coast, where he was mostly a wingman, but played deep forward pocket for the Dockers. Even if Bennell overcomes yet another setback in preseason over his commitment, then the query over him is his role, as if Freo uses him in that same role as a replacement for the ageing Hayden Ballantyne then he's not going to be fantasy relevant. Centre rotations are the key to unlocking his worth, so if he looks fit and running through midfield, a flier pick is warranted.
