Some players are fulcrums for their sides, instrumental in wins and vital to the team's success. Steven Motlop was the opposite kind of player in 2020, with a fantasy average nearly 20 points better in wins with six of his seven goals in victories. That sort of pattern can be forgiven if your floor is sufficiently high but he was dropped twice during 2019, both after anonymous performances against Richmond. Perhaps the timing of those selection decisions is a reflection of how different Motlop's style is to that of the hard-tackling Tiger small forwards, a contrast made all the more stark in their direct match ups. Motlop is from the old Geelong school, a cream player who looks great in a good team but can fail to contribute when the tide is flowing the other way. That is not what Port needs right now, and neither do you.
Easy to get on top of Motlop
Some players are fulcrums for their sides, instrumental in wins and vital to the team's success. Steven Motlop was the opposite kind of player in 2020, with a fantasy average nearly 20 points better in wins with six of his seven goals in victories. That sort of pattern can be forgiven if your floor is sufficiently high but he was dropped twice during 2019, both after anonymous performances against Richmond. Perhaps the timing of those selection decisions is a reflection of how different Motlop's style is to that of the hard-tackling Tiger small forwards, a contrast made all the more stark in their direct match ups. Motlop is from the old Geelong school, a cream player who looks great in a good team but can fail to contribute when the tide is flowing the other way. That is not what Port needs right now, and neither do you.
One of the Motlop crew
Whatever Port thought they were buying when they picked up Steven Motlop last off season, they got almost exactly the same sort of numbers as his last year at Geelong: hitting 20 disposals less than half time, plus the odd goal. Five of his 11 goals came in the first three rounds, down from 19 in 2017, highlighting a move up the ground to a wing. On the plus side, one of those majors was the last-minute winner in the first Showdown. With Cyril Rioli no longer in the league, Motlop is vying with Shane Edwards for the title of player whose worth is most widely valued by pundits far beyond his basic statistics. That endless argument doesn't interest fantasy coaches in standard scoring leagues, who just want the raw numbers. They are unlikely to get it on anything like a consistent basis from Motlop, who may even move forward again to further drop his scoring.
More pop needed by Motlop
In his last of eight years at Geelong, Steven Motlop started deeper in the forward line and stayed there to deliver his worst set of numbers since his breakout season of 2012, without compensating for it by hitting the scoreboard for more than a goal per game. He had the biggest handball average of his career, with a ratio shifting from 14:6 to 11:8. That last stat suggests that Motlop has lost a yard of pace and he did miss two games late with a groin complaint that was described as nagging, though he could still burn up the turf on occasion. Someone in your draft will pick him late on name recognition, though he has both upside from memories of past glories and downside on those soft tissue problems.
