Todd Goldstein was in the press this week saying that at the ripe old age of 34 he wants to keep playing at AFL level, despite being out of contract at season's end. He has played a forward/ruck role when younger conveyances have been fit at North this year, with first Tristan Xerri and then Callum Coleman-Jones joining him in ruck tandems. Does Goldie have any useful role to play in draft leagues, if he gets picked up by a finals contender next season? He is a spot start at best when given lead ruck duties, which makes him hard to burn a roster spot on.
Todd Goldstein was in the press this week saying that at the ripe old age of 34 he wants to keep playing at AFL level, despite being out of contract at season's end. He has played a forward/ruck role when younger conveyances have been fit at North this year, with first Tristan Xerri and then Callum Coleman-Jones joining him in ruck tandems. Does Goldie have any useful role to play in draft leagues, if he gets picked up by a finals contender next season? He is a spot start at best when given lead ruck duties, which makes him hard to burn a roster spot on.
Todd Goldstein keeps on defying age to post valuable fantasy scores for his owners, producing at elite levels long past the point where you would expect them, especially in keeper draft leagues. He has arguably the best all around ruck game in the comp, shading Brodie Grundy in pure ruck craft and more than holding his own in work around the ground, with a scoring floor higher than the more highly-touted Pie beanpole. He is a POD in salary cap competitions who may be able to emulate the Grawndy duo against weaker opposition, like Marc Pittonet today.
Goldstein not mined out yet
While his 2019 fantasy averages were five points less than the year before and 25 off his 2015 peak, Todd Goldstein still pumped out some elite numbers at the ruck position. It is no slight on him to point out that his rates were 80% of Brodie Grundy's in most key stats, as the Pie is flying at stratospheric levels and four-fifths of that is still a very handy player. Goldstein has very little in the way of back ups on the list, with two raw kids plus Tom Campbell toiling behind him at lower levels, and no prospects of any tandem work on the horizon. Perhaps it's a bad thing that there's no useful Goldie handcuff for fantasy, as he will turn 32 during 2020 and to draft him represents some risk. Probably a draft slider due to age, unfairly so.
Lucky strike for Goldie
The good news for Todd Goldstein is he no longer has Braydon Preuss breathing down his neck, and at 30 he should be entering his prime ruck years. It had been three seasons since we’d seen his best, though the second half of last year resembled what we saw from him in 2015 with 20 disposal, 40+ hit out games more commonplace for him. In 2019, Goldstein shapes as a safe early ruck pick as the club doesn't have much in the way of options to turn to, and there is a case to be made that he has finally overcome some niggling injuries to regain his old form. He is a good scorer, has no competition for his spot, is durable and still holds the possibility of returning to his peak as an elite scorer.
Goldie mined out
Most other rucks lifted their numbers in 2017 due to the removal of third men up, but Todd Goldstein continued his slide down the cliff that started last year to end up averaging 27 fantasy points less than his 2015 peak with a drop in hit outs of a massive 15. He was outrucked 49 to 25 by Tom Campbell in the one-point loss to the Dogs. Much speculation in the off season centred around the lack of trade value in Goldstein now that it looks very much like he is over the hill. Worse than that, Braydon Preuss looks a ready-made replacement, so Goldie may spend more time at the new North VFL side than in the ones. He may not even be drafted in your league at all.
