Tom Mitchell is some pundits' pick to take control of tonight's final, as one of the senior leaders in a side full of younger conveyances even though he hasn't been a Magpie for long. He was dropped during the late states of the home & away season after dropping away in form, and his age and injury history suggests this may turn into a permanent trend line. He is a Brownlow Medallist after all, and games like this are exactly what he was recruited for. A wet track will suit him to slow the game down and turn it into a contested scrap. Your time to shine, Titchell.
Tom Mitchell is some pundits' pick to take control of tonight's final, as one of the senior leaders in a side full of younger conveyances even though he hasn't been a Magpie for long. He was dropped during the late states of the home & away season after dropping away in form, and his age and injury history suggests this may turn into a permanent trend line. He is a Brownlow Medallist after all, and games like this are exactly what he was recruited for. A wet track will suit him to slow the game down and turn it into a contested scrap. Your time to shine, Titchell.
Tom Mitchell is on the tips of the lips of thousands of fantasy coaches this week as a potential trade-in target as his second half against the Bombers in round 1 lifted the Hawks to a famous victory from 40 points down. He took only one mark, but that hardly mattered as he racked up 39 touches with only two disposal clangers among them, adding five tackles. In year two after a horrible compound leg fracture, he is primed to finally return to his league-leading accumulation habits, with a very tasty price for a premium keeper.
Tom Mitchell was in a lot of salary cap fantasy squads to start 2020 due to his discounted price coming off a compound fracture in his leg in the 2019 preseason causing him to miss a whole campaign. He started slowly by his standards and has slowly built his numbers as his match fitness returned, though many fantasy coaches would have used him as a stepping stone and looked elsewhere for top six quality by now. Big leg breaks like that usually take two years to fully heal - see Nat Fyfe and Michael Barlow for proof of that - and he should return to premium status in 2021.
Tom Mitchell is coming off a terrible compound leg break, of course, and we know from previous experience (Nat Fyfe, Mick Barlow, Nathan G. Brown etc) that it takes a couple of years to get back to 100% working order with the distinct possibility of a lower ceiling for the rest of a star's career. Titchell's previous ceiling was higher than anyone else in the history of the league, so many fantasy coaches are going to take the gamble that he rejoins the top eight mids by season's end even if he doesn't break the disposal record again.
Tom Mitchell will have all eyes on him as he plays his first competitive game after missing the entirety of 2019 with a badly broken leg.
Leg itch for Titchell
Brownlow medallist Tom Mitchell's 2019 season was ended in January after a horrific leg break. Averaging 35 touches and six tackles per outing in his second All-Australian season, Titchell is the definition of a ball magnet, effectively doing the work of two players in the engine room. He is frequently tagged but more often than not busts through it anyway to deliver fantasy tons, as his work rate is superior to anyone in the competition. Mitchell is yet to have a firm return date as he continues rehabilitation. The number one ranked fantasy player at the end of the 2018 campaign, expect the midfielder to take time finding his feet upon return. The history of bad leg breaks is that their effects tend to linger into year two, as with Nathan G. Brown and Michael Barlow. A strong risk when he is inevitably taken in the early rounds by those who are counting on him to come good by fantasy finals time.
Son of a Titchell
The reigning Brownlow medallist, Tom Mitchell suffered a season-ending leg break during an innocuous training incident in early January. He has been filmed walking and was talking hopefully about a late-season return, which is not enough to burn a draft pick on him.
Titchell just swanned in
Landing from Sydney as a ready-made replacement for Sam Mitchell in a more stable role as a full-time midfielder, Tom Mitchell instantly stamped his authority as the Hawks' new midfield general in breaking the league disposal total record. His best statistical performance came against the Magpies in round 9 with 50 possessions, eight tackles and eight marks. Over the course of the season, Titchell dropped below 30 touches just twice. The ball magnet smashed through all previous season disposal records and accumulated an incredible 787 at a rate of 35 per game. Regaining the likes of Jaeger O'Meara and Kieran Lovell into the midfield mix will decrease the burden on Mitchell, perhaps allowing him to spend further time forward. However unlikely a reproduction of last season’s numbers may be, expect him to be gone within the first few selections in your draft, to the envy of all.
