Mitch McGovern comes back into the side after short-term injury in a game where both sides are down a key forward. With Aliir Aliir also without a third tall forward to mark, coaches from either side might want to leave those two loose behind the ball to intercept at will. Or McGovern might return to his original forward role, just for a night, to quell Aliir's influence. Given McGovern might be rusty and Aliir's form hasn't been great lately, the starting structures might be conservative and then one or both coaches will pull the trigger to equalise. A tantalising strategic battle.
Mitch McGovern comes back into the side after short-term injury in a game where both sides are down a key forward. With Aliir Aliir also without a third tall forward to mark, coaches from either side might want to leave those two loose behind the ball to intercept at will. Or McGovern might return to his original forward role, just for a night, to quell Aliir's influence. Given McGovern might be rusty and Aliir's form hasn't been great lately, the starting structures might be conservative and then one or both coaches will pull the trigger to equalise. A tantalising strategic battle.
Mitch McGovern has found his best role late in his career as the third tall defender at Carlton, managing to at least halve most contests while occasionally turning on the jets to set up a quick counter attack when the situation is right. Today he likely matches up against Jack Lukosius, who similarly likes to use his pace with ball in hand and silky skills by foot. If this game becomes a shoot out under the roof at Docklands, whichever one of these two ends up having more influence on the game might decide the outcome. For fantasy usage, neither is at all reliable.
Mitch is a sleeping beauty
Ex-Crow Mitch McGovern's first year in navy was one to forget, producing career lows in disposals, marks and tackles. Double ankle surgery restricted his preseason and put him a step behind the pace, battling form and continuity issues thereafter. Besides a pair of 70s, McGovern didn't come anywhere close to the heights we expected. McGovern lines up for preseason from day one, raring to go, and is all but certain to bounce back. With a low average next to his name, most will overlook him in the draft. Don't be that guy. He'll churn out a 70+ season as a mainstay in the forward 50 so slap him on the bench with a late-round flier.
Shooter gets happy
The bidding war for Mitch McGovern's services was won by Carlton in the off season, and they now have a third tall forward who would be best 22 in any side. A high ankle sprain in the first Showdown cut out the middle part of his 2018 campaign, around which he booted 15.13 for 14 games including one bag of five in a thrashing of the Blues, and four other multiple goalscoring days. He switched to defence in Q3 three times. His preseason was late in starting due to a non-displaced fracture in his back. Assuming he gets through preseason without further incident - never a safe bet with the McGovern family who seem to attract injuries like flies to half-rotten Murray cod - the ex-Crow should spend all of his time forward, working off Charlie Curnow like he did with Taylor Walker. He is very much a plus-six merchant, as marks and kicks are just about his entire game, with startable scores coming when he adds two or more goals. This will not happen enough at the Blues to make him a regular starter.
McGovern hot as an oven
A bad hamstring injury in round 3 and another after the first final interrupted Mitch McGovern's 2017. In between those he built steadily into a damaging weapon as third tall forward, culminating in a three-goal burst in Q4 of the Magpie game in round 19 to earn a draw after the siren. He booted 13 goals in the last five home & away games, but has only gone beyond 15 touches once in two years at senior level. McGovern's game is going to be very important for the Crows in coming years, assuming they keep him, but it may not translate into consistent fantasy performance. His role is based on goals not accumulation, so he can have a good day if the team is feeding him in dangerous areas but a bad one if he can only get set shots far out on the flanks. He is obviously a quality player, and probably should be on someone's fantasy bench with a late pick.
