A ready-made key defender who was at the peak of his powers before choosing not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the market for Liam Jones come the end of the season may well be larger than you expect.
Jones was coming off a career-best season with Carlton when he decided to retire, rather than receive the vaccination.
Now, with mandates relaxed, Jones will be allowed to step into an AFL side in 2023 and there is no shortage of need for his services.
We have gone through all 17 teams (sans Carlton, who have ruled out reacquiring the 31-year-old) and ranked them by how much they would benefit from adding Jones for 2023.
The lingering question will be whether the Blues deserve some kind of compensation, given the unique circumstances.
From 17 (least) to 1 (most), here are our rankings:
17. West Coast
The Eagles have Tom Barrass in his prime, they have a veteran key defender in Jeremy McGovern, and a few younger options in Harry Edwards and Rhett Bazzo.
Given where they’re at and the composition of their list, they do not need Liam Jones.
16. Melbourne
Sure, if you’re in the premiership window, adding depth is always great. But the Dees have needs at the other end of the ground and must also find ruck support for Max Gawn, particularly if Luke Jackson leaves.
Their backline is fine.
15. Fremantle
As above, really. Freo’s focus should be on acquiring Jackson and solidifying their key forwards. They have more key defensive depth than they know what to do with right now.
14. Gold Coast
The Suns already have a strong key defensive core with Sam Collins and Charlie Ballard. They have depth with Rory Thompson and Caleb Graham. Even Levi Casboult can swing back if needed.
13. North Melbourne
Similar to West Coast, the Roos likely have no desire to splash on a soon-to-be 32-year-old key defender. The difference is they could in theory benefit from having someone to take the pressure off Ben McKay for a few years.
They won’t, though.
12. Sydney
Sydney has the McCartin brothers, a veteran already in Dane Rampe and a few depth options as well. Pass.
11. Hawthorn
Given where the Hawks are at, plus the fact that their backline is already pretty set, they don’t need to be thinking too hard about Liam Jones.
10. Brisbane
The Lions, like the contenders above, have their key defensive stocks sorted with Harris Andrews, Darcy Gardiner and Marcus Adams. Injuries have exposed their depth and Adams has been injury-prone across his career however, so they sit a bit higher.
9. Richmond
The Tigers’ spot on this list depends a bit on Robbie Tarrant and whether he goes around again. If he doesn’t, could the Tigers splash on another short-term option? Josh Gibcus looks a future star and the rest of their backline is as solid as they come.
8. GWS Giants
With Phil Davis seemingly at the end of his career, the Giants could use a ready-made short-term option to pair alongside Sam Taylor. Lachie Keeffe is handy depth and other options on their list are young and raw. But they’re not in the premiership hunt, so they likely won’t be thinking short-term.
7. Geelong
Can you win a flag when your primary key defender is as raw as Sam De Koning? The upside is obvious, but would the Cats bite the bullet and add Jones to provide De Koning with some assistance? Given they’ve rarely used Mark Blicavs in defence this season, it makes sense (on paper).
6. St Kilda
Dougal Howard is a reliable key defender and Callum Wilkie has had an outstanding season on taller opposition, but the Saints would benefit from adding Jones and creating a defensive core from that trio. Josh Battle has had a good season, but also isn’t a good fit on the big key forwards.
5. Adelaide
Adelaide is in a rebuild, but unlike the Eagles and Roos, they can’t really afford to sit around and let the likes of Jordon Butts and Nick Murray take all the bullets. They need to be better in 2023 or the pressure will intensify. Jones could give them a reliable buffer in defence.
Fischer McAsey hasn’t come along yet, Billy Frampton has had a few shots in defence and we haven’t seen much of Josh Worrell.
4. Collingwood
Collingwood without Darcy Moore versus North Melbourne was a little eye-opening. Suddenly, Jeremy Howe and Nathan Murphy were playing primary key position slots and were simply too small. Jordan Roughead has retired and Charlie Dean and Will Kelly aren’t ready.
Jones would make a lot of sense for the Pies.
3. Port Adelaide
The Power feel undersized in defence, with the 194cm Aliir Aliir their biggest defender. Adding Jones and taking the pressure off Aliir, Tom Clurey and Tom Jonas would make a lot of sense, particularly if they still believe they can challenge in 2023-2024.
2. Essendon
Jayden Laverde has battled manfully these last two years, but he ranks near the top in goals conceded this year. Zach Reid is nowhere near ready, Brandon Zerk-Thatcher is similarly young and they’ve moved away from James Stewart.
The Bombers have reportedly already met with Jones, and that makes a lot of sense.
1. Western Bulldogs
The Bulldogs shipped inconsistent key forward Liam Jones off to the Blues for a few scraps at the end of 2014. Now, going into 2023, they should be desperate to acquire reliable key defender Liam Jones.
Ryan Gardner, Tim O’Brien, Josh Schache, Zaine Cordy … it’s time for the Bulldogs to get serious and bring in some legitimate help for Alex Keath and plug their biggest hole.