Fabian Deluca has won his second consecutive Cibo Glenelg SANFL Player of the Week award, after he starred in the Sturt reserves against Port in Round 8 of the SANFL.
The award is judged by Power development coaches, Daniel Healy and Darren Trevena, and is announced exclusively at PortAdelaideFC.com.au each Monday afternoon.
Deluca was dropped to the reserves last week, but Healy and Trevena both believe the big man is knocking on the door of league selection after two standout performances since then, with Sturt also giving a glowing reference about his attitude.
Michael Wilson’s return headlined the 12 Power players playing in the SANFL with the notable omissions being Nathan Krakouer and Mitch Farmer, who were ruled out with minor injuries.
Cibo Glenelg SANFL Player of the Week
Fabian Deluca (for Sturt reserves v Port reserves at Unley) – Player of the Week again! We think he had the most possessions he’s ever had in a game with 10 kicks, 17 handballs and 1 goal to go with 41 hit-outs. He’s putting his name right up there with performances like this and we hope he’ll be back playing league footy soon.
Michael Wilson (for Port v Sturt at Unley) – The one on everyone’s lips. His first half, and particularly his first quarter, was very good. He played 12 minutes in the first quarter and had 7 possessions. He ran hard, got to the contest and really looked like he hadn’t missed a beat. He started to look slightly tired in the second quarter, despite still picking up a few possessions and working hard. In the third quarter, he played about 16 minutes and continued to work hard and then played all the last quarter. The last quarter he got his second wind and started picking up a few more touches. Wilbur got through the game unscathed and had 18 possessions – 12 kicks and 6 handballs – 5 marks, 1.1, 7 tackles and 4 chases. He’s still got that hardness and desperation, but it was important for him to have that run. He’ll definitely be putting the pressure on the selectors for next weekend.
Nathan Lonie (for North v Norwood at Prospect) – Nathan had some really good numbers in ordinary conditions with 17 kicks, 3 handballs, 6 inside 50s and 2 goals. He continues to impress.
Damon White (for North v Norwood at Prospect) – A quieter game from Damon with 11 kicks, 4 handballs, 7 marks and 2 points. He’s getting a lot of his possessions further up the ground, which was partly due to the tough wet conditions. He’s still working very hard.
Gavin Grose (for North v Norwood at Prospect) – Unfortunately Gav got a few goals kicked on him early on and came off the ground. When he came back on he bounced back well considering his start. Not a terrible game but not at the same level he’s been at.
Adam Cockshell (for Norwood v North at Prospect) – He rucked again, but played more game time this week purely because of his strong presence out there with 22 hit-outs. He’s starting to read the game much better and he was prominent late in the game when Norwood really needed him. Norwood are quite please with the way he’s progressing.
Nick Lower (for Norwood v North at Prospect) – Nick played on the wing and on-ball, again impressing with 24 possessions and 4 hard ball gets. His composure and decision-making coming out of traffic – something he’s needed to improve – was great and is improving every week. As is his kicking, he’s starting to hit more targets. The last couple of weeks he’s looked like an AFL footballer playing in the SANFL.
Ryan Willits (for West v Central at Richmond) – Had 11 kicks, 10 marks and 3 handballs. Getting a lot of his ball further up the ground, but needs to have a bit more of a physical presence out there. He’s working very hard though, which is pleasing.
Jonathon Giles (for Central v West at Richmond) – Gilesy played in the ruck, he only had 6 possessions but looked good at the stoppages and is hunting the ball well. Hopefully a really good game for him is just around the corner.
Ryan Williams (for Central v West at Richmond) – Played on the ball and half forward. The Bulldogs saw the game against West as an opportunity to free him up rather than giving him a tagging role. He ended up with 23 possessions, 9 marks and 2.1, which was a really good return. He ran hard again, he gets to the right spots and he was one of the Bulldogs best. He continues to improve every week.
Marlon Motlop (for North reserves v Norwood reserves at Prospect) – Played on the ball for the first time – something we’ve wanted North to do for a while now – so he can get in and around the ball to hunt it in a contested situation. He played really well with 20 kicks, 4 handballs and a goal. The goal was also Play of the Week – a beautiful dribble kick from the boundary line. Although we’ve been saying it for a few weeks, he is getting very close to getting a league game for the Roosters.
Matthew Lobbe (for Port reserves v Sturt reserves at Unley) – He had 13 kicks, 10 handballs and 6 marks. He played on a guy who was dropped from the league side in Herring, and restricted him to only one goal and his positioning was really good. It was a good game at centre half back and in the ruck at times too. It was a good learning curve for him and he can hold his head high after that effort.
Previous winners of the Cibo Glenelg SANFL Player of the Week award -
Round 7 - Fabian Deluca
Round 6 - Damon White
Round 5 - Paul Stewart
Round 4 - Robbie Gray
Round 3 - Matthew Westhoff
Round 2 - Adam Thomson
Round 1 - Adam Thomson
