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In the latest edition of Inside Sydney, McInerney gives a quick pre-game speech paying tribute to McLean in his 100th game. In it, he mentions McLean's debut, where he was given the task of rucking against Aaron Sandilands. Since I only vaguely remembered the game, I looked it up in AFL Tables.
It was back in 2019, when the only recognised ruckman that played in the firsts, was Callum Sinclair, with a fair bit of backup being done by Sam Reid. It seems that both were injured for the round 18 clash with Fremantle, so McLean was given the task, with a bit of assistance from Aliir. The went up against Sandilands, Darcy and Lobb. While we lost the hitouts 53-18, I think many people were impressed by McLean's willingness to go about the task. The stats show that he got 16 hitouts, 13 possessions, and perhaps most importantly, 8 tackles. Which suggests that he did get after the Fremantle mids.
I also remember my first impressions when he started playing for us in the NEAFL. I'm pretty sure that he debuted after quite a limited preseason. So I was quite pleased with how could clunk a mark and kick straight, when the ball got into his area, but also being a bit concerned that his area seemed so small. But of course, he managed to improve his tank throughout the year and earned his debut in round 18.
It was back in 2019, when the only recognised ruckman that played in the firsts, was Callum Sinclair, with a fair bit of backup being done by Sam Reid. It seems that both were injured for the round 18 clash with Fremantle, so McLean was given the task, with a bit of assistance from Aliir. The went up against Sandilands, Darcy and Lobb. While we lost the hitouts 53-18, I think many people were impressed by McLean's willingness to go about the task. The stats show that he got 16 hitouts, 13 possessions, and perhaps most importantly, 8 tackles. Which suggests that he did get after the Fremantle mids.
I also remember my first impressions when he started playing for us in the NEAFL. I'm pretty sure that he debuted after quite a limited preseason. So I was quite pleased with how could clunk a mark and kick straight, when the ball got into his area, but also being a bit concerned that his area seemed so small. But of course, he managed to improve his tank throughout the year and earned his debut in round 18.
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