A new year often means new roles for players across most AFL teams.

That’s certainly the case at the two South Australian clubs, while Hawthorn is set to spring a defensive surprise and Sydney is bound to unleash a 196cm young gun in the guts.

Foxfooty.com.au profiles the players at every club that are set for role and position changes in 2020.

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Round 18

ADELAIDE

Two veterans could be set for positional changes. Former captain Taylor Walker, who’s made a name for himself as a key forward so far in his career, last year flagged with new coach Matthew Nicks a potential move to the wing after trimming down over the off-season — and don’t rule it out. Bryce Gibbs has also spent time in defence during pre-season match simulation and could be an option across half-back – a role he has played in the past at the Blues. Elsewhere, expect to see first-round draftee Chayce Jones push for more midfield minutes after an impressive Round 23 outing against the Bulldogs as an on-baller and two excellent summer time trial results.

Crow Bryce Gibbs could be a half-back option. Picture: Sarah Reed Source: News Corp Australia

BRISBANE LIONS

The Lions should remain pretty stable on the field, but there’ll be a few tweaks and experiments. No. 1 pick Cameron Rayner should finally be unleashed more through the midfield as he continues to build his aerobic capacity, while Cedric Cox has been shifted from defence to the attacking 50. Recent recruit Callum Ah Chee is set to pick up from where he left off with the Suns in 2018 — he missed nearly all of 2019 due to injury — and start in defence at the Lions.

CARLTON

After finally landing him in the pre-season draft, Carlton is likely to primarily play Jack Martin as a forward for most of the season, with occasional spurts in the midfield. Martin played mainly as a midfielder in his 2019 season at the Suns – and averaged career-high clearances, inside 50s and tackles – but is set to share a forward 50 arc with gun goalkicker Eddie Betts, as well as a glut of Blues talls. Also Jack Silvagni, who’s mainly played forward so far in his career, has been training with the midfield group.

COLLINGWOOD

Don’t expect too many curveballs from the Pies at this stage. Veteran Travis Varcoe had been spending time in the defensive 50 over the summer, but he was recently ruled out for the first few rounds of the AFL season due to a shoulder reconstruction.

Essendon’s Andrew McGrath should play more in the midfield this season. Picture: Chris Hyde Source: Getty Images

ESSENDON

After spending most of his first few seasons as a small backman, Andrew McGrath’s midfield minutes increased slightly in 2019 that lead to career-high average disposals (21). But expect that disposal average to increase further in 2020, with McGrath spending the summer training with the midfield group. He told SEN on Tuesday that he hoped the extra on-ball minutes would “come to fruition” this season. The other possible role change could see veteran David Zaharakis a little more across half-back.

FREMANTLE

Coach Justin Longmuir is keen to give Cam McCarthy a new role, with the hybrid forward slated to move to the wing. Captain Nat Fyfe said McCarthy was “one of the best users by foot” at Fremantle and some time on the wing would benefit both McCarthy and the forward line. And after playing predominantly as a defender under Ross Lyon, Adam Cerra is hopeful of playing more in the guts with Longmuir in charge. Cerra late last year said he’d “received some indication” from Longmuir that his on-ball minutes would increase.

GEELONG

Following the departures of Zac Smith and Ryan Abbott, expect Darcy Fort to play more as a genuine ruckman this year. After being plucked out of the SANFL as a mature-age rookie, Fort made an impact as a forward, kicking 23 goals from 13 VFL games then five goals from three AFL games. But expect to see Fort’s 205cm frame at more ruck contests in 2020. Also, Cats assistant Matthew Knights recently told the Geelong Advertiser that small forward James Parsons and small defender Zach Guthrie had “done a lot of midfield work this pre-season”. Sam Menegola is likely to move from an outside role to a genuine on-baller. The trio will be battling it out to replace now-Eagle Tim Kelly.

Docker Cam McCarthy could play a bit on the wing in 2020. Picture: Paul Kane Source: Getty Images

GOLD COAST SUNS

A few tweaks that coach Stuart Dew experimented with late in 2019 are set to become more regular this year. Gun tall Jack Lukosius, who played back during the second half of last season, has been training with the defensive group this off-season, meaning we’ll see plenty of his accurate kicking and rebounding off half-back. Lachie Weller, who spent the first half of 2019 as a wing/half-back before moving into an on-ball role, has spent the summer with the midfield group. Also expect recruit Hugh Greenwood to play mainly on the ball but float forward occasionally.

GWS GIANTS

With a glut of midfielders to choose from – remember Stephen Coniglio and Callan Ward need to be squeezed back in to the team that lined up in the Grand Final – you’d expect the midfield time to be evenly spread at the Giants, especially if Toby Greene and Zac Williams are released through their more often. That might also mean the likes of Coniglio and Tim Taranto push forward more often. Elsewhere, small forward Zac Langdon, who’s in career-best shape after a strong summer, is keen to show match committee that he can play through the midfield if required.

HAWTHORN

Coach Alastair Clarkson pulled a big surprise late last season when he sent No. 1 ruckman Ben McEvoy into the backline – and it’s a ploy Clarkson is keen to pursue. McEvoy has been doing some work with the Hawthorn defensive group this season as Clarkson explores the possibility of having a 200cm backman for most of 2020. It could mean Jon Ceglar becomes the Hawks’ No. 1 ruckman for the season, with Jon Patton and Mitchell Lewis other options to pinch hit.

Hawthorn’s Ben McEvoy has spent some time training with the defensive group. Picture: Michael Klein Source: News Corp Australia

MELBOURNE

Melbourne picked the best ruckman in last year’s draft at Pick 3, but Luke Jackson is likely going to spend more time as a forward if he’s to feature early in the AFL season. But the WA product declared he was happy to play more in the attacking arc if it meant he could feature in the same team as Max Gawn early. And while this isn’t necessarily a surprise role change, Harrison Petty should spend more time as a key-position forward this season. Drafted as a defender, Petty was shifted to the forward 50 for the final handful of games last season – and he’s spent most of the pre-season training with the attacking group.

NORTH MELBOURNE

A determination to build his tank and agility should see Tarryn Thomas move to the midfield this year. There’s been ample hype this off-season around Thomas, who should improve on the 19 disposals he averaged per game last season. And perhaps a switch to the backline is the tonic Mason Wood needs for a change of luck. Injuries and patchy form have stopped the talented Wood from reaching his full potential. Entering the final year of his contract, Wood has been trialled as a defender during the off-season as coach Rhyce Shaw ponders whether to make the move full-time.

PORT ADELAIDE

Assistant coach Michael Voss on Monday indicated there could be a fair bit of magnet spinning at the Power this year. One of the big movers could be Sam Powell-Pepper, whose pressure and ability to hit the scoreboard could see him play more up forward. At the other end, Justin Westhoff is likely to be thrown down back after training predominantly with the defenders over the pre-season. Voss also said 11 players could be part of the Power’s midfield rotation. Connor Rozee and Zak Butters have ramped up their midfield minutes, while Karl Amon (wing) and Dan Houston (half-back) are both set to spend more time in the guts than they did in 2019.

RICHMOND

Don’t expect too many changes at the Tigers, however a slimmed down Jack Ross could be set to play more of an outside role. Ross, who last year burst onto the AFL scene as a brutal inside midfielder, has cut a lean figure at Richmond training over the off-season. That might help secure him a spot in the best 22 next season.

ST KILDA

Dougal Howard’s arrival could see a bit of movement in both arcs. After playing as a forward/second ruck at Port Adelaide, Howard is likely to spend more time in his preferred position as a key defender at the Saints. That’s set to mean a role change for Josh Battle, who coach Brett Ratten described as the “ultimate swingman”. After being drafted as a forward – he kicked a competition-high 11 goals in the 2016 Under 18 national carnival – Battle has played predominantly as a backman at the Saints due to key injuries. But Ratten last week said Battle could play forward, as well as on the wing or in the midfield because of his elite aerobic capacity. And after developing into one of the AFL’s best taggers, Jack Steele is set to be released from that role and become a traditional inside on-baller in St Kilda’s new-look midfield next year.

SYDNEY SWANS

Swans fans were thrilled with the development of Nick Blakey as a forward last year – and he could thrive in a slightly different role in 2020. After booting 19 goals from 21 games in 2019, Blakey has been doing a fair bit of training with the Swans’ midfield group over the pre-season. At 196cm with great aerobic capacity – and an extra 6kg on his frame – Blakey could prove to be a handful for opposition on-ball brigades. Elsewhere, Callum Sinclair could play mainly as a key forward this season with Sam Naismith set to return to the primary ruck role. And will this finally be the year Callum Mills moves from the backline to the midfield?

Nick Blakey has impressed at Sydney Swans pre-season training as he pushes for more midfield minutes. Picture: Phil Hillyard Source: News Corp Australia

WEST COAST EAGLES

Expect emerging youngster Oscar Allen to be a genuine swingman in 2020. While his pre-season has been interrupted due to injury, the Eagles have been keen for Allen – who’s played mainly as a forward/second ruck in his first two seasons – to train with both the forwards and defenders over the summer. That could squeeze Will Schofield out of the line-up, but possibly allow West Coast to play all of Jack Darling, Josh Kennedy, Jake Waterman, Nic Naitanui and Tom Hickey all in the same team. Elsewhere, Tim Kelly’s arrival could mean Dom Sheed racks up a few more minutes in the forward line this season.

WESTERN BULLDOGS

No AFL coach prepares their players to play as many roles as possible than Luke Beveridge. That’s why we shouldn’t be surprised by any Beveridge magnet spin over the next few months. The interesting watch will be around Mitch Wallis, who missed the back-half of 2019 due to a bone stress injury in his ankle that eventually required surgery. Josh Dunkley moved into Wallis’ inside role – and it’s hard to see Dunkley being shifted after his insanely good finish to the year. So does Wallis play more outside in 2020? Also expect more midfield time for Bailey Smith and, possibly, Toby McLean.