Calling all historical statisticians. I wonder what the record is for "number of players who have previously played for other clubs playing for a new team"?

Next year we could potentially have 11 lining up in the one team:

Heritier Lumumba

Jeff Garlett

Sam Frost

Ben Newton

Bernie Vince

Daniel Cross

Dom Tyson

Viv Michie

Aidan Riley

Chris Dawes

Cameron Pederson

Dean Terlich was on a Sydney rookie list (0 games) may make 12 players previously listed by other clubs in the one Melbourne team.

Of that batch, Cross is the only player who may retire at years end, which means if we add a couple more via trade/FA we could potentially field ~15 ex-opposition players at once in 2016.

Importantly, when you combine those 11 with a bunch of younger players (i.e. Viney, Salem, Hogan, Toumpas, Kent, JKH, Gawn, Stretch, McDonald, Pick 2, Pick 3), and a couple of existing quality senior players who are either largely unaffected by the turbulant years or who have grown through them recently (i.e. Jones, Dunn, Garland) the bulk of our list has been "un-Melbournised".

Richmond:

6 best 25: Grigg, Petterd, Chaplin, Houli, Miles, Maric

3 more on the list from last year: Knights, Matt Thomas, Hampson

Plus Taylor Hunt could make 10.

Last year they had that red head from Brissy, plus Orren Stephenson, Aaron Edwards and have had more recently

I know Hawthorn had 7 'recycled' players in their 2014 premiership:

Gunston, Burgoyne, Hale, Lake, Gibson, Sphanger & McEvoy. Plus Simpkin, who was dropped for the GF.

They've lost Cheney, but have added O'Rourke and Some spud defender from another club.

They could have potentially 10 'recycled' players playing in 2015.

Cheers guys.

When you think about it, that is an amazing amount of recycling, from all ladder position (top, middle and bottom).

Suggests that a) player movement is quiet common (despite the AFLPA wanting to increase it) and b) player development/satisfaction/retention at all clubs is no sure thing.

Sports the current discussions regarding the lottery of the draft.

If it means we remove the scars of the past that is a good result as well.

I don't mean to pour petrol on to the bad drafting fire but when only Grimes and Watts are left from this group you can see why we have recycled so much in recent years.

Yep, an unfortunate reality.

Time to draft and develop our young players correctly then add recruits in where needed.

And instead of losing free agents we can sign our own guys and hopefully bring in one when we need to.

Hawthorn's and Richmond's mature recruits are much different propositions. I hope we move from Richmond style bringing in guys to make us competitive to topping up with bargains like Hawthorn.

I don't mean to pour petrol on to the bad drafting fire but when only Grimes and Watts are left from this group you can see why we have recycled so much in recent years.

You don't think there is a chance of Trengove making a comeback Clint?

Remeber Maric? Would always play belters in the preseason and get us excited. And then..... nothing.

We delisted him and Richmond pick him up, same thing happens again!

I'm guessing the recycling record would be held by the 1987 Brisbane Bears side who was made up of "rejects, misfits, has beens and n'er do wells" grafted from the other clubs.

Carlton in 2003 I think absolutely ballistic in getting heap of rejects from other clubs.

The Doggies would have been up there as well as there was a feeling that they could never truly 'bottom out' as they would fall over if they did.
Carlton in 2003 did so out of necessity as they had no draft picks but tended to recycle players at the end of the 90's as well due to Big Jack's edict: 'We don't rebuild at Carlton'.
It is a fine line to straddle. I guess the truth is you need to be somewhere in the middle with your recruiting strategy: scorched earth will leave you with a deficit of leadership and band aid recruiting will deprive you of actual players and stability over the long term.

You don't think there is a chance of Trengove making a comeback Clint?

I thought that was Lucas Cook, my bad.

Disappointing part of footy now

When the big Richmond forward recruit retired from Geelong couple of years ago - they didn't have single foreigner on list.