After an outstanding 2000, nothing went right for Justin Blumfield in 2001. Two knee injuries saw him spend a large chunk of the season watching from the sidelines. He finished up playing just 13 games for the season and the lack of football ensured his impact wasn’t what it had been. In 2000 he played 24 games, averaged 18 possessions and kicked 27 goals. In 2001 he played 13 games, averaged 12 possessions and kicked eight goals. They are telling statistics.
Blumfield is all class when fit and the 2002 pre-season will be an important one for him. If he can completely shake the knee problems of 2001 he will be an excellent contributor to the Essendon mid-field. The fact he can rotate through the middle and then push forward and kick goals means he is a handful for any opposition side.
Blumfield is a genuine leader around Essendon Football Club and a player who takes great pride in his performance. Season 2001 will not sit well with him. He will be extremely keen to get things back on track this season from both a personal point-of-view and a team point-of-view. Essendon fans should be excited by the prospect of seeing Justin Blumfield back in full flight.
How will he be used?
Justin will form part of the mid-field rotation group. He is probably the one player in that group that can push deep into the forward line. His ability to mark overhead and also produce the goods at ground level makes him a very difficult player to match up on.
What will the coaches want on match day?
Blumfield gives the Essendon mid-field an injection of skill and another player with the ability to win the football. All the coaching staff will want is for him to do what he does best. He reads the game extremely well and it is that creativeness that was missed at times last year. When he pushes forward they will want him to become a leading target and an average of two goals per game would be an excellent return.
