Former Carlton list boss Stephen Silvagni has launched a staunch defence of Liam Stocker, suggesting he might’ve been unfairly delisted after experiencing interrupted development, a wretched run with injury but also impressing when given rare AFL opportunities.
Stocker last week was surprisingly delisted by Carlton after just 28 AFL matches in four seasons.
The Blues famously swapped future first-round picks with Adelaide during the 2018 AFL draft while acquiring Pick 19 to use on Stocker, who then-list boss Silvagni rated as the sixth-best player in the pool.
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Speaking at the 2022 AFL Trade Radio launch, Silvagni questioned whether Carlton had done enough to help Stocker develop as a player.
“I find it really fascinating with him. I don’t know what’s going on off-field, but he’s basically been there four years – (and) I wouldn’t think it’d been a really stable environment in terms of the change that’s happened,” Silvagni said at the AFL Trade Radio launch. “I think he’s had three coaches in four years, so from a development point of view, I’d question that.
“As a club, I always felt, when a player is on the way out, you have a checklist of ‘have we done everything possible for this kid to play AFL footy’. That right there tells me I don’t think (Carlton) can tick that.”
While Silvagni said he wasn’t aware of any off-field issues with Stocker, he claimed it was doubtful Stocker’s axing was due to an “attitude problem”.
“He’s a tough nut. If I was playing, I would love Liam Stocker next to me because I know he’s going to go hard,” Silvagni said. “There are plenty of footballers out there that don’t go hard. They can run but that’s their asset … he’s tough.”
Stocker has publicly detailed his mental health challenges, particularly with anxiety and panic attacks, since departing the Covid-19-related hub during the 2020 season.
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He looked to have turned the corner when he played 17 matches in 2021. But his cause wasn’t helped when he suffered a syndesmosis setback just before Christmas last year then hurt his AC joint in his first senior game of the year in Round 7.
Stocker won the NAB League’s Morrish Medal in his draft year as a midfielder, but was predominantly used as a defender in his 28 games for Carlton, including only six in 2022.
There was no clear path to midfield minutes at the Blues this year or into the future and he finished his career in navy blue with a meagre five disposals in the season-ending round 23 loss to Collingwood.
But Silvagni said Stocker had shown glimpses as a defender at AFL level.
“I saw most Carlton games this year. He played on (Jamie) Elliott and did a really good job on him. He played on (Gary) Rohan and did a really good job on Rohan. I’ve seen him play on (Tom) Papley and I’ve seen him play on the guns, so it’s not as if he was being given a ride to say ‘listen you play on the least dangerous forwards’ – he’s been given some really big jobs.
“Sure, maybe it’s his run a little bit, but what we’ve got to understand with Liam is he had syndesmosis at the start of the season where he missed 10 to 14 weeks … so he missed a big batch of footy. Then he did his shoulder and then he had a concussion … Then he had a Covid year that he completely missed (in 2020).
“So really he’s played three years of footy, of which this year was really interrupted.
“They’ve obviously got their reasons why – I’m not privy to that information, I don’t know what’s gone on there – I’m only answering the question. This is where I see it just watching him play football from week to week.”
7 News Melbourne reported last week that Stocker had met with Essendon list boss Adrian Dodoro as he searched for an AFL lifeline.
Essendon legend Matthew Lloyd, who coached Stocker at Haileybury College, said Stocker had “AFL attributes” that could see him thrive at a second club.
“They signed Ed Curnow and David Cuningham up over him, so that’s interesting. There must be more to it with why they’ve let Liam go,” Lloyd said at AFL Trade Radio launch.
“If he can get his running right – and he does try and bite off a bit too much sometimes with his kicking, so he misses a few targets at times – but he should be on an AFL list next year. I think he can make a great fist of it at a second club.”
— with NCA Newswire
