Hogg Shield Preview 2018

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Shield Preview 2018

With the Hogg deadline looming it’s almost time to kick off the 12th Hogg Shield. In this year’s Hogg there will be eight Hogg Leagues, Hogg Elite, Premier, the Piglet Shield and Hogg Divisions I through to Hogg V. For those new to the Hogg, the Hogg Shield is a promotional/relegation series of leagues but once you get to Hogg Division II it gets a lot tougher to move up through the ranks. While it is almost impossible to predict what might happen in SuperCoach, here is an overview of the upcoming season.

Hogg Elite
With an average of 2273 Hogg Elite should be looking at cracking the top 50 in SuperCoach leagues this season. At the time of writing we are still waiting on 11th ranked Squeakeroos to get into the league but the Adelaide Crows are no slouches so it will be a top league even if Squeaky doesn’t lob. Shanes Superboots are the number one seed and he must be smarting at losing that Divvy IV granny last year despite outscoring everyone in the Hogg last year. There are ten Premier League coaches in this league and standing up to them will be the likes of DAISYS DUDS and the Superboots. Poon Army is ranked 18th and they might find it hard to avoid the spoon.

Hogg Premier League
Last year’s grand finalists Delicious and Captain Who lead the scoring for the amended field with the promoted TEAM_FISH also looking a strong contender. With 13 coaches topping the 49k mark last season, Hogg Premier is not for the faint hearted. The league average on last year’s scoring is 2250 so you won’t be winning many matches under 2200 in this company. Some teams remain in premiership contention while others appear destined to finish mid table. My mate sharks and my own REBCats are looking like the relegation fancies even though the REBCats made the eight last season. Has Been and the Longwood Lions could be my saviour and Q would need a big improvement to continue his lengthy Premier League stay. Almost impossible to pick a winner but I’ll depart from previous previews and not nominate Poon Army as a relegation chance seeing as they are in the Elite league this season, but ninth looks good for him again.

Hogg Division I
Division II premier Professor Crow is the number one seed in Division I this season ahead of former premier league outfit Squeakeroos who had a very solid season in Divvy I last year but fell short of promotion. The Cowboys and the Adelaide Crows look like strong contenders to challenge for Premier League next year. Unlike some of the other leading leagues, Division I appears to have a couple of soft targets in terms of scoring with six teams coming in at under 48k. The average score for this league is still 2204 though so not a walk in the park. The indestructible MatteeG is an almost certainty to avoid relegation again which isn’t good news for WATTS & MOTTS and even former power sides Underdogs, eddieslittleindians and Les’s Men. I think Honda is a chance to break down ahead of some of the sides mentioned as you’d expect a bounce back from most of them.

Hogg Division II
For the first time Division II will be tougher than Division I thanks to the promotion of Shanes Superboots and FNQ Trotters to join sides such as DAISYS DUDS, Chicken Noodles and Roosters. A couple of Divvy II coaches pulled the pin so gun Divvy III sides came up and this will be a hotly contested league with just the two promotion spots available. Daisy dominated this league last season but fell short of promotion and he has to be considered one of the fancies in this league. The average score for this league is 2218 so it will be hard to see The Ginger Ninjas in particular remaining competitive. Moneybrawl is another hot favourite to be punted as he just avoided relegation last year and this season this league is even tougher. My Straycats could go down as well. I could get relegated twice this year!

Hogg Division III
At the time of writing Gilligan’s Power Rules is the number one seed but they might end up going up. If they do this would leave the wiggbros, Blighty Teasdale and the Northern Cats the main fancies for the premiership in a league that has an average of 2186. If Gilligan goes up there will be a really even spread of teams who would have an opportunity for promotion. Teams looking over their shoulder a bit would be Darke Peake, Browny, The Brodlach Bombers who could get passed by his son on the way up, my brother in law Dale with his cobras and JK’s dirtynameoftheyear team.

Hogg Division IV
With more than a few teams leaving in higher grades, this year’s Division IV is a considerably softer league than it was last year. No FNQ Trotters, OneWinWonders or Superboots there to terrorise sides who might have just scrambled out of Divvy V or where wondering how Divvy IV was just as hard as the Divvy III they were relegated from. My uncle Bill is the main man here but he could go up to III which would leave Frosty as the number one seed with Dangerwoodlett. Herbie looks ok as well and King Cobwebs, Mr Football and the kid SA Rapids could also challenge. Forget my lads DA HEAT and Footy Legends, they are hopeless! The average for this league is 2082 which may stretch Footy Legends, Go Tiges, HereComeTheSuns and The Willies who were absolutely hopeless last year.

Piglet Shield
There has been a shift in power in the Piglet Shield in recent years with my sister Underbelly being almost unbeatable in our family league. Despite this, Underbelly has now racked up three straight losing Grand Finals and it is Mum’s FNQ Trotters who rule the family league. Both sides played an epic Grand Final last year with scores that would have flogged the Premier League Grand Finalists so both coaches are masters of timing their run. The Piglet is an unusual league as there are teams from every Hogg League bar the Elite in this one league. The average is slightly under Divvy IV levels though at 2075 which shows just how lopsided some games can be. In terms of picking a winner surely it is time for Underbelly to salute unless her nemesis Underdogs can return to former glory.

Hogg Division V
This is the ‘L’ plate league for the newbies and stragglers and if you can crack 2000 you should be able to get the win as the league average is 1934. The Lekkas Tribute is the number one seed, playing in Divvy V so Matteeee can play against his son the Cam Brothers. With several newbies who knows what to expect in this league but Lekkas has a fair advantage in this league and should make the top four at least. Sometimes kid players can surprise though and there is another one King Kiddy who could climb the empire state building and swat a few teams. Lightning McQueen is back and at his best will challenge Lekkas for the top four. My mate Brendan was the worst coach in the Hogg last season so expect more of the same from the aptly named Damaged. Callum’s Venomous Geckoes are also pretty toothless so there could be more easy wins there.

REB's Premiers

Hogg Elite - Captain Who
Hogg Premier - Buddy Franklin
Hogg I - Squeakeroos DTC
Hogg II - DAISYS DUDS
Hogg III - Blighty Teasdale
Hogg IV - Herbs'N'Spices
Piglet - Underbelly
Hogg V - Power Failure

regards,

REB