PERTH, AUSTRALIA - JULY 09: Robbie Gray of the Power celebrates after scoring a goal during the 2017 AFL round 16 match between the West Coast Eagles and the Port Adelaide Power at Domain Stadium on July 09, 2017 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Will Russell/AFL Media)
Premiership coach Mick Malthouse suggests ageing stars of the AFL should look to call time on their careers a year earlier than planned in favour of calling it quits whilst on a high, per The Herald Sun.
Malthouse listed Gary Ablett Jnr, Lance franklin, Marc Murphy and Jack Riewoldt as just some of the veteran names that have reason to call the 2020 season their last in the league.
While the AFL is set to farewell a rosters-worth of names at the end of the season, Malthouse noted in his Herald Sun column that there could and should be a few that are better off hanging up the boots a year or two earlier than expected.
While many players such as Shaun Burgoyne and Kade Simpson defy the odds at their age, Malthouse believes that age isn't the only major concern when a player's career is coming to an end.
"There is a terrible term used in sport, use-by date, but sometimes the athlete is the last to work out that when pace, durability, reflexes and sharpness of mind start to diminish, then time has caught up with you," Malthouse writes.
Robbie Gray lines up on Malthouse's list as a player that has lost speed and efficiency despite age, while he also suggests Sydney's Josh Kennedy may be falling off the pace at a rapid speed.
Headlined in his list of soon-to-be departing players, Malthouse names close friend and former player Heath Shaw as one name to pull the curtain on their career in 2020.
The former Tigers premiership player suggested Shaun Burgoyne could be facing the end with Hawthorn planning a rebuild despite his overall ability at 37, while former Demons skipper Nathan Jones, Crow Bryce Gibbs and Port veteran Justin Westhoff should look to call time as they struggle for selection.
The 2020 season has been relentless on the AFL's playing group, with congested fixtures riddling the league with injuries.
Many players already in the twilight of their careers face an uphill battle with injury setbacks, as Franklin, Matthew Kreuzer, Stefan Martin and Cale Hooker all come under Malthouse's list as potential departing candidates due to injury.
Mick Malthouse's list of potential 2020 retirements:
Gary Ablett
Lance Franklin
Marc Murphy
Jack Riewoldt
Josh P. Kennedy
Robbie Gray
Heath Shaw
Nathan Jones
Justin Westhoff
Cale Hooker
Eddie Betts
Shaun Burgoyne
Taylor Walker
Bryce Gibbs
Stefan Martin
Matthew Kreuzer
Dayne Beams
Ben Reid
Travis Varcoe
Ricky Henderson
Tom Bellchambers
Paul Puopolo