Liam Durkin
TWO of the modern day greats of the Gippsland League will be missing from their respective clubs this season.
Season 2024 is looming as a completely new era for the league, as names people are so familiar seeing in the best on a weekly basis have moved on.
Of the departed players, perhaps the two biggest standouts are James Blaser and Kane Martin.
The pair plied their trade for Moe and Sale respectively over the last 15 years, picking up no shortage of accolades along the way.
Martin will still be playing football in Gippsland this season, making the move to Sale City in the North Gippsland Football-Netball League.
Blaser meanwhile has moved to Queensland.
While he hasn’t officially been listed as an out, it appears Blaser will only be making cameo appearances if he does in fact decide to play.
To his credit, Lions playing-coach Declan Keilty told those in attendance at the Gippsland League season launch last Wednesday he wouldn’t be granting Blaser any special treatment.
That Blaser is on 195 senior games with Moe might play some part in any comeback, as well as the fact his brother-in-law, Bryce Collings is back playing for the Lions.
Comparing Blaser and Martin offers an excruciating exercise if one is trying to award gold.
Both have won a league best-and-fairest (Trood Award and Rodda Medal), and been named in the league’s Team of the Year on the same number of occasions (five).
At club level, the best-and-fairest count is the same at four apiece.
Ironically, Blaser was named coach of the Team of the Year the same year Martin was named captain (2017). That they shared the league medal in the same season perhaps showed that even the Gippsland League and the umpires couldn’t split them.
During their peak years in the mid-2010s, both played as midfielders able to break clear from stoppage and hit the scoreboard.
Midfielders who can kick goals are worth their weight in gold, and Martin and Blaser both kicked more than 200.
Martin’s goal tally is much higher, but keep in mind he played in a very good Sale side for most of his career. Martin played in as many Grand Finals as Blaser played in finals series (five).
With that considered, the question of premierships making someone a better player is again up for debate.
Would Martin have got the possessions he did if he wasn’t playing in the same midfield as Luke Collins, Chris Laverty, Adrian Cox, or even a young Josh Dunkley?
Equally, just how good would Blaser have been in that same midfield?
Voss and Buckley stuff had the latter stayed at Brisbane.
Blaser was perhaps a victim of unfortunate timing, as his peak years coincided with some of Moe’s worst.
He played in two wooden spoon teams, and a further two season period when the win-loss record was 8-28. That he was able to perform so well when the team was performing so poorly has to count for something.
Adding to this, he also played with the burden of being a playing-coach for three seasons, something Martin never did.
Adrian Burgiel, who left Maffra to coach Moe from 2014-15, said he never realised how good Blaser was when he played against him – it was only until he started coaching him.
The course of history may have changed in 2015 had Martin himself pulled on the maroon and blue jumper.
The Lions ‘sort of but didn’t’ have a foot in the door to securing his services thanks to a work connection. Martin did train at Moe during preseason once and only once, and that was the closest the Gippsland League ever got to seeing Blaser/Martin combined (except for interleague).
Can you split them?
Martin maybe by a nose because he is left footed.
James Blaser, arguably Moe’s greatest footballer of the 21st century.
Photos: File
