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Carlton running man Ollie Hollands is the Round 21 Rising Star nomination after an excellent three weeks of footy since returning from a broken collarbone.
Hollands, son of former Richmond player – and one of the more injury-prone players in history – Ben and brother of Gold Coast Sun Elijah, was selected by Carlton with pick 11 in the 2022 National Draft.
Whilst his bottom age year was severely compromised, like everyone else, by COVID, he showed enough in his three NAB League matches (and one appearance in the O&M seniors for Wodonga) to earn AFL Academy selection and this meant his 2022 season was split amongst the Academy, Vic Country, Murray Bushrangers and his boarding school, Geelong Grammar.
Hollands shone at all levels, and it was particularly notable that despite his light frame he was amongst his team’s best when the Academy played against Collingwood’s VFL side and in Vic Country’s matches at the National Championships, where he was named in the All-Australian team.
It was through the midfield where he spent most of his time, running hard both ways, collecting possessions at will and, mostly, using the ball very well.
Anyone watching him would’ve noted how hard he runs, but still, breaking the 2km record at the Draft Combine would have been something of a surprise, especially as his average pace across the total distance was faster than his average pace in the 1500m at the APS Athletics – maybe that goes to show his priorities?
Hollands debuted in Round 1 and immediately looked at home. He’s only 184 centimetres tall, and I doubt he’d even be 75 kilograms, but the first thing you notice about him is how much he puts in.
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The running is obviously well-known, but he is more than happy at the coalface, he puts his body on the line when tackling and even spoils in marking contests well for a smaller player.
His ability to get from contest to contest – and probably his floppy hair to be fair – means everything looks quite frenetic because he doesn’t slow down. He just keeps on keeping on. And that is certainly the hallmark of his 14 games so far – a willingness to run himself into the ground both offensively and defensively to help his team.
(Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
Hollands has averaged 15 touches per game – with four games of 20-plus – across the whole season but a touch over 17 in the three games since his return from a stint on the sidelines due to a broken collarbone, and strangely enough, the timing of his injury may in fact help him as he would undoubtedly be feeling mentally and physically fresher heading into September given the break (no pun intended) his developing body was forced to have.
Assuming this form continues he will have a part to play in September, and hard two-way runners are worth their weight in gold as the outlet kick takes on greater importance.
Chances of winning the Rising Star
As per last week, it’s not going to happen, but he absolutely deserves this nomination!
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It’s possible he doesn’t quite have the topline speed of him, but the frenetic approach, the willingness to put his body on the line, and the hard running remind me of Bailey Smith. Not quite as chiselled, though…
Ceiling
There’s plenty of hard runners who haven’t quite gone on with it after solid starts to their careers, but Hollands isn’t just a runner – he can also play as an inside midfielder and that is likely to be where he ends up playing most of his football.
Even with Patrick Cripps, Adam Cerra, Sam Walsh et al in front of him at the moment I think he offers something a little different and can make an impact at the coalface in a way that lots of other wingers can’t.
