#21 - Rory Atkins

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Rory Atkins

Former club:Calder Cannons
  • DOB:12/07/1994
  • Height:185cm
  • Position:Forward
  • Weight:81kg
Player assessment

Medium forward with very good agility and composure with the ball. Makes good decisions with his disposal either by hand or on his preferred left foot. Plays as a hit-up half forward who is a good overhead mark as well as being clean at ground level. Played two games for Vic Metro and is averaging 21 disposals per game at TAC Cup level. AIS-AFL Academy graduate.
 
Not sold on Atkins. Like when we pick up Grigg last year I am not impressed with this pick. Better players still on the board.
 
Would've liked Colquohon but happy with our picks.

Hadn't heard of Siggins but his video looks great. He seems to have really good length. Takes marks at a real height, with his long arms right up.

Atkins seemed like a slider. Hopefully he's a good speculative pick.
 
I can't believe how wrong the phantoms were in that regard... Now how many psd picks do we have?
 
Vader said:
Left footer, which will make some people happy. Porplyzia clone?
Click to expand...
More like a left footed Brodie Martin. Will probably play in defense rather than up forward.
 

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He was the best and fairest at Calder Cannons this year, and was tipped to go somwhere between 30-60. Steal. A medium forward/midfielder with very good agility and composure with the footy.

The quote above is from FoxSports Live Blog on the Draft re Rory atkins
 
Brenton Davy said:
He was the best and fairest at Calder Cannons this year, and was tipped to go somwhere between 30-60. Steal. A medium forward/midfielder with very good agility and composure with the footy.

The quote above is from FoxSports Live Blog on the Draft re Rory atkins
Click to expand...

Calder Cannons had six kids drafted, including three in the first round.

And our bloke was B&F ahead of all of them.

* yeah. :cool:
 
rory-atkins.jpg


DOB : 12/7/1994
Weight : 81 KG
Height : 186 CM
Recruited from The Calder Cannons
Pick 81 2012 Draft

TAC CUP TEAM OF 2012 ON THE BENCH
3RD IN THE TAC CUP COACHES AWARD 2012

Thanks to Knightmare

Height: 183cm, Weight: 75kg, DOB: 12/07/1994
Recruited from: Calder Cannons
Style:
Player comparison:
Range: 25-50
Profile: Atkins is a forward who can also push up into the midfield. Excellent by both hand and foot rarely missing a target. What makes him stand out is his decision making under pressure and his ball use in congestion, making decisions quickly and makes the right ones consistently. Strong overhead at his size. Has some pace and can burst away. Running ability has much improved and has really built that ability to push up the ground and get his hands on the ball more. Just needs to figure out how to do it against stronger opposition next. Feels too outside for my liking and I’d like to see him win more of his own ball and that will be the next stage for him.


Thanks to Quigley

Rory Atkins
DOB: 12/7/94 Ht:186 Wt: 81

Atkins was flying high last year as an AIS kid who looked assured to be going somewhere pretty high this year. Then he was not selected for the second year in the AIS. Then he gets picked for Metro but only plays two games against lesser teams before being dropped from the squad. Suddenly things looked very shaky for him. Rather than drop his bundle though what he did is go back and work his butt off a show that some of the deficiencies in his game were unfounded.

He was the Calder B&F winner this year and had a golden run of 10 games in a row in the best in the middle of the year. In 5 of those games he was BOG. He moved from being a small forward prospect to now needing to be looked at as a ball winning midfielder who can also go forward. He had a few games where he got over 30 possessions for Calder showing teams that he is going to be capable of winning the ball at the next level. He showed a real propensity for the midfield and you would have to rate his chances of significant improvement as being high. This is especially the case give his endurance levels are not particularly high at the moment and are something which will have to improve at the next level.

He is often referred to as an inside player when he is in the midfield and I guess that is the case but that is not to imply that he is one of those clearance players who is at the bottom of every pack. Whilst he will put his head over the ball when it is his turn he is more of an insider receiver – the bloke who gets the ball shoveled out to him and then he has to do something useful with it. Atkins is very good at quickly assessing the options and then making a good decision so he is very well suited to the receiver role. He is one of those guys who gets the ball and kicks it and you wonder how the hell he saw that guy was there. He is also one of those guys who seems aware of both his short and long options at once and takes the right option depending on the situation.

Atkins is a left footer with that classic easy left foot style. He seems to have really nice feel on the ball although having a look at his stats he did have quite a high number of ineffective kicks per game at TAC level (4.5 per game). This I think was a function of the role he played and a few lapses of concentration. With more experience in the role and the greater focus required at AFL level I think these could be worked out. I really like his delivery into the forward 50. He leads his man onto the ball really nicely and often makes a kick before his forward has made his move. He is not a big kick and I would he looks to pass off from 50. He has a neat goal kicking style where everything is right in behind the ball when he kicks. He is not a big goal kicker but should be capable of a goal a game wherever he plays in the AFL.

As mentioned above his endurance does need work and his pace is only average (3.06 at Combine). He has been criticized for his defensive effort and this is something which he needs to improve on. He is quite a good tackler though so I think as he builds his tank and receives more coaching on what is required he will get there.

Overall I was pretty negative on Atkins before I did a proper assessment of him and I have come around. I think there is a bit to work with with this kid and the way he came back after things did not go his way speak highly of him.
 
Ian Kyte who is the Calder Canons region manager talking to Inside Football:

"Left-footed midfielder with good leg speed and ball winning ability. He has improved in every aspect of his football and life over the past 12 months. However he still needs to work on his defensive transition, but that will come. Essendon has shown plenty of interest"

DRAFT RANGE: 2nd round

A few clips on youtube i will let you find the rest



 
I have a vague memory of meeting someone the other night while I was real drunk - After it somehow came up that I was a Crows fan, he brought up Rory Atkins because he went to school (?) or grew up in the same area as him (?) , but was otherwise friends with him-

Anyway, he said that Rory was a gun, and was surprised how far he slid in the draft, even considering his slender frame. He thought the talk about his attitude problem was overstated - - The guy I met had never liked the Crows much before but said he now feels compelled to follow their progress a bit more than he otherwise would've -

I wish I could remember more - I honestly can't even remember where I had this conversaion, but I know I definately did -
 
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