Past Toby Nankervis - traded 2016, premiership Tiger

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"NANKERVIS was overlooked for last year's NAB AFL Draft, but didn't dwell on the disappointment for too long. He went out of his way to improve where recruiters wanted him to: he became more aggressive, dominated in the ruck, and grew into a pseudo-midfielder who also pushed forward to kick goals in developing his endurance. At the NAB AFL Under-18 Championships for Tasmania, Nankervis was named the joint winner of the Harrison Medal, awarded to the best player in division two. He won the ruck position in the All Australian side, and established himself as perhaps the most commanding ruck around."

"Around the ground he pushes his way to the front of packs and takes marks and at ruck contests he throws he frame forward and isn't easily moved (across the championships he averaged 18 hit-outs a game). He has a big left-foot kick and is good when the ball hits the ground, but Nankervis is best when he's leaping, jumping and stretching for the ball"

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2013-11-10/11-days-to-the-draft-meet-toby-nankervis

Here is a good interview with him in a Tassie Newspaper the examiner:
http://www.examiner.com.au/story/1910105/nervous-nankervis-before-afl-draft/

His Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/Tnank_20

A few more links:
http://www.scpaige.com.au/draftees-in-focus-toby-nankervis/

http://boundforglorynews.com/2013-draft-profile-toby-nankervis/

http://www.aflphotos.com.au/galleries/results/?q=Toby Nankervis

Some aggression: http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/EZcw5Am1lDK/AFL+U18+Championship+Round+5/c05iYoA5zOC/Toby+Nankervis
 

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Toby Nankervis
DOB 12/8/94 Ht 199 Wt 103

This was a really poor year for rucks at the Champs and for me Nankervis stands head and shoulders above the rest. It worth noting that he is a 19 year old and at the champs I managed to overhear a really interesting conversation about this from two recruiters who were sitting behind me at the NT game. One was of the opinion that he was 19 and should be dominating those less mature rucks and that he should be marked down for it. The other was going with the line that young bigs develop at different rates and Nankervis had just taken an extra year and you had to look at what he was doing now and lacking some of the exposure to elite programs there was still a heap of upside. With Nankervis I tend to side with the second recruiter. Assess what is in front of you and quite simply he was the best ruck prospect playing at the Champs this year and he had an AA place to prove it.

I know when I was young and playing football I played a couple of games against the younger kids and when I did that I always had supreme confidence that I could dominate against them and I always did. That is what it was like for Nankervis this year. He was supremely confident that he could dominate whoever played on him and he did. He gave away height to quite a few opposition rucks and speed to opposition KPDs but he was rarely beaten and over the course of matches I don't think he was beaten at all. He knew he was as good as anyone out there and went out and showed it.

One thing I have asked myself a lot is what whether Nankervis will primarily be a ruck or a forward at AFL level and I honestly have no idea. He is a bit undersized for a ruck but not overly so and his leap at the centre bounces and strength at the stoppages around the ground that should allow him to compensate. Mumford is only listed at 198cm and plays a very similar style of game to Nankervis. Nankervis's tap work is very good and he regularly gives his mids first use of the ball. When the ball hits the ground he recovers quickly and becomes another midfielder. With the ball on the ground he has very clean hands for a ruck and will win more than his fair share of clearances at AFL level. He is capable of getting the ball out quickly by hand but will take his time and back his strength if there is not an available option. One thing which is also impressive for a big guy is his ability to get boot to ball quickly. With all that said I think we are coming into an era of elite rucks and Nankervis is going to be toward the bottom of the pack in the ruck itself if you have him as your number 1 ruck. If he had played over the last 7 or 8 years he would have been mid pack or better but the group coming through is much better than those ending their careers about now.

One area where he will be better than most though is around the ground. He had Cox-like numbers around the ground at the Champs (21 disposals and 8 marks per game) and whilst I don't think he will be able to maintain those numbers at AFL level I do think he will be a very handy possession ruckman. He links up very well and presents as a marking target. When he gets the ball he is not your typical ruck and he has the skills of your average mid. He is composed with the ball and confident whether he is going by hand or foot. He has a relaxed kicking style which is improving all the time and allows him to find targets most often. Like an old fashioned ruck he also gets back into the defensive hole and acts as a loose defender who is a very good mark of the ball coming in.

Up forward Nankervis is a big physical presence who is a very capable goal kicker. Again like Mumford he is not the quickest forward going around but he uses his superior strength to push off and create initial separation and once he has got that step or two he is hard to get around. He marks the ball nicely out in front of his eyes and has a good set of hands. He is going to have to adjust to bigger and quicker KPDs at AFL level but at 199cm and over 100kgs he is always going to have the advantage and he has shown that he knows how to make good use of that advantage. When he leads he commits to it and goes hard. He runs good lines on leads but he does tend to lead to the non-preferred side for a left footer a bit too often. When he is in a wrestling match he uses his strength well to get the defender out of the way without giving away the free. His set shot is relaxed and with range out to 50 and it is worth noting that he was in the top 10 last year in the goal kicking test.

At the Combine he was a bit of a mixed bag in his physical testing but pretty commensurate or better than the other rucks tested. His running jump was good but his standing vertical was terrible. His speed was poor but not terrible (about the same as Apeness) but his agility was the second best of the ruck group. His beep test was in the 13s which made him one of the better rucks and his repeat sprint again although relatively poor was decent for a ruck. One of the things which I see as a bit of a positive is that his skin folds were about 4th worst of anyone. That tells me there is potential to improve speed etc as he converts fat to muscle. This is not a kid that was at peak fitness for these tests. He has a reasonable base from which to work from relative to his peers and will certainly improve significantly just going through a standard AFL preseason. Nankervis himself has identified his repeat sprint work as something which he needs to improve and his forward work would certainly benefit if he could.

To me he is not quite a number 1 ruck nor a true FF prospect but as a forward/2 ruck he could be one of the best. If you team has an elite ruckman and could use a very useful forward who would give most 2nd rucks a bath he is your man.

http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/quigleys-2013-mock.1041146/


#46 Adelaide – Toby Nankervis (TAS – KPF/Ruck)
Height: 199cm, Weight: 101kg, DOB: 12/08/1994
Recruited from: North Launceston
Style: Jonathan Giles
Player comparison: David Hale
Range: 25-rookie
Profile: Nankervis is a big Tasmanian and was named as the u18 All Australian ruckman. He is a year older but a strong improver since last year. Nankervis is a very strong body and is capable both through the ruck and up forward. He’s not a dominant ruckman but as a ruckman is more someone who will follow up well and find the footy around the ground. As a forward he’s more of a big bodied presence and an improved contested grab but also ok at ground level. By foot Nankervis is also reliable. He’s not an athlete with limited pace and a slow turning circle but he works hard to spread from the contest and cover the ground and giving repeat efforts. The ideal role is as a no.2 ruckman for a team as a competitive ruckman who can also be a factor up forward.

http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/knightmares-2013-phantom-draft.983436/
 
Steal for us.
Plays alot like Todd Goldstein and will take over the reigns after Pyke.
Best kicking action/motion I have seen in a while.
 
Now for my thoughts, I am a sydney sider that lived in tassie for 4 years in the early 2000's. So I take a close interest in the Tassie prospects. From what I have seen and heard from my mates that either played with him, against him or watched his game he is a talent. I rated him higher then Lobb, but at this stage ( Ididnt see or here as much of Lobb ) it is hard to tell.

He didnt get drafted last year but Ruckman as we all know take longer to develop. He, as an overage player (someone that could have been drafted last year) has good physical size for a draftee and on top of his ruckwork has a good motor around the ground. Including being able to play in the forward line.

I am stoked we got him.
 
Is anyone else a little surprised at this? I know before the draft many said that the move to select Derickx was a sign we would not get another ruckman. I personally think you always need good ruck depth (as Fremantle showed this year, a lot can go wrong and they were in a great position to cover), and wanted us to select one whether it was in the ND or rookie draft, but could totally understand if others thought Nankervis wasn't needed.


With one AFL level Ruckman on our list we needed him. I honestly think he will overtake Derickx. He played in the Tassie first grade comp all year and played really well. In a developing Ruckman playing at that level in a good seconds comp (probably better then the NEAFL).

We have 2 Rookie ruckman, one hasnt played AFL the other is a good young prospect but a little raw for AFL right off the bat next year.

So in my opinion, YES
 

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Picks for need, and as a slightly older pick, who played seniors all year in Tassie, he could step up for a bit if needed. Also, wasn't aware he had indigenous background. Good pick.
 
He looks very promising. Although if there is one knock on him that i can tell from just watching the highlights video is his leap. A couple of the marking contests he barely got off the ground, i thought it was just me until i read the article RUNVS posted that it does mention his standing leap is terrible. It's something that can be worked on, right? Or is it one of those things you either have or you don't?

Can take a grab, good kick and doesn't seem to have much trouble finding the ball which is good for a ruckman. Look forward to seeing him play for us.
 
He looks very promising. Although if there is one knock on him that i can tell from just watching the highlights video is his leap. A couple of the marking contests he barely got off the ground, i thought it was just me until i read the article RUNVS posted that it does mention his standing leap is terrible. It's something that can be worked on, right? Or is it one of those things you either have or you don't?

Can take a grab, good kick and doesn't seem to have much trouble finding the ball which is good for a ruckman. Look forward to seeing him play for us.
I read that he has some room for improvement on the fitness side, he's not unfit, but he has scope for growth there. You can improve your spring a little, but he won't be out juping Nic Nat anytime soon. In saying that, Mummy wasn't a great leaper.
 
I read that he has some room for improvement on the fitness side, he's not unfit, but he has scope for growth there. You can improve your spring a little, but he won't be out juping Nic Nat anytime soon. In saying that, Mummy wasn't a great leaper.


Yeah, that article above says his skin folds were the 4th worst of anyone. I don't think many people will be able to match the leap NicNat has. :p
 
He looks very promising. Although if there is one knock on him that i can tell from just watching the highlights video is his leap. A couple of the marking contests he barely got off the ground, i thought it was just me until i read the article RUNVS posted that it does mention his standing leap is terrible. It's something that can be worked on, right? Or is it one of those things you either have or you don't?

Can take a grab, good kick and doesn't seem to have much trouble finding the ball which is good for a ruckman. Look forward to seeing him play for us.


One thing I like though, that is not mentioned in the right ups, is his read of the play. He does get back quite a bit and help out the defence. In attack he reads the ball well and uses his body. He has a tank for a big man even though he is not that quick. Not to mention not the worst disposal.

He will have to improve in the ruck for AFL level, but with his talent I thought he was the best ruck in the draft......He will have to improve in the ruck if he will be a number 1 ruckman (our forward line is crowded) but as a resting forward like Pyke, he would kick a few goals.

I am excited to see what he will become, if he can cut it at AFL level because it is hard to tell. Cox, Mummy, Sandy,....... a lot of the best Ruckmen were only good enough to be rookies.
 
Yeah i agree, which is why i would have found it tough to take if we had a crack at Lobb at 15. Rucks are definitely a crapshoot at 17/18 and generally take a long time to develop despite being the odd exception. Nankervis looks a good prospect and we weren't risking a great deal taking him at 35 when we had already taken who we think is best available in Jones and Hewett.
 
He was my favourite player in the lead up to this years draft.
(Colquhoun was my 2012 fav, I was glad he was drafted by Port in the PSD)
I was bitterly disappointing that Nankervis was not there at 45. :(
Great pickup Sydney, Nankervis will dominate the AFL in a few years time. :thumbsu:
 
Am rapt to a have a Tassie boy in the team again, especially a lonny/g town lad the last one was paul williams if my memory serves me correct. George town in recent years has produced Daniel geal, Gorge bailey and now Toby nankervis, Let's see if he can become bigger stars than them.

It seems the commentators have already named him nanka too

'whos that, is that nanka again?'
'ofcourse it is'
 
Like the look of Nankervis. Good disposal, very agile which is extremely important in modern footballer and has a good kicking technique for a big bloke. Solid pickup IMO. Long term prospect. Will take time. Definitely what we needed going forward though.
 

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