Very much expecting less youth in our Best 23 to begin the year but this is what I'd like to see:
AFL BEST 23
FB: Hough Edwards Ginbey
HB: Lindsay Young Starcevich
C: Duursma Yeo Davis
HF: Baker Shanahan Graham
FF: Brockman Waterman CDT
R: Archer Harley McCarthy
INT: Dev (MID), Hewett...
Hoping for Phillipou, then match a bid for Williams, then secure Banfield and Evans with our remaining spots via the rookie list. Means we miss out on Walley but if he goes undrafted then we still have NGA access to him next year anyway.
Stoked with Lindsay, McCarthy to the midfield confirmed.
But goodness gracious that F2 to move up a single pick is outrageous, I'm hoping it was with Lindsay in mind as our back-up in case Addinsal was matched and knowing that Hawthorn would likely select him. Or am I overestimating us...
Grlj selection shakes things up.
Sharp to slide?
Ess - Robey and Taylor
Melb - Pickett and Nairn
Ess - Dovaston
Haw - Farrow
NM - Lindsay
GWS - O Taylor
WCE - Sharp
GWS select Noah Hibbins-Hargreaves, a player I once tipped could go to Richmond at pick #4 so I’m stoked to nab him here. One of the highest ceilings in the draft with some incredible performances throughout the year counterbalanced by inconsistency. Can’t go past him here.
You may be right, but probably not to the extent that he forces his way into their long-established four targets (assuming we go Duffma) in Robey, Taylor, Grlj and Cumming. Personally suspect they go the first two, Bombers take Cumming + Farrow or Sharp, and Dees take a combo of Grlj or Farrow...
Insights from Twomey's latest phantom form guide.
Top end:
Open draft top 8 locks are Duursma, CDT, Robey, Taylor, and almost definitely Cumming...
But not Sharp who was even linked to our Pick #13 if he gets past Essendon and Hawthorn (crucially, Melbourne not mentioned), nor Grlj who was...
Our recruitment team will be simultaneously breaking the draft down into rankings and tiers to guide our selections and willingness to package picks to move up the draft order, or to potentially split one of our top selections. With that in mind, this is where I see the consensus tiers (although...
I remember one of Twomey’s final phantom drafts that year had us selecting Wanganeen-Milera and I was really hoping it would eventuate but alas the Saints nabbed him just before our pick (they like doing that, don’t they?) and now it’s just painful to imagine what could have been 😢
I’m not writing him off—just pointing out the truth that he could be gone if he doesn’t show much this year. List spots are going to be tight, which is a great thing! And just because you’re contracted, that doesn’t mean you’re necessarily safe. But you’re right, 2026 would be more likely if he...
I'm not so sure. Yes, he was a shining light in a dark season for us a couple of years ago, but because of that I feel our collective emotional attachment to him doesn't reflect what he has actually produced nor his potential. I agree he has footy smarts and skills, but if we're being realistic...