2007 draftees

[Darealrath]

I think you guys did well taking MJ and Kepler. Hope they do very well for you (though not against us please).

I remember this time last year the majority of you guys were horrified that you took Solomon. Saying he was nowhere near your best 22. He turned out to be one of your best. MJ won't be as good IMO but he still has a lot to offer and he'll feel he has a lot to prove. If he plays permanent forward pocket (where I think he's best suited these days) he could kick you 35 goals and apply a lot of pressure. He's a brilliant set shot at goal (I can't remember ever seeing him miss when within range), and kicks them under pressure too.

Kepler will love the space at Subi and was showing great signs winning our reserves B&F. As a CHF he will run most CHB's into the ground and his skills have improved quite a bit, plus he could allow Pavlich to stay closer to goal and free up McPharlin as an added bonus.

 

[sabre_ac]

Helps when they have 4 picks inside the top 25.

All reports are that Ebert and Selwood were steals.

They just lost their two top midfielders and I bet the thought of drafting Johnson would not have even entered their heads.

 

[The Night Shift]

Three Young Guns. Two Old Bombers
[SIZE=-1]by Shane Richmond[/SIZE] [SIZE=-2]24/11/2007[/SIZE]

It's that time of year where 17 year olds invade holiday destinations around Australia to try and drink enough grog to undo 12 years of schooling (16 years for South Fremantle supporters). But some kids put that sort of shenanigans aside in the hope that they'll get drafted by an AFL club and will be able to spend every October drinking themselves silly on end of season footy trips.
After finishing down the ladder and with a swag of East Fremantle players on offers, Fremantle opted to stay away from the trade table this year and bag themselves some quick, young midfielders to feed their Rolls Royce forward line.
The worry was that the entire country had been hanging around East Fremantle Oval during the season and all the secrets were out. The Eagles had an early pick after Chris Judd fled the club, and used it to take East Fremantle's Chris Masten - where they will probably introduce him to a life of organised crime, loose women and horse tranquilisers but the fate of Rhys Palmer was much better, slipping through to number 7 where the Dockers tripped over themselves running to the microphone to call out his name.
Palmer was named All Australian at the 2

007 Under 18's championships and the very trendy title of MVP of the Western Australian side, as well as the much coveted Trevor Sprigg Rising Star Award. At just over six foot he's considered a small midfielder, weighs about 80kg and will be 19 in February. He was a stand out in the endurance tests at the draft camp. With his balance, skills and work ethic, he's been described as a bigger, quicker, but slightly less good looking, Peter Bell.
[SIZE=-1]Scribblewiki
East Fremantle Profile[/SIZE]

At pick number 24, Fremantle went for more pace, taking North Ballarat's Clayton Hinkley. Hinkley starred at the AFL Draft Camp, finishing 2nd in the 20m Sprints, 3rd in the Agility test and 4th in the Beep Test. He represented Vic Country in the under 18's championships but a shoulder injury kept him under the radar in the lead up to the finals this season. He’s 187cm and will be 19 in February.
[SIZE=-1]Hinkley: Ball magnet eyes camp[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]
Season Stats [/SIZE]

Phil Smart's Art Garfunkel fetish came to the fore once again with pick 40 being used to take Chris Mayne. Another of Perth's gun colts to step into the seniors in 2007, he plays at half forward, takes a great mark and can sprint all day without slowing down.
[SIZE=-1]Mayne’s big debut mixed blessing for Demons[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Take 5 with Chris Mayne[/SIZE]

The trade off for allowing Phil Smart's Garfunkel pick was that Mark Harvey and Robert Shaw got to have the next pick and, not surprisingly, they went for an Essendon player - Mark Johnson. Like Josh Carr before he made the move home, Johnson is well known to the Fremantle players, their kidneys in particular.
A victim of Matthew Knights' dubious razor gang, Johnson is a former best and fairest winner at Essendon (from when they were good). He is 29 years old at the moment but brings 194 games of experience with him, including a premiership in 2000 and his famous body building award.
[SIZE=-1]Essendon delists Mark Johnson[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]
Mark Johnson keen to impress Kangaroos[/SIZE]

Since there were two of them, Harvey and

Shaw decided they should get two picks, so they took another ex-Bomber at pick 69 in Kepler Bradley. Bradley was taken at pick 6 by the Bombers at the end of 2003 but has been another victim of Matthew Knights' middle of the road policy. He's tall, quick and agile and can play pretty much anywhere. Just needs to work on his kicking around the opposition's goals. He has been training with the Dockers all pre-season.
[SIZE=-1]Slow starters denied chance to blossom[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]
BomberBlitz Interview[/SIZE]
Once Mark Harvey has stuffed his duffle bag with all the free coke bottles he could carry, that concluded the draft, with none of the delisted Fremantle players getting a lifeline.


Taken From good ole' www.dockerland.com

 

[ImperialPurple]

I think you guys did well taking MJ and Kepler. Hope they do very well for you (though not against us please).

I remember this time last year the majority of you guys were horrified that you took Solomon. Saying he was nowhere near your best 22. He turned out to be one of your best. MJ won't be as good IMO but he still has a lot to offer and he'll feel he has a lot to prove. If he plays permanent forward pocket (where I think he's best suited these days) he could kick you 35 goals and apply a lot of pressure. He's a brilliant set shot at goal (I can't remember ever seeing him miss when within range), and kicks them under pressure too.

Kepler will love the space at Subi and was showing great signs winning our reserves B&F. As a CHF he will run most CHB's into the ground and his skills have improved quite a bit, plus he could allow Pavlich to stay closer to goal and free up McPharlin as an added bonus.

Thank you for the positive words. I guess both harvey and wallis know Johnson extremely well, so will have a plan in mind for him. I'm okay with kepler - he's still young, and I remember seeing him play the WAFL GF for West Perth just before he was drafted by you guys, wishing that Freo could have a crack at him. He might turn out to be great for us, or WP might have found themselves an excellent CHF... At least it will keep Kiwi Campbell working hard!

Cheers for the words... nice to see someone looking at the positives instead of just pointing and laughing...


BTW - Michael Johnson goes by both MJ and Johnno.... does this mean Mark Johnson is now our MJ, while Michael is now "Johnno" full-time.... ??

 

[The Night Shift]

Thank you for the positive words. I guess both harvey and wallis know Johnson extremely well, so will have a plan in mind for him. I'm okay with kepler - he's still young, and I remember seeing him play the WAFL GF for West Perth just before he was drafted by you guys, wishing that Freo could have a crack at him. He might turn out to be great for us, or WP might have found themselves an excellent CHF... At least it will keep Kiwi Campbell working hard!

Cheers for the words... nice to see someone looking at the positives instead of just pointing and laughing...


BTW - Michael Johnson goes by both MJ and Johnno.... does this mean Mark Johnson is now our MJ, while Michael is now "Johnno" full-time.... ??

Don't worry about the ignorant taunts from the others IP.
The only finger pointing and snickering other supporters may do is at recruiting Johnson. Some people have been so quick to comdemn it, it's crazy.
Look at it this way - we've done really well for the picks we got - 4 young guys and a veteran.
We wanted speed - we got speed and one almost guareented gun
We 've also got kepler who has been given a chance by us - if we can sort him out we'll be the ones pointing the finger at the Bombers and snickering.
Old Johnson, If nothing else, Johnson is a tough in and under player that will help out at the stoppages, and that's a weakness in our game at times that everyone knows about.
I wonder how him and Tazz will patch things up after there little altercation a few years back?????

 

[FootyEater]

well guys, reading this thread i am a little baffled. for once i am not the doomsday sayer, the pessimist, or the nay-sayer. im pretty happy with our selections.
palmer= a gun and exactly what we need. can not believe essendon did not take him. i have an essendon mate who is just about crying due to the fact that they took myers instead of palmer. i quote "what the f.ck were they thinking.... f.cking knights is a f.cking richmond player and nothing more" so that has made my day.

hinkley is a lightning fast midfielder. fits the profile of our wish list. so happy

mayne a good marking forward type who can go into the midfield. sounds like another medhurst which will be good providing he doesnt have pauls ego/attitude/selfishness. an when farmer retires he could be a good replacement.

mark johnson. while i would have liked to pick him up a little later, i will never complain about having a tough as nails midfielder. in fact i have always rated johnno as a player

bradley, former number six pick, will be a valuable buckup ruckman, so we no longer have to put up with gilmore. may find a good niche in our forwardline as well.


all in all, im bloody happy. i know the w***ers down the road did well. but they lost judd and cousins, ending up with a lot of early picks in a weak draft. all we can worry about is us, and i think harvs and smart did well this time

 

[Bender571]

Previous Pick 55
2006 – Robert Gray – Port Adelaide
2005 – Brett Montgomery – Western Bulldogs (drafted from Port)
2004 – Adam Icaobucci – Collingwood
2003 – Sam Fisher – St Kilda
2002 – Ryan Crowley – Freo
2001 – Brad Miller – Melbourne
2000 – Chris Newman – Richmond

Previous Pick 69
2006 – Ben Warren – Roos
2005 – Tim Hutchinson – Roos
2004 – Daniel Haines – Freo
2003 – Jordan Banister – Carlton
2002 – Port Passed
2001 – Matthew McCarthy – Geelong
2000 – Richmond Passed

Previous Pick 74
2006 – Matthew Ferguson – St Kilda
2005 – Port Passed
2004 – Daniel Pratt – Roos
2003 – St Kilda Passed
2002 – Richmond Passed
2001 – Ricky Mott – Sydney
2000 – Michael Davis – Essendon

Thought people might be interested.
Draw your own conclusions

 

[masai]

Overall I can't complain.

Three youngsters who seem to have good work ethics, and are of the type we needed, one youngy with an upside and one warhorse.

Johnson was questionable but he is well known for his "never say die" attitude. This is what we have lacked at times on the training track and on the field. At worst he is going to give the youngsters a tough time on the training track, fighting over every man on man drill. At best he is going to provide a "cool head" and toughness in the senior side when the pressure really goes on. I am warming to the idea, if his fitness is as good as reported, Johno and Belly doing a sort of rotation through the non Wizard forward pocket.

Bradley, rated him highly when he was at the garlic munchers, so if Harvey is any good as a coach he should get him going in the right direction. First thing he needs is his confidence back, from that his kicking will improve and he will back himself with confidence, rather than trepidation.

I reckon the Rookie List is where we will pick up alot of spindly young projects.

 

[Bradesmaen]

Least we aren't as bad as Adelaide fans.. .they are moaning like usual as they do after every draft, that they picked wrong etc. God damn bunch of chardonnay sippers.

 

[inferno66]

They just lost their two top midfielders and I bet the thought of drafting Johnson would not have even entered their heads.

Thats stating the obvious. With high picks why would West Coast pick up Johnson.

 

[Wizard]

Least we aren't as bad as Adelaide fans.. .they are moaning like usual as they do after every draft, that they picked wrong etc. God damn bunch of chardonnay sippers.

To be fait so they should they fu*ked up big time, cant wait to read the reports in the paper tomorrow. No way should have they taken a Vic kid again over a local.

 

[Bradesmaen]

Why not? If he is better in their opinion then of course they should. They have screwed up previously in drafts but they are trying to turn itround by not going local all the time. They went mainly local last year etc.

 

[KING-JAMES]

Congrats on getting Palmer, I'm rapt with Myers. I think both will have great careers. Do any of you guys know much on Cale Hooker? Played for East Frematle. He is supposed to be a really good athete for a 196cm player.

 

[Wizard]

Why not? If he is better in their opinion then of course they should. They have screwed up previously in drafts but they are trying to turn itround by not going local all the time. They went mainly local last year etc.

Because he is going to spend the next season based in Melbourne because he is going to school next year. Doesnt sound like a logical decision to me, its a year of development they cant control like they want to i'm sure.

Anyway..........Mark Johnson. I wasnt annoyed about this pick until i thought about it this way. Who would you prefer on our list, Dunn or Johnson??
I know who i would rather.

 

[Bradesmaen]

Because he is going to spend the next season based in Melbourne because he is going to school next year. Doesnt sound like a logical decision to me, its a year of development they cant control like they want to i'm sure.

Anyway..........Mark Johnson. I wasnt annoyed about this pick until i thought about it this way. Who would you prefer on our list, Dunn or Johnson??
I know who i would rather.

Apparently he is coming over for the start of the year and all holidays. He's only young anyway. They aren't after a premiership next year really so theres no danger in not having him impact straight away. It just shows that he has a good head on his shoulders.

As for Dunn or Johnson.. For experience I'd prefer Johnson.. for ability I'd prefer Dunn.. but we have enough players with ability I think.

 

[Wizard]

Apparently he is coming over for the start of the year and all holidays. He's only young anyway. They aren't after a premiership next year really so theres no danger in not having him impact straight away. It just shows that he has a good head on his shoulders.

As for Dunn or Johnson.. For experience I'd prefer Johnson.. for ability I'd prefer Dunn.. but we have enough players with ability I think.

I dont wanna get into a big argument with you mate. Put simply i can see why all of the crows fans are pi**ed off.

 

[Bradesmaen]

I can't Not from what I have seen of Dangerfield. I wanted him for Freo at 24.

 

[Dr Ralph Dagg]

On another thread I suggested picking Johnson ... but I don't feel vindicated.

I like to think of Johnson as a replacement for James Walker because he is everything Walker wasn't. There average stats are similar except in tackles.

http://www.pro-stats.com.au/psw/web/compare_players?tid1=105&pid1=331&tid2=106&pid2=673

But Johnson is more consistent, more aggressive, harder at the ball and a way stronger tackler than Walker, and will put pressure on the younger guys to prove themselves before they get a game. All for $50k a season plus match payments.

I think he is a ready made midfielder who was being asked to play back pocket which is not his forte -- a bit like Solomon having to play CHB. Watch him get drafted to Perth and partner up with Cookie to put fear in the hearts of the other WAFL teams.

 

[dockers_bengals]

I'm wrapt with three young mids with one good at clearances.
I can't believe all this negative stuff over johnson.
Most posters whinge about needing midfielders now and so we get one and whinge again,WTF do you want?
Dunn is injury prone and so I think its a good pick up,Bigbody seasoned midfielder on bugger all cash (I assume) playing for his career in a team that should/will be top four.If we don't have the problems with injury etc...we had last year places in the midfielder are going to be very hard to get
On Bradley I'm unsure but if used better he could be okay so I'm happy to give him ago.

 

[Tony_Clifton]

Absolutely stoked with getting Palmer. I think by about this time last night most of us were resigned to the idea that the bombers were taking him. You bewdy. Exactly what we need.

Picked up another midfielder with the next pick which is another big tick. Not sure why we didn't go another midfielder with the third pick, I guess Smart sees something in Mayne. These two guys weren't really mentioned in the speculating that goes on in the bigfooty community. Initially it is a little perturbing that they aren't names we all recognise but I think the gossip kind of builds on itself creating paper players.

Now onto Mark Johnson and Keppler. I don't have a problem with it. Its only a fourth and fifth round pick. Personally I kind of like getting a new toy I can play with straight away rather than waiting a couple of years, but thats just human nature. I reckon Mark Johnson will make the most significant on field contribution of any of the new guys next year. I think he will be fantastic out of a forward pocket.

I can't really see how Keppler will fit in, and think both he and Gilmore need to be assured of what position they are actually playing. They need some confidence in the one position before we try to shove them into a stop gap role simply because of their physical makeup.

The biggest positive I see for next year is the change in culture that is going on. Keppler and Johnson both have a great work ethic. We have got rid of some undesirables and I think Harvey is going to coach them into an honest hard working team. No tail wagging the dog going on any more!

We still might be able to rookie Dunn and Collard or that young tagger who took care of Cochin. Very Pleased.

We got Palmer at 7! ooh yeah.

 

[Wizard]

I'm wrapt with three young mids with one good at clearances.
I can't believe all this negative stuff over johnson.
Most posters whinge about needing midfielders now and so we get one and whinge again,WTF do you want?
Dunn is injury prone and so I think its a good pick up,Bigbody seasoned midfielder on bugger all cash (I assume) playing for his career in a team that should/will be top four.If we don't have the problems with injury etc...we had last year places in the midfielder are going to be very hard to get
On Bradley I'm unsure but if used better he could be okay so I'm happy to give him ago.

I'm very excited about having Kepler to be honest. I wanted him 3-4 yrs ago when he first got drafted so very happy to get him with such a late pick. Both players IMO are no risk due to the pick commited to them. No big deal, if they work we are geniuses if they dont than bad luck.

 

[Wizard]

Absolutely stoked with getting Palmer. I think by about this time last night most of us were resigned to the idea that the bombers were taking him. You bewdy. Exactly what we need.

I said to a mate last night we would get Myers with #7, so i guess the old reverse jinx worked. I will take all credit for him becoming a docker from here on in.

 

[Red Black and Blue]

Congrats on Palmer, thought we would pick him but alas.

As for Mark i think he still has alot to offer, just hope Harvey doesn't play him down back, he can be really damaging FP (e.g. 2nd Adelaide game last season kicked 3 in the last quarter to win the game) with stints in the middle i think he can still help if ur goal isn't rebuild but push for the flag 08-10.

Kepler...... im sorry no one deserves that (might be a bit harsh but i was a fan until he let me down time after time, i might be proved wrong if harvey plays him CHF line but dont hold ur breath)


good luck with 08

 

[dont bowl there]

I'm wrapt with three young mids with one good at clearances.
I can't believe all this negative stuff over johnson.
Most posters whinge about needing midfielders now and so we get one and whinge again,WTF do you want?
Dunn is injury prone and so I think its a good pick up,Bigbody seasoned midfielder on bugger all cash (I assume) playing for his career in a team that should/will be top four.If we don't have the problems with injury etc...we had last year places in the midfielder are going to be very hard to get
On Bradley I'm unsure but if used better he could be okay so I'm happy to give him ago.

Mark Johnson is not the type of midfielder we should have been looking at, im not that unhappy we picked him up but he wont play in the guts that much. Very pleased with Palmer though.

 

[UpForGrabs]

I'm sure every Eagles supporter has more often than not poked fun at Freo's recruiting in the past, but had honestly thought those days had passed.

Well done on Palmer (gun), but what the hell's going on with Johnson and Bradley?? Maybe Harvs and Wallis still have their red and black blinkers on?