2012 draft

[RobbieK]

Snoop Dog:

# 59 West Coast
Harrison Marsh
East Fremantle
188cm / 78kg / ‘94
Medium defender who has also played a fair bit through the middle. Player that I really like and has some similarities to Nathan Wright. He is an aggressive type player who seems to always be involved. He has really good pace but I would be interested to see what his endurance results were as if he could fix that it would give him a lot of positional scope going fwd. Very good kick and will kick through the lines so coupled with his speed he could be your Sean Atley type defender. Really interesting player and think he might just step up quicker than people expect and be quite a good AFL player.

Not featured in the other mocks...

 

[robbieando]

Looks like a half back flanker going of the height given

 

[.Shotties.]

swinging for the fences

I don't know what that means.

 

[robbieando]

I don't know what that means.

Baseball term. Attempting hit a home run

 

[swans4eva]

YESSSSSS MEMBREY!

 

[SthMelb25]

Harry Marsh:
A prodigious kick with excellent defensive skills who likes to take the game on. Has vision and clean skills. A very good one-on-one defender who showed he can find the ball as well in the national champs and playing for East Fremantle at Colts level.

 

[robbieando]

That will make a few happy here

 

[swans4eva]

I don't think I'll be able to deal with his seedy ass tattoo. We might need to get him a long sleeve guernsey.

 

[RobbieK]

Quigley:

32. Richmond
Despite him being a feature toward the front of many mocks I think this may be a bit high for Membrey. Notwithstanding that I think he would really suit Richmond where he could work off Reiwoldt to great effect. This is a good fit for both parties so I will go with it.

Tim Membrey
DOB: 26/5/94 Ht: 189 Wt: 88

Membrey would be one of the best junior key position forwards in his age group. The problem with his is that he doesn't have the height for that role at AFL level and he has not really be tried in other positions. I do not understand this as if you had a kid who had talent but was too short to play as a key position why wouldn't you move him around to try him out in positions where if he succeeded he could create interest? The answer is probably that he really is not flash in other positions and it is sometimes better to think there is a possibility that he can play other positions rather than play and have it confirmed that he can't. Vic Country may also have not thought he was not much of a draft prospect, given his height, as they didn't pick him the first few games of the Champs. When he came in he did well though and stepped up to that level without any trouble.

Those who think he can make it point to Jack Darling as a similar player and that is probably a fair argument although I note that Darling is still a couple of centimetres taller than Membrey. Membrey has a very similar skill set to Darling although Darling I thought had more midfield potential than I see for Membrey. Both also have and had a significant question about whether they will have the engine to play effectively at the next level. Darling went out and exceeded anything I expected with his running in his first year. Of all the things which surprised with Darling the startling improvement in his tank was the thing which allowed him to gain the success he had. He could hard lead several times and then turn around and chase down his opposition. Membrey must do the same to successfully transition to the AFL. At the moment he is solid endurance wise but he needs to lift that several notches. I have no idea about whether he will be able to do that and that is where the professional recruiters have a massive advantage in evaluating guys like Membrey.

Membrey is a very smart forward who uses his assets very well. He works out his defender and what will work and then he goes out and does it. If he is playing on a weaker defender he will use his strength if it is a slower player then he will use his pace. At the Champs he worked Dick over with his strength and Luccon with his pace by way of example. He is good at checking a defender with body contact and then leading hard at the ball. He has enough pace to sustain the separation he gets on quicker players and to increase it on slower players.

He is very well developed physically and has got used to having a big advantage in the strength department over his opposition. He uses that strength advantage very well not just to outwrestle his opposition but also protect the drop zone and to hold his line when under body pressure. A lot of similarly mature players have failed to adapt when they got to the AFL where everyone is so much stronger and quicker and their advantage was lost. That is certainly in issue here but I think he has a lot of other things going for him and the smart rather than overpowering way he uses his strength now should allow him to bring his game to the AFL. I also think that whilst he might not have the same strength advantage once fully mature I would still expect him to be stronger than most medium defenders he is going to come up against.

His marking is very good. He has soft hands and his body control and ability to adjust in the air is excellent. On the lead he is very hard to get around and keeps his man on his back very nicely and then to mark he extends out in front of his eyes making it difficult for a defender to spoil. With the ball coming in and playing from behind he judges the ball very nicely in the air and works the defender under the ball very well before turning to mark. He does well keeping the man on of the drop zone no matter where he is positioned.

His kicking for goal and around the ground is very good. He has a balanced, deliberate approach to goal without any obvious problems or flaws. He doesn't quite align his body and the ball but this is pretty minor. He gets a reasonable amount of momentum in his approach and kicks through his shots well. He finished the year very strongly and this would certainly have helped his chances. In the TAC semi he kicked 8 goals 2 behinds to get Gippsland through to the grand final and then in the last game he managed 4 goals 3 behinds. That kind of performance in the TAC finals gets you selected and usually pretty highly.

Knightmare:

#23 Brisbane (Compensation Pick) - Tim Membrey (VIC - Fwd)
Height: 188cm, Weight: 87kg, DOB: 26/05/1994
Recruited from: Gippsland Power
Style:
Player comparison: Jack Darling
Range: 11-40
Profile: Strong, ready to go forward. Real leader by example and one of those types who demands respect. Has to this point in time played as a key forward but projects as more of a 3rd tall at his height. Has the ability to play right away with his strong, man’s body. Big contested marking target up forward who hits the scoreboard with regularity and has produced some big goal hauls. Very strong mark on the lead. Set shot goal kicking very good and knows where the goals are. Membrey is physically very strongly built so his impact for a forward looks like it could be more immediate than the next player. Membrey’s production and presence up forward is un-ignorable. While he hasn’t had much opportunity through the midfield I would be drafting him to be developed into a strong bodied inside midfielder. Has the skillset and as well as the physicality to thrive in this role but having played mostly forward this year it is still an unknown

Chris25:

36. Carlton - Tim Membrey (188cm forward - Gippsland)

With his recent performances for Gippsland, Tim Membrey has really put his name in lights. He has really been dominating games up forward, and he has been doing it all year. But that doesn't mean he will necessarily get drafted early. For some reason he just seems to keep missing out - he was only a late addition to the AFL/AIS squad and he was left out of the Vic Country team for the first three weeks of the Championships. But I like him, and that's all that matters in this draft. He obviously isn't the biggest forward going around, and that may count against him. But I think he compares quite well with Jack Darling and Stewart Crameri - strong marking forward and a very good shot on goal, just a little on the short side. Because he isn't 195cm, what he needs to do to endear himself to AFL teams is be involved in the defensive pressure - and he does just that. He is a strong tackler and chases hard all day. He has also been pushing up into the midfield this year, to add another string to his bow. But while he is an accurate shot on goal, his field kicking can be a little sloppy at times. And to be honest, I don't know if the whole 'big bodied midfielder' thing will ever happen. I'd much rather take an actual midfielder in the top 25, rather than someone who hasn't played there yet but could maybe become one if all things go right. AFL Comparison: Jack Darling.

Snoop Dog:

# 21 West Bulldogs
Tim Membrey
Gippsland Power
189cm / 88kg / ‘94
Might be a bit controversial but a perfect fit for these blokes and you have to remember OMeara and Martin are also there so thinking something different. Everyone wants big bad Tim at their club right now and he is hot property but I just wonder how many use their first pick on this kid when his positional scope is potentially limited. He certainly isn’t big enough for a KPF and whilst I have seen him run through the midfield at Gippy am not convinced he can do it at AFL level. Certainly when I have seen him there he has been influential but he needs to be running a beep around 14-15 for clubs to be convinced he can do it. What he is though is an outstanding 3rd tall prospect that is every bit in the Jack Darling mould and with the scope to give his club that level of performance fairly quickly. We all know he is big, well built, aggressive and has a punching right foot on him that is incredibily accurate. Another one in this draft you just feel was born to play finals footy. Clurey a massive chance.

 

[CAS79]

Currie back in the AFL.

 

[robbieando]

Nice pick up for the forward line

 

[swansfan51]

If you want to see how to use draft picks on WA players, watch West Coast. Carter is a massive bargain down there, Colledge almost as much.

 

[Danair]

Adelaide ****ed us with Sam Siggins!

 

[swans4eva]

Dick, I just like the name.

 

[CAS79]

And we are done. minus the Cunningham upgrade.

 

[RobbieK]

Quigley:

64. Adelaide

It wouldn’t hurt the Crows to add some pace to their defensive unit and Dick would offer them that.

Matthew Dick
DOB: 3/11/94 Ht: 188 Wt: 86

Dick has quite a bit going for him but what he is not is a key position defender and the Metro coaches did him no favours playing him there as often as they did at the Champs often at FB. He has played as a close checking defender for most of the year averaging only 13.8 disposals per game in the TAC. He has shown himself capable of playing tall or short in the TAC but realistically I think he will play on medium forwards in the AFL.

Dick’s main selling feature is his speed. Over 20m he timed in the top 10 at Combine with a 2.88 sec time. His 30m repeat sprint time was a bit down on that kind of result but it was still pretty good. In games situations Dick certainly plays to his speed using it to close down opposition players when defending and to run away from the opposition when attacking. He is a little manic with his speed in attack, liking to get out and try and break the lines and take on tacklers. This can be to his detriment as he does run himself into trouble a bit. He has a bit of a change of direction that he likes to use when deciding where to run but once he is up and going he is not the most evasive player in the world. He is quick certainly and if he gets away he is not going to be caught but he will be nailed a fair bit at the next level whilst he learns that trying to bust through tackles is going to result in frees going against you a fair bit.

I noticed Dick taking quite a lot of the kick ins for Metro and I have to say I did not understand that. He is a reasonably accurate kick but not particularly long. Further I would classify his decision making with the ball in hand as being fairly poor. He turned quite a lot of ball over and if not turned over resulted in the receiver being under pressure. He is also prone to leave the ball hang in the air a bit too much and allow the attacker to make a play on it. Mostly though his actual kicks are fine it is just the decision about where to kick it that makes you wince. On the other side of the skills equation I like his long handball skills. He can get out a really nice quick long handball when needed and that will set his man away. He uses his handballs quite a bit when he has the chance and loves to sprint and receive back. During the Champs in one play I noticed him receive and handball off three times sprinting the whole time from half back up onto the wing. That is the kind of things clubs will be keen to exploit.

Dick is a pretty recent basketball convert and does not really have a great feel for where to run to receive at the moment. He is not a high possession winner and given he won’t be a key position at the next level he needs to become more of an option going forward. With his pace he could be very dangerous in that kind of role but he needs some serious coaching about how to exploit that aspect of his game. His endurance will certainly need some work and this will help but he tested reasonably for endurance at the Combine and had the engine to be getting more of it than he has to date.

Another strength of Dick’s game is his marking. He tested well in the jumping at the Combine and uses that in games situations nicely. He generally likes to have his man in front of him and he uses his body really well to control the contest and watches the ball into the hands exceptionally well. His hands are soft and he controls the ball coming in really nicely. When the ball hits the decks he is quick to react and has really clean hands being able to collect and go before others react. He won the clean hands test at the Combine and personally I really like a one touch player in the backline as it just tends to relieve so much pressure if you are not fumbling the ball and giving the attacker time to make a play on you or the ball.

Defensively Dick is pretty good on guys close to his size. He struggled on a few of the really big blokes at the Champs but when he had a fighting chance he used his pace and strength to blanket them pretty well. He got caught out of position a few times but his pace allowed him to shut down the danger quickly. Against the big guys though he really had no idea what to do and was letting them mark the ball too easily and getting nowhere near it with the spoils.

Dick has not been super impressive this year but he does have a collection of skills and abilities that I think will intrigue a few teams and I expect someone to pick him up.

Knightmare:

#48 Melbourne (Compensation Pick) - Matthew Dick (VIC – Def)
Height: 187cm, Weight: 86kg, DOB:
Recruited from: Calder Cannons
Style:
Player comparison:
Range: 30-60
Profile: Line breaking defender with some real pace. Can play on either talls or small well. Tackling game very good for a defender. Also capable of stepping into the midfield and playing a role. Ball use fine and performed well at the draft combine.

Chris25:

62. West Coast - Matthew Dick (187cm defender - Calder)

There is a lot to like with Matthew Dick, the least of which isn't the fact that he already has a solid build - unlike many other players around the 185-190cm mark. From a physical standpoint, he could certainly push for selection next year. He is also very quick, and isn't afraid to ues that pace coming off the half back line. I think he is just a really solid player, and is versatile enough to play a defensive role on both talls and smalls or play more of an offensive role as he has nice skills. Wouldn't be a huge surprise to see him go earlier than many think of draft day.

Snoop Dog:

# 39 Fremantle
Matthew Dick
Calder Cannons
187cm / 85 / ‘94
Was told early on this year to keep a close eye on this bloke and whilst I could see the potential the output probably wasn’t there. As 2012 has gone on this kid has really screamed up my ladder. Smooth moving, very quick and a terrific size for an AFL HB / Winger who clubs would be pretty excited about what he could do for them. His skills are excellent and whilst to me he looks a bit laconic he always gets the job done. In fact there was a piece of play at Champs where he worked brilliantly between Wing and HF and he very nearly nailed the goal at the end of it. If he had have then there would have been much more chatter about him (eg a Sam Blease moment). I liken him a bit to Heath Shaw but a little less intense...not a bad thing! One I will keep my eye on closely as think he could be a late pick that really makes his mark.

 

[Danair]

We better get Tippett because we passed on Tim O'Brien at pick 22, Hawthorn couldn't believe their luck!

 

[grimlock]

Looks like with our passing we are going to go with an expanded rookie list. Makes sense when at that late picks they tend to be speculative anyway

 

[Jack2Jack]

Not 1 single KKP taken??
What happens when our older Key's retire or we have a bad year with injuries, do we even have any KKP's outside the premiership team besides Walsh, still raw, and White, who's probably in his last year?

 

[Superstar swan]

Extremely happy with membrey, kid can be anything

 

[RobbieK]

We can also fill spots with delisted free-agents too, don't forget.

 

[robbieando]

2 half back flankers to replace Shaw/Mattner. An undersized KPF is always handy and Towers just adds more pace and insurance in case Rohan doesn't make it back as we hope. Fair draft with no doubt KPD to be looked at in rookie draft

 

[RUNVS]

We better get Tippett because we passed on Tim O'Brien at pick 22, Hawthorn couldn't believe their luck!

That has to be it because if we don't get Tippett then our recruiting staff have failed considering Reid definitely needs more help in the forward line.

 

[Blood Bath]

a 187cm Dick

 

[swans4eva]

Adelaide are having an incredible draft.