2016 Draft discussion

[jackess]

I have to agree that the clip put up makes him look like an irresistible draft option, but isn't that the point? I mean you could make a video the same about virtually any player. not saying he isn't good or worth picking (personally I would love to have him) just playing devils advocate.

Not any

 

[carnthemlions]

This is why I have a love/hate relationship with this time of year. The attachment people get towards a certain player they see mainly through YouTube highlights packages and textual descriptions seems a bit OTT. Whoever we land, assuming we'll be picking from one of McCluggage, McGrath or Ainsworth will do me fine - we've got a need for all 3 types.

At least we haven't got to the stage where people have a go at alternatives to 'their player'. Over on the Essendon board the McGrath vs McCluggage wars are underway, apparently McCluggage is now a soft outside player who flinches before contact etc.

 

[Kevvo]

At least we haven't got to the stage where people have a go at alternatives to 'their player'. Over on the Essendon board the McGrath vs McCluggage wars are underway, apparently McCluggage is now a soft outside player who flinches before contact etc.

It's amazing how much the views evolve after the season ends . Most of these players haven't played any games for a little while now, but views on ordering and their qualities change or harden at a crazy rate based on the same highlights videos that have been available for months.

 

[M Malice]

i think it was lionshine who was keen on this guy earlier in the year. afl.com

SUBIACO product Liam Ryan is on the radar of a number of AFL clubs after dazzling recruiters with his performances throughout 2016.

Ryan, a high-flying forward who made the move from Geraldton to Perth less than a year ago, booted 40 goals in 16 games in the WAFL.

The 20-year-old possesses rare talent and those attributes were on show at the recent Western Australia State Combine.

Tomorrow's heroes: Marshall out to bowl them over

Seventeen players were invited to take part in skills testing and Ryan's running vertical jump results (90cm off the left leg, 78 off the right leg) and 20m sprint time (2.92sec) further enhanced his draft prospects.

However, the exciting forward will have to markedly improve his beep test result (10.1) which was well below AFL standard, although the gruelling test was completed just half an hour after repeat sprint testing, making it tough to recover in time.

AFL talent Manager Kevin Sheehan described Ryan as a "special" player who had soared into draft contention after a standout season in his first year in the WAFL.

"He's got a few tricks, with his agility, power and great leap, that make him very elusive," Sheehan told AFL.com.au.

"He'll need to build his endurance but his strengths are in other areas. There's plenty of x-factor and something special about him.

"We want and need another Eddie Betts. don't we?"

AFL Academy prospect Noah Hura, from Peel Thunder, Claremont's Jeremy Goddard and East Fremantle's Luke Strnadica are other names to look out for from Western Australia in the national and rookie drafts next month.

Goddard is a competitive ruckman standing at 202cm and Strnadica is an excellent marking tall-forward type at 199cm, while Hura is regarded for his dash from half-back.

"They've all got some significant upside, so all three of those boys certainly have a chance," Sheehan said.

More By Ben Guthrie

 

[Wilbur90]

I'd actually prefer McCluggage by some margin. Natural footballer, consistently hits the scoreboard, reads the play superbly, nice height, lots of upside given scope for physical refinement and a pre season in an elite environment.

Not convinced about McGrath at all. He has some nice attributes but not sure he will transition to the next level as a top tier player worthy of being a top 5 selection.

The higher the level he plays at (National champs, All-Star game) he has shown bugger all as a midfielder, playing pretty much exclusively as a half-back. And even for Sandringham, his impact centre-forward wasn't outstanding. He rarely hit the scoreboard. More a hbf who has the pace to run and create out of defence where there is less congestion and he can run in straight lines.

So if you take him being a half back flanker as the starting point, with the hope for him to potentially play midfield at AFL level in time, I'd want him to be a damaging, elite kick of the footy and I'd want him to be a good height to enhance his versatility.

His kicking is hit and miss at best and certainly not damaging, and he is only 180cm. His height is mitigated a little bit due to his jumping ability but is still not ideal for a guy who will spend a lot of time in the back half where it can be exploited.

If I were you guys picking at 3 I'd be super excited at any of Ainsworth, McCluggage (if we go McGrath and as @ a mayes ing suggests, GWS opt for a fwd or back rather than a mid), Brodie, SPS or Taranto. All guys with immense talent with not much between them who will be a key figure in your rebuild.

 

[jackess]

i think it was lionshine who was keen on this guy earlier in the year. afl.com

SUBIACO product Liam Ryan is on the radar of a number of AFL clubs after dazzling recruiters with his performances throughout 2016.

Ryan, a high-flying forward who made the move from Geraldton to Perth less than a year ago, booted 40 goals in 16 games in the WAFL.

The 20-year-old possesses rare talent and those attributes were on show at the recent Western Australia State Combine.

Tomorrow's heroes: Marshall out to bowl them over

Seventeen players were invited to take part in skills testing and Ryan's running vertical jump results (90cm off the left leg, 78 off the right leg) and 20m sprint time (2.92sec) further enhanced his draft prospects.

However, the exciting forward will have to markedly improve his beep test result (10.1) which was well below AFL standard, although the gruelling test was completed just half an hour after repeat sprint testing, making it tough to recover in time.

AFL talent Manager Kevin Sheehan described Ryan as a "special" player who had soared into draft contention after a standout season in his first year in the WAFL.

"He's got a few tricks, with his agility, power and great leap, that make him very elusive," Sheehan told AFL.com.au.

"He'll need to build his endurance but his strengths are in other areas. There's plenty of x-factor and something special about him.

"We want and need another Eddie Betts. don't we?"

AFL Academy prospect Noah Hura, from Peel Thunder, Claremont's Jeremy Goddard and East Fremantle's Luke Strnadica are other names to look out for from Western Australia in the national and rookie drafts next month.

Goddard is a competitive ruckman standing at 202cm and Strnadica is an excellent marking tall-forward type at 199cm, while Hura is regarded for his dash from half-back.

"They've all got some significant upside, so all three of those boys certainly have a chance," Sheehan said.

More By Ben Guthrie

That beep test almost kills his chances.

 

[Brod208]

Should draft the blokes who get Josh Schache to sign that contract extension sooner... best available and best mates with Josh.

Ainsworth at 3 should be part of the battle done

 

[bungalow_bill]

#operationdraftjoshsmates

 

[winged1]

#operationdraftjoshsmates

When is his brother draft age?

 

[WA Lion]

#operationdraftjoshsmates

imagine if that worked against us!!!

Josh left and then all his mates followed.......

 

[bungalow_bill]

When is his brother draft age?

Sooner the better.

imagine if that worked against us!!!

Josh left and then all his mates followed.......

That's a minor downside

 

[SizeMatters]

While I have my doubts on McCluggage we would be stupid as a club not to draft him if he is at our pick 3. One thing I like about him is that he is always constantly on the move and anticipates the game so well kinda like the Bont. Should have some upside as well considering he missed preseason IIRC.

 

[a mayes ing]

While I have my doubts on McCluggage we would be stupid as a club not to draft him if he is at our pick 3. One thing I like about him is that he is always constantly on the move and anticipates the game so well kinda like the Bont. Should have some upside as well considering he missed preseason IIRC.

Plus he has had to deal with tags for most of the season iirc. Still managed to fight his way through it.

 

[pulpdriver]

I think McCluggage is as safe a pick as it gets; players with that strong game smarts and no pronounced physical limitations are a really safe bet. Plays like the 2012-2014 Stevie J. imo. Able to rack up possessions through the midfield through a superb sense of the game and reading of the play, very clean finisher and great by hand, able to win his own ball but tends to be the 2nd or 3rd man in the chain or wins the ball directly from the tap or gathers a loose ball at the edge of the contest, exceptional at ground level, clean finisher and dangerous up forward and able to conjure goals from half chances.

The talk about him being soft and unable to win his own ball unjustified imo. He didn't have a proper pre-season because of his back and is obviously very slight but he will definitely fill out in an AFL system. Plus he has no problems getting low down and attempting to win the ball against his opponent in the forward line. Seen him win a few frees or produce goals that way. Considering he doesn't rely on athleticism the way he plays isn't going to impeded by increased weight either, if anything it will just mean his ability to win the inside ball will improve with a bit more strength.

I don't know if I have a real preference between him and Ainsworth tbh. Maybe slightly towards Ainsworth because his pace is a point of difference in our side but I see both slotting into our side up forward straight away next year before moving into the midfield and excelling. Whichever one ends up becoming a Lion I don't see us losing.

Fantastic situation to be in.

 

[jackess]

McCluggage might be perceived to be soft because he's so skinny. Needs to put on a lot of weight.

 

[pulpdriver]

McCluggage might be perceived to be soft because he's so skinny. Needs to put on a lot of weight.

Can't see that being an issue at all in a professional system.

 

[jackess]

Can't see that being an issue at all in a professional system.

No it shouldn't be.

 

[winged1]

McCluggage might be perceived to be soft because he's so skinny. Needs to put on a lot of weight.

We can put him on the Greeny diet, subway and beers, will stack the weight on.

 

[M Malice]

I think McCluggage is as safe a pick as it gets; players with that strong game smarts and no pronounced physical limitations are a really safe bet. Plays like the 2012-2014 Stevie J. imo. Able to rack up possessions through the midfield through a superb sense of the game and reading of the play, very clean finisher and great by hand, able to win his own ball but tends to be the 2nd or 3rd man in the chain or wins the ball directly from the tap or gathers a loose ball at the edge of the contest, exceptional at ground level, clean finisher and dangerous up forward and able to conjure goals from half chances.

The talk about him being soft and unable to win his own ball unjustified imo. He didn't have a proper pre-season because of his back and is obviously very slight but he will definitely fill out in an AFL system. Plus he has no problems getting low down and attempting to win the ball against his opponent in the forward line. Seen him win a few frees or produce goals that way. Considering he doesn't rely on athleticism the way he plays isn't going to impeded by increased weight either, if anything it will just mean his ability to win the inside ball will improve with a bit more strength.

I don't know if I have a real preference between him and Ainsworth tbh. Maybe slightly towards Ainsworth because his pace is a point of difference in our side but I see both slotting into our side up forward straight away next year before moving into the midfield and excelling. Whichever one ends up becoming a Lion I don't see us losing.

Fantastic situation to be in.

great summary pulp, you have me wanting McCluggage now, it's going to be a long month till draft night.

 

[bungalow_bill]

It's just good to be finally getting some high draft picks and doing a proper rebuild. 2,3 and likely top 5 next year. Getting around the pick 7 or 8 mark every year was never going to cut it.

 

[jjami15]

great summary pulp, you have me wanting McCluggage now, it's going to be a long month till draft night.

Oh come on Jason it was only a couple of hours ago when he was third in your summations. I understand where your coming from but I'm all aboard the Ainsworth train. Get it done Schwab and Conole!

 

[M Malice]

Oh come on Jason it was only a couple of hours ago when he was third in your summations. I understand where your coming from but I'm all aboard the Ainsworth train. Get it done Schwab and Conole!

i think there are 3 pretty substantial trains heading our way, who is going to get off at park road station and make the short walk to the gabbatoir is the only question.

 

[AFLQLD]

About this time each year I get all "hope-we-get-X" as I read all the reviews and opinions.

But inevitably, five minutes after we select a player in the draft it all becomes irrelevant and I only want the best for our new player. The others, who a day earlier I really wanted, are just the opposition.

These last few seasons have also shown that getting too attached to any player might well end in disillusionment.

 

[Len S]

I'd actually prefer McCluggage by some margin. Natural footballer, consistently hits the scoreboard, reads the play superbly, nice height, lots of upside given scope for physical refinement and a pre season in an elite environment.

Not convinced about McGrath at all. He has some nice attributes but not sure he will transition to the next level as a top tier player worthy of being a top 5 selection.

The higher the level he plays at (National champs, All-Star game) he has shown bugger all as a midfielder, playing pretty much exclusively as a half-back. And even for Sandringham, his impact centre-forward wasn't outstanding. He rarely hit the scoreboard. More a hbf who has the pace to run and create out of defence where there is less congestion and he can run in straight lines.

So if you take him being a half back flanker as the starting point, with the hope for him to potentially play midfield at AFL level in time, I'd want him to be a damaging, elite kick of the footy and I'd want him to be a good height to enhance his versatility.

His kicking is hit and miss at best and certainly not damaging, and he is only 180cm. His height is mitigated a little bit due to his jumping ability but is still not ideal for a guy who will spend a lot of time in the back half where it can be exploited.

If I were you guys picking at 3 I'd be super excited at any of Ainsworth, McCluggage (if we go McGrath and as @ a mayes ing suggests, GWS opt for a fwd or back rather than a mid), Brodie, SPS or Taranto. All guys with immense talent with not much between them who will be a key figure in your rebuild.

I'll skip the ludicrous stuff...90%, and mention the Robert Shaw /Essendon/ Brighton Grammar link.McGrath is inspiring and lifted both Vic Metro and Sandy to premierships, open your other eye,

 

[Wilbur90]

I'll skip the ludicrous stuff...90%, and mention the Robert Shaw /Essendon/ Brighton Grammar link.McGrath is inspiring and lifted both Vic Metro and Sandy to premierships, open your other eye,

I'm aware of the Robert Shaw link which is part of the reason I believe we will take him as I said.

Lol why would I be 'one eyed'? I don't follow a TAC cup team with any passion and in fact if anything I prefer Vic Metro over Vic Country.
I have no reason or vested interest to have arrived at my opinion and have expressed it in a reasoned manner. Feel free to be abrasive and insolent though.