Player Watch #21: Matthew Jefferson

[Toump Ass]

First round pick

 

[Crusty Demon]

JT losing credibility by the year tbh. Jefferson is an absolute bust. Never looked that great even at junior level. No idea why we got him in the first place. Panic pick maybe? Didn't Weddle go a couple of picks later? lol. Losing faith in JT. Maybe he's instructed to pick certain blokes by Goody, Richo or Lamb ? No idea. But he's the draft guy, so it's on him i guess. He's had a few clangers tbh. Jefferson at the top of that list. Tholstrup not far behind

 

[MartinPrince]

JT losing credibility by the year tbh. Jefferson is an absolute bust. Never looked that great even at junior level. No idea why we got him in the first place. Panic pick maybe? Didn't Weddle go a couple of picks later? lol. Losing faith in JT. Maybe he's instructed to pick certain blokes by Goody, Richo or Lamb ? No idea. But he's the draft guy, so it's on him i guess. He's had a few clangers tbh. Jefferson at the top of that list. Tholstrup not far behind

Yes Weddle went a few picks after, it was a really bad draft for talls.

I hate seeing the last draft just gone and us missing out on some decent looking ones. Shananan at West Coast, Faulk/Armstrong/Sims at Tiges, Whitlocks twins all have shown good signs at AFL level.

 

[Lord Nev]

JT losing credibility by the year tbh. Jefferson is an absolute bust. Never looked that great even at junior level. No idea why we got him in the first place. Panic pick maybe? Didn't Weddle go a couple of picks later? lol. Losing faith in JT. Maybe he's instructed to pick certain blokes by Goody, Richo or Lamb ? No idea. But he's the draft guy, so it's on him i guess. He's had a few clangers tbh. Jefferson at the top of that list. Tholstrup not far behind

Come on man. I know rewriting history is par for the course with draft talk, but let's deal in the facts at the time:

"DRAFT RANGE: 5-15"

Matthew Jefferson Draft Profile

Oakleigh Chargers forward Matthew Jefferson is a key position prospect with substantial upside and terrific aerial range.

central.rookieme.com

"likely high pick at the 2022 NAB AFL Draft"

2022 Draft Prospects: Matthew Jefferson

Australian Football League. All the latest AFL news, video, results and information

www.afl.com.au

"Potential Landing Spots: Hawks (Pick 6), Saints (Pick 9), Demons (Pick 13), Swans (Pick 14)"

AFL Draft Profile: Matthew Jefferson

The Oakleigh Chargers talent is a high-end key position forward for the upcoming draft.

www.zerohanger.com

 

[Toump Ass]

Come on man. I know rewriting history is par for the course with draft talk, but let's deal in the facts at the time:

"DRAFT RANGE: 5-15"

Matthew Jefferson Draft Profile

Oakleigh Chargers forward Matthew Jefferson is a key position prospect with substantial upside and terrific aerial range.

central.rookieme.com

"likely high pick at the 2022 NAB AFL Draft"

2022 Draft Prospects: Matthew Jefferson

Australian Football League. All the latest AFL news, video, results and information

www.afl.com.au

"Potential Landing Spots: Hawks (Pick 6), Saints (Pick 9), Demons (Pick 13), Swans (Pick 14)"

AFL Draft Profile: Matthew Jefferson

The Oakleigh Chargers talent is a high-end key position forward for the upcoming draft.

www.zerohanger.com

Makes you wonder why we even have a list manager, just check bigfooty and see what the consensus draft is.
Easy peasy.

 

[Lord Nev]

Makes you wonder why we even have a list manager, just check bigfooty and see what the consensus draft is.
Easy peasy.

Yep, Big Footy posters are certainly nailing the 2022 draft in 2025.

 

[Scythe]

Feel like we've done this a million times before, but 2022 was a horrid draft after the top 10 (which even then, wasn't all that great).

Weddle, Darcy Jones and maybe Gruzewski/Keeler are the only non-Academy/FS who you'd call 'misses'.

Not all drafts are created equally. Is Jefferson a bust? Almost certainly. But so are about 30 of the other players we could have taken.

 

[DEESNUTSRBIG]

Yes Weddle went a few picks after, it was a really bad draft for talls.

I hate seeing the last draft just gone and us missing out on some decent looking ones. Shananan at West Coast, Faulk/Armstrong/Sims at Tiges, Whitlocks twins all have shown good signs at AFL level.

We still really need quick players.
Picking Jefferson over Weddle and Tholstrup over Wilson.
Sharp is an athlete not an AFL footballer.

 

[Lord Nev]

Gradually becoming a player is the Jeffo.

2 goals to go with 10 pressure acts, 6 score involvements, 4 ground ball gets (3 inside 50), 6 contested possessions. Not huge numbers, but a sign of improvement, and doing the things you'd think sKing would really value.

 

[Lampers]

Gradually becoming a player is the Jeffo.

2 goals to go with 10 pressure acts, 6 score involvements, 4 ground ball gets (3 inside 50), 6 contested possessions. Not huge numbers, but a sign of improvement, and doing the things you'd think sKing would really value.

It's the first time I've seen Jeffo resemble one of his better VFL games up in the big time although there were glimpses against Brisbane too. His superior reading of the ball in flight showed up a few times which allows him to fly at the ball from unconventional angles. I think that throws out the defenders a bit.

Baby steps and it was only the winless Tigers, but hopefully he takes a lot of confidence from this game.

 

[Dory_77]

Agree a positive game from him. Has decent hands and gradually improving in contests. Hope he keeps it up

 

[stEdy]

My worry with him is that he's a low possession type player, but he's actually not a great set shot which could come back to bite him.

 

[Gysberts2Bate]

Just bad luck, having to do that trade with Freo in the year they finished 6th prior to the next two years when they finished 14th and 10th, on top of it being a shitty draft when 2023 and 2024 are looking really good. Such is life.

 

[Lampers]

My worry with him is that he's a low possession type player, but he's actually not a great set shot which could come back to bite him.

My memory is he was more reliable in his earlier seasons even though he didn't get much of the ball.

As Jeffo has developed and got more of the ball, his set shot kicking has deteriorated a bit.

He has had a couple of shockers in the AFL lately so that sticks in the mind, but he's got a pretty simple kicking action so I think he should be able to sort it out.

 

[stEdy]

My memory is he was more reliable in his earlier seasons even though he didn't get much of the ball.

As Jeffo has developed and got more of the ball, his set shot kicking has deteriorated a bit.

He has had a couple of shockers in the AFL lately so that sticks in the mind, but he's got a pretty simple kicking action so I think he should be able to sort it out.

Our praccy game as well, dominated for a quarter and a half and kicked like 2.4 or something? He leans back on his set shots a bit too much for my liking. Needs to take some tips from checkers and fritz

 

[Lord Nev]

My worry with him is that he's a low possession type player, but he's actually not a great set shot which could come back to bite him.

Yeah, his stats aren't terrible for expected score rating from set shots but they're not good and should be better. On the plus side, his set shot expected scores are fairly high, so he's getting to good spots and marking the ball in dangerous locations, I think he's just in his own head a bit at AFL level atm.

 

[PerfectFooty]

Backing himself to jump in packs and his hands are starting to show better clunks at AFL level. Does the hard part of getting the ball but just letting himself down with the 'easier' part of kicking at goal

 

[schmuttt]

I'm still far from sold on him but he is better in the air than JVR.

 

[danster168]

we basically lost Luke Jackson

9

Luke Jackson

Age

24

Ht

199cm

Wt

102kg

Pos.

F/R

Career

Season

Last 5

D

8.3

2star

K

3.3

1star

HB

5.0

4star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

3star

G

0.3

3star

D

8.3

2star

K

3.3

1star

HB

5.0

3star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

2star

G

0.3

3star

D

8.3

3star

K

3.3

2star

HB

5.0

4star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.0

3star

G

0.3

3star

for a fringe player. Jefferson is vfl and Windsor is fringe. Absolute robbery.

 

[Topkent]

Jefferson albeit from the handful of times I've seen him isn't it for me. I was trying to work out how to describe him, some forwards when they jump at the footy they are the threat and they have to be moved or intercepted. JVR has that, he has presence and he jumps straight line at the footy.
Jefferson isn't the main object, he's jumping around the main target trying to effect the contest. It's not a straight line it's an angle. He uses his body like his Mitch Hannan going for it.

This is what I said about him in pre season 25'
I stick with this, has no physical strength and doesn't come at the ball but if he gets side on to a pack he's athletically gifted enough to jump above the rest.

Although JVR jumps straight under the footy alot aswell

 

[markm106]

I’d pretty much written him off. But he has shown some signs this year that he could be a player. Seems to have gotten a bit stronger and better in the air.

 

[Deemanding]

Feel like we've done this a million times before, but 2022 was a horrid draft after the top 10 (which even then, wasn't all that great).

Weddle, Darcy Jones and maybe Gruzewski/Keeler are the only non-Academy/FS who you'd call 'misses'.

Not all drafts are created equally. Is Jefferson a bust? Almost certainly. But so are about 30 of the other players we could have taken.

View attachment 2406841

Geez that was a shit draft. There's not a single best 23 player taken between pick 23 and 48, and Joe Richards had to switch teams to get that. There's only he, Steely Green, and Corey Wagner getting regular games, with a couple more on the fringes.

 

[Proper Gander]

Geez that was a shit draft. There's not a single best 23 player taken between pick 23 and 48, and Joe Richards had to switch teams to get that. There's only he, Steely Green, and Corey Wagner getting regular games, with a couple more on the fringes.

Corey Wagner? He was 2016 draft. Maybe 2015.

 

[Deemanding]

Corey Wagner? He was 2016 draft. Maybe 2015.

He was drafted in 2015, delisted by North, we added him as SSP signing in 2019, he was delisted at the end of 2020 by us, played VFL in 2021 and 2022 and Freo drafted him end the end of 2022. Quite a journey.

 

[Crusty Demon]

we basically lost Luke Jackson for a fringe player. Jefferson is vfl and Windsor is fringe. Absolute robbery.

Both are currently in our senior team. Windsor just got 6 coaches votes and has polled in another game this year. He's building nicely. Jefferson for now is in the senior team and has strung together a couple of half decent games at least. Maybe the wheel is turning? King has already elevated other players games, so who knows. Dogga was gone either way.

Jefferson was always a contentious pick. Although reality is there wasn't much after Jefferson in the draft. Weddle is the one that probably haunts JT. We were gunning for Humphrey that draft so we obviously didn't rate the draft highly outside the top handful, and looking at the draft it's pretty thin. We needed a tall forward and he was the best of a bad bunch i guess.