AFL Player #36: Garrett McDonagh - Good this week, much improved defensively and offensively - 4/5

[Harlequin]

Contract Status: Out of contract 2023
Last Game Played: n/a
Injury Status: n/a

My Boy Draft 2022: Claim here

 

[ghostdog]

A pick this left field is always going to raise eyebrows but given it was the last pick we used it doesn’t really matter whether it is 50 or 150. Go out and get the bloke you want.

Cannon left foot immediately gives him an elite AFL attribute, not only that but he uses it too looking at his ratio of kicks to handballs. If I recall correctly he’s also a bit of an angry ant as well and I wonder whether we may look to use him as a pressure forward given his physicality and maturity, similar to Jake Aarts but can kick and doesn’t have popcorn hands.

Cannot remember the last time we drafted a genuine superboot type player.

I'm interested in waiting until some VFL watchers can give their appraisal, but we picked up Tom Cutler. He's the 60m kicking wingman you're talking about.

 

[ghostdog]

Number 26 is available

Stranger things... 26 seems an appropriate nickname.

 

[Howard Moon]

I'm interested in waiting until some VFL watchers can give their appraisal, but we picked up Tom Cutler. He's the 60m kicking wingman you're talking about.

Wouldn't say he's a 60m cannon tho, more a float it up there kick

 

[Zach Package]

I'm interested in waiting until some VFL watchers can give their appraisal, but we picked up Tom Cutler. He's the 60m kicking wingman you're talking about.

Yes, Cutler does kick long, likewise Redman and a fair few others. McDonagh kicks genuine scud missiles and isn’t averse to contact like Cutler is.

 

[Wahooti Fandango]

I've watched Garrett play since his u18's days at Northern Knights then onto the VFL at Northern Blues & Coburg then back to his junior club West Preston in the NFL and most recently Richmond VFL.
He is a prodigious left foot kick, is a real dasher who breaks the lines and can kick the ball 60+m with ease.
If I say who he reminds me off I'd say he plays alot like Daniel Rich at Brisbane.

But with longer arms? Please say he has longer arms.

 

[ant555]

Can say I hardly have any insights from his Northern Knights days.
In the few VFL games I have seen of him he looks a hard at it type . Big kick. Seems to like the physical style. Average speed . As Eth has said played wing / half forward in the games I watched. Hard to get a 100 percent read based on a couple of replays of games.
Guess he does qualify as a small forward based on this years VFL given he played some time there along with wing and half back.

 

[ant555]

Wasn't a sexy selection by all means, with many other more pressing list needs still so evident, where they see him playing will make or break it in my eyes.

Selecting another defender after taking one only a handful of selections earlier is drastic and overkill, let alone being a touch older that we assume he can play straight away (that's why you take a 25 year old, yeah?).


I'll back him in, and the more I read, the more I want it to work out but right now, the idea we needed this (type of) player over others pains me.

Given he played wing / half forward in the VFL this year as well as half back in games I did not see I would assume they would be looking at that role.

Let’s face it . You do not really want just a small forward anyway. You want a X factor flashy small forward.

 

[cobra land]

Great kick. But slow and doesn't get heaps from my viewing. Jack of All trades, master of none.

Slow ?..how many times have you seen him play ??
Most of his football has been played off hb/ wing, he often takes the kick out from behinds such is the penetration of his kicks.
Look I'm not saying he's going to come straight in and star but FFS give him a chance, some comments are outright embarrassing.

 

[Lore]

Doubt this bloke was at Richmond when truck was, he would have been scratching round at Preston - if that's what you meant

Raiding Richmond VFL which has a similar style to us (as happened with Durham). Probably trusts their BnF results too if he knows who is voting and how they vote. And then you have the blue collar values stuff, endurance, versatility that seems to be prized in this coaching plan.

 

[eth-dog]

Slow ?..how many times have you seen him play ??
Most of his football has been played off hb/ wing, he often takes the kick out from behinds such is the penetration of his kicks.
Look I'm not saying he's going to come straight in and star but FFS give him a chance, some comments are outright embarrassing.

Over the journey? Probably 20 times. He's slow.

 

[owen87]

Over the journey? Probably 20 times. He's slow.

Is that BigFooty slow, or actually slow? Because they're usually very different things.

 

[cobra land]

Over the journey? Probably 20 times. He's slow.

If the VFL guru say's he is slow then he must be slow...
I will back him in to prove you and others on here wrong.

 

[cobra land]

Straight off AFL.com today- The pacy, big-kicking McDonagh, 25, has bounced around the VFL system ever since first nominating for the draft in 2014

 

[Nifft]

Straight off AFL.com today- The pacy, big-kicking McDonagh, 25, has bounced around the VFL system ever since first nominating for the draft in 2014

It's all relative...

 

[Milanista28]

everything about it screams panic buy

Can you really panic @ pick 50 in the draft? We had a list and at pick 50 he was at the top of our list of the remaining available players.

 

[Dave]

Can you really panic @ pick 50 in the draft? We had a list and at pick 50 he was at the top of our list of the remaining available players.

But but but hez not Chris Judd!!!!!!???!?!?!?!!!!!!

 

[TheGreatBarryB]

Over the journey? Probably 20 times. He's slow.

20? How many VFL games has he played?

 

[fargothegreat]

Watched him several times this year. His best game for us was in a practice match against the Dees in Feb. He was close to best on in the reserves game, I think because the uncontested nature of the game suited him—the other player to play well in that game was Derek Eggmolesse-Smith

43

Derek...

Age

24

Ht

180cm

Wt

80kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

17.0

4star

K

10.3

4star

HB

6.8

4star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.5

4star

MG

310.5

4star

D

16.5

4star

K

11.0

4star

HB

5.5

3star

M

3.5

3star

T

3.0

4star

MG

310.5

4star

D

17.0

4star

K

10.3

4star

HB

6.8

5star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.5

4star

MG

310.5

5star

, which supports this reasoning as he's also a very uncontested player. You can find replays of that game below (was only three "quarters"):

First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter

His big weaknesses are his poor contested game and his speed. McDonagh is a very outside player who likes to use his damaging left foot as a weapon, but wasn't really great at winning his own ball or beating his man. I was surprised to see people describing him as "speedy". He definitely isn't. Looked slow at times even at VFL level.

Overall, I don't really see him as AFL quality due to these weaknesses. Was a bizarre selection for mine, as I reckon you could have picked him up in the rookie draft, given he's quite a limited player and probably wasn't on many teams' radar.

Also, definitely not a "Truck special". Truck was long gone when McDonagh arrived—he only played for our VFL team this year.

Hope this little insight helps from someone who watched most of our VFL games this year. Sorry its not more positive!

 

[Milanista28]

So a 1 year deal?

 

[Lore]

View attachment 1287781

So a 1 year deal?

Unless he specified a contract length or $$ on his draft application, yes.

 

[Nifft]

However long his deal is, however fast he is (opinions seem to differ wildly), I wish him the best and hope he gets to realise his dream of playing AFL. He's part of the team now so I'm looking forward to seeing what Truck's plan is and where he fits in.

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

dunno until we see him out there. best of luck.

 

[sacka]

Good luck to the bloke, but a wierd selection imo.
Not sure why you drop a Gleeson from the list and then pick up this bloke who is slower, older but with a better left foot.

 

[eth-dog]

Good luck to the bloke, but a wierd selection imo.
Not sure why you drop a Gleeson from the list and then pick up this bloke who is slower, older but with a better left foot.

He's younger than Gleeson

 

[Old Campaigner]

Good luck to the bloke, but a wierd selection imo.
Not sure why you drop a Gleeson from the list and then pick up this bloke who is slower, older but with a better left foot.

A few of the more connected/astute posters here have mentioned that kicking efficiency was an issue the club is trying to address. The club was apparently pretty keen on Wanganeen-Milera for that reason.

Maybe there's a bit of a push on to have a group of players who can be trusted to nail long, attacking kicks.