AFL Player 5: Elijah Tsatas

[Nuggs Bunny]

 

[crackers65]

Tsatas will play VFL until he finds a harder edge.

 

[Keystone agony]

Think youd be fairly hard pressed to find too many AFL boards that had Pou over Tsatas

 

[yodellinhank]

Think youd be fairly hard pressed to find too many AFL boards that had Pou over Tsatas

You'd be fairly hard pressed to find too many AFL boards.

 

[FootyGuru]

The biggest thing about tsatas is he is only a mid. We have even seen sharp contribute as a forward. Tsatas can’t play elsewhere. So I feel we will need to see one of our key mids get injured before he plays.

 

[King Patty]

The biggest thing about tsatas is he is only a mid. We have even seen sharp contribute as a forward. Tsatas can’t play elsewhere. So I feel we will need to see one of our key mids get injured before he plays.

If Tsatas plays practice match 2 and gets 30 + disposals and looks good.
He has top be a chance for round 1 still.
Knowing Brad, probably carry over emergency so doesn't play any footy at either level.

 

[MPMonkeys]

The biggest thing about tsatas is he is only a mid. We have even seen sharp contribute as a forward. Tsatas can’t play elsewhere. So I feel we will need to see one of our key mids get injured before he plays.

He doesn't have to be a mid. He could play off HB as an example or even as a defensive forward. Most AFL players are exclusively midfielders as juniors and they only learn other positions when they get to AFL level.

It takes a bit of rewiring but it can be done. The good thing about Tsatas is he has initial explosive pace and he can find the footy. I could definitely see him developing into a Guelfi/Ainsworth/Starcevich/Maynard type down the track

 

[faible]

He could play off HB

 

[chungi]

He doesn't have to be a mid. He could play off HB as an example or even as a defensive forward. Most AFL players are exclusively midfielders as juniors and they only learn other positions when they get to AFL level.

It takes a bit of rewiring but it can be done. The good thing about Tsatas is he has initial explosive pace and he can find the footy. I could definitely see him developing into a Guelfi/Ainsworth/Starcevich/Maynard type down the track

Why would we want a half back flanker or forward that can't kick though?

 

[Old Campaigner]

He doesn't have to be a mid. He could play off HB as an example or even as a defensive forward. Most AFL players are exclusively midfielders as juniors and they only learn other positions when they get to AFL level.

It takes a bit of rewiring but it can be done. The good thing about Tsatas is he has initial explosive pace and he can find the footy. I could definitely see him developing into a Guelfi/Ainsworth/Starcevich/Maynard type down the track

He hasn’t really shown that initial burst of pace since being drafted. Injury or being bulked up too much.

He also lacks defensive intent and two way running so he’d be a poor choice as a defender even if his kicking wasn’t decidedly below average

 

[MPMonkeys]

Why would we want a half back flanker or forward that can't kick though?

I think that is over-stated. All mids new at AFL level struggle with their kicking (except for outliers like Daicos) given they just generally do not have the time and space that you get playing other positions.

We are already seeing people be critical of Roberts and his kicking since the move to midfield - this was never an issue playing off half back.

 

[MPMonkeys]

He hasn’t really shown that initial burst of pace since being drafted. Injury or being bulked up too much.

He also lacks defensive intent and two way running so he’d be a poor choice as a defender even if his kicking wasn’t decidedly below average

I think that explosion is still there. It just gets hidden because every other mid in the comp has that same trait.

Agree on your latter points - however not many young players have those skills from the get-go. Its a learning process.

 

[chungi]

I think that is over-stated. All mids new at AFL level struggle with their kicking (except for outliers like Daicos) given they just generally do not have the time and space that you get playing other positions.

We are already seeing people be critical of Roberts and his kicking since the move to midfield - this was never an issue playing off half back.

Plenty of kids come in and can kick competently. It's pretty rare they are this bad. Roberts can actually kick and he's mechanics are quite good.

Tsatas isn't exactly a 'new' draftee either. It's midfield or bust for him. We'd be better off drafting flankers/forwards then trying to develop him into one.

We'll agree to disagree on this one

 

[King Patty]

If Tsatas is to learn a new role it has to be in the VFL.
The only issue is there he is our best midfielder.

 

[faible]

I think that is over-stated.

It's really not. HB is one of the more important positions for a good kick in the modern game as they're the ones who most often need to take the kick through the opposition defensive zone, and where turnovers cause the most harm. Tsatas is a below average kick, which in the back half is far more a problem than the front half.

We are already seeing people be critical of Roberts and his kicking since the move to midfield - this was never an issue playing off half back.

Except it was always an issue that people commented on. He's always been an decent-but-not-amazing kick. He's not Merrett by foot, never has been. He is a great competitor who'll work his ass off that will usually hit the target, but sometimes won't. He's not a guy you're looking to take high degree of difficulty kicks, that's a Merrett or a Farrow or a Johnson who are genuinely excellent users.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Your draft position becomes less and less relevant over time because you have exposure at VFL or AFL level, which is a far better measure than pre-draft underage footy.

Certainly by year 4 - which Tsatas is now in - it should mean very, very little.

Even less so when there is an all-new coaching, recruiting and football department at the club to when you were drafted - those who draft and initially develop a player will generally have more of an attachment to them as it's "their project" that they started.

If Dodoro was still around he'd be pushing his barrow and already looking to sign him to an extension - his interest would obviously lie in proving his drafting correct.

Scott and his assistants would give zero shits that Tsatas was a #5 pick.

Take that fact away - that fact they don't care about - and very few supporters or others would care less about Tsatas, either.

He's not a high draft pick any more. He is what he is - a VFL midfielder who accumulates the footy and can't / doesn't do much else.

It's also a time when being able to accumulate the footy means less than perhaps it ever has.

There's basically nothing that suggests this guy is ever going to be an AFL player and people probably need to come to terms with that. If he gets a run at senior level this year and shows marked improvement, great. I'll happily eat my words if we have a good solid footballer on our hands. But at this stage, we don't.

 

[fairbump_playon]

Your draft position becomes less and less relevant over time because you have exposure at VFL or AFL level, which is a far better measure than pre-draft underage footy.

Certainly by year 4 - which Tsatas is now in - it should mean very, very little.

Even less so when there is an all-new coaching, recruiting and football department at the club to when you were drafted - those who draft and initially develop a player will generally have more of an attachment to them as it's "their project" that they started.

If Dodoro was still around he'd be pushing his barrow and already looking to sign him to an extension - his interest would obviously lie in proving his drafting correct.

Scott and his assistants would give zero shits that Tsatas was a #5 pick.

Take that fact away - that fact they don't care about - and very few supporters or others would care less about Tsatas, either.

He's not a high draft pick any more. He is what he is - a VFL midfielder who accumulates the footy and can't / doesn't do much else.

It's also a time when being able to accumulate the footy means less than perhaps it ever has.

There's basically nothing that suggests this guy is ever going to be an AFL player and people probably need to come to terms with that. If he gets a run at senior level this year and shows marked improvement, great. I'll happily eat my words if we have a good solid footballer on our hands. But at this stage, we don't.

We will find out in 2026

Such a shame

We have burned so many of our high picks in the last 10 years

Francis broke my heart

 

[Duckworth]

The biggest thing about tsatas is he is only a mid. We have even seen sharp contribute as a forward. Tsatas can’t play elsewhere. So I feel we will need to see one of our key mids get injured before he plays.

It's a new year and everything, but we had to watch many midfielders go down last year before he got a look in.

 

[supportyourteam]

It's a new year and everything, but we had to watch many midfielders go down last year before he got a look in.

Not exactly. Shiel was dropped for him after the Anzac day game. Shiel was named in the best, too.

 

[bombersim]

Whenever I think back to tsatas’ selection it looks more and more ridiculous as time wears on.
A mid that has one position, can’t kick, is pure inside mid but soft at the contest, is a poor distance runner at a time when the game has never been more of an outside running game.
Add to that Bailey Humphrey being the next pick, and it looks a joke. It just stings.

That said, I think he may be able to eke out a career elsewhere for a team that needs a high production mid, and can fit pieces around him to nullify his weaknesses to some extent.
I doubt that will be an Essendon due to the throng of midfielders, and our new draftees, but it’s not impossible.
Will never be a superstar or a difference maker though, which you want at his pick.

 

[FootyGuru]

It's a new year and everything, but we had to watch many midfielders go down last year before he got a look in.

He played round 1. Then broke his hand and fell out of the rotation.

 

[BomberManU]

Gets repeated so often that I just believe it to be true, but is he really a 'one position' player? Could he be tried forward?
If you knew nothing about him and were reading this thread, you'd think a second year player was being discussed, crazy that this is his 4th.

 

[Old Campaigner]

Whenever I think back to tsatas’ selection it looks more and more ridiculous as time wears on.
A mid that has one position, can’t kick, is pure inside mid but soft at the contest, is a poor distance runner at a time when the game has never been more of an outside running game.
Add to that Bailey Humphrey being the next pick, and it looks a joke. It just stings.

That said, I think he may be able to eke out a career elsewhere for a team that needs a high production mid, and can fit pieces around him to nullify his weaknesses to some extent.
I doubt that will be an Essendon due to the throng of midfielders, and our new draftees, but it’s not impossible.
Will never be a superstar or a difference maker though, which you want at his pick.

It's all a bit strange. He was rated very highly for the entirety of his draft year despite injuries. Maybe with less injuries and more exposed form he might've dropped down the rankings a bit. Weirdly none of the draft profiles picked up his kicking as an issue, and from memory one of them noted it was a strength.

I am a bit suspicious that the opinions of recruiters might play into some people's rankings somewhat as well, so if recruiter A can't stop talking up a particular player it might push that player up a few spots.

 

[Call Me Cake]

you'd think a second year player was being discussed, crazy that this is his 4th.

This is actually an ongoing misconception, he was injured for all his first preseason and didn't recover until very late in 2023, so technically speaking it's more like his third. You don't look at Jagga and say "second year", he's virtually a first year player (and even then he still had his first preseason) and the rising star award is built around this principle.

 

[yodellinhank]

This is actually an ongoing misconception, he was injured for all his first preseason and didn't recover until very late in 2023, so technically speaking it's more like his third. You don't look at Jagga and say "second year", he's virtually a first year player (and even then he still had his first preseason) and the rising star award is built around this principle.

Why don't you save some blue pills for the rest of us

 

[FootyGuru]

Essendon list management didn’t see the game changing. Two inside mids in consecutive drafts. Look at how far sharp fell after being widely considered the most credentialed draftee.

Simply there isn’t the roles there used to be for this type of player. If you look around the league, generally the teams offensive inside mid is also a defensive tough nut tackler too. Tsatas isn’t like that currently, but I don’t think it’s a stretch that he can add it to an acceptable level. People harp on his kicking but I think it’s at an acceptable level for an inside midfielder currently.

If we put tsatas in our midfield and played him solid game Time he would put up similar stats to most other top mids in the league but now if you ain’t providing much on the outside and you can’t play multiple positions you better be a maniac tackler