Ceebee
Norm Smith Medallist
Well done Alex on your Rising Star nomination . Well deserved .
Traded Alex Witherden (2016-2020)
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Taylor, Gardiner............,..........,.............?
ylor
Noofa Murphy
Rookie
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Could Alex be nominated gain next year again as he will have played 10 games or fewer ? or can you only be nominated once ?
- Dec 1, 2013
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Can be nominated next year and win. I plan to put some money on him winning it actually
Ceebee
Norm Smith Medallist
Wow , we are certainly gathering an impressive group of young men .
Hipwood was the same, in that he played exactly 10 games last year, which is the maximum to still be eligible for the following year. From memory there has been 3-4 lads over the years that have received 2 nominations.
I don't think anyone is taking bets on 2018 Rising Star yet but with Witherden's numbers -assuming they stay similar - and class, would have to put him in the frame. And early indications are that the 2017 draft class isn't choc full of class to compete against.
Lace Out
Full of it.
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With any luck,a head to head race between Witho and our first pick.
From top to bottom and back: Alex Witherden
For Geelong Falcon and first round draft hopeful Alex Witherden, AFL has been his lifelong dream. Now, less than two weeks away from the National Draft, it’s almost a certainty that will become reality.
Witherden burst onto the scene in 2015 after a string of solid performances for the Falcons as an underage player and resonated with recruiters as a potential first round pick on Grand Final day where he was among the best afield.
Despite success in both basketball and cricket as a junior, the latter of which he played at first grade level while only in ninth grade, the running defender always had his biggest aspirations in the AFL.
“I remember being five years old running around the back yard thinking recruiters were watching me [back] then,” Witherden said. He loved the game so much that he even forged his age in order to go to Auskick a year early, because he simply wanted to play football. “I was sick of just being at home and not playing, so I went to Auskick a year early,” Witherden said. “Mum somehow did that, and she always talks and laughs about it with recruiters.”
He regularly played above his age group as a junior at Barwon Heads on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, something that he credits has helped him develop as a footballer.
However Witherden’s journey to the AFL, like many, hasn’t been as smooth as he would have envisaged. After a double hip arthroscopy at the end of 2014, which forced him to give up cricket, Witherden was a regular at the physiotherapist, where he’s had around one hundred appointments since.
Yet Witherden’s biggest challenge was one that potentially could have derailed his hopes of being drafted and too his dream of playing football. On May 7 this year, Witherden broke his leg playing for Geelong College, his school team which he also captained.
“I put my hand on my leg and put a bit of pressure on the bone, I could feel them overlapping. At that point I knew I faced a long stint on the sidelines.”
Prior to the game, Witherden already had some concerns of his own; heading to the game not feeling too well. A doctor, whom Witherden consulted, was also concerned about the potential to develop fatigue down the track. He nearly didn’t play altogether. But not wanting to let his team down, he persevered.
Returning to a centre bounce after a lengthy rest up forward, Witherden picked up the ball from the stoppage and after firing away a handball, was tackled by Sandringham Dragons’ midfielder and fellow aspiring draftee Tim Taranto.
“My leg was in an awkward position and he [Taranto] came down on it with his full body weight,” Witherden said. “It was a pain I had never experienced before. I was in agony. “At that point, a lot of things were running through my head. But once I put my hand on my leg and put a bit of pressure on the bone, I could feel them overlapping. At that point I knew I faced a long stint on the sidelines.”
Breaking a leg is rarely a good thing, especially when you are one of the top teenagers in the country at your sport. After a consultation with the AFL Academies Development Manager, surgery was made a priority and arranged for the following day.
The injury meant Witherden would finish the most important year of any junior footballer having played just two games of TAC Cup football, averaging 23 disposals, five marks and 3.5 tackles per game. He was also forced to miss the Under 18 National Championships, the Under 18 All Stars match and was in serious doubt for the National Draft Combine, where he was one of 80 players to receive an invitation.
An out-pour of messages from friends and family – including Brenton Sanderson, the AFL Academy Head Coach – relieved some of the pain. On return home from the hospital, the reality of his broken leg finally hit home.
“It’s not until you get home; the support drops off and your feel a bit more isolated. That’s probably when it gets a little bit harder.”
Witherden hand-balls away under pressure from Tim Taranto
In a sense, Witherden’s broken leg had a silver lining. With the knowledge that despite not playing for the remainder of 2016, clubs and recruiters would still look at him in the draft, he was able to improve elsewhere.
After dropping down to 75kg after his injury, his weight improved to 80kg largely through adding size in his upper-body. His diet also carried a heftier emphasis in order to keep his body in a good standard.
“It has been an eye-opener for the professionalism required to make it at the next level. I always relied on going out and just getting a kick… but didn’t place a high enough emphasis on going to the gym,” Witherden said. He continued, “If you do go to the next level, you do have to work hard. For me, I was just preparing myself for that next step.”
Witherden credits his parents and family, his various coaches along the way and the staff at the Geelong Falcons for helping him get to where he is today. Though aside from these names, Witherden took inspiration through another draft hopeful, Jy Simpkin, who broke his leg in April. The pair grew up together, playing representative football in the same teams, and would even go water skiing in the summer.
“I got in touch with him after he broke his leg and when I broke mine, he was there for me. Having someone else who has a broken leg, for both of us, it helped us get through it.”
Witherden’s road to recovery since his broken leg in May has been arduous, but despite not playing, has certainly helped him on his road to the AFL.
The 2016 National Draft takes place on November 25 in Sydney. Witherden is currently projected to go 21st in the second edition of the Footy Prophet Phantom Draft, and is likely to fall toward the end of the first round or early in the second come draft night.
Nunez
Premium Platinum
Watching Fagans presser, Witherden amazes me. For an 18 year old kid to study opposition and zones + looking for weaknesses is phenomenal. When you see him kick out, it always looks to be with intent which is something you don't see all that much.
Boy oh boy did we nail the last two years of drafting.
Boy oh boy did we nail the last two years of drafting.
WhiteLionFeva
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