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News Blues after best available in draft

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BBSK

BBSK

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Sep 26, 2007
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Melbourne
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Carlton
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Liverpool
CARLTON recruiting manager Wayne Hughes is playing his cards close to his chest ahead of the NAB AFL Draft, but admits he does favour taking the best talent on offer over a needs-based approach.

The reigning premier Hawks may have employed a 'premiership profile' method, filling areas of need on the playing list as they build towards an optimum model, but Hughes believes there is no substitute for sheer talent.

"We'll just pick the best player available according to our rankings; given that we pick at six it's pretty much a simple process for the first selection," Hughes said.

"We've got bits of everything on our [wish] list; we've got midfielders, we've got talls, we've got shorts, we've got everything. I think the main thing is that you just can't ever get enough good players to your club [regardless of position].

"We haven't really looked at it from an exact position point of view, but we tend to do that on the day depending on how many players we really rate have been selected when we actually get to pick again."

The Blues have five selections at the November 29 draft meeting, with Hughes' task made even trickier during the recent player exchange period when the club traded out of the second round to secure young ruckman Robert Warnock from Fremantle.

"When you're going from pick six to pick 40 it is a long gap and I'm sure there'll be a player that I think is going to come to us at 40 and they'll probably go at 36, 37, 38 or 39 – that tends to be the way it happens," Hughes said with a laugh.

"But you just hope that someone that you rate a lot earlier than pick 40 hasn't been selected yet for whatever reason. You've just got to leave your options open and go in well-prepared with your list and see what evolves.

"I would have thought that all clubs will get a good player in the first round and then it really depends on what you're looking for and how you've gone with your first-round pick in relation to what you thought you might get and what you actually did get."

Carlton has been widely tipped to pass on its last pick (85th overall) in order to have a selection in the pre-season draft where it hopes to snare former Demon Chris Johnson, but Hughes maintained he is not locked into a set course of action.

"We'll see how that unfolds on the day," he replied when quizzed on the situation.

Hughes believes all clubs will go into the draft with roughly the same names in the top half of their shopping lists with the only difference being slight variations in how highly each club rates certain individuals.

"I've got a couple more meetings to go through with my staff and there's a little bit more traveling to be done to tidy up a few little things, but we'll finalise our draft order some time in the next week," he said.

"I think you'll find that all clubs – maybe the order might be slightly different here and there – but I think we'll all go in with about the same 45- to 50-odd players in mind.

"Obviously we'll go in with lists a lot longer than that, but that nucleus of the first couple of rounds at least will be about the same."
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http://www.carltonfc.com.au/tabid/4311/Default.aspx?newsid=69855
 

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HBF said:
CARLTON recruiting manager Wayne Hughes is playing his cards close to his chest ahead of the NAB AFL Draft, but admits he does favour taking the best talent on offer over a needs-based approach.

No surprises there.
He gives very very little away.
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You should give him a call and see how you went in the Big Footy Phantom Draft ;):p
 

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A Melbourne friend told me that going on what Schwab has been saying he thinks they will go for Nat (sorry if this is old news) - I don't suppose Watts could possibly fall past Essendon :confused:
 
Five said:
A Melbourne friend told me that going on what Schwab has been saying he thinks they will go for Nat (sorry if this is old news) - I don't suppose Watts could possibly fall past Essendon :confused:
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By the sounds of things if the Dees take Naitanui, Watts will be taken by the Eagles. I would guess that there is next to zero chance he'd fall to us.
 
Cruiser23 said:
By the sounds of things if the Dees take Naitanui, Watts will be taken by the Eagles. I would guess that there is next to zero chance he'd fall to us.
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Woudln't Watts come with a a very high go home factor?

You'd think WC might not take the risk with a #2 pick while still licking their wounds over losing Juddy.

Or was it that Jack only wanted to stay in Vic in 2009 to complete year 12 so WC could do what Adelaide did with Dangerfield and there would be no further go home factor down the track?
 
BlueYoss said:
Woudln't Watts come with a a very high go home factor?

You'd think WC might not take the risk with a #2 pick while still licking their wounds over losing Juddy.

Or was it that Jack only wanted to stay in Vic in 2009 to complete year 12 so WC could do what Adelaide did with Dangerfield and there would be no further go home factor down the track?
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I heard he had no problem going anywhere interstate but he has said he will stay in Melbourne to finish year 12. Pretty much the same situation as Dangerfield but wouldn't expect much traveling to Perth, he'd be play for Sandy and Brighton next year.

Personally i'd be surprised if he played many games next year anyway even if he is drafted by Melbourne. He is very light on and isn't one to go hard at a contest just yet. I think he needs to add both aggression and muscle to his game.
 
Cruiser23 said:
I heard he had no problem going anywhere interstate but he has said he will stay in Melbourne to finish year 12. Pretty much the same situation as Dangerfield but wouldn't expect much traveling to Perth, he'd be play for Sandy and Brighton next year.

Personally i'd be surprised if he played many games next year anyway even if he is drafted by Melbourne. He is very light on and isn't one to go hard at a contest just yet. I think he needs to add both aggression and muscle to his game.
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Something we wouldn't have to worry about so much if we drafted Hurley or Ziebell. Both have amazing intensity, and have the bodies to face the rigours of AFL footy.
 

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HBF said:
Now that I have finished the PD, I have selected:

#6 Michael Hurley
#40 Mitch Brown
#65 Charlie Sharples
#79 Warren Benjamin
#83 Shane Savage

So, in the end we get 2 KPP's, a small forward, an inside mid, and a bottom aged HB/Mid.
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liked the footage of Sharples, seems to have after burners, it looks like you can run him down and he finds another gear, reminds me of when Army was chasing Lovett last season
 
Blue Dimension said:
Of course not, it's just an added bonus that some are ready to go in their first year of football.
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That's neither here nor there though is it. That's just shirking the question which all goes back to who you rate as the best player.

It would be naive or timid to suggest that the best available is always the most bleeding obvious. I would hazzard a guess that if you were to take the meaning in that spirit you would have very few decent key-position players unless you happen to fluke having a very low pick in the right year.
 

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News Blues after best available in draft

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