Draft Expert Davo-27's 2021 u18 Draft Thread

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Cleric

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Oct 14, 2011
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Tassie football needs an overhaul, because for a footy state thats 1/3rd the population of S.A. for it to be as bad a level of footy as it is, there needs to be a development overhaul in that state pronto, the AFL could create some quality pathways if its serious about developing more top end talent to grow the talent pool for the AFL.
Traditional football states outside of Vic don't get those development dollars.
 
Feb 11, 2011
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unfortunately because of the disrupted season that was 2020 i have not had the opportunity to see many of these youngsters in their underage years which is usually a good indicator of how they deal with the step up to AFL level and how they deal with playing out of position ect, also some of these guys i have yet to see or only have seen small samples of how they play, with Vic Metro dominating the u16's winning every game easily, the top end is likely to be dominated by Vic Metro prospects. (this is an early estimate of my top 30 until i see more football next year)

i believe the SA and WA teams have access to NGA in metro areas if they are outside the top 40? and the other NGA's are available outside the top 20 i think thats right for this year? will figure it out throughout the year.

The First Round Contenders: Early Top 30

Jason Horne
- Sth Adel - 182cm 75kg - likely 1st pick, played well in the SANFL as a 17 year old
Josh Rachele - Murray - 179cm 77kg - top 3 - behind Horne he is my favourite player in this draft pool
Nick Daicos - Oakleigh - 183cm 72kg - (Coll F/S)have yet to see, so unsure, but many draft experts have him highly rated (likely top 3?)
Tyler Sonsie - Eastern - 181cm - probably top 5, was good as a HFF in 2019, but i expect improvement from more midfield time
Josh Sinn - Sandringham - 186cm 72kg - top 10, only seen highlights, looks like a good prospect
Jacob Van Rooyen - Claremont - 194cm 88kg - top 5, had a great Colts GF, leads all day so likely good endurance, as agile and quick as a midfielder, lots to like
Sam Banks - Tassie - 184cm - first round, seems like Tassie kids get judged harder by recruiters, but this one has some good traits
Joshua Browne - East Frem - 184cm 72kg - first round, saw a WAFL Colts game and he and Hagan who is in next years pool were better than Carroll and Walker
Braden Andrews - Oakleigh - 189cm 83kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Lachlan Brooks - Sandringham - 179cm 75kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Campbell Chesser - Sandringham - 186cm - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Blake Howes - Sandringham - 189cm 75kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Ben Hobbs - GWV - 181cm 76kg - first round, played forward and mid for the Rebels, looked like he had clean skills
Charlie Molan - GWV - 186cm 78kg - first round, had a couple of good games for the Rebels last year, 1 game in particular was very strong as an interceptor
Matthew Johnson - Subiaco - 190cm 78kg - first round, was a big reason Subi won the Premiership in the WAFL Colts, impacted the game strongly, good interceptor in mid and down back, and always uses it intelligently
Cooper Beecken - Glenlg - 190cm 73kg - first round, very clever, intercept player, similarities with Will Day and other good AFL medium defenders
Josh Fahey - GWS/GCS A - 186cm 76kg - first round, not linked to any Academy now, in the open pool
Rhett Bazzo - Swan Dist - 194cm 74kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Lewis Rayson - Glenlg - 181cm 64kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
James Willis - Nth Adel - 180cm 73kg - first round, was a stand out in the u17 SA game before the All-Stars game, speed, x-factor, flair, skill
Luca Whitelum - Central Dist - 188cm 79kg - first round, quality medium forward, kicks goals and can lead up the ground, good endurance and skills
Arlo Draper - Sth Adel - 184cm 70kg - first round, didnt have a great All Stars game, but has a strong reputation
Matthew Roberts - Sth Adel - 183cm 76kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Neil Erasmus - Subiaco - 185cm 77kg - first round, played mostly in the PSA, but his WAFL Colts GF was super impressive and nearly won the B.O.G. kicking 4 goals and setting up 3-4 other clear shots at goal, very sharp mover and clean disposal
Jake Soligo - Eastern - 178cm - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Alex Lukic - Oakleigh - 195cm 86kg - first round, looked good in 2019, will have to see his improvement next year
Lachlan Rankin - Oakleigh - 179cm 65kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Josh Ward - Northern - 178cm 73kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Ned Long - Northern - 190cm 83kg - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Josh Goater - Calder - 185cm - first round, have yet to see him, on here on reputation

The Other Draft Contenders:

S.A.
Shay Linke - Central Dist - 188cm 75kg - another good medium defender from SA, i liked his performance in the u17s futures game
Harry McInnes - Glenlg - 190cm 85kg - effective KPF, but at this stage is a bit short and missed the SA squad, so speculator at this point
Matthew Dnistriansky - Norwood - have yet to see him, on here on reputation
Morgan Ferres - Sturt - have yet to see, on here on reputation
Cooper Murley - Norwood - 177cm 66kg - seems very small, didnt have the best game in the SANFL all stars game
Brayden Calvett - WWT - 177cm 69kg - running outside mid with decent contested side, skillful, had a good first half in the sanfl u17 futures game
Jase Burgoyne - WWT - 184cm 62kg - (Port F/S)very slim, has done well at school footy and sanfl u18's so far, also was decent in the SA all stars game
Adam Heath - Nth Adel - 192cm 85kg - played a bit of ruck/KPD/KPF and did well in all positions, didnt get in the recent SA squad though, maybe a bit short at 192cm to be KPP in the SA squad?
Bailey Gal - Norwood - 178cm 74kg - i liked how he played hb, good skills and smarts, not in SA squad
Naisiah Wanganeen - Glenlg - 187cm 62kg - (Adel NGA?)similar to Burgoyne in that he is super slim, but a competitor with good skills
Isiah Dudley - Central Dist - 164cm 65kg - too small at 164cm, at this stage.

W.A.
Richard Bartlett - East Frem - 186cm 71kg
Kade Dittmar - East Perth - 183cm 82kg
Judd McVee - East Frem - 179cm 65kg
Max Chipper - Swan Dist - 176cm 74kg
Luke Polson - Peel - 194cm 83kg
Corey Warner - East Frem - 181cm 71kg
Jesse Motlop - South Frem - 176cm 68kg
Jermaine Pickett - South Frem - 189cm 67kg
Mitchell Brown - East Perth - 193cm 93kg
Luke Taylor - Swan Dist - 196cm 91kg
Antonio Dadaliaris - Swan Dist - 183cm 73kg
Jack Williams - East Frem

Vic Metro
Dante Visentini - Sandringham - 199cm 87kg
Yousef Dib (Coll NGA) - Oakleigh - 172cm 77kg
Tyreece Leiu (Haw NGA?) - Eastern - 191cm
Jack Newitt - Calder -
Nate Dear - (Haw F/S) has been out of footy for the last few years but was a talent in u14's ect, so putting here as a possible?

(Vic Metro list will get longer as i get to see these players play in 2021)
Vic Country
Cooper Hamilton - Bendigo - 182cm
Toby Conway - Geel - 201cm 94kg
Tom Brown - Murray - 184cm 68kg
Josh Gibcus - GWV - 194cm 79kg
Ryan Eyers - Murray/NSW - 190cm 70kg

(Vic Country list to get longer as i get to see these players play in 2021)
Allies
Austin Harris (GCS A)
Noah McFadyen (Bris A) 186cm 89kg
Sam Stenning (GWS A) 190cm 72kg
Jye Lockett (GWV - was in GCS A) 186cm
Ned Stevens (NT/GCS A)
Richard Bartlett, Jesse Motlop and Jermaine Pickett are all Fremantle NGA.
 

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Aug 9, 2019
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Think so.

St. Patrick's college.




 
2010 afl draft first round under 8 minutes






where have we gone wrong?, modern drafts make you want to scream in frustration at the waste of time.

Oh for what we once had......... In the same time that took, we were just concluding pick 2
 
Aug 23, 2010
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2010 afl draft first round under 8 minutes






where have we gone wrong?, modern drafts make you want to scream in frustration at the waste of time.


That was a dress rehearsal sort of thing.

The first round would’ve gone as long as 2009.

2008 was relatively quick.
 
Nov 7, 2017
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2010 afl draft first round under 8 minutes






where have we gone wrong?, modern drafts make you want to scream in frustration at the waste of time.

Th addition of live bidding and trading makes longer pick times necessary, and the increasing level of media presence on draft day means they need the 5 minutes to do their business
 
Th addition of live bidding and trading makes longer pick times necessary, and the increasing level of media presence on draft day means they need the 5 minutes to do their business
Maybe for the top 5 picks - top 10 at a stretch, surely we don't need an interview after that, just get on with it. Remember, Matt Rendell said most clubs have their picks in almost immediately, it's the broadcaster who strings it out.
 
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Maybe for the top 5 picks - top 10 at a stretch, surely we don't need an interview after that, just get on with it. Remember, Matt Rendell said most clubs have their picks in almost immediately, it's the broadcaster who strings it out.
The dramatization of making the draft a fan fare is what drives it, more and more people want to know everything about the kids they've just drafted, so Fox does their best to do it. Most casual fans only watch for their picks then go
 

Davo-27

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The dramatization of making the draft a fan fare is what drives it, more and more people want to know everything about the kids they've just drafted, so Fox does their best to do it. Most casual fans only watch for their picks then go

yes we all understand the why, they have introduced pick trading which can be handy as clubs usually change their minds constantly on what they want to do, even on draft day, so that flexibility can be useful, the media wanting time to talk up each draftee and explain picks for me can be pointless as its hard to explain a player and what their strengths and weaknesses are in a 3 minute blurb.

the why is obvious, its whether "the why" is worth it thats in question, do we need pick trading on draft night? not really, but it does help so its likely to stay, do we need the media which is no where near as professional as the american media giving a run down on kids, not really, previously they finished the draft and rookie draft in 2-3 hours and still had time to interview a half dozen of the kids, i would rather that format, if they do make the draft go longer, cap it at 4 hours for all drafts and have more interviews with key draftees, also show more highlights and have a script written out for each player so theres less blah blah blah and more informative commentary, because 2020 draft went for around 5 hours and was painful, especially with the bids just making it go on forever, making it go for 2 nights just makes the pain last 2 days, we know they can be efficient, they have proven it for decades, lets find a happy medium, between efficiency and (entertainment) doing their supposed award winning show*sarcasm*
 
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Early Top 9 for 2021

Davo-27

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i just wanted to put out a group of players that i think will go pretty early in 2021

my Top 9 for 2021, Daicos i have in here based on others read

Jason Horne - great acceleration and speed, good height and size, shows bravery in the contest, didnt seem out of place in the SANFL seniors as a 17 year old, good leap for a 6 footer, tackles men in the SANFL, decent user of the footy.
Josh Rachele - good leading ability in the forward line, wins 1 on 1 contests, as a 16 year old was already one of the best players at Murray in 2019, goal kicker, was talked about as the best player at the u16 carnival.
Nick Daicos - yet to see
Josh Sinn - tall running winger, left footer, line breaker, has some good speed and evasive skills.
Tyler Sonsie - clever player who played mostly as a half forward for Eastern, but you can tell he would be a better performer in the centre as an inside mid, good contested game, nice mark and use of the ball
Jacob Van Rooyen - endurance based tall forward, good athletic attributes, goal kicking is good, hard working player, leads all day
Sam Banks - attacking inside mid, kicked a goal from the centre circle in the NAB League against Oakleigh, as a 16 year old looked a class prospect, good movement on the field, good use of the footy, goal kicking mid
Matthew Johnson - tall mid/hbf, was used in the WAFL Colts GF as a mid who intercepted off of half back and organised counter attacks for Subiaco, reliable and composed, good height.
Ben Hobbs - was an impressive hff/mid for GWV as a 16 year old, competitive mid with clever disposal and good work rate, will improve with more midfield opportunity

i have yet to see half of the talent pool, but i like these players + Daicos as the top talents at this stage, i just need to see more games in 2021 to get a more accurate read.
 
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i dont know, but i think i saw something about pre-season starting in a month from now? im so keen for footy i might see if i can get to some pre-season games if i can find out when and where they play.
Looks like the Nab League Girls start next week, the boys is usually about a month or so later? So maybe their season starts when the AFL starts. But there should be some pre-season games, you'd think.
 

briztoon

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i dont know, but i think i saw something about pre-season starting in a month from now? im so keen for footy i might see if i can get to some pre-season games if i can find out when and where they play.
Wouldn’t that information be on their club FB or Twitter pages?
 
Wouldn’t that information be on their club FB or Twitter pages?
Herald Sun has an article that mentions the details were being finalised, but that round 1 would start March 26th, which training to start in Feb. They do a three week block.
 
Herald Sun has an article that mentions the details were being finalised, but that round 1 would start March 26th, which training to start in Feb. They do a three week block.
I am told no preseason games, only intra club matches prior to season this year.
 
Nov 2, 2014
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Tassie football needs an overhaul, because for a footy state thats 1/3rd the population of S.A. for it to be as bad a level of footy as it is, there needs to be a development overhaul in that state pronto, the AFL could create some quality pathways if its serious about developing more top end talent to grow the talent pool for the AFL.
If Tasmania had an AFL team for everyone growing up to support and have as local role models, that would make a big difference. SA has two AFL teams in one city that has 77% of the entire state's population in it. How many players do South Australia produce that don't come from Adelaide? That would be a fairer comparison.
 

Davo-27

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Its strange how the NAB League kicks off with 1 game tomorrow, Calder Cannons v Western Jets, but im glad it is back, i wonder if they will show the games on youtube or the app in 2021?

NAB League Fixture

just found this, so i guess it answers that question - " All matches will be streamed live through the NAB League App with thanks to Telstra. The App can be downloaded through the App Store. "
 
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