Douglas article

[The Crows Truth]

Import will suit Crows 'to a tee'
By ANDREW CAPEL
19may06

IT is a dangerous call so early but Adelaide appears to have hit the jackpot with last year's first-round draft pick Richard Douglas. The boy is special.

While the 19-year-old midfielder is yet to play an AFL game - he had a taste of big-time football during the NAB Cup and still needs to add some kilograms to his 180cm frame - he has been a standout for Glenelg in the SANFL.
Douglas, recruited from TAC Cup under-18 side Calder with the No. 16 pick, has been one of the key reasons behind the Tigers' resurgence which has seen them post an impressive 4-2 record.

His light frame and Adelaide's wonderful form might keep Douglas in the SANFL for a bit longer but he is on the cusp of AFL selection after a best-afield display against West Adelaide last week where he dominated with 31 disposals, 11 marks and four goals.

The Crows haven't always made the most of their first-round picks - Brent Williams in 1995, Tom Gilligan in 1996 and Laurence Angwin in 2000 were mistakes - but Douglas looks the real deal.

"He's going to play a lot of very good AFL football," Glenelg coach Mark Mickan, a former Adelaide assistant and ruck coach, predicted.

"He's got lots of really good attributes as a footballer, including speed, evasiveness, vision, decision-making, ball use and the ability to read the play."

Mickan said his attitude was as good as his football.

"It's tough enough for a teenager coming from Victoria to play for an SA AFL club but he's also had to learn a new environment at Glenelg," he said.

"But he's been so giving and willing to learn and integrate into our environment it's been a pleasure to have him here."

Crows recruiting manager James Fantasia, who has been delighted with his protege's development, said Douglas fitted Adelaide's recruiting model "down to a tee" except for one key point - he wasn't from SA.

After losing key forward Fergus Watts to St Kilda through homesickness after putting two years into him the Crows were reluctant to invest their first-round pick in a player from interstate.

But when Douglas was still on the draft board they couldn't ignore him.

"He's got great football ability but also great characteristics," Fantasia said, adding weight to Mickan's assessment of his character.

"It's not by accident he won the (TAC Cup) coaches award by a record margin last year."

Douglas's Adelaide team-mates are also raving about the Victorian Metro under-18 representative who won Calder's best and fairest award.

"It's special for a first-year draft pick to come and play consistent SANFL league footy and really be behind the Tigers' rise up the ladder," ruckman Rhett Biglands said.

"Richard Douglas is a quality player and is giving credit to his draft position.

"It's exciting to have him on our list."

And exciting for Crows fans.

 

[Crowked]

Cant wait to see this lad in action for us. Is there anyone he hasnt impressed? Looks like a star in the making.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

 

[- PC -]

*waits for the Gets trademark'' the kid is a gun and we should drop Roo so he can play'' comment

 

[Silky]

Seen him play alot in last years TAC cup for Calder, absolute champ

 

[Mad Dog]

don't mean to keep harping - but there are tough times ahead for the AFC match committee - and supporters who are wedded to the idea of maintaining some of our try hard smalls.

Douglas and Porps in particular are very very high quality, toss in the mighty VB....and someone like Knights while still a high quality Rookie - is not the stand out he was 12 months ago in relation to some of these younger boys.

No doubt Knights will play plenty of footy for the AFC - but he certainly has been joined by these other boys and will need to fight to be included in the 22.

Where ths leaves others like Skippy etc - well time will tell.

A very good article - and while we can't fit them all in - let's hope we can retain their interest long enough for them to stay until the elders retire.

 

[GoSarge]

Good article.

I find it interesting that in a reportedly weaker draft, someone so 'special' (as Capel puts it) fell through to pick 16. Was his perceived talent not obvious to other teams ? Did other teams have bigger priorities (such as KPPs ? Or was his weight (or lack of) the major issue ?

Thoughts ?

 

[Gets!]

Good article.

I find it interesting that in a reportedly weaker draft, someone so 'special' (as Capel puts it) fell through to pick 16. Was his perceived talent not obvious to other teams ? Did other teams have bigger priorities (such as KPPs ? Or was his weight (or lack of) the major issue ?

Thoughts ?

Thats interesting because he won the Coaches award in the TAC cup last year. I know a few Richmond fans were hoping they would take him at no. 8

Who knows?

 

[Crowked]

Good article.

I find it interesting that in a reportedly weaker draft, someone so 'special' (as Capel puts it) fell through to pick 16. Was his perceived talent not obvious to other teams ? Did other teams have bigger priorities (such as KPPs ? Or was his weight (or lack of) the major issue ?

Thoughts ?

I reckon the myth that it was a weak draft was busted when Shannon Hurn fell through to # 13. As a Centrals supporter perhaps I'm a little bias, but #13 for Hurn IMO was incomprehensible. He was a ready made AFL player IMO and should have been in the top 5.

 

[James23]

^ that maybe is the downside with hurn cos he doesnt have as much room for improvement as many other prospects as he already has the body of an AFL-ready player where as someone like douglas.. who knows how good he could become once he stacks on the kilos

 

[afc9798]

don't mean to keep harping - but there are tough times ahead for the AFC match committee - and supporters who are wedded to the idea of maintaining some of our try hard smalls.

Douglas and Porps in particular are very very high quality, toss in the mighty VB....and someone like Knights while still a high quality Rookie - is not the stand out he was 12 months ago in relation to some of these younger boys.

No doubt Knights will play plenty of footy for the AFC - but he certainly has been joined by these other boys and will need to fight to be included in the 22.

Where ths leaves others like Skippy etc - well time will tell.

A very good article - and while we can't fit them all in - let's hope we can retain their interest long enough for them to stay until the elders retire.

Interesting thoughts and it brings to the fore, the fact that other clubs are going to be circling like vultures to pick up younger players who have had a lot of development work put into them by Craigy and Co.

Unless some hard decisions are made on some fringe players, then we are at risk of losing the likes of Douglas, Porplyzia, Meesen, Vince etc.

The decisions would be hard as Skipworth, Massie, Stevens et al have had some time in the game now and have done OK. Massie in particular has really turned it around and I wouldn't want to see him leave as he is now a vital cog in defence, particularly in the absence of Torney. Skipworth wouldn't worry me too much and neither would Stevens, but their value would also be limited. I trust in the club to ensure that Meesen, Maric, Douglas, Porplyzia and Vince are given some decent game time this year and make sure their appetites are whetted for action with the AFC in coming seasons.

You could not have asked Douglas to do any more than he has and as such, he surely deserves a crack at the big time, especially whilst our form is good and he could be eased into the fray.

 

[macca23]

You could not have asked Douglas to do any more than he has and as such, he surely deserves a crack at the big time, especially whilst our form is good and he could be eased into the fray.

Hey, no-one is a bigger fan of young Dougie than me, as I went on record in January saying that we had picked up a potential top-liner here.

Yes, he deserves to have a crack at the AFL - his form is excellent.

The problem is, all the players that are playing in the Crows deserve their spot and don't deserve to be omitted.

Who could you omit and why??

 

[Mad Dog]

Hey, no-one is a bigger fan of young Dougie than me, as I went on record in January saying that we had picked up a potential top-liner here.

Yes, he deserves to have a crack at the AFL - his form is excellent.

The problem is, all the players that are playing in the Crows deserve their spot and don't deserve to be omitted.

Who could you omit and why??

For me it's not a matter of who to omit....it's an observation of the (positive) dilemma that we have

 

[afc9798]

Hey, no-one is a bigger fan of young Dougie than me, as I went on record in January saying that we had picked up a potential top-liner here.

Yes, he deserves to have a crack at the AFL - his form is excellent.

The problem is, all the players that are playing in the Crows deserve their spot and don't deserve to be omitted.

Who could you omit and why??

It's a good question, but it would have been tempting to leave Bodey out for one more game and to allow Dougie to have decent run against the Tigers this weekend. Bode certainly deserves his spot, but given the pace he has played at this year, a week of rest may have done him some good and we shouldn't have to rely on him against the Tigers. Given that he kicked 4 for Glenelg last week, it may be worth playing him as a forward pocket and expose him to the required level of pressure that needs to be applied for our structure to work.

We have the luxury of being in a great position and these decisions will only get harder as we get further down the track with the return of Torney and Welsh. IMHO, it's a great time to lightly experiment with the younger guys against teams like Essendon, Carlton and Richmond.

It's bloody hard isn't it, but who will lose their spot when Welsh comes back? Nice dilemma, must be hard for the guys with great SANFL form though. This very same dilemma is responsible largely for the performance of the 22 who get picked each week. The players in the 22 do not have the luxury of a bad game because there is always someone in the wings with form to burn.

 

[GoSarge]

I reckon the myth that it was a weak draft was busted when Shannon Hurn fell through to # 13. As a Centrals supporter perhaps I'm a little bias, but #13 for Hurn IMO was incomprehensible. He was a ready made AFL player IMO and should have been in the top 5.

Good point, but its not like Hurn slipped 1 or 2 spots. He was gifted to the Eagles at pick 13 !

Now did the clubs who had the first 12 picks not recognise Hurns perceived talent (like you and many others have), or did he not have the potential to warrant a top 12 pick in the first place ?

Not patronising you, just genuinely interested in your response.

 

[beartoo]

Craig said recently that some of the old stagers might be rested for a round or three. This could give young players like Douglas the opportunity to play a few games. We could also start a policy of rotating the fringe youngsters through the side. As far as giving older players a rest, Craig wisely said that it was horses for courses. Some players thrive on a heavy workload, others may be improved by a rest. Roo and Burton looked like 18 year-olds last weekend after a couple of weeks grazing in the paddock.
I'm reminded of North Melbourne in the 70s when they bought their first premiership. They picked up a number of older players and rested several in the 2s for a few weeks before the finals. Seems to have worked for them

 

[bigman]

Good article.

I find it interesting that in a reportedly weaker draft, someone so 'special' (as Capel puts it) fell through to pick 16. Was his perceived talent not obvious to other teams ? Did other teams have bigger priorities (such as KPPs ? Or was his weight (or lack of) the major issue ?

Thoughts ?

This was never a weak draft. It might havde been light on for talls but that was it.

I made mention many times of the depth of this draft. I was also one of the first to tell you about the quality of this kid.

Our last two drafts have been very, very good. The boys in the recruiting area have done very, very well with the picks they have been given.

Douglas, Vince, Pfieiffer and Porplycia all were top picks and Obst too has plenty of potential.

The drums..the voices...

 

[WaynesWorld19]

Who could you omit and why??

now let me think about that.......

 

[Turbo]

douglas, guru. anyone else agree that his injury cost him a shot in the 22, which he would have turned into a spot for the rest of the season that would have ended up with the nab rising star award under his belt. just looks like he might have to win it next year