Draft review

[blues2007]

Found this on a afl web page somewhere. whats everyones thought's on it.


Team AFL Draft Review: Carlton Blues

November 27th 2006 23:12
Draft Table Talk:
Kernahan said, "Gibbs", everyone else agreed.
Someone then proposed drafting a Queensland ruckman with the priority pick. They had four to choose from and went with Hampson. In going with Hampson they went with the player with more "upside".
Grigg is an exciting player, and it was a great pick at 19, but not sure where he plays. Maybe they drafted him for the wing. They did overlook key position help at this pick, with MacKenzie or Allen, and smaller midfielders, Hislop and Proud. But they decided on Grigg so they must have a role selected for him.
Pick 35 was another Glenelg player, so there might be a reason behind that. They could have had Goldstein at this pick.
The Benjamin pick would have been an easy one to make. They need a player like him at half back. They also had couple of other WA players to consider here, O'Brien and Moss.
For their last pick they must have considered Jake Williams and Sam Sheldon. Sam Jacobs might have been another player they could have picked.

2006 Draft vs 2005 Draft:
Murphy in 2005, Gibbs in 2006, they went small each time. Kennedy and Bower were other high picks last time, and Kennedy was at pick 3 with the priority picks before the first round last year, and this time they went with Hampson and Grigg. The Hampson and Grigg combo is a combined 4cm taller than the added heights of Kennedy and Bower last draft, so Carlton did add some height with all those picks. If Hampson becomes a solid player, and if Benjamin finds a spot in the team, the 2006 draft should help Carlton even more than the 2005 draft looks like it will. Going back through all the drafts, Hampson might be the first real young ruck prospect that Carlton have ever drafted, as opposed to a recycled ruckman or a forward who would be played in the ruck. Which is strange for a club that built a winning team in the past with Nicholls, Fitzpatrick and Madden in the ruck.

Player: Pick 1 Bryce Gibbs, 187cm 78kg (Glenelg)
Comparison: Craig Bradley
ETA: Round 1 2007
Possible position: Midfielder

Player: Pick 17 Sean Hampson, 201cm 93kg (Mt Gravatt)
Comparison: Mark Porter
ETA: 2008
Possible position: Ruckman

Player: Pick 19 Shaun Grigg, 190cm 79kg (North Ballarat)
Comparison: Mil Hanna
ETA: Early rounds of 2007
Possible position: Midfielder/Medium Forward

Player: Pick 35 Mark Austin, 193cm 88kg (Glenelg)
Comparison: Ian Aitken
ETA: 2009
Possible position: Tall Defender

Player: Pick 51 Clint Benjamin, 189cm 81kg (Claremont)
Comparison: Brett Sholl
ETA: Late rounds of 2007
Possible position: Medium Defender/Midfielder

Player: Pick 67 Joe Anderson, 188cm 81kg (Darwin)
Comparison: Simon Fletcher
ETA: 2008
Possible position: Medium Defender

 

[Jeremias]

What is ETA?

Couldn't be estimated debut period could it?

If so, that is rubbish.

And the comparisons aren't really that inspiring. Porter, Aitken, Sholl, Fletcher.........?

 

[ClayBlue87]

I'd say Gibbs is more a Peter Motley, larger/ stronger type midfielder than a running wingman like Bradley.

As for the ETA's
Gibbs: Round 1 2007

Hampson: If we dont pick up another Ruck, he will play if one get injured, other wise Late 2007

Grigg: Mid-Late 2007

Austin: Wouldnt it be bad if we didnt see him until 2009? Needs time to fill out, Mid 2008

Benjamin: Mid-Late 2007

Anderson: 2008

If I remember correctly we had these debutants last year:
Murhpy
Kennedy
Blackwell
Smith
Bower
Jackson
McLaren
----
with Russell and O'hAilpin playing only 1 games each in 2005

so with Ackland to debut, between 6-8 others will also debut next year

Flint
Hartlett
Gibbs
Grigg
Benjamin
Edwards
O'hAilpin/ Hampson

 

[Jeremias]

Wouldn't surprise me at all to see all of the draftees given a go at some stage during the year.

Gibbs: 20-22 games
Hampson: 1-3 games
Grigg: 10-15 games
Austin: 1-3 games
Benjamin: 8-12 games
Anderson: 5-10 games

With debuts also coming from Flint, Hartlett, Edwards and maybe even Raso.

 

[Ruckus]

Player comparisons, while always difficult (and are often best not made at all), are just plain misleading in this case.

Comparing him to Bradley would imply that Gibbs is strictly an outside ball carrier, but this is not the case (in fact, he's not a player that breaks the lines at all). He's far more versatile than that, and a very good clearance player when called upon to act in that way. Plays far taller than Bradley, too, so the comparison is laughable in almost all respects.

The Hampson/Porter thing is just as far off the mark - Porter, tall and lumbering, was never the athlete the Hampson is, nor did he ever have his leap. Certainly the wrong ruckman to be mentioning in the same breath, methinks.

The rest aren't much better, so I'd suggest that the party responsible for such comments has never seen these guys play.

 

[gandaal]

Here's some early profiles (pre U18 comp) and some U18 performance reviews of players we picked up by jimmae on talkingcarlton:

Shaun Hampson
Listed height: 201.5 cms (interestingly the only use of a decimal point anywhere in the form guide, an accurate measurement?)
Listed weight: 93 kgs
Eligible for draft? Yes.
Stats match up with impressions of player? While I don't think he's that tall, he probably hunches a tiny bit in reality, much like any other bloke that tall, certainly the tallest bloke on the ground.

Had a distinct height advantage as QLD had a fair few 195+ players running around compared to TAS, who obviously had Riewoldt and Thorp missing. Was average in the ruck but didn't really have an opportunity to be tested.

Master stroke moving him forward because he could monster opponents, but he didn't need to. Didn't really pay much attention to him until he started to chase down Nick McKenna for TAS while he was trotting along to clear. Was lightning for his size, and suddenly his pace became a huge factor in the game with some blistering leads and some more chase downs. Kicks a bit like a ruck too but if he learns to time his leads a little bit better that won't be an issue.

Amazing pace to burn for someone that size and while he is a little bit wiry, that certainly isn't unexpected when you're 17 and 2 metres tall.

Waiting to see a real ruck contest for him, which is going to be a bit of a stretch (AHAHAH I'M SO FUNNY) in division 2. Definitely one to watch.

Shaun Hampson
Closer to a four quarter effort from Hampson in this game. Didn't show that insane burst of speed again but easily accounted for his opponents when leading a pushing up out of the forward line and defense, where he both played as well as time in the ruck in the centre and around the ground.

Had a reasonable time of it in the ruck and there were times when it was a no contest, but when there was one he was ok. Palms the ball ok, can get the ball up off the deck and dish off and did so a few times. Could play a big part for Queensland along with Renouf, but I didn't like him much in defense, not that he wasn't capable, just that he wasn't as sure as he was up forward or rucking. May get over-awed there and make mistakes placing pressure on himself, but you have to learn somewhere.

Shaun Hampson
Eventually came on to sit at CHB and certainly throws himself into packs, but I wanted to see him in the ruck and up forward.

Rarely got an opportunity in these roles as it was the Renouf show, I don't think he'd be enjoying playing second fiddle all the time. Really didn't get a chance to settle into any role but still shows to be a quick bloke for his size. Looking forward to him rotating out of FF into the ruck with Renouf if Queensland want to seriously dominate.

Didn't get to do a centre bounce, Queensland seemed to prefer Plummer for that role, but he just doesn't impress me as much as the other two


Joseph Anderson
Listed Height: 188 cms
Listed Weight: 81 kgs
Eligible for draft? Yes.
Stats match up with impressions of player? Don't think he's quite that tall, certainly doesn't play that way.

One of the players I felt was just making the most of a height advantage on first view, but has proven to be a sizable cog in the whirring machine that is the NT midfield. Floats around HB and makes use of his height and pace to drop into the space and take some nice marks.

This makes it sound like he's more of a KPP without an opponent but he is very much a flanker/mid. Pace matches it with a lot of the smaller mids running around, nice side stepping on occassion and of course has a nice height advantage for marking on the wing. Very good acceleration and weave on occassions and I get the feeling he has something left to show in that regard. Reasonable disposal, not bad, just not something you would put up in lights as a reason to draft him just yet.

A big question with these kinds of players is: can they play a balanced game in the midfield ie. can they go inside? Yet to see this with Joseph.

Certainly an exciting tall mid/flanker type who will be better tested in the championships.

Anderson (NT) - Felt as though I made it sound like his disposal is a negative, it isn't, hits the target regularly but it hasn't really been tested properly.

Joseph Anderson
Really impressed by his game today, disposal is improving with each game, and for his size he really enjoys carrying the ball and running the lines. Sensational athlete who does possess a good chunk of footy talent.

Able to read the play fairly well, which makes him a good attacking player off the HB line. Ready to bump and sheppard as well, so I guess you could liken him to Jordan Russell in that respect.

In the second half Brodie Johnson was thrown on him for a close-checking role and while he was less prominent he still featured in the game, but I don't really feel that had much to do with how he responded to the tag, more his game style of reading the play pretty well and making up for any short comings there with his height and athleticism. Good game.

Shaun Grigg
I've already spoken a bit about him so I'll keep him in the updates.

Poor man's Judd comment stands IMO. That is the kind of player he most reminds me of, and while Judd is completely on another level, much much higher than Shaun, he is super evasive and strong over the ball at this level. Has a nice bit of flair too.

Continually sneaks away from his opponent when he has one, using all sorts of tricks but has the athleticism to do it the old fashion way if need be, and it showed with two classy goals in the first quarter. Despite this I still feel his kicking is a bit suspect, but there's a fair bit to work with overall and his athleticism will excite recruiters.

For mine, I want to see just how fast he can go, whether he can run and carry and how he deals with a hard tag before I say he is worth such and such. Even then I don't think he will push far up in the draft despite how much he will make the average watcher pine for him.

Clint Benjamin
Listed Height: 188 cms
Listed Weight: 80 kgs
Eligible for draft?: Yes.
Stats match up with impressions of player?: I'd say taller, probably a toucher heavier.

Tall, athletic, sticks reasonably well to his opponents as a defender. Disposal is reasonable, quick off the mark, agile, a lot to like about him save for a couple of things: intensity and smarts.

It's not that they're non-existant, he just seems to be cruising, at the very least mentally. Beautiful to watch in full stride, and have read he runs the 100m around or under 11 seconds. Athletics Australia must be pissed footy has a hold on him.

Could be anything, could be nothing, and there seems to be a few players of roughly his type this year (Everitt, Collier, Reid). Needs to do something to stamp himself as more than an athlete in a footballer jumper looking for an easier pay cheque.

Wouldn't take much thinking from him given the physical talent he has to burn in order to shine. More to come in this saga.



Here's another Grigg comment from another poster named Bozman just in case people are having a heart attack:

Sean Grigg: I was impressed by this kid as well. Obviously is a ball magnet, but he also has nice clean hands, is evasive, and has nice left foot disposal, similar style to that of leon Cameron. Is better than average at marking for his size as well. Would be a good 2-4th rounder midfield pick IMO. He also looks like a confident player who would have the necessary arrongance to fit into the afl. Has nice height for an adl midfielder at 189cm.

mojo,

didn't u find proud a bit one paced and one dimensional. Although having nice skills and technique, he didnt appear to have the explosiveness or quickness i think he would need to be an afl player. However, this is just based on sat's game.

I was more impressed with grigg and connors, who are both quick, tough, evasive with good skills, what do u think of them and where are they estimated to go in draft?

 

[AndyWalkersGirl]

Thanks so much gandaal!

 

[one_twelve112]

Has anyone got any info on Edwards? Has he developed well this year and does he look like a likely type?

 

[HBF]

^^^ Great summary mate. Just one point though, I suspect the hard tags will be reserved for Murphy and Gibbs as they start to get a bit older. Grigg could really benefit from this, and become quiet a good player for Carlton.

 

[bmaurizio]

Thanks for sharing the info on the new boys gandaal much appreciated.
Can you dig up something on Austin?
Ciao Exciting times ahead for the Mighty Blues

 

[Jeremias]

This is what I have managed to find on Austin, from various sources:

Mark Austin
SA, 24-Feb-89, Glenelg, Tall Defender, 193, 83
Missed the NAB AFL U18 Championships through injury but played three SANFL league games in 2006 as a defender. Finished in top ten in repeat sprints at draft camp.

Bottom-aged key position player who impressed at the draft camp. Showing superb development at a young age. Can play at either end of the ground but appears more suited to centre half back. Has tremendous upside.

No. 35 (Glenelg) 17yo 193cm 88kg
Athletic and competitive player who missed under-18 titles with injury, but came through Glenelg ranks to play senior football this year.

 

[Bluebear]

Nice work Gandaal

 

[jj1978]

It's almost like we drafted kids that require a bit of polish (Bar Gibbs)... could this have been planned by our coaches/recruiters after we got Bradley and Ratten back into the fold???

Raw unpolished talent there for Bradley and Ratten to mould into their own football machines!

 

[ClayBlue87]

It's almost like we drafted kids that require a bit of polish (Bar Gibbs)... could this have been planned by our coaches/recruiters after we got Bradley and Ratten back into the fold???

Raw unpolished talent there for Bradley and Ratten to mould into their own football machines!

It's almost like we are planning to draft the team of 1995...look at all the South Australians...

 

[parrot]

It's almost like we drafted kids that require a bit of polish (Bar Gibbs)... could this have been planned by our coaches/recruiters after we got Bradley and Ratten back into the fold???

Raw unpolished talent there for Bradley and Ratten to mould into their own football machines!

Totally agree. The more we know, the more we realise that Hughes has been very clever with his choices. It would have been easy to go for the media-favourite safe options, but instead he went for players with more natural talent, that require more devlopment. A slightly riskier approach, but a good one I think.

 

[gandaal]

Nice work Gandaal

It's not my work. I just want to make that clear. I just looked them up and pasted them into one post. All credit goes to jimmae and Bozman over at talking carlton.

 

[Dramoth]

So Griggs is going to shave himself completely and become a muscle machine like Mil Hanna

Mil Hanna was great for us on the HBF's and the wing. Hopefully Griggs will live up to the comparison (and hopefully blowing his knee out in his first match and being out of the game for 12 months)

 

[blues4flag]

Mil Hanna was great for us on the HBF's and the wing. Hopefully Griggs will live up to the comparison (and hopefully blowing his knee out in his first match and being out of the game for 12 months)

 

[Dramoth]

Mil Hanna was only on the grounds for minutes in his debut game in 1986 for the club and did his cruciate ligament and was out of the game for 13 months.

http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/ONToC_centreline.htm

In his own words, he spent 12 months in the gym bulking up and getting over the injury. Thats why he was a brick wall of muscle

Although I should have said "NOT" blowing his knee out...

 

[HBF]

It's almost like we drafted kids that require a bit of polish (Bar Gibbs)... could this have been planned by our coaches/recruiters after we got Bradley and Ratten back into the fold???

Raw unpolished talent there for Bradley and Ratten to mould into their own football machines!

Not such a bad thing I would have thought. Already, Bradley has been working with Blackwell on his kicking technique. Seriously, you couldn't be learning from a better exponent that Bradley.

 

[HBF]

So Griggs is going to shave himself completely and become a muscle machine like Mil Hanna

Mil Hanna was great for us on the HBF's and the wing. Hopefully Griggs will live up to the comparison (and hopefully blowing his knee out in his first match and being out of the game for 12 months)

Its Grigg mate!

 

[audas]

Interesting thoughts guys. I like this notion of getting talented footballers in and adding polish. It says at least two things: we are looking to the long term, and we are doing our own thing. When people are looking to agile athletic midfielders, we seem to be building a team of footballers.....good stuff.

 

[BlueBelle]

And the comparisons aren't really that inspiring. Porter, Aitken, Sholl, Fletcher.........?

I guess we can't really compare them to anybody until we see them in action, but I do agree with J.... the above comparisons are shyte and are really an insult more than anything!