Club Focus Geelong 2020 - Smith, Cameron, Higgins, Holmes, Neale, Stevens

[Lore]

Data from footywire. To check the draft order (updated weekly) see the thread here.

 

[Turbocat]

Three first round picks, 11 and probably two more 12-20 before academy and F/S bidding.

What is the strategy given there hasn't been a regular NAB League season to follow?

A few options:

- use them all as they come, build for the future
- cash them in for points and trade up into the top 10
- trade some/all for experience (could use two and trade one for Ben Brown who is 4 years younger than Porkins and another 'tall guy who could play ruck that won't play ruck')

The first two would hopefully be the front running otpions. The nab league thing is probably not ideal but id doubt it will hurt us too much... SA and WA always seem to get a good look anyway... the last few years.... Stephens Vic, Clark WA, Fog Vic , Parfitt SA/NT ...

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Three first round picks, 11 and probably two more 12-20 before academy and F/S bidding.

What is the strategy given there hasn't been a regular NAB League season to follow?

A few options:

- use them all as they come, build for the future
- cash them in for points and trade up into the top 10
- trade some/all for experience (could use two and trade one for Ben Brown who is 4 years younger than Porkins and another 'tall guy who could play ruck that won't play ruck')

I think there might be a few opportunities to trade those firsts for future firsts. The position those picks are in will be of limited value in an open draft with little visibility on that second tier talent but if it's right in front of an expected bid it'll be worth getting in front of if you're the one with the NGA kid potentially.

Be prepared to take all 3 firsts to the draft as one extreme, but the other extreme where we trade all 3 for future firsts wouldn't be awful. We give 1 year contracts to a few kids that we haven't seen enough of this year to make our minds up on.

Say the West coast pick ends up 17-19, it won't get any worse trading in a straight swap for a future 1st.

Our pick if it ends up 12-16 will probably be around the mark value wise for pick 18 next year with the extra opportunity to see juniors and make informed choices making up for rhe penalty of having to wait to get these kids into the system. Could only get better from there.

Pick 11 might have some additional value so using it isn't the worst option. Depends who is offering.

One thing is for sure rolling into next years draft with 4 first round selections would be an unusual position.

 

[Scotland]

Say the West coast pick ends up 17-19, it won't get any worse trading in a straight swap for a future 1st.

Our pick if it ends up 12-16 will probably be around the mark value wise for pick 18 next year with the extra opportunity to see juniors and make informed choices making up for rhe penalty of having to wait to get these kids into the system. Could only get better from there.

Who is going to do that? There has to be some incentive for teams to trade future picks, especially with this bizarre COVID/NGA draft. There would need to be other moving parts.

 

[My Tilly]

We had one too many last year and one too few this year.

Neither Smith or Abbott would improve our current position though so what can you do, the ruck void was years in the making and not because of last off season.

Smith was mature age when we went for him.
I can distinctly recall a lot of our supporter base pleading not to pick the guy. He had injury setbacks at Gold Coast and was regarded as 'timid' by quite a few who watched him play.
Turns out he could only manage two seasons before suffering continual knee problems.
Massive error of judgement by the Geelong recruiting department.

Ryan Abbott was yet another basketball player-turn AFL footballer who was 26 years of age when drafted by Geelong. Again, why go this route entirely?

Over the years, Geelong have had multiple opportunities to select a very young ruckman at both the National and Rookie drafts.

Brodie Grundy (we took Jackson Thurlow)
Tony Nankervis (we took Darcy Lang)
Marc Pittonet (we took Cory Gregson)
Braydon Preuss (we took Tom Read)
Ivan Soldo (we took Cameron Delaney)
Mabior Chol (we took James Parsons)
Sean Darcy (we took Brandon Parfitt)
Oscar McInerney (we took Zach Guthrie)
Tom De Koning (Geelong took Fogarty & Tim Kelly)
Lewis Pierce (Geelong took Stewart Crameri)

There have been numerous players traded during that time. Players as recently as Scott Lycett, Paddy Ryder and Tim Pittonet whom Geelong could have gone for.
Even after all these years of selecting project rucks who were key position players first and foremost, ruckman second (Mitch Clark, Rhys Stanley, Mark Blicavs, Padraig Lucey) we are trying to turn Esava Ratugolea into a ruckman when he isn't one.

I hope the Geelong recruiters start drafting young natural rucks in the coming draft/s. The gamble is going to pay off if they do so. Was good to see us select Darcy Fort but we need to look at young 19 year old rucks.
Look at how other teams do it.
Most play actual ruckman.
Very few teams gamble with international exports or basketballer's turn footballer's as Geelong do.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Who is going to do that? There has to be some incentive for teams to trade future picks, especially with this bizarre COVID/NGA draft. There would need to be other moving parts.

Not saying there wouldn't be other moving parts and I don't know what they'd be but it's plausible we could maybe sweeten a deal enough with a team that backs itself. Again I don't have specific targets etc more thinking out loud. Well silently into my phone

 

[Scotland]

Not saying there wouldn't be other moving parts and I don't know what they'd be but it's plausible we could maybe sweeten a deal enough with a team that backs itself. Again I don't have specific targets etc more thinking out loud. Well silently into my phone

Fair enough.

We traded our future first back in 2017 for 21, 23, 37 and a future second which turned out to be robbery with the future first and second being three picks apart, but as we were 8th and expected to slide people criticised it at the time.

Future picks are a gamble. Unless there is a forecast strong draft I think most people would prefer a known pick to an unknown, unless it's 15-18 and you get a potential 1-18 in return.

 

[bird_man]

We offered 4 years to Goldstein he said no and almost everyone else we would have wanted wasn't gettable.

I agree with you though our ruck stocks have been costing us for years and we may look to trade one in again this off season.

Paddy Ryder was available and is showing his tap work is as good as ever.


Would have been a good stop gap IMO

 

[foxdog50]

Smith was mature age when we went for him.
I can distinctly recall a lot of our supporter base pleading not to pick the guy. He had injury setbacks at Gold Coast and was regarded as 'timid' by quite a few who watched him play.
Turns out he could only manage two seasons before suffering continual knee problems.
Massive error of judgement by the Geelong recruiting department.

Ryan Abbott was yet another basketball player-turn AFL footballer who was 26 years of age when drafted by Geelong. Again, why go this route entirely?

Over the years, Geelong have had multiple opportunities to select a very young ruckman at both the National and Rookie drafts.

Brodie Grundy (we took Jackson Thurlow)
Tony Nankervis (we took Darcy Lang)
Marc Pittonet (we took Cory Gregson)
Braydon Preuss (we took Tom Read)
Ivan Soldo (we took Cameron Delaney)
Mabior Chol (we took James Parsons)
Sean Darcy (we took Brandon Parfitt)
Oscar McInerney (we took Zach Guthrie)
Tom De Koning (Geelong took Fogarty & Tim Kelly)
Lewis Pierce (Geelong took Stewart Crameri)

There have been numerous players traded during that time. Players as recently as Scott Lycett, Paddy Ryder and Tim Pittonet whom Geelong could have gone for.
Even after all these years of selecting project rucks who were key position players first and foremost, ruckman second (Mitch Clark, Rhys Stanley, Mark Blicavs, Padraig Lucey) we are trying to turn Esava Ratugolea into a ruckman when he isn't one.

I hope the Geelong recruiters start drafting young natural rucks in the coming draft/s. The gamble is going to pay off if they do so. Was good to see us select Darcy Fort but we need to look at young 19 year old rucks.
Look at how other teams do it.
Most play actual ruckman.
Very few teams gamble with international exports or basketballer's turn footballer's as Geelong do.

I think the last kid as a ruck we have picked up from the draft is either Trent West or even Mummy.... which is years ago.... i hope we finally open our eyes getba traditional kid that plays ruck in this years draft. Fingers crossed

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Fair enough.

We traded our future first back in 2017 for 21, 23, 37 and a future second which turned out to be robbery with the future first and second being three picks apart, but as we were 8th and expected to slide people criticised it at the time.

Future picks are a gamble. Unless there is a forecast strong draft I think most people would prefer a known pick to an unknown, unless it's 15-18 and you get a potential 1-18 in return.

Yeah I just think with junior footy exposure being so thin the known quantity you get from seeing them as u18 next year would overcome the known quantity of where your pick lands.

I also think that there's going to be a lot of kids who in a normal year would be drafted maybe 2nd round on final year exposure but will go undrafted this year. Those kids go into next years pool and suddenly the next draft starts to bat real deep real quick. You'd probably have consider a future 2nd being worth more than a current 1st though that might be a little long a bow to draw

 

[CatToTheFuture]

I think the last kid as a ruck we have picked up from the draft is either Trent West or even Mummy.... which is years ago.... i hope we finally open our eyes getba traditional kid that plays ruck in this years draft. Fingers crossed

Blake Schlensog. You could also argue De Koning but I wouldn't

 

[foxdog50]

Blake Schlensog. You could also argue De Koning but I wouldn't

Im going genuine ruck position, not dual position

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Im going genuine ruck position, not dual position

I reckon he pretty much only played ruck as a junior but could be wrong

 

[Footy Smarts]

Paddy Ryder was available and is showing his tap work is as good as ever.


Would have been a good stop gap IMO

Pretty sure Ryder and Goldstein were the same in that we couldn't match the offers of North and Stkilda.

 

[bird_man]

Pretty sure Ryder and Goldstein were the same in that we couldn't match the offers of North and Stkilda.

That surprises me as Ryder isn't on a lot of money at St Kilda. He's playing second fiddle to Marshall.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

That surprises me as Ryder isn't on a lot of money at St Kilda. He's playing second fiddle to Marshall.

To be fair I doubt Ryder was ever going anywhere but st Kilda once hill was.

 

[bird_man]

To be fair I doubt Ryder was ever going anywhere but st Kilda once hill was.

Fair enough

He did tour Essendon though. It doesn't even sound like the Cats had their hat in the ring.

 

[Art Vandelay_]

Would the ever-growing list of potential recruits please take a ticket, form a single file queue, and please wait to hear from us
Seems we have cast a wide net of mature talent for this Spring.

 

[ibuprofen]

Would the ever-growing list of potential recruits please take a ticket, form a single file queue, and please wait to hear from us
Seems we have cast a wide net of mature talent for this Spring.

Geelong "Harlem Globetrotters" Cats

 

[Robroy22]

Would the ever-growing list of potential recruits please take a ticket, form a single file queue, and please wait to hear from us
Seems we have cast a wide net of mature talent for this Spring.

lol...get in line mate, everyone in the media knows that Collingwood's into everyone that has ever played the game!
Geelong only gets what 200,000 clicks?....lol

 

[CatToTheFuture]

lol...get in line mate, everyone in the media knows that Collingwood's into everyone that has ever played the game!
Geelong only gets what 200,000 clicks?....lol

Wasn't aware that there was a urination contest going on for who can be linked to the most fake news stories.

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Pick swap!

Bring back to us. Bring back to us.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Pick swap!

Bring back to us. Bring back to us.

Sorry what are you proposing? Are we getting Kelly back?

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Sorry what are you proposing? Are we getting Kelly back?

We trade our 2021 first-rounder for one of your 2020 first-rounders. Plus bits and pieces.

 

[Blue_Steel89]

The cats should try and get Preuss out of Melbourne. 25yrs old, solid pure ruckman who has learnt from Goldstein and now Gawn. I reckon he would be great for you guys.

 

[Robroy22]

The cats should try and get Preuss out of Melbourne. 25yrs old, solid pure ruckman who has learnt from Goldstein and now Gawn. I reckon he would be great for you guys.

Shhhhhhhhh.....don't tell them!