List Mgmt. GWS Giants Academy News & Discussion

Apr 30, 2011
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Don't miss the opportunity to hear from the Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy Head Coach and AFL NSW/ACT Talent Department at the 2014 Talent Program Information Night in Wagga Wagga. The night will give coaches, club personnel and parents the opportunity to view AFL Combine testing of elite Under-16 and Under-18 players and receive information on the program going forward to the 2014 season. When: Wednesday November 20 Time: 5.30pm – 7.00pm Where: Kildare College, Wagga Wagga (Coleman Street, Wagga Wagga) Mark McVeigh (Head Coach Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy), Darren Denneman (AFL NSW/ACT State Talent Manager) and Jason Saddington (AFL NSW/ACT State Coach) will be on hand to outline the 2014 season program for the Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy and AFL NSW/ACT Joss Talent Programs including: • Under-18 NSW/ACT RAMS and TAC Cup Competition • Under-16 to Under-18 Slater & Gordan GIANTS Academy • Under-13 to Under-15 AFL NSW/ACT and GIANTS Development Program

http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2013-11-16/slater-gordon-giants-academy-information-night

More details:
http://aflnswact.com.au/fileadmin/user_upload/Documents/Talent/Talent_info_night.pdf
 
Apr 30, 2011
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A couple of local lads who could be drafted in '14 will train with the Giants for a week

Two young draft prospects will arrive at the club next Monday to train as a GIANT for a week as they get a taste of life as a professional footballer.

Goulburn’s Liam Griffiths and Albury’s Nick Coughlan, members of the AIS-AFL Academy level two program, will join the GIANTS in an important step in their under-18 season.

All members of the AIS-AFL Academy will spend a week with one of the AFL’s 18 clubs, participating in training, recovery, team meetings and all aspects of pre-season preparations.

The players are eligible to be drafted at the end of the 2014 season with Griffiths and Coughlan able to be nominated by the GIANTS as Academy players.

http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2014-01-15/life-as-a-giant
 
Apr 30, 2011
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Ainslie's Liam Griffiths ditched the idea of having an 18th birthday party last weekend, hoping he can celebrate this year by ending Canberra's AFL draft drought.
Griffiths surpassed the AIS-AFL agility record of Fremantle gun Stephen Hill last week and is getting ready to train with AFL club Greater Western Sydney next week.
Invited to take part in a week's training with the squad in Sydney, Griffiths is one of four Giants academy members about to find out exactly what it is like to be an AFL footballer.
Former Essendon midfielder Mark McVeigh, now with the Giants, described Griffiths as ''absolutely top end in terms of endurance, speed and agility'', with ''fantastic skills'' and ''very professional''.


Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/afl/afl-news/giant-step-for-ainslies-liam-griffiths-20140117-3105n.html#ixzz2ri5r2ym9
 
Apr 30, 2011
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The last time we had the rams playing in the tac cup we had the likes of the McVeigh's, Hayes, LRT, Nick Davis, Craig Bolton come thru. So it will be interesting to see how this aids the development of players at both the Giants and Swans academy.

New South Wales’ top young footballers will have the chance to test themselves against their southern counterparts in this year’s TAC Cup competition.

For the first time since 2002, when a teenage Jarrad McVeigh lined up in the blue and gold, the NSW-ACT Rams will be regular participants in the Victorian-based under-18 competition, and will battle it out against some of the best young talent in the country.

The Rams team, which will be comprised of under-18 players from both the QBE Sydney Swans Academy and the GWS Academy, will play seven games in the TAC Cup as well as two pre-season games leading into the main competition.

http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/2014-02-19/rams-return-to-tac-cup
 

Ichabod Noodle

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Sep 13, 2011
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Good news in some ways' but why only 6 games in parts of the season? If you don't play the full season you can't make the finals. How does it affect the other teams they are playing them? If they win do the points count for them and won't the teams they don't play the rams get pissed because they don't have the opportunity for "easy points"? And if it's not for points, then it is for exhibition and that changes the context and meaning of the game and how players approach it.

Imagine the NT Thunder getting half a dozen games in the AFL. It wouldn't work.

It's great experience certainly, but from a practical point of view it's pretty stupid.
 
In realiy the TAC Cup is aimed at player development. The points table is largely irrelevant beyond boasting. The AFL ran Tassie in the TAC Cup last year for two games and looking at the ladder on the TAC Cup site they got points for it, now they'll be running NSW and Qld as well. The aim is to get as many kids as possible drafted.
 
Apr 30, 2011
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Also in regards to the talent in this years NSW group Callum Twomey mentioned on twitter last year that the 2014 group looked like it would be the best group to come out of NSW for some time. Time will tell of course, and its also the first year where there will be a bidding process like father/son for academy players.
 

Matchu

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I know there is already an academy thread but there isn't activity in that thread so I thought I'd start a new one and add in the father-son element to it. It's not hard to see how many talented players have come out of the GWS zone with the likes of Wayne Carey (Wagga Wagga), Shane Crawford (Finley), James Hird (Canberra) and Taylor Walker (Broken Hill) just to name a few. So firstly, I thought it would be a good idea to have a look at NSW/ACT Rams players in the GWS zone that will be competing in 7 TAC Cup games this season. The whole team can be found here.

2014 NSW/ACT Rams TAC Cup team
Sam Askew (Eastlake, Canberra)
Logan Austin (Belconnen, Canberra)
Charlie Bance (Wagga Tigers, Wagga Wagga)
Jock Cornell (Mangoplah, Riverina)
Tom Faul (Ainslie, Canberra)
Jeremy Finlayson (Hills Eagles, Sydney)
Lachlan Flagg (Northern Jets, Ardlethan)
Matthew Flynn (Narrandera, Riverina)
Liam Griffiths (Ainslie, Canberra)
Lachlan Hayres (North Shore, Sydney)
Mitchell Henderson (South Broken Hill, Broken Hill)
Harrison Himmelberg (Mangoplah, Riverina)
Jack Irvine (Temora)
Zach Johns (Hills Eagles, Sydney)
Jackson Kelly (Wagga Tigers Wagga Wagga)
Michael Mattingly (Corowa)
Jesse Mudge (St George, Sydney)
Billy Muir (Ainslie, Canberra)
Darcy Spinks (Queanbeyan, Canberra)
Jack Steele (Belconnen, Canberra)
Jarrod Thompson (Queanbeyan, Canberra)

Are any of these kids a genuine chance to get on the GWS list as an academy pick? I noticed that Jarrod Thompson from Queanbeyan was given the rising star nomination for the last round in the NEAFL so he's obviously doing something right. Now here are the 7 TAC Cup matches for NSW/ACT in 2014:

3 May v Dandenong Stingrays @ Shepley Oval
10 May v Murray Bushrangers @ Lavington Sports Ground
24 May v Oakleigh Chargers @ Warrawee Park
31 May v Bendigo Pioneers @ Mildura
14 June v Calder Cannons @ Sydney Cricket Ground
26 July v Western Jets @ Burbank Oval
3 August v Gippsland Power @ Morwell Football Ground

Now, on to the father-son side of things, how many players at the club have kids? Also, perhaps more importantly, how many of those guys are likely to reach 100 games at the club? Plenty of things to talk about in this thread so go for it.
 
Apr 30, 2011
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New South Wales/ACT players Isaac Heeney, Liam Griffiths and Nicholas Coughlan are on a 14-day European tour as part of the AIS-AFL Academy level two squad.
By Jack McAnespie
The AIS-AFL Academy has kicked off its European tour with an intra-club match at the Harrow School in Middlesex on Tuesday (London time).

The level-two squad is made up of players who are heading into their draft year, in the hope of fulfilling their football dreams.

The squad was broken into two teams, sprinkled with a touch of international talent, and lead by assistant coaches Tadhg Kennelly and Glen Jakovich.

New South Wales/ACT boys Liam Griffith, Nicholas Coughlan and Isaac Heeney featured prominently, with Heeney named best on ground for the Jakovich coached side.

The tour is a chance for recruiters to watch Academy players competing against each other, and the three NSW/ACT didn’t fail to impress, with Heeney’s drive out of the midfield particularly impressive on the day.

AIS-AFL Academy High Performance Coach Brad Johnson noted that the squad, and coaches were looking forward to the challenge and experience of playing, training and competing in fresh surroundings.

“It is a great challenge for the players to prepare and recover from matches in a new environment whilst also representing their country and the game,” said Johnson.

The boys will be in the fold again when the squad faces the European Legion at the Harrow School again on April 12, before heading to the AIS European training centre in Varese, Italy for the remainder of the trip.


http://www.aflnswact.com.au/index.p...898&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
 
Now, on to the father-son side of things, how many players at the club have kids? Also, perhaps more importantly, how many of those guys are likely to reach 100 games at the club?

Heh only 20+ years to go.
 
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Ichabod Noodle

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Now, on to the father-son side of things, how many players at the club have kids? Also, perhaps more importantly, how many of those guys are likely to reach 100 games at the club? Plenty of things to talk about in this thread so go for it.

Josh Hunt has a daughter. She's the only current child of any active player. Josh unlikely to get to 100 games anyway.
 
Apr 30, 2011
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Apr 30, 2011
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http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2014-06-03/giants-dominate-state-squad

Eighteen members of the PM Capital GIANTS Academy have been selected in the NSW/ACT squad set to play at the NAB AFL Under-16 National Championships next month.

Players will have the opportunity to impress AFL scouts as part of a week-long tournament against Australia’s best young footballers on the Gold Coast.

Academy coach Mark McVeigh, who will be assisting former Swans premiership player Tadhg Kennelly with coaching duties, said he was thrilled to see so many GIANTS-zoned players selected.

“It’s a massive effort to have a large majority of our players selected in the 25-man squad,” McVeigh said.

“From our point of view it’s a reward for all the hard work we’ve been putting in at training and during games.

“This is when footballers start going on the radar of AFL scouts so it’s a huge opportunity for the boys.

“In addition to getting noticed it will be good to test ourselves and experience high level football against the best.”

McVeigh said he expects western Sydney academy members Lyndon Hupfeld, Brandon Clark and Billy Lambert to play well at the championships.

Harrison Macreadie, Will Setterfield, Logan Gray and Fletcher Carroll are also players to watch.

The squad will come together for a training camp later this month before traveling to the Gold Coast during the July school holidays.

During the tournament NSW/ACT will play games against the Northern Territory, Queensland and Tasmania.

PM Capital GIANTS Academy members selected in the Under-16 NSW/ACT squad of 25:

Fletcher Carroll, Brandon Clark, Billy Lambert, Mitch Maguire, Harry Perryman, Sam Fisher, Connor Byrne, Julian Hayes, Cooper Page, Kobe Mutch, Tom Highmore, Lyndon Hupfeld, Will Setterfield, Logan Gray, Jacob Turner, Ryan Garthwaite, Zach Sproule, Harrison Macreadie
 
Apr 30, 2011
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http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport...y-overhaul-rules/story-fnia3v71-1226966854575
KEVIN Sheedy and Gerard Healy are among critics of an AFL plan to overhaul rules relating to football academies designed to foster junior talent for northern-based clubs.

The Herald Sun today revealed the AFL is set to overhaul rules for the academies, which Victorian clubs say allows rivals to quarantine young stars at cut-price rates.

Collingwood is leading the charge as Sydney prepares to promote a star academy pupil onto its list. Pies president Eddie McGuire is an outspoken critic on what he perceives an inequality in access to talent.

But Sheedy, the former Essendon and Greater Western Sydney coach who is now in an ambassadorial role at the Giants, took to Twitter on Thursday to shoot down concerns about the academies.

He suggested McGuire shouldn’t worry about any gains the Pies’ northern rivals may receive — especially when Collingwood has enjoyed benefits such as father-son selections for years.

“Eddie McGuire concerned about too much talent in NSW/QLD. Would be a nice problem for game,” Sheedy said.

“Eddie might also explain how hard they had to work to find a couple of roughies in Travis Cloke at pick 39 and Heath Shaw at pick 48. And (likely father-son selection) Darcy Moore this year.”

Sheedy then had a dig at the Pies, suggesting McGuire’s club could have been more adventurous in recent years by trading for some of the competition’s elite talent when they had the chance.

“Imagine if they had taken (Jaeger) O’Meara, (Jack) Martin, (Brad) Crouch or (Jesse) Hogan. Why didn’t they? Lacked courage?”
 
Apr 30, 2011
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http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/2014-06-26/qbe-sydney-swans-academy-explained

There has been considerable media commentary about AFL Academies in New South Wales and Queensland. This media interest has been led by journalist/media identity and Collingwood President, Eddie McGuire.

I think it is important we clarify why the Academies were developed and how they operate in terms of access to talent.

Players can only be selected via a bidding system – identical to that available for father-son selections. Players are not “hidden away” as Mr McGuire claims. All will play in the Under-18 National Championships for the whole football world to see. In fact, it was our Club that pushed for the NSW/ACT Rams to re-join the TAC Cup competition. Despite his claims, Mr McGuire and the entire football world seem to have a very good grasp on a number of talented players currently within our Academy system, as we would expect.

It is wrong to suggest the bidding system in some way guarantees Clubs will acquire talent under market value. This has not been the case with father-son selections.

The Academy was established in 2010 as an initiative of the AFL. An AFL working group – that included then Collingwood recruiting manager Derek Hine (now GM List Management) - formulated and approved the club-based Academy system. The Swans Academy currently trains approximately 550 boys aged between 11 and 19 in nine regions utilising 60 coaches. Each player receives approximately 2.5 hours of coaching per week. The Academy co
sts the Sydney Swans in excess of $1 million per annum to run and is largely funded by donations and corporate support. Since its inception in 2010, the Swans Academy has engaged around 1000 young athletes in Sydney and its surrounds to an elite training environment.

The Academy system was introduced by the AFL to address the paucity of players being drafted from New South Wales and Queensland.

In the past 10 years only 17 New South Wales-based players have been selected in the National Draft. Of these, seven were compulsory zone selections for the GWS Giants.

Only six AFL clubs have been involved in drafting these 17 players over this 10-year period. In total these players have played 408 AFL games, at an average of 24 per player. This is, and was seen as such, a massive underdevelopment of potential talent given NSW’s population represents 32% of the total Australian population. Clearly the most talented athletes in NSW were playing other sports.

The Swans Academy has thus far produced 14 senior games from one player - Brandon Jack.

The Academy system is designed to promote AFL in non-traditional football states and to develop a higher standard of player for both local leagues and at the elite level. As can be seen from the facts we are a long way off this objective being met in terms of development of elite talent.

The facts are that the introduction of two expansion clubs has diluted the national talent pool. Therefore, it is vital to have a robust system to develop the game and talent outside of Victoria such that the game can become truly national. The Academy system is doing a fantastic job, but there is a long way to go. If the AFL competition becomes flooded with talent from New South Wales and Queensland, it will be the best problem we have ever had. The four northern state Academies will grow the talent pool for all Clubs.

It is ironic that just days after bemoaning the talent in the AFL system, that McGuire would attack one of the most important initiatives in the development of football talent across Australia.
 
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THERE have already been countless chapters in the Daniher family football story, and there might soon be another, except this one will come under a different name.
Jock Cornell is a tough, no-fuss teenager who can play at both ends of the ground and do it well.
He has a strong build, is eligible for next year's NAB AFL Draft, and is already linked to a club.
And no, it's not Essendon.
Cornell is the son of Julie Cornell, who is one of seven sisters to the Daniher brothers Terry, Neale, Chris and Anthony,

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2014-06-29/daniher-by-another-name
 
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http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2014-07-03/giants-star-in-nationals-win

Several PM Capital GIANTS Academy players had starring roles in the NSW/ACT Rams’ win at the NAB AFL Under-18 Championships. The Rams went through the tournament undefeated and took out Division 2 with a 13-point win over Queensland at Etihad Stadium. GIANTS Academy member Jack Steele, who kicked two goals in the final, was voted MVP of the tournament by his peers. Academy coach Mark McVeigh said Steele was among a number of players who will be watched closely by recruiters ahead of the national draft. “Jack had an outstanding carnival and we’re all really excited about his prospects,” McVeigh said. “He has a great ability to win contested ball through the midfield but can also go up forward and be damaging. “There are a few boys who have put their hand up this week and I wouldn’t be surprised if a fair few of them get drafted later in the year. “Jeremy Finlayson is an agile tall who we’re quite excited about while Liam Griffiths has great speed and agility which is going to hold him in good stead.” Dougal Howard, Jacob Hooper and Logan Austin were also among the better players of the tournament. McVeigh said several academy members would be used as top-up players in the GIANTS’ NEAFL side later in the season. The NAB AFL National Draft will take place on Thursday, November 27 at the Gold Coast.
 
Apr 30, 2011
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The GIANTS have shortlisted 10 PM Capital GIANTS Academy players as potential bid selections for the 2014 NAB AFL Draft.

The AFL yesterday revealed the names of 35 draft-eligible players to come out of the club academies in New South Wales and Queensland.

PM Capital GIANTS Academy players selected include; Logan Austin (Belconnen), Nicholas Coughlin (Albury Tigers), Thomas Faul, Jeremy Finlayson (Sydney Hills Eagles), Liam Griffiths, Brydan Hodgson (Lavington/Murray Bushrangers), Dougal Howard (Albury Tigers), Mitchell Mahady, Michael Mattingly (Corowa-Rutherglen) and Jack Steele (Belconnen).

The players selected are eligible to be taken at the Father/Son and Academy Bidding meeting on Monday, October 6.

- See more at: http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2014-08-07/bid-selections-named#sthash.tjM30ilp.dpuf
 
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