Draft Watcher Knightmare's 2014 Phantom Draft

[Bailey01]

Gold Coast have the other pick after Geelong's first round pick and I expect they'd be more likely to use that pick on Weller than their first pick so entirely possible Port Adelaide could have a shot. A top 10 pick is too high for me, but others may disagree.



Ellis isn't in that class.

Think of Ahern as something like Richmond's Shane Edwards and Ellis personally I don't feel is an AFL quality talent, he just doesn't impact games enough for me as clean and precise as his ball use is.

Ahern had an incredible run during the u18 champs really dominating but his form through the TAC Cup hasn't been that dominant and has lacked some consistency. He still can go first round but he may drop to somewhere around pick 20 from being a top 10 pick as some were speculating during a couple of months back.

Cheers for the replies mate. I see Lever/Laverde/Ahern/Weller in our (Adelaide) range. Who do you rate higher ?

 

[Knightmare]

Cheers for the replies mate. I see Lever/Laverde/Ahern/Weller in our (Adelaide) range. Who do you rate higher ?

A combination of those players will be gone but one or two of those should be available to Adelaide.

Lever would be my pick of that group if available. As a key defender he has the production on the board (last year), is an exceptional leader captaining Vic Metro last year and is an excellent all rounder so I like Adelaide's chances of developing him into a high level, well rounded key defender who can work well in combination with Talia.

 

[blueiris]

I think Brisbane should trade pick 5 what do you think Knights ? Because this draft doesn't seem as good as last year what's your opinion

 

[SumTingWong]

Gold Coast have the other pick after Geelong's first round pick and I expect they'd be more likely to use that pick on Weller than their first pick so entirely possible Port Adelaide could have a shot. A top 10 pick is too high for me, but others may disagree.



Ellis isn't in that class.

Think of Ahern as something like Richmond's Shane Edwards and Ellis personally I don't feel is an AFL quality talent, he just doesn't impact games enough for me as clean and precise as his ball use is.

Ahern had an incredible run during the u18 champs really dominating but his form through the TAC Cup hasn't been that dominant and has lacked some consistency. He still can go first round but he may drop to somewhere around pick 20 from being a top 10 pick as some were speculating during a couple of months back.

What do you mean by this? Shane Edwards certainly impacted tonight and Ellis has had an AA year in his 3rd year of AFL.

 

[Knightmare]

What do you mean by this? Shane Edwards certainly impacted tonight and Ellis has had an AA year in his 3rd year of AFL.

I'm suggesting Ahern will as Edwards is become a good AFL footballer. Not a star, but someone who can do some damage and be a factor.

Ellis. Not so much.

*Ellis this years draft prospect who the media have hyped as a potential first round selection. Not Richmond's Ellis who is a key piece to clarify.

 

[Knightmare]

I think Brisbane should trade pick 5 what do you think Knights ? Because this draft doesn't seem as good as last year what's your opinion

If you can get a very good established player. Sure. Just doesn't happen so often.

I agree it's not a need for Brisbane to keep that first pick. Moving down in the draft as West Coast did last year might be another alternative if keen on someone who isn't expected to require such a high selection to acquire. That way it might net Brisbane either an extra second round pick or an identified player on another team who could be of use.

My recommendation for Brisbane is keep the options open and see what opportunities present.

 

[12Chill]

What do you mean by this? Shane Edwards certainly impacted tonight and Ellis has had an AA year in his 3rd year of AFL.

He's talking about Corey Ellis... a draft prospect, not Brandon Ellis.

 

[Bailey01]

He's talking about Corey Ellis... a draft prospect, not Brandon Ellis.

Lololol awkward

 

[SumTingWong]

He's talking about Corey Ellis... a draft prospect, not Brandon Ellis.

I think KM can speak for himself

 

[SumTingWong]

Lololol awkward

What's awkward about it?

 

[Bailey01]

What's awkward about it?

Both talking about the wrong player that they thought they were talking about.

 

[12Chill]

I think KM can speak for himself

Of course he is, I'm just letting you know he was talking about Corey Ellis.

 

[eaglespremiers]

Do you think Carlton might reach in the first round and get Reece McKenzie or, in regards to key forward prospects, do you still rate Durdin a better match for Carlton and player in general?

 

[foj1]

Peter wright runs a 15 beep his endurance ain't a weakness. I would say he gets physically pushed around too easily and his body language can be poor. McCartin and wright were both unimpressive yesterday. The safest bet in this draft is Christian Petracca. The high fish high reward pick is Peter wright. If not for a knee injury I believe jake lever would have gone number 1. Expect him to go top 4 and maybe higher. He looked terrific doing warm up for Calder yesterday. Cavka probably rose up the rankings yesterday while Ahern had a flat game but did kick some terrific goals.

Detailed bios (my top 50 prospects)

1. Peter Wright (VIC – KPF/Ruck)
Height: 203cm, Weight: 102kg, DOB: 08/09/1996
Recruited from: Calder Cannons
Draft range: 1-5
Best position/role: Full forward playing relief ruck minutes.
Strengths:
Key forward talent – Wright has extreme height at 203cm and already has a strong frame at 102kg which is a major point of difference by position but unlike most other 200cm+ types the key with Wright is he’s one of the rare few with front half talent and the ability to take over games with his influence.
Strength – Wright has excellent size for his age at 102kg and uses it well. He can dominate you at the centre bounces with his size and strength advantage and use his strength in the front half to outmark his opponents 1v1.
Athleticism/movement – Has the acceleration to create separation on the lead, very good mobility for his size, has the ability to go on repeat leads and has some lift on his jump.
Marking ability –Strong mark on the lead and is hard to stop given his height, size, strong hands and ability to create separation on the lead. He’s also a strong contested mark capable of taking pack marks, leaping and taking a mark and taking 1v1 marks. His marks are clean one grab marks and he has the ability to take it out in front and at the highest point.
Footskills – Has range out to 60m and is a reliable set shot goalkicker. Damaging field kick over a variety of distances. At times Wright has demonstrates good vision and is capable of finding some damaging targets around the ground. He also has shown at times that he has the ability to execute his kicks and still hit his targets while getting tackled.
Tap ruck work – Effective tap ruckman who can hit it down to the advantage of his midfielders frequently both around the ground and at centre bounces. He’s got the size and strength to physically impose himself at centre bounces and ruck contests around the ground.
Weaknesses:
In and out of games –He can look unstoppable for periods of games and have a dominant quarter where he’s clearly best on ground but also has his quiet periods in games where he’s not involved enough or imposing his influence on the game.
Endurance - Doesn’t cover the ground as well as you’d like and needs to put in the work to get his endurance up to the level it needs to get to.
Back – Has had back issues in the past. Is it growth related? Will it be something he’ll have to manage in the future? My assumption is its growth related and improved core strength and flexibility will help but it’s something that medical exams should tell us more about.
What I expect will improve:
In the AFL system with work his endurance can improve and with that I anticipate not only his endurance to improve but also his ability to get to more contests, his ability to influence games more frequently and influence games better over four quarters.
Who he can become?
I see Wright developing into a more dominant Kurt Tippett as that similar style tall, strong contested marking forward but with significantly better ability to push higher up the ground and perform through the ruck in those relief ruck minutes.
Through the ruck Wright looks like a less dominant Sam Jacobs. His tap work is similarly good and his skills also are good but I don’t see him finding as much of it around the ground and I also query if thrown into the ruck too early how his body will hold up.
When will he be ready to play?
The first couple of seasons we’ll see glimpses but it will be season three that I anticipate he’ll start putting some strong performances together and season four when he establishes himself as a go to forward at AFL level.
How to best utilise him?
With Wright I would recommend in those first four seasons for Wright to be only played as a key forward. Historically we see those who are thrown into the ruck at AFL level from season one break down with injury and have shortened careers. It’s a trend we have seen consistently with those ruckman who have been selected early draft over the years with Naitanui, Kreuzer and Leuenberger all having their issues dealing with injury most years and Josh Fraser also towards the end declining before the age of 30 after carrying the Collingwood ruck division in his early seasons. With key forwards and also those ruckmen who play as key forwards initially in their careers we see no such trend relating to injury or durability concerns and instead often a fast-track of their development. Paul Salmon and Simon Madden are two famous examples of ruckmen who started their careers forward and experienced great success and long careers in doing so. So for this reason regardless of the vision with Wright whether that be to develop him into a key forward or ruckman it is essential to his long term success and essential to maximising his talents that he starts his career as a key forward.
Interpretation of his numbers:
Well performed both as a key forward and ruckman in the TAC Cup and U18 Championships. Contested and uncontested marking numbers strong. Scoreboard impact strong. Hitout numbers and hitout to advantage numbers strong. Statistically Wright is the second best performed key forward behind McCartin and best performed ruckman in this draft class.

2. Patrick McCartin (VIC - KPF)
Height: 193cm, Weight: 95kg, DOB: 19/04/1996
Recruited from: Geelong Falcons
Draft range: 1-3
Best position/role: Full forward.
Strengths:
Marking ability – McCartin has rare marking ability on the lead. His trademark mark is his rare ability to take the mark down low over his toes on the lead with cleanness like you’ve never seen. He has some pace allowing him to create separation and he’s got clean heads both overhead taking his marks out in front. McCartin is also an excellent 1v1 mark and has the strength, excellent bodywork and superior ability to read the drop of the ball and protect the drop zone which allows him to take advantage of his opponent in the 1v1 contests. He can take you into the goal square and take advantage of you there with his 1v1 ability. He’s also a very capable pack mark and if he doesn’t take it he’ll bring it to ground.
Ability below the knees – McCartin has rare ability below the knees. He takes his trademark mark on the lead at his toes. He also has rare ability as a key forward to pick up the ground balls and bouncing balls clearly with consistency without fumbling making him a real threat not only as a marking target but equally so with his ground level game. After picking up the ground ball McCartin can get it onto his boot quickly or sometimes turn you around and go into an open goal or other times create enough time and space for himself to execute a shot at goal or a pass off to someone else.
Power and strength- On the lead McCartin has a real power to him. When McCartin leads he goes on really explosive leads and uses his pace effectively to create separation and also really times his leads well, he leads well finding the best spaces to lead to often electing to lead down the middle when the opportunity is there really reads the play well up the field and anticipates what is going to happen perfectly to then determine his leads. He’s also got a real strength and presence to him in the marking contest to take advantage of his direct opponent. He has the strength through the hips and core to stand up strongly and execute a handball to a target while tackled.
Field kicking and vision – McCartin is a very good field kick and has shown that he can at times lace out hit leading targets in the forward 50. He displays rare vision and a real unselfishness in the front half for a key forward often looking for players in better position and he spots targets you almost never see key forwards spotting.
Proven performer – Best performed key forward in this draft based on scoreboard impact in 2013/2014 between his play in the TAC Cup and u18 championships.
Weaknesses:
Diabetes – McCartin has diabetes which complicates the evaluation slightly and it’s difficult to evaluate exactly to what extent at the next level he’ll be able to deal with it. It’s an unknown if it will limit him or to what extent he’ll be limited whether that be with his training or ability to become better aerobically or whatever it may be. Because he has diabetes it has meant he’s needed to approach his footy and diet from a young age more professionally than everyone else which has created the right habits earlier on which is a positive but his diabetes is something that will have to constantly be managed throughout his playing career.
Excess weight – McCartin while he’s strongly built and very quick he visibly seems to be carrying more weight than you’d like of an elite draft prospect. From everything I hear he’s professional and approaches the game with a great attention to detail with his diet and training so it will be interesting to see whether he can decrease his skinfolds and how he goes about maintaining a healthy playing weight. Whether that has any link to his diabetes or management of it I can’t help but suspect it does and while weight loss with work is very achievable in the AFL system generally for almost all draft prospects I do have concerns as whether this is something McCartin can achieve with his skin folds to remain healthy possibly needing to remain relatively high.
*Diabetes is not an area I have any level of expertise in so I’d back in the evaluation of the club doctors.
Set shot goalkicking – McCartin’s conversion from set shots is below average. He is prone to shanking some of his set shots attempts and can lose confidence in his set shot goalkicking. It seems to be a really mental thing for him but something given his excellent field kicking I feel can improve to a strong standard. McCartin’s tendency when he starts to lose confidence in his set shot goalkicking is he often will either elect to find a target in better position or will play on or attempt a snap shot at goal, and while I have no issue with this tendency my hope would be that he can get his set shot goalkicking up to a standard where he doesn’t experience that same waver in confidence.
What I expect will improve:
In the most part I expect natural progression in his areas of strength and continued upward growth but the deficiency I feel McCartin can address is his set shot goalkicking and given his generally very good footskills his set shot goalkicking with further work can get up to a strong level.
If McCartin can improve his endurance and reduce his skinfolds I also wouldn’t rule out given his elite ground level ability, good overall skillset, size, strength and ability to stand up while tackled to become capable of pinch-hitting through the midfield as he does have that right mix of traits to spend periods on the ball.
Who he can become?
McCartin projects to become a similar if slightly lower quality Jarryd Roughead. He’s got similar ability as a deep forward with his ground level game and marking ability and scoreboard impact but probably unless he can improve his endurance and skinfolds be as effective up the field.
When will he be ready to play?
McCartin may be ready to play some games from season one but expect him to start to get regular games from season two and start to really establish himself as a go to guy in either season three.
How to best utilise him?
McCartin is best used out of the goal square or as the go to target in the front half.
Interpretation of his numbers:
Best performed and most dominant key forward in this draft class. Scoreboard impact and marking numbers, both uncontested and contested strong.

3. Christian Petracca (VIC – Mid/Fwd)
Height:186cm, Weight: 92kg, DOB: 04/01/1996
Recruited from: Eastern Ranges
Draft range: 1-3
Best position/role: Rotational midfielder/forward.
Strengths:
Front half talent –Petracca can play both deep in the front half as a marking target and off a forward flank to a high standard when playing forward. Deep in the front half Petracca provides strong scoreboard impact and is an imposing marking presence with his 1v1 strength, overhead marking ability, marking on the lead and superior ability to read the drop of the ball. He can deep in the front half also win the ground ball. Petracca can also play off a forward flank and have a big impact, he can on a forward flank accumulate the footy in bunches, do damage with his footskills, present as a strong marking target, provide strong scoreboard impact and push up the field.
Midfield talent – Petracca is an improved midfielder this year having improved his endurance and decreasing his skinfolds. He’s got a nice mix between inside and outside game. He’s a very good contested ball winner and stoppage player and these areas of his game can continue to improve given his size and strength. He’s a strong ground ball winner. He’s also got a rare power to him not only with his strength to bully guys inside the contest but some real explosive power where he can burst through a contest, come up with the ball and break away from the contest at speed. He’s also got excellent evasiveness and can sidestep guys and burst away with some real explosiveness. Outside the contest Petracca shows that he can find the footy but also use it really well utilising his damaging footskills and vision allowing him to find damaging targets up the field.
Scoreboard impact – Forward or through the midfield Petracca provides strong scoreboard impact and is capable of kicking multiple goals and breaking games open with his scoreboard impact in any given game.
Strength and power – Not many 92kg midfielders going around and even fewer with the explosiveness and power of Petracca. He wins his own ball and can either burst through the contest or run around you with ease. He stands up through tackles and has the strength through his core and hips, he can shrug tackles and give a strong don’t argue. In the 1v1 contests he can take advantage of anyone who isn’t key position sized.
Versatility – Petracca because he can play not only through the midfield but also on a forward flank or deep in the front half as a marking target gives you options and this versatility should also help him receive on any team immediate senior games.
Footskills – Has an excellent mix between footskills hitting his targets around the ground with consistency, vision allowing him to find some really damaging targets in great position, decision making with his ability to choose the right options but also he’s got the finishing ability and set shot goalkicking to allow him to provide the scoreboard impact.
Marking ability – Few if any medium size types have the marking ability of Petracca. He’s got the 1v1 marking ability, contested marking ability and ability on the lead to take his marks and he’s got the strength overhead to take them consistently. He also reads the drop of the ball exceptionally well and uses his body well in the contest allowing him to effectively protect the drop zone making him incredibly hard to defend particularly if he can isolate a smaller player defender deep in defence.
Weaknesses:
Endurance – His endurance is building and has improved significantly this year to an extent where he can now play full games through the midfield but if he hopes to eventually become a full time midfielder further work is still required.
Skinfolds – Like with his endurance his skinfolds have reduced but his skinfolds still appear relatively high and also need to decrease.
What I expect will improve:
I expect Petracca to continue to improve his contested ball winning and stoppage work and take that area of his game from good to eventually excellent. I also expect his endurance and skinfolds to improve. Whether his endurance and skinfolds improve to an extent where Petracca will be played as a full time midfielder that is the question I still have.
Who he can become?
I anticipate Petracca to develop into a player largely similar to Dustin Martin but without the personal issues. I see Petracca mostly playing as a damaging forward flanker who will at times push deeper into the front half and will split his minutes between playing through the front half and midfield with those midfield minutes increasing as his endurance improves.
When will he be ready to play?
Petracca is season one, round one ready to play. He’ll start off season one mostly playing in the front half and by season two or three likely play more a split between forward and midfield minutes.
How to best utilise him?
Petracca today is best utilised in the front half because he’s just so damaging forward of centre. The hope will be that he becomes more a midfielder but I’d look for him to split his minutes between the midfield and front half long term.
Interpretation of his numbers:
Petracca well and truly has the performances on the board and is one of if not the best performed player in this draft class based on his form these past couple of seasons through the TAC Cup and U18 championships. He’s finding the footy but also providing heavy scoreboard impact at both levels which such suggests he’ll provide both a strong immediate impact at AFL level but also that he will become one of the best to come out of this draft with those high production power midfielders who can provide heavy scoreboard impact of strong value to teams.

4. Isaac Heeney (Sydney - Academy- NSW/ACT - Mid)
Height: 186cm, Weight: 82kg, DOB: 05/05/1996
Recruited from: Cardiff
Draft range: 1st round
Best position/role: Midfield – on the ball.
Strengths:
Rapid improvement/work ethic/leadership – Heeney this year is probably the big improver and has gone from someone who coming into the season projected as more a second round pick to someone who you could make a case for as being the best midfielder and most complete in the draft class. He’s been noted as a hard worker so expect him to get the most out of his ability and with his rapid footballing growth over the years I expect Heeney the way he is tracking and improving so rapidly to become one of if not the best and most complete midfielder in this draft class. He’s also considered from what I understand to be an exceptional leader and I expect him to be a part of the leadership group for Sydney if not eventually become a future captain for Sydney.
Complete game – There is no area of the game I can identify where Heeney is deficient. He’s a high volume ball winner with an excellent balance between inside game and outside game with his ability to use it well by hand and foot as well as a good combination of strength and pace. He’s a two way runner and also is a hard worker with strong leadership potential from everything I understand about him.
Inside game - Inside the contest Heeney has demonstrated a real toughness and competitiveness with the way he attacks the ball hard. He can win his own ball. Can dish off by hand to a target. He can create some more time and space for himself in traffic at times. He can use his pace to burst away from the contest breaking open games. Also while using his burst of pace Heeney can execute by foot and hit the best targets. He’s also from his clearances excellent by foot executing and hitting targets cleanly up the field and sometimes even executing some impressive kicks while under pressure or getting tackled. He’s excellent at winning the ground balls. He’s excellent at reading the ruck taps. Has clean hands in close and below the knees and doesn’t fumble. He’s an excellent volume tackler and his tackles stick.
Outside game - He’s a genuine two way runner. He’s shown outside the contest that he can work well into space, he’ll get involved in running chains forward and can link up well and find the footy outside the contest. He’s an excellent user of the footy by both hand and foot hitting his targets while also showing excellent vision and decision making ability both in space as well as in congestion. He’s a very capable playmaker with ball in hand hitting his targets at times lace out in front in the forward 50. He’s also while a midfielder capable as required to push into the front half where he can provide an effective lead up target and with his leap he can also at times be a threat in the air. Heeney can finish around goal and hit the scoreboard but he’s more a playmaker than finisher and seems to enjoy bringing others into the game and playing a really unselfish game and playing the percentages where if he sees someone inside 50 in better position he’ll go to them or if on the boundary in a bad position he’ll look to a central target in better position.
Weaknesses:
Lack of one trademark eye-popping trait - Heeney while the best rounded midfielder in this draft doesn’t have any one area of the game that he does to a level better than anyone else in the game. He doesn’t have the rare explosiveness and power of Dangerfield from the stoppages or the rare movement of Pendlebury in traffic. What I speculate will become Heeney’s point of difference will be his hardness and aggression at the contested and his contested ball winning but while he’s excellent in these areas he doesn’t in any one category project as rare or a one of a kind.
What I expect will improve:
I expect continued sharp improvement across the board from Heeney but to identify an area likely I imagine his contested ball winning and stoppage work to be that area he’ll experience the greatest growth in relative to the other areas of his game.
Who he can become?
Heeney has the scope to become Sydney’s equivalent of David Swallow. Heeney is the most complete midfielder in this draft as Swallow was in his draft year and Heeney on a weak team could be the number one midfielder he is more likely a number two or three midfielder for the Swans.
When will he be ready to play?
Heeney has the ability to earn games from season one. It’s unlikely given Sydney’s loaded midfield that he’ll start in round one but he’s got the ability with strong NEAFL form to earn his way into the midfield and perform to a strong standard from his first season. Expect season two to be the season Heeney really establishes himself as a regular.
How to best utilise him?
Heeney is best utilised on the ball through the midfield.
Interpretation of his numbers:
Best performed division two player through the U18 champs and has also shown in the TAC Cup that he can find the footy in bunches. His numbers are on the sharp improve from last year and expect that sharp improvement to continue over coming seasons.

5. Angus Brayshaw (VIC – Mid)
Height: 187cm, Weight: 87kg, DOB: 09/01/1996
Recruited from: Sandringham Dragons
Draft range: 3-10
Best position/role: Midfield – on the ball.
Strengths:
Inside game – Brayshaw has shown dominant contested ball winning ability through both the TAC Cup and U18 Championships. His stoppage work is excellent and he is a strong clearance winner. He’s got clean hands and is clean below the knees and by hand. He stands up through and shrugs tackles well and has real strength over the ball. His inside game is at a level where he can play right away. He accumulates strong numbers through the midfield and excellent tackle numbers. He’s also an excellent height and size for an inside player at 187cm, 87kg.
Footskills – He’s a damaging user of the footy on both his right and left sides and is one of the rare few on-ballers who can use it cleanly and consistently on either side. He’s an excellent decision maker with ball in hand and has the vision to find targets in dangerous positions making him a real playmaker. From the midfield both in space and in traffic he also has a rare ability to find and hit the leading forward 50 targets and get it to where they want it. He’s also an excellent finisher around goal and can convert from his set shot opportunities.
Marking ability - He’s a strong mark overhead. He’s got the size and strength to beat his opponent in the 1v1 contest but he also reads the flight of the ball exceptionally well and has shown that he can either push back behind the play to take an intercept mark or push forward and be a marking threat on the lead or 1v1.
Work ethic – Brayshaw is a hard worker and has put the time and effort into his game. He’s developed the ability to use both sides of his body by hand and foot. He’s developed his strength and inside game and this past offseason has put the work in athletically to improve his endurance and pace and I anticipate he’ll continue from year to year to put the work into his game to achieve that continued improvement and development of his game.
Weaknesses:
Improved but still only an average athlete – Brayshaw is an improving endurance athlete and has pretty good ability to cover the ground. He has to his credit also improved his acceleration this year and has more of a burst of speed to him which he can use over 10-15m in game with ball in hand identifying it was previously an area of weakness. He’s not overly evasive or agile so he’s not going to run around or sidestep you. Overall Brayshaw is good enough athlete and shouldn’t have any problems at AFL level but it’s not an area of strength for him either and I imagine know that it’s an area he’ll continue to put the work into.
What I expect will improve:
I expect continued improvement in Brayshaw’s endurance to allow him to cover more of the ground so that at AFL level he can be a full time midfielder. I also expect Brayshaw to continue to improve and expand his inside game and become a more dominant contested ball winner and clearance winner than he already is.
Who he can become?
Brayshaw I see as a slightly less dominant Oliver Wines. He’s that similar tall, strong bodied midfielder who can do damage by foot and have an impact right away and be a key pillar through the midfield long term but his production I feel in looking at his numbers will be slightly but not significantly lower than the production of Wines.
When will he be ready to play?
Brayshaw is round one season one ready to play. He’s got the size and production to suggest he can have an impact right away. He can also be a starting midfielder right away but I can see him also receiving some minutes on either a forward or back flank during games as his endurance isn’t yet quite be up to a level that would allow him to sustain full games at AFL level through the midfield from the outset.
How to best utilise him?
Brayshaw is best utilised on the ball through the midfield.
Interpretation of his numbers:
Best performed TAC Cup midfielder in this draft class. He’s finding the footy both inside and outside the contest. Providing good scoreboard impact. Good tackle numbers and is taking plenty of marks. Has performed strongly through both the TAC Cup and U18 championships. So the indicators are strong and suggest he’ll play right away and have a long, strong future in our game.

 

[mattyc75]

. The safest bet in this draft is Christian Petracca. The high fish high reward pick is Peter wright. .

yes paul salmon was a very high fish high reward too

 

[SumTingWong]

Surely Cavka goes higher than 56?

 

[Knightmare]

Do you think Carlton might reach in the first round and get Reece McKenzie or, in regards to key forward prospects, do you still rate Durdin a better match for Carlton and player in general?

I'd lean towards McKenzie. Durdin another good option if there.

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

Knightmare - do you think Petracca not featuring in the TAC Cup finals will affect his ranking at the draft?

Clubs do place a lot of emphasis on Finals performances and with Brayshaw playing in finals and playing well (at least today, and his form over the past few weeks suggests he'll have a fantastic finals series) could he overtake Christian in the rankings (personally I rate him more highly at this stage anyway).

 

[Knightmare]

Surely Cavka goes higher than 56?

Had a big game with the 5 goals. Could rise up the draft standings, we'll see over coming weeks.

Knightmare - do you think Petracca not featuring in the TAC Cup finals will affect his ranking at the draft?

Clubs do place a lot of emphasis on Finals performances and with Brayshaw playing in finals and playing well (at least today, and his form over the past few weeks suggests he'll have a fantastic finals series) could he overtake Christian in the rankings (personally I rate him more highly at this stage anyway).

Hard to discriminate against a player on a bad team. Petracca played finals last year so I wouldn't be concerned.

Finals is an opportunity to elevate yourself if a marginal prospect or move up draft boards with strong form, maybe someone drops if they really struggle but while it's a consideration it's not the be all, end all.

 

[Bicks]

Given Adelaide's need for a KPD this draft what are your thoughts on Oscar McDonald being an option and around what pick do you expect him to go??

 

[Knightmare]

Given Adelaide's need for a KPD this draft what are your thoughts on Oscar McDonald being an option and around what pick do you expect him to go??

I like McDonald. He beat Wright yesterday and has been a strong, consistent performer through the season. Would be a good choice for any team looking for a key defender.

McDonald's draft range is unclear to me as it feels at least on here like no one else much rates him but from the third round I could see him get selected. He is worth a second round pick in my view but probably goes third round onward given the talk about him has been relatively low. Not out of the question he goes earlier as he can play.

 

[Jordie_tackles]

I like McDonald. He beat Wright yesterday and has been a strong, consistent performer through the season. Would be a good choice for any team looking for a key defender.

McDonald's draft range is unclear to me as it feels at least on here like no one else much rates him but from the third round I could see him get selected. He is worth a second round pick in my view but probably goes third round onward given the talk about him has been relatively low. Not out of the question he goes earlier as he can play.

That is about the same range his brother Tom went at, do you rate then similarly as athletes and on underage performances?

 

[borderbarry]

Now that clubs 9 to 18 are settled, how about putting your phantom draft in correct order, or do you want to do the whole comp after the finals?

 

[kaistar]

Knight if collingwood get Moore with our second round pick who would get with our 1st round? I would think out of
Laverde Pickett Mckenzie durdin what do you think?

 

[rustyg70]

Do you think there is there any chance that Moore will not get nominated by the clubs lower than Collingwood?