Merged draft threads

[Yoda_]

I'd like A'Vard from NSW on the rookie list. He was impressive today, although not at an incredibly high standard. He's one to keep an eye on.

Remember, that of the 4 best full backs atm (Scarlett, Fletcher, Rutten, Glass) 2 have gone F/S and 2 rookie list. It is very possible to get an elite full back for very little.

seems pretty tall, could not remember much of him from todays game. maybe,

 

[Ben the Gooner]

seems pretty tall, could not remember much of him from todays game. maybe,

Were you there today? I was sitting a few rows behind someone on crutches and only made the connection with you then. Aisle 37?

 

[Big Blow Hard]

I heard them say on SEN that in the WA vs Vic Metro game, someone Jetta took a great mark. Any relation? I assume so. Any Good?

 

[bomba4eva]

Went and watched Vic Metro vs WA earlier today. Was keeping an eye out for the highly rated prospects like Rich and Yarren.
Rich was very good in the first half and he and Natanui did as they pleased in the centre. Can remember at least two occasions when Natanui palmed it directly to Rich for a clearance. Has a nice kick and regularly hits his targets. Went missing in the second half. I wasnt as astute as others who have said both teams shyed away from tagging jobs in the first half but apparently Rich was tagged in the second half. A criticism has been his inability to shake a tag so seems like he failed to shake it again today. Was watching him intensely for a minute or two in the second half and he seemed to be skirting the pack or not going in and getting his own ball. This may have been a complete coincedence with the time I was viewing him but I was surprised. Good first half then went missing.

Natanui looks VERY raw. Personally I am happy that we wont get the chance to pick him up. Of course I may end up eating my words and no doubt he has plenty of improvement, but I wasnt overly impressed today. His leap certainly lived up to expectations though. Didnt do much around the ground but seemed to win most of the ruck contests he was involved in. Certainly stands out. Set up a nice goal in the first half by burning off his opponent and handpassing it to a teammate in space. Very impressive play. Didnt do enough for me but we wont get the chance to pick him up anyway.

Yarren is one classy player. Last quarter his quality was really coming to the fore. Disappointingly he did not seem to do much in the previous quarters. Didnt run through the middle much. Not sold on him but by no means did I go away thinking he was overrated. Very ground when the ball hits the deck and looks like he has got a footy brain. Personally dont think Essendon should get him because we have enough people of a similar nature. Very talented though and chased well occasionally.

Like the look of little Neville Jetta. Miniscule person but can make an impact. Has very good pace. Was looking out for him more because of his relation to Leroy. Wasnt dominant but did a few nice things.

Hurley was good today without being great. I notice Merv referring to a couple of passages where he was beaten and I happened to notice them also and wasnt impressed. In those passages he looked slow and it was very noticeable. Other than that he was impressive in his spoiling and I distinctly remembering him take a good contested mark. Big lad that can certainly play as a key backman. Would love him to take FB for the next decade at Essendon. He may well drop to our pick and I would have no hesitation in picking him up. What I noticed alsp was his leadership skills. Vocal and can marshall the troops. Seemed like a popular lad. Want him at Essendon.

Game was a scrappy affair IMO but was an enjoyable spectacle.

 

[bomber69]

I also went to the game today.
A few quick notes (because im tired)

Hartlett was very good. He roved very well and capped off a great individual performance by kick a good running goal from 50+. He is our priority if we are to go for a mid.

Hurley was dominant. Lost his feet a couple of times when matched up on Naitanui, but apart from that dominated. Would love this kid in the red and black. Great mark, great disposal and great smarts. If your one who is worried about using such a high pick for a defender, dont be. He can push forwards and have an impact at times too.

All from me for now, might post again in the morning

 

[Duckworth]

And this is what frustrates me about Rich. All tournament he hasnt been able to get over the tag, then in the first half where there are no visible tags he picks up 17 possesions.

When both sides start tagging key players in the second half he goes missing.

Im not sold on him, not by a long shot

He seems a bit lost to me when moved forward. When he went missing he was playing a forward role and had no impact on the game. I would wonder about this as (some) developing midfielders in AFL play a small forwards role before moving into the midfield... well this didn't appear to suit Rich based on today. What this kid does have besides striking blond hair, is a beautiful left boot. There were a few times the crowd just went 'awwwww' as the ball sailed a mile into WA forward line. This kid is an amazing kick of the footy.

dont rate Andrew Lovett, or Alwyn Davey, shit we might aswell drop leroy Jetta to them, shit delist them all. I am sure their are bigger priorities than him, please no, Essendon recruiting staff ATTENTION:

WE DO NOT NEEDCHRIS YARREN.

Not sure what you were watching but to me Yarran plays really tall. He's listed at 180cm but looked taller than that to me. I mainly noticed him in the last quarter when he had a real impact on the game, taking a few nice marks. I sincerely hope that you're not against him based on any other predispositions you may have...

Hurley - I think my opinions on him have cooled. He is a well built kid and plays the general role down back. He is much stronger than most of the kids around him and can push them out of the way.

Watts - I think it was him... had amazing dodging skills (in the first quarter) is very mobile for a big man a CHF type.

McKernan - Beautiful striker of the ball. Did a few good things looks like he will go early.

Vickery as i've already said looks the goods.

Nick Nat - This guy is really interesting. What you can be sure of is that you are getting an athlete, he can jump a mile and run with agility like a mid. The big unknown you get is what happens when he has the ball. As far as this goes he is like a kinda surprise, you never know what you're going to get. He could turn you inside out, but just as likely lollypop a handpass off in the air to noone...

I'm wondering if there will be a lot of KPP's and rucks taken early this year. Players like Watts, Nat, Mckernan, Vickery (not sure if he is rated) among Rich...

on a side note, would have been good to meet a few of you guys at the game. Too bad i'm lazy and slept in and misssed most of the VC vs TAS game. Which is a shame because i really wanted to see Sidebottom. Thanks to Ben for his reviews of the game. Cheers.

 

[Pav for AA]

The bloke who impressed me the most from Country was Nick Heyne, just has something about him, a bit of magic

 

[Daytripper]

Saw the Metro game yesterday. Not really interested in the main picks as everyone knows who they are.

Couple of players who would be good as second rounders were Luke Stanton and Sam Blease. Blease in particular looks quality and I've got a feeling he could be a Pendlebury type (unknown player who rockets up the draft ladder).

Hurley, IMO is a man playing against boys. He looked good but is it just because of his size ???? Thats the million dollar question.

Mckernan is ready made and would be a great asset if we could get him. Plays a lot like his brothher.

From WA, Yarran seems like a real class act. Has a little of the Shaun Burgoyne's about him. Stephen Hill would be a good pick up as would Michael Walters who is still quite young and could be a real improver.

Jetta seems a bit small to me and De Boer can't kick. Very questionable these two.

 

[ant555]

I think some of you are drawing a really long bow on Hurley.
Every full back in the game gets beaten one on one a few times. Lets face it it was not like absolute spuds beat him. He got turned around by Natinui who is capeable of turning small mids inside out and got beaten in one contest against Marsh who will be a top 5 pick next year if he stays with footy.
Never mind the fact that he beat Nat a number of times and pretty much kept Marsh out of the game, the same kid who took dominated Vic Country on Saturday with a heap of marks and had about ten shots on goal.
I don't know what you guys seem to expect from full backs at under 18 level.
If you are going to pick out 4 or 5 instances during games then no one should draft any defenders becasue the games are generally played in a much more open style which puts the defenders under a lot more pressure tahn normal.
I thought that Hurley was very good and would have no hesitation whatsoever at drafting him with our first pick.

And Merv i am surprised about your comments on Hartlett. He was easily BOG in the SA v NSW game.

 

[Daytripper]

By the way, Luke Stanton is a cousin of Nick Dal Santo and apparantly is not related to Brent.

 

[table tennis]

Who was the tall blond guy in defense for Metro, he looked good!

Mitchell Banner Looked good from Metro. I wouldnt mind him or Deboer from WA.

I hope we offload a pick to Geelong for Brent Prismall though.

 

[Windas_Magic]

Mitchell Banner Looked good from Metro. I wouldnt mind him or Deboer from WA.

I hope we offload a pick to Geelong for Brent Prismall though.

I liked Banner's game but i don't think he is someone who we should be drafting. He is quite small and his pace and skills (especially under pressure) don't looke too great. He's a tough little player who would play as an inside mid but with Hocking, Hislop and Lonergan, i don't think we would need him.

 

[ant555]

So NOW you agree with me. To miss out on him makes me not happy one single bit, he will be a absolute gun to say the least. If I had the no1 pick I'd have no hesitation in picking Rich up. Star!

As for who we draft, yeah Hartlett wouldn't be bad. The more I watch Yarran the more I don't want to pick him with a high pick. Hurley might go before our pick based on his very good form in the Champs.

I will say it now. Hartlett is every bit as good as Rich and there are a number who are pretty close behind them.
If you actually knew something about this draft then you would know that there will be some quality kids taken in the second round as well.
Your crush on Rich has gone past the point of even being funny. Give it a ####en rest. Everyone knows how good Rich is and everyone knows he wont be coing to us.

 

[Merv]

I think some of you are drawing a really long bow on Hurley.
Every full back in the game gets beaten one on one a few times. Lets face it it was not like absolute spuds beat him. He got turned around by Natinui who is capeable of turning small mids inside out and got beaten in one contest against Marsh who will be a top 5 pick next year if he stays with footy.
Never mind the fact that he beat Nat a number of times and pretty much kept Marsh out of the game, the same kid who took dominated Vic Country on Saturday with a heap of marks and had about ten shots on goal.
I don't know what you guys seem to expect from full backs at under 18 level.
If you are going to pick out 4 or 5 instances during games then no one should draft any defenders becasue the games are generally played in a much more open style which puts the defenders under a lot more pressure tahn normal.
I thought that Hurley was very good and would have no hesitation whatsoever at drafting him with our first pick.

And Merv i am surprised about your comments on Hartlett. He was easily BOG in the SA v NSW game.

It's a bit like all the hype before a blockbuster movie and you have a certain expectation and then when you see it, it doesn't live up to the hype.

Probably my fault for believing it.

On Hurley.

He was built up by many as a lock down defender who in short was a gun and rarely beaten one on one.

NN turned him inside out twice very easily and i am going to watch the replay again but from memory it was because he didn't position himself goal side and it was very basic stuff, both cost goals.

Klause led him to the ball twice and goaled once.

This was in a team that had WA under pressure for 3 quarters and the supply was ordinary.

Not saying he is no good or won't make it but he seemed to lack speed off the mark and the athleticism needed to play that FB roll.


I was less critical of Hartlett but just expected more i guess.

He came into the game more in the second half but he was in a team that dominated, he didn't get a tight tag and for mine didn't dominate but played well.
While the commentators raved about his elite disposal, i saw little i considered elite and he actually turned it over or kicked on top of his teammates heads a couple of times.

Apart from those that played last year Hurley, NN, Rich etc i am basing all this on 1 game which of course isn't a fair assessment of their true ability.

Its all opinions and only time will tell.

 

[ant555]

Saw the Metro game yesterday. Not really interested in the main picks as everyone knows who they are.

Couple of players who would be good as second rounders were Luke Stanton and Sam Blease. Blease in particular looks quality and I've got a feeling he could be a Pendlebury type (unknown player who rockets up the draft ladder).

Hurley, IMO is a man playing against boys. He looked good but is it just because of his size ???? Thats the million dollar question.

Mckernan is ready made and would be a great asset if we could get him. Plays a lot like his brothher.

From WA, Yarran seems like a real class act. Has a little of the Shaun Burgoyne's about him. Stephen Hill would be a good pick up as would Michael Walters who is still quite young and could be a real improver.

Jetta seems a bit small to me and De Boer can't kick. Very questionable these two.

The man aginst boys theory is crap. If there was a knock on Rhys Palmer last year it was that he had a solid body compared to some of the other kids.It has not hurt him this year.
So Hurley is a bigger kid this year. Last year he was not quite so developed body wise but he still was the best defender gong around.This year he is bigger so it is a risk that he is only doing well becasue of his size
People can not have it both ways. You can not say that Mckernan is ready made and would be a good get and then peg another bloke for only doing well becasue he is also close to ready made.McKernin is bigger in size than just about anyone playing so why is he not a man playing against boys ???
And i will tell you now Big Nat is certainly no boy and young Marsh when you get up close and have a look is not exaclty a shrinking viloet either.

 

[ant555]

It's a bit like all the hype before a blockbuster movie and you have a certain expectation and then when you see it, it doesn't live up to the hype.

Probably my fault for believing it.

On Hurley.

He was built up by many as a lock down defender who in short was a gun and rarely beaten one on one.

NN turned him inside out twice very easily and i am going to watch the replay again but from memory it was because he didn't position himself goal side and it was very basic stuff, both cost goals.

Klause led him to the ball twice and goaled once.

This was in a team that had WA under pressure for 3 quarters and the supply was ordinary.

Not saying he is no good or won't make it but he seemed to lack speed off the mark and the athleticism needed to play that FB roll.


I was less critical of Hartlett but just expected more i guess.

He came into the game more in the second half but he was in a team that dominated, he didn't get a tight tag and for mine didn't dominate but played well.
While the commentators raved about his elite disposal, i saw nothing i considered elite and he actually turned it over or kicked on top of his teammates heads a couple of times.

Apart from those that played last year Hurley, NN, Rich etc i am basing all this on 1 game which of course isn't a fair assessment of their true ability.

Its all opinions and only time will tell.

Merv watch the SA game again. Hartlett had 6 possesion and a few clearnaces in the first quarter He actually went missing a bit in first half of the thrid quarter when he was out on the wing for a while.And his disposal is elite. Yes he did turn a couple over yesterday but Merv you are falling into a serious trap. You are making bold judments based on one game.

As for the WA game the supply was not that ordinary. Lets face it Rich was not tagged in the first half and drilled a number of decent passes into the forward 50 from clearances. You are being super critical about Natinui turning him inside out. Like i said Natinui truns midfielders inside out. He is just that sort of player (if he could actually kick he would be terribly dangerous). I dout there is a back anywhere that could consistantly stop Nat given his athletic ability and agility.

 

[Merv]

Merv watch the SA game again. Hartlett had 6 possesion and a few clearnaces in the first quarter He actually went missing a bit in first half of the thrid quarter when he was out on the wing for a while.And his disposal is elite. Yes he did turn a couple over yesterday but Merv you are falling into a serious trap. You are making bold judments based on one game.

As for the WA game the supply was not that ordinary. Lets face it Rich was not tagged in the first half and drilled a number of decent passes into the forward 50 from clearances. You are being super critical about Natinui turning him inside out. Like i said Natinui truns midfielders inside out. He is just that sort of player (if he could actually kick he would be terribly dangerous). I dout there is a back anywhere that could consistantly stop Nat given his athletic ability and agility.

I have stated in every post that i am basing all this stuff on 1 game which isn't a true evaluation of their talent, merely an assessment of 1 game.

I have also not stated that i am not saying that i don't want them as 1 game isn't enough to sack a player on.

 

[Colin D'Cops]

Sorry guys, internet was down yestaerday so couldn't post up a report, but will in the next half hour or so.

And regarding meeting at half time on the first match, I rocked up at the 2 minute mark of the 3rd quarter as I wanted a bit of a sleep in, so unfortunately didn't get to see anyone. There was this guy listening to me talk about the draftees to my Dad, he turned around and asked me my opinion on who could go to which club and what number kids could get drafted in. I wouldn't think this would've been anyone on here would it..? Anyway, did people end up meeting up at half time..?

 

[Giggidy Giggidy]

My top 10, not based on specific needs for clubs:

1. Daniel Rich
2. Jack Watts
3. Nick Naitanui
4. Hamish Hartlett
5. Michael Hurley
6. David Zaharakis
7. Jack Ziebell
8. Chris Yarran
9. Matt Deboer
10. Nick Suban

Thanks Ben, great reviews.

I'm interested in everyones thoughts on the 4 (assuming the ladder were to stay the same) most unlikely to be available to us, taking into account club needs & state loyalties. That way we can perhaps steer the conversation away from them and concentrate on those more likely. I've started below based on what I've read (haven't seen them play) but I think the FRE pick will be a bit of mystery unless Watts goes #1, which would leave Nat & Rich for WCE & FRE:

1. Naitanui (MELB) - Generally regarded as #1; fits MELB's needs well (& would be picked by WCE/FRE if MELB pass)
2. Rich (WCE) - Assume he will go top 2-3; WA local; fits WCE (& Freo) needs
3. ??? (FRE) - Hurley? Watts (despite likely to live in Vic in '09)? Zaharakis? Yarran? Hartlett?
4. Hartlett (PTA) - Likely top 5; unlikely to be overlooked by SA clubs?

 

[Daytripper]

The man aginst boys theory is crap. If there was a knock on Rhys Palmer last year it was that he had a solid body compared to some of the other kids.It has not hurt him this year.
So Hurley is a bigger kid this year. Last year he was not quite so developed body wise but he still was the best defender gong around.This year he is bigger so it is a risk that he is only doing well becasue of his size
People can not have it both ways. You can not say that Mckernan is ready made and would be a good get and then peg another bloke for only doing well becasue he is also close to ready made.McKernin is bigger in size than just about anyone playing so why is he not a man playing against boys ???
And i will tell you now Big Nat is certainly no boy and young Marsh when you get up close and have a look is not exaclty a shrinking viloet either.

Hence the question marks Ant - Its hard to assess at the moment. He could be genuinely good or he could be Austin Lucy.

With this draft being a good one for rucks should we be looking at getting one early this year ?

It could be our last chance for a while as you would imagine GC and WS would be taking at least two each from the 09 and 10 drafts which could leave us with very slim pickings.

 

[jgb99]

RE: Hurley. His footy nous, disposal quality, bodywork etc. are all excellent, but his athletic qualities (both straight line acceleration/speed and lateral movement) unless improved significantly, would prevent him from playing effectively on a lot of key forwards (particularly those that have good speed off the mark like Fevola and Franklin) - with guys like Klause (who's a lump of a lad and not even close to the class of Hurley) and Sampey (who beat him several times on the lead last year and is also not close to Hurley's quality). I think he'd be an effective on the big bodied slower key forwards (but they seem to be a dieing breed in the AFL now) or at CHB (and possibly CHF) where he should be able to make up ground on the longer leads and if he did get beaten on the lead it generally wouldn't be in as dangerous positions as at FB.

 

[Spikey]

he could be Austin Lucy.

Measure his arms! Now!

 

[ant555]

Hence the question marks Ant - Its hard to assess at the moment. He could be genuinely good or he could be Austin Lucy.

With this draft being a good one for rucks should we be looking at getting one early this year ?

It could be our last chance for a while as you would imagine GC and WS would be taking at least two each from the 09 and 10 drafts which could leave us with very slim pickings.

Come on, Austin Lucy. Won AA fulback in a draft that was very empty as far as genuine talls go.
As far as rucks go there are a few reasonably good ones and they wont all go early. there are a couple playing TAC Cup taht missed out on the champs that are also in good form and could well be late/rookie picks.
To answer your question , ye i think we should take one but we may be able to do it third round or later and get a reasonably good one.

 

[Colin D'Cops]

SA vs. NSW (I only watched the second half here)
Hamish Hartlett (SA) - He read the play pretty well, but what stood out with his game that he could not keep his feet in contested situations. That I can forgive though as it was quite deuuy. If I remember he kciked a pretty good goal, and the technique of his kicking action looks quite sharp. I also noticed he took on a few opponents which was encouraging. The only thing that I guess was the only bad thing was that he turned the ball over a few times. But you're bound to that if you're being touted a top 10 pick and you have all the recruiters looking at you on the day.
Christopher Hall (SA) - BOG for mine in a half. Took opponents on, Ryan Griffen like, and disposed of the ball more times than not beautifully. Had a fantastic turn of pace and he wasn't afraid to take people on. Looks composed when he has the ball and didn't look rushed when disposing of the pill.
Ryan Schoenmakers (SA) - His body shape looks like an AFL footballer already. Did some good things knee height and took a few nice grabs. He looked fairly composed when he had the ball and wasn't a below average disposerer D) of the pill. Looked promising.
Lewis Johnston (SA) - Took some lovely grabs, looked composed whe nhe had the ball, could probably roost the ball fifty five metres out and he read the ball quite well, leading to the places where he had most opportunity of getting the pill. The only thing that didn't look good from his game was that he gave away a few free kicks, looks a bit undiscipline, and a few times he could've given the ball off but decided to have a kick himself, which worked out though for him luckily.
Jarrad Redden (SA) - 202cm ruckman, took a few lovely contested marks and looked like he had a nice leap. Could be a good rookie pick up.
Kad Klemke (NSW) - Was the shining light for the Rams imo. Took marks under pressure and he knew the right times when to put the heat on his opposition, like taking them on or keeping right on their hammer without giving away a free kick. Looked good, though he didn't look like he had outstanding pace, but it looked solid enough. Probably around the packs more which may have given the impression.

 

[Ricky]

Sam Blease pick him up...

amazing speed...anyone who watched the under 18's yesterday would no this

great composure as well..

be a great aspect to our young side..

also Scully in 09 (because he is in ineligable this year)

looks like a leader. will captain Vic Metro next year (barring injury)