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Midfield Prospects in the draft

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Using Weavers descriptions of midfielders who would be worth a look. Cut and Paste is a wonderful thing :)

2. Trent Cotchin (HFF / FP)
In the Nathan Brown / Garry Ablett mould of super-tricky, silky-skilled small forwards. Might develop into a genuine midfielder in time but at present projects as a forward. Has some of the Dale Thomas-like traits of just knowing what to do and where to go. Cotchin is superb swooping
on the loose ball. Reads the play well. Has good acceleration and quickness between the ears to react first - but probably won't win a sprint. Kicking for goal needs to improve. Has to stay involved when tagged which means amping up the tackling, chasing etc.

4. Chris Masten (Rover)
Rovers tends not to go too early but Masten is simply too good to pass on. Might not be as sharp as Murphy or as dynamic as McLean but deserves to be in that same sort of early pick company. Pace is OK, wins huge amounts of the ball in tight, uses it well and brings teammates into the game. Can flat-out play and clubs will regret getting too clever and letting him slide. Got an armchair ride from Leuenberger last year - not this time where Palmer owes him a bevvy.

7. Cale Morton (Wing / HBF)
Tall wingman or HBF. Stylish, elegant and a superb user of the ball with the ability to dob goals from outside 55. Uses his great stamina and long stride to cover plenty of ground and leave opponents behind. May not be able to do that in the AFL, may not have a coach appoint him designated playmaker / kicker. Doesn't really win his own footy - needs to be fed it. Probably best suited to a Goddard-like role in the backline setting up play.

9. Scott Selwood (HBF / Rover)
A much blunter weapon than Joel. Scott is a blue-collar grunt who knocks people over and runs through packs. Plays a little too much on HBF for my taste but his stints in the centre have been encouraging. Probably doesn't run and carry enough - when he does it is because people have jumped out of his way. Shapes as a Daniel Harris type, one-paced inside thug who can lockdown opponents, cruch packs and get the ball going forward.

10. Rhys Palmer (Centre / Wing)
Star of the carnival jumping up into top-10 calculations. Deceptively good pace, good ball-winning capability and importantly finishes his work by kicking goals from midfield. Left foot can be lethal - right foot is just for balance. Might have been flattered a little by his form because he was allowed to run forward of the ball and ignore his man. But tackled when it was his turn. Also plays with a bit of charisma / attitude and lets people know when he scores a goal - which I like.

14. Brad Ebert (Centre)
Wouldn't have found the footy at the Champs if they tied a bell on it and let him start 10 minutes before everyone else. That said he was heavily tagged and didn't quit on his team. Good bloodlines, good junior pedigree, and 187cm inside midfielders who can move, kick well and offer leadership are far, far rarer than people might imagine. Might well be the lone member of the SA squad drafted this year.

16. Cyril 'Junior' Rioli (Rover / Wing / Small Fwd)
Has been viewed as the next-big-thing from NT for what seems like years. In Melbourne playing school footy on scholarship so might be quicker to adjust to the AFL scene than some of the rural kids. Great blood lines with every other champion Aboriginal star seemingly some sort of uncle. Genuine rover at only 178. Quick-ish, reasonable by foot. Superb balance and hands. Showed a lovely little bonus talent by getting amongst the goals with some nice left-foot finishing, although they were FF goals not cruming goals. He won't last too long on draft day.

19. Patty Vezpremi (Rover, BP, FP)
Stocky, cranky, aggressive, pack-charging, fist-pumping cannonball. I love that he does everything at full speed. No cruising around stylishly looking for options - get the ball, tuck it under an arm, run through something. Get-stuck-into-em. Probably lacks a yard of pace but it doesn't show because he goes full tilt all the time. Probably lacks some class - doesn't let it matter. Question about whether he can nudge it up to 11 amongst adults - but if Campbell Brown can cut it then Vez should too.

29. Patrick Dangerfield (BP, Centre)
Was on-fire early for Geelong in the backpocket where he beat all comers as a rampaging backpocket. Given the tough tagging tasks in the carnival so is perhaps under-exposed. Big-bodied centreman / onballers are rare and sought after and Dangerfield fits the profile. He is tough as teak and kicks the ball well. No Jordan Lewis (yet) but clubs after someone to fill that sort of ruck-rover role won't have too many options and Dangerfield will be close to the best of them.

33. Aaron Joseph (Rover, Wing)
The best of the Tassie midfielders. Had some good showings last season and some solid form at the Div 2 Carnival. Good in close and particularly good hands. Perhaps doesn't extract himself from the traffic enough to do huge damage, but has a tidy all-round game and might sneak himself onto a list.

35. Daniel Brittain (Centre)
I saw him play a very good early season game than go largely missing before recapturing close to his best stuff in the last Champ game. Every hard-at-it inside guy with any pigment in their skin seems to be compared to flavour-of-the-month Daniel Kerr. Wouldn't go that far but he does motor around, does get the ball from stoppages and does get the ball going forward. Like Kerr he
is also quite happy getting back to help the defence and sneaking forward to mix it up front. Good aggression. Will need some more sustained form but might nudge into a sleeper candidate.

36. Craig Bird (Rover)
Old fashioned, no flair, ball magnet of a rover. Has been getting ludicrous disposal tallies for too long to ignore. Is aggressive with the ball in his hands. Against Div 2 opponents he was running through blokes like they were papier mache tackling bags. A solidly built, low to the ground tank. Swans like that type and they can have him via the Scholarship scheme. Some question as to how he will go against adult bodies but he deserves a shot at showing what he can do.

42. Ashley Hockey (Rover)
No one drafted him last season despite solid showings. This season he is slightly improved and might get his name called on the back of being about the only Country player who can consistently hit targets and consistently remember who his opponent is. Fairly unobtrusive, doesn't really catch the eye, but when he does pop out into space he finds teammates.


I left anyone out who had question marks over disposal or G and D...
 

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Definately Masten if available. Maybe that Craig Bird - love his discription - sounds like he's got a bit of mongrel...

hehehah Dangerfield.... " I don't get no respect"...
 
Cook, Walker, M.Carr, McManus and maybe Bell, could be leaving us. Foster and Ibbo look to be ready to take the next step in 2008, but we need a couple more midfielders and what better year to grab some with so much talent at the U18 carnival.

We need to do everything in our power to pick up Palmer and Masten. We have the trade bait and can unload players that aren't as important as our need for midfielders. If we don't pick up these two players then we might as well fold the club up now.
 
Matsen or Palmer are the key, Please stay away from Morton with the first pick we don't need another HBF/Utility player.

If you can get Matsen with the pick you take him straight away, if not Palmer it is.
 
Bird has a scholarship with sydney
i would definatly go with masten, but you might be able to get him second round, HUGE question marks over his kicking
but with Palmer+Masten+Morton being around your pick, you should definatly pick up a local boy first pick
 

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I think we should the opposite this year than previous years. Instead of buying playing to buy a Premiership, how about we through some bait out there to other club to get some of these youngsters.
Palmer, Matsen and a Morton can be useful. Freo should put throw

Sandilands on the table (many would agree Warnok is a better player 5cm is nothing.) Carlton would jump as would Brisbane and Melbourne.

Browne and Dunn- Any club.

Campbell to Richmond or Carlton or Melbourne.

Thornton- Brisbane or Richmond

Mundy- Essendon, Carlton, or Richmond.(Cale Morton could be a better prospect.)

I would try Sandilands and Mundy because at least they have showed what they can do and at least there worth for a couple of decent draft picks.
 
Re. Freo81's trades:

I'd be inclined to give Dunn one more year. Hasn't had the chance to see if he can add anything to our midfield yet. Doubt anyone would offer us picks for Browne.

We'd be mad to trade Sandi. Even if Warnock does turn out to be better you need more than one quality ruckman in your team. In fact we've only got two ruckmen in our entire squad (assuming JLo's knee is stuffed.)

Mundy is one of the few penetrating skilled players in our team of midget, jam tin kicking midfielders. Try him on the wing or half forward I reckon.

Doubt we'd get anything better than a 3rd or 4th rounder for Thorton. He'd be more valuable to keep.

Kiwi's the only one I'd be looking at trading. But only if we can get a decent 2nd rounder or better for him.
 

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I like the sound of these guys:


2. Trent Cotchin (HFF / FP)
In the Nathan Brown / Garry Ablett mould of super-tricky, silky-skilled small forwards. Might develop into a genuine midfielder in time but at present projects as a forward. Has some of the Dale Thomas-like traits of just knowing what to do and where to go. Cotchin is superb swooping
on the loose ball. Reads the play well. Has good acceleration and quickness between the ears to react first - but probably won't win a sprint. Kicking for goal needs to improve. Has to stay involved when tagged which means amping up the tackling, chasing etc.
Although by all accounts he'll be gone at #2 after Kreuzer, so I guess we can rule him out before we start (although Richmond could be relied upon to do a Franklin / Tambling choice again... then ????)

4. Chris Masten (Rover)
Rovers tends not to go too early but Masten is simply too good to pass on. Might not be as sharp as Murphy or as dynamic as McLean but deserves to be in that same sort of early pick company. Pace is OK, wins huge amounts of the ball in tight, uses it well and brings teammates into the game. Can flat-out play and clubs will regret getting too clever and letting him slide. Got an armchair ride from Leuenberger last year - not this time where Palmer owes him a bevvy.
Carn Carlton - get that one extra win to bump us up in the draft order!! Despite being a bluenyella supporter, getting a local East Freo lad will pay long-term dividends once he dons the purple and fully understands the rich heritage of Freo footy. ;)

9. Scott Selwood (HBF / Rover)
A much blunter weapon than Joel. Scott is a blue-collar grunt who knocks people over and runs through packs. Plays a little too much on HBF for my taste but his stints in the centre have been encouraging. Probably doesn't run and carry enough - when he does it is because people have jumped out of his way. Shapes as a Daniel Harris type, one-paced inside thug who can lockdown opponents, cruch packs and get the ball going forward.
I like the sound of this fella, despite being a HBF-er. I reckon it would be hilarious having a Selwood on our list - if for nothing else to tell him to "go sick on big bro" in the derbies.... :D

10. Rhys Palmer (Centre / Wing)
Star of the carnival jumping up into top-10 calculations. Deceptively good pace, good ball-winning capability and importantly finishes his work by kicking goals from midfield. Left foot can be lethal - right foot is just for balance. Might have been flattered a little by his form because he was allowed to run forward of the ball and ignore his man. But tackled when it was his turn. Also plays with a bit of charisma / attitude and lets people know when he scores a goal - which I like.
That's what we need - guys who can show our blokes how to celebrate a goal... :eek: He's our first pick if masten has gone.... how do we orchestrate another first rounder????

16. Cyril 'Junior' Rioli (Rover / Wing / Small Fwd)
Has been viewed as the next-big-thing from NT for what seems like years. In Melbourne playing school footy on scholarship so might be quicker to adjust to the AFL scene than some of the rural kids. Great blood lines with every other champion Aboriginal star seemingly some sort of uncle. Genuine rover at only 178. Quick-ish, reasonable by foot. Superb balance and hands. Showed a lovely little bonus talent by getting amongst the goals with some nice left-foot finishing, although they were FF goals not cruming goals. He won't last too long on draft day.
Just what we need - a Rioli playing for Freo.... following the long tradition of talented Riolis making their way down to Freo Oval! :thumbsu:

29. Patrick Dangerfield (BP, Centre)
Was on-fire early for Geelong in the backpocket where he beat all comers as a rampaging backpocket. Given the tough tagging tasks in the carnival so is perhaps under-exposed. Big-bodied centreman / onballers are rare and sought after and Dangerfield fits the profile. He is tough as teak and kicks the ball well. No Jordan Lewis (yet) but clubs after someone to fill that sort of ruck-rover role won't have too many options and Dangerfield will be close to the best of them.
Geez - who wouldn't want a Dangerfield playing for their club. Comes with a ready made nickname too. :)

35. Daniel Brittain (Centre)
I saw him play a very good early season game than go largely missing before recapturing close to his best stuff in the last Champ game. Every hard-at-it inside guy with any pigment in their skin seems to be compared to flavour-of-the-month Daniel Kerr. Wouldn't go that far but he does motor around, does get the ball from stoppages and does get the ball going forward. Like Kerr he
is also quite happy getting back to help the defence and sneaking forward to mix it up front. Good aggression. Will need some more sustained form but might nudge into a sleeper candidate.
Does get the ball at stoppages, does get the ball going forward. :thumbsu:



We'll likely have picks 6, 24, 40, 56. How do we upgrade that to another pick inside the top 20???
 
Re. Freo81's trades:

I'd be inclined to give Dunn one more year. Hasn't had the chance to see if he can add anything to our midfield yet. Doubt anyone would offer us picks for Browne.

We'd be mad to trade Sandi. Even if Warnock does turn out to be better you need more than one quality ruckman in your team. In fact we've only got two ruckmen in our entire squad (assuming JLo's knee is stuffed.)

Mundy is one of the few penetrating skilled players in our team of midget, jam tin kicking midfielders. Try him on the wing or half forward I reckon.

Doubt we'd get anything better than a 3rd or 4th rounder for Thorton. He'd be more valuable to keep.

Kiwi's the only one I'd be looking at trading. But only if we can get a decent 2nd rounder or better for him.

Just see what we can get and if we get what we need we can make a pitch for a Luenberger or that Vic under 18s ruckmen.
Trade Sandilands to Carlton or Melbourne with our second pick for there first.
Mundy and our third for a Leunberger if Sandiland gets traded.
Who knows
But i think the Warnok Gilmore ruck combo can be useful. Dont forget Johnson has got a great leap and can be used as a third tall with a Dodd from time to time.
 
Mundy and our third for a Leunberger if Sandiland gets traded.

I seriously doubt Brisbane would consider trading Leuenberger. I reckon just keep our ruck stocks and concentrate on drafting and developing midfielders.
 
Just see what we can get and if we get what we need we can make a pitch for a Luenberger or that Vic under 18s ruckmen.
Trade Sandilands to Carlton or Melbourne with our second pick for there first.
Mundy and our third for a Leunberger if Sandiland gets traded.
Who knows
But i think the Warnok Gilmore ruck combo can be useful. Dont forget Johnson has got a great leap and can be used as a third tall with a Dodd from time to time.

I reckon there'd be probably be 12 clubs that would jump at Sandi - with the other 3 definitely looking long and hard. I'd say he would not be put up for trade under any circumstances - he was signed to a deal that holds him to us till 2010... they're not going to trade him. Full stop.

Sandi's still only 24 - and Warnock is 20. That's a very young ruck combo. And while Gilmore battles his hardest - he is no long term ruck option.... We need to be looking at a 3rd stringer - not trading away our No.1 ruckman. As some have suggested - perhaps draft in a mature rookie (mature bodied - not necessarily >23 y.o) ruckman currently playing WAFL (like Griffiths from E.Freo for example) - or even looking further afield to the VFL or SANFL.

Maybe Mundy + 3rd rounder for someone's first rounder. He's very highly rated. Or Campbell + 2nd rounder for 1st rounder (Dogs might look at that - they need a strong bodied KPP). Or Murphy for a first rounder....

Problem is - in recent times, it seems that we have been the only club willing to part with a first round pick... trades happen far less frequently that they used to... :(
 

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