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We might not have been THE winner but at least we were A winner Hilarious.
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AFL Draft 2019: Intel helps Fremantle Dockers set up future with draft haul
Nathan SchmookThe West Australian
Wednesday, 27 November 2019 5:55PM
Liam Henry, Hayden Young, and Caleb Serong joined the Dockers with top 10 picks on Wednesday night. Credit: AAPIMAGE
Knowledge is power in the murky world of AFL trading and drafting, and Fremantle’s ability to forecast Carlton’s attempt to spoil their party ensured they nailed the most important draft in their recent history.
The Dockers paid a price for moving their pick No.10 up to No.8 last week, fearing a bid on their Academy star Liam Henry from the Blues at No.9.
It turns out their fears were well-founded as Carlton, led by outgoing list manager Stephen Silvagni, set out to make the Dockers pay as close to full price as they could for the exciting half-forward.
AFL DRAFT HUB: See profiles and highlights for WA’s 20 top contenders and read the latest draft news
By trading with Adelaide and Melbourne last week to get ahead of the Blues, the Dockers were able to snare three top-10 talents with consecutive picks on Wednesday night, giving new coach Justin Longmuir a much-needed injection of skill in his first pre-season.
Half-back Hayden Young (pick No.7) and Henry (pick No.9) give the Dockers the skill, speed, and outside class they need, while inside midfielder Caleb Serong (pick No.8) is a midfielder with clean hands who can go forward in the mould of Port Adelaide star Robbie Gray.
Victorian midfielder Caleb Serong representing the NAB AFL Academy in 2019. Credit: AFL Photos
“We’re thrilled to bring in three top 10 players and they’re all a little bit different,” football manager Peter Bell told Fox Footy.
“Hayden and Caleb are pretty tight, so it’s good to get them over and help with the transition.
“That wasn’t (part of the strategy), but it’s one of those nice sort of things that turned out.”
It’s a draft haul that looked unlikely just six weeks ago when trade talks broke down with St Kilda and the Dockers missed the opportunity to land pick No.6 for departing wingman Bradley Hill.
But Bell and his team started the process of recovering the situation and through some savvy moves the club ended the first night of the draft in an enviable position.
They snared the best kick in the draft in Young, the best field kick Michael Walters has ever seen in Henry, and Serong, who has long been rated a top-five talent.
They are a trio that will eventually replace the midfield power the Dockers have lost in the past two seasons as Lachie Neale, Hill and Ed Langdon moved to new homes.
Hayden Young in action for the Dandenong Stingrays. Credit: AFL Photos
While Young and Serong were the late tips to land at Fremantle, and Henry was tied to the club through its Next Generation Academy, the Dockers still faced some difficult decisions on Wednesday night.
The top six went as well as it could have, with no bid on Henry and a mooted trade allowing Carlton to get up to pick No.6 not eventuating.
Young, rated at stages this season as a top-three pick, was left on the table and had to be snared before a difficult decision between Serong and Sam Flanders, a game-breaking Victorian midfielder who had been expected to go to Sydney at pick No.5.
The Dockers stuck with Serong and Flanders slid to No.11.
Liam Henry on the football field at Noonkanbah Station in the Kimberley Outback approx 200km from Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia. Credit: The West Australian
WA’s championship-winning captain Deven Robertson was the other player in consideration at No.8, but he was overlooked and remained available at the end of the first round.
He shapes as a target for a number of clubs at the start of the second round on Thursday night, and could force clubs to trade up to snare the prolific midfielder.
Fremantle, facing a points deficit in next year’s draft to pay for Henry, won’t have that opportunity. They’ll hope the cost is justified.
First news source to melt over not taking the locals is Ten News, unless I've missed someone.
First news source to melt over not taking the locals is Ten News, unless I've missed someone.
But we could have and should have taken Georgiades before Port did! Everyone was talking about him as a top 10 prospect.We took 1 of the only 3 WA players taken in the first round, and the first taken wasn't even available to us, the other went at 18. If Robertson went at 10, they may have had a leg to stand on, but the consensus amongst the experts showed everyone else who knows what they are talking about agreed.
WC should of taken Sampi or Polak @ pick 3 in 2001 instead of Judd as well?We took 1 of the only 3 WA players taken in the first round, and the first taken wasn't even available to us, the other went at 18. If Robertson went at 10, they may have had a leg to stand on, but the consensus amongst the experts showed everyone else who knows what they are talking about agreed.
We took 1 of the only 3 WA players taken in the first round, and the first taken wasn't even available to us, the other went at 18. If Robertson went at 10, they may have had a leg to stand on, but the consensus amongst the experts showed everyone else who knows what they are talking about agreed.
My lord, what a space cadet Sumich is.
Was it all about a 'West Coast supporter' all over the front page as well?Had a quick look at the West today in a cafe. We obviously didn’t draft anyone as it was wall to wall how great the Eagles draft was & how all the draftees worship Nic Nat & how unfair it was on Glassys nephew to drag it out over 2 days.
Of course not, don't be immature.Was it all about a 'West Coast supporter' all over the front page as well?
Someone has to air neighboursHuh, there you go. I didn’t realise Channel 10 still existed.
If it was Nic Nat who called Robertson it would be all over the front page before carrying over to pages 5-8.Had a quick look at the West today in a cafe. We obviously didn’t draft anyone as it was wall to wall how great the Eagles draft was & how all the draftees worship Nic Nat & how unfair it was on Glassys nephew to drag it out over 2 days.
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Mark Duffield: Time to call the AFL on its bulldust - starting with complete disinterest in dual Sandover medallist Jye Bolton
Mark DuffieldThe West Australian
Friday, 29 November 2019 7:00PM
The AFL and its clubs do a lot well and get a lot right, but it is time to call bulldust on a few of their habits and attitudes around the national draft.
And where better to start than the industry’s complete disinterest in dual Sandover medallist Jye Bolton.
Barring a miracle, there will be no fairytale AFL finish for Bolton. There was scant interest for him in this draft and he is 27 years old.
So we should, on Bolton’s behalf, make these points.
Each and every club would have a minimum of three players on their list who are zero chance of being as good a player as Bolton.
Not slim, not a snowflake’s chance in hell. Zero. Every club, even the ones with strong lists. That’s a minimum 54 players across the AFL and probably significantly more.
The AFL and its clubs are the masters of self-justification.
When they feel they have watched for long enough and made up their mind on players, they will either ignore all of their bad points and tell you why they have to be drafted, or ignore all their good points and tell you why there is no chance that they could possibly be drafted.
We hear that Bolton is not a great team player, that he is not a great kick, and that he is Claremont’s go-to player at stoppages and wouldn’t be that in the AFL. Which is bull, bull and more bull.
Bolton might be a self-centred beast but every club has plenty of them, and every AFL player has to be a bit selfish.
The key is to get them to buy into the method, and you don’t know whether they will do it until they get there.
Bolton is as good a kick as about half the players on most AFL lists. He would become a better kick quickly in a full-time football program.
As for being Claremont’s go-to player: Of course he is. He is their best player. In a different system he would be given a different role and the one thing we can say about Bolton is that he is good enough, tough enough, runs well enough and is skilful enough to play a role.
The AFL and its clubs should ask these questions: How long did it take them to realise Tim Kelly could make it?
How close did we come to missing out on seeing Marlion Pickett in the AFL at all, let alone starring in a grand final?
And who is to say that either of those is better than Bolton?
This self-justification doesn’t just apply to Bolton and other mature-agers like Subiaco duo Ben Sokol and Lachlan Delahunty. It also applies to younger selections.
The AFL should really change the name of its national under-18 championships to its talent spotting exhibition series given the selection habits of some clubs in the first round of the national draft this week.
Clearly, playing well on that so-called big stage doesn’t count for that much.
Brodie Kemp (Carlton), Mitch Georgiades (Port Adelaide) and Miles Bergman (Port) were taken in the first round despite seasons that were either wiped out or interrupted by injury.
It could be argued that they were better off NOT playing.
Dual All-Australian Jeremy Sharp, Larke medallist Deven Robertson and All-Australian Trent Rivers (who battled through the lingering effects of glandular fever to star for WA) all dominated. They all slid down the order. Maybe they shouldn’t have bothered.
Sharp, we were told, was too uncontested. But if you look at highlights of the championships it takes you about two minutes to find footage of him taking three contested marks. Bradley Hill is starting a five-year contract at St Kilda worth $900,000 a year. Try finding three contested marks in his 149-game career.
Robertson, we were told, has disposal issues. He unwittingly gave recruiters plenty of evidence to damn him with by winning the hard ball repeatedly during the championships in fiercely contested situations where precise disposal was going to be nigh on impossible.
And Rivers? Well he was the victim of Robertson’s slide.
Brisbane were tipped to take him in the early 20s, but the Lions traded up to get Robertson and Rivers fell to 32.
In the case of Robertson and Sharp, clubs picking in the back half of the first round simply talked themselves out of taking them. They will justify that to themselves in the short-term. In the longer term? Well, watch this space.
That's a lot more emotive than you normally see from Duffield. Unfortunately it appears that new West editor is ruining him too. He deserves to write for a proper paper where manufacturing outrage isn't considered reporting.