I wouldn't want us to get in a bidding war or pay overs for Rockliff.
I go regularly to games at the Gabba with a bunch of longstanding Lions members. I caught up with them last week and asked them what they think of his value to a another club.
They were firm in their view is that for all the trade hype he brings he'd ultimately leave supporters frustrated if he continues racking up possessions with dinky sideways or short kicks that don't deliver the momentum that a player of his skill set possesses.
He'll be 28 next year, preference we go to the draft. We've plenty of his type as is.
We're clearly desperate for a KPF & KPD. We've lost patience waiting to develop one of our own but it's well documented that KPF take years to develop. I'm concerned we'll end up paying overs for someone as a result.
(without Father-Son selections in Cloke and Moore we'd be further behind on this front)
Who out there playing in secondary leagues might warrant consideration for a mature aged rookie pick?
The type that might not had been ready for the draft, slipped through for any number of reasons. We've all seen them and asked, "why isn't that bloke on an AFL list"
One such player I'd like the club to put a call into is Bryce Retzlaff, Captain of QAFL side Labrador on the Gold Coast, and ask him to come down to the club over the the summer.
He was drafted by the Lions in 2009 then due to injury and as I understand off-field family distractions just couldn't maintain his spot. Still only 26.
He's a classic full forward at 6'5 & 90kg. He has all the skills, sound leading patterns and great leap and hands. With 60 goals to his name this season can obviously kick pretty straight and a big reason why they're on top of the QAFL ladder.
I understand the step up from secondary leagues to AFL is substantial but why can't we simply have a look at a few mature age (around 25 y/o) prospects over the summer?
If one shows enough, particularly with the prospect of us clearing / trading out at least 5 players surely it's worth a stab and keep a pick for a mature aged rookie?
We have a history of burning late picks on players that never come through as it is, I don't see this as too wild an idea.
The risk being as I see it is not if they can play, but could they handle being dropped in the bubble and not developed in the traditional sense.
Look, many things need to line up on this front but it's not without precedence, JPod did it 10 years after being 1st drafted.