Welcome Welcome to Hawthorn, Pick 46, Jack O'Sullivan

[Strapping Young Lad]

Sam mentioned last night that O’Sullivan broke his AC joint twice in 2022 which he could also recall someone who he played with breaking their scapula twice in 1 season.

He mentioned that when a guy of O’sullivans size gets hurt like that people can think he’s fragile, but he said Jack is tough and clean like the former player that he’d never really complimented too often, so he would not mention his name.

The MC, Campbell Brown

Campbell Brown

Age

40

Ht

179cm

Wt

85kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

14.1

4star

K

8.9

3star

HB

5.2

4star

M

5.0

5star

T

2.0

4star

G

0.5

3star

No current season stats available

D

11.8

3star

K

6.4

3star

HB

5.4

4star

M

2.8

3star

T

1.4

4star

G

0.8

4star

gave a wry smile.

 

[KermitJagger]

Sam mentioned last night that O’Sullivan broke his AC joint twice in 2022 which he could also recall someone who he played with breaking their scapula twice in 1 season.

He mentioned that when a guy of O’sullivans size gets hurt like that people can think he’s fragile, but he said Jack is tough and clean like the former player that he’d never really complimented too often, so he would not mention his name.

The MC, Campbell Brown gave a wry smile.

Brown cutting in front of Smart is still one of the most brave things I've seen on a footy field.

 

[TheFourPillars]

Brown cutting in front of Smart is still one of the most brave things I've seen on a footy field.

Dipper standing in front of a charging G Ablett Snr in the 89 grand final still the bravest thing I have ever seen because he played out the game and collapsed on the siren.

 

[Alite]

The following info on Jack O’Sullivan comes from the AFL website.

”Evidence of his potential might have been fleeting this season, given his injuries, but Champion Data still notes O'Sullivan ranked 'above average' for contested possessions (6.8 per game), intercepts (2.6 per game) and score involvements (5.6 per game).”


Jack’s combine results were very impressive.

Standing Vertical Jump
3. Jack O’Sullivan – 71cm
=8. Josh Weddle - 68cm

Running Vertical Jump
=3. Josh Weddle - 90cm
5. Jack O’Sullivan – 89cm

He also recorded sound results for speed (3.02 seconds on the 20m sprint) and endurance (6.32 on the 2km time trial).

My Thoughts:
He may only be 177cm tall but anyone who can jump like he can has power in their legs. And with a D.O.B. of 22/10/04, he is on the younger side with plenty of time to get taller and stronger. He seems a natural footballer with one-touch hands and has an athletic ability seemingly overlooked due to his height (the same height as Lachie Neale), an injury (that will not affect him long-term) followed by bad luck (with OC bowing out early) resulting in him not being able to get on the park. The term “hidden gem” comes to mind.

Jack could be a rippa!

I forgot to mention that Jack is also dual sided. In the below pic he is kicking on his left.

His action is so flawless that it took multiple replays at half speed to determine that he was actually using his non-preferred side.

 

[RedmanWasHere]

retired fitness level.

Already cut his career before it started?

 

[SSSSSS]

If he can kick on both feet he won't be a Lovell. Seems he has a lot more drive too.

 

[Mojo]

So much hype around this kid.. shall I pencil him in for Round 1? Yes. Ok.

 

[Bumps"N"Grins]

I wonder where he would have been rated had he played out the whole season?

Hey brother, Like the kid and know him well, I cannot ever remember him playing a full season in his life, has been injured quite a lot over his junior days and if he wasn't injured he has been rested often due to soreness

 

[Alite]

This may be setting expectations on the kid a little too high but what the hell, the parallels are uncanny!

Below is an excerpt on Lachie Neale

9

Lachie Neale

Age

30

Ht

178cm

Wt

84kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

27.0

5star

K

11.5

4star

HB

15.5

5star

M

4.0

4star

T

3.7

5star

CL

5.9

5star

D

28.3

5star

K

13.9

5star

HB

14.4

5star

M

4.6

4star

T

4.0

5star

CL

5.9

5star

D

12.0

3star

K

4.6

2star

HB

7.4

5star

M

2.0

3star

T

1.0

3star

CL

0.4

3star

from his draft year in 2011, with a few extra pieces of info that I have added for context. As a comparison I have put Jack’s numbers in bold & underlined


Pick 58 of ~68 (Jack - Pick 46 of 59) - Lachie Neale

9

Lachie Neale

Age

30

Ht

178cm

Wt

84kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

27.0

5star

K

11.5

4star

HB

15.5

5star

M

4.0

4star

T

3.7

5star

CL

5.9

5star

D

28.3

5star

K

13.9

5star

HB

14.4

5star

M

4.6

4star

T

4.0

5star

CL

5.9

5star

D

12.0

3star

K

4.6

2star

HB

7.4

5star

M

2.0

3star

T

1.0

3star

CL

0.4

3star

- 18yrs, 177cm (Jack - 18yrs & 177cm)
Lachie has had an outstanding season. He dominated U18 footy for Glenelg, played all 5 championship games for South Australia and finished the last 7 games in Glenelgs League side having a real impact. Jack - ? what he could have done is unknown) He is an inside midfielder who can play forward and apply terrific pressure (Jack - same) He is tough and wins contested footy. (Jack - same) He has an enormous workrate and desire to get the footy (Jack - same). Is good on both sides (Jack - same). Has clean hands and quick handballs are elite. (Jack - ? likely same) Lachie is an outstanding character. (Jack - ?) Lachie’s testing at the state combine was impressive across the board. His standing VJ of 73 (Jack - 71) and RVJ of 95 (Jack - 89cm) is elite. His 8.24 agility (Jack - ?) , 14.2 beep (Jack - 6:32 in the 2km time trial) and 3.00 sprint (Jack - 3.02) are all very good times as well. Lachie averaged 31.3 disposals, 5.6 marks, 5.1 inside 50s and 6.4 clearances per game at SA U18 level. (Jack - did not get a chance to show his talents).

They were / are both described as a footballer‘s footballer.

Yes, I know, comparing players means nothing when it comes to actual performance in the AFL. But I’m going to get excited because it is December and … why not!

 

[The Chad and I]

There's something about this guy that tells me he's gonna be extremely good value.
Looks like a tremendous athlete, beautifully balanced/coordinated, aggressive, and dual sided too (?!!!)

 

[Yardie]

There's something about this guy that tells me he's gonna be extremely good value.
Looks like a tremendous athlete, beautifully balanced/coordinated, aggressive, and dual sided too (?!!!)

Whatever happens I really think that we don't think we give Mark McKenzie enough credit on his drafting skills.

 

[moginie]

Whatever happens I really think that we don't think we give Mark McKenzie enough credit on his drafting skills.

Yes, it's a shame. We seem to be eager enough to criticise his every move. The "sleepy Mark" stuff ended up as an exercise in other people's ignorance.

 

[eldorado]

Yes, it's a shame. We seem to be eager enough to criticise his every move. The "sleepy Mark" stuff ended up as an exercise in other people's ignorance.

"Just do a trade, McKenzie!!! Awww, what was that trade for???"

 

[moginie]

"Just do a trade, McKenzie!!! Awww, what was that trade for???"

Yep. Shiits me to tears.

 

[Mr Meeseeks]

Whatever happens I really think that we don't think we give Mark McKenzie enough credit on his drafting skills.

He also deserves credit for his trading skills this year.

The 3 live trades were chefs kiss.

The trades prior to the draft were good too....

Instead of losing gunston for nothing, we got 2 picks. One was live traded to get McDonald, the other went on this kid.

Jaeger walked and we got Meek and a F2

Mitchell walked and we got Stephens along with some late picks, which were part of the live trade to move up and get hustwaite.

Fine work.

 

[Topiary]

He also deserves credit for his trading skills this year.

The 3 live trades were chefs kiss.

The trades prior to the draft were good too....

Instead of losing gunston for nothing, we got 2 picks. One was live traded to get McDonald, the other went on this kid.

Jaeger walked and we got Meek and a F2

Mitchell walked and we got Stephens along with some late picks, which were part of the live trade to move up and get hustwaite.

Fine work.

You cannot doubt he is having a real go. And that is what we MUST do to climb the ladder.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Far too early to claim we've won trades. On face value the Mitchell trade in particular was not in our favor on paper. Stephens has to become a very good player for it to be close to even, though I think in hindsight MM has made the best of a tough situation (with regards to JOM and Mitchell), which is all we could ask for. Anyway that's all for another thread.

JO'S looks like he could be a surprise packet. At the very least he's going to give it absolutely everything to make it. Hopefully the early rankings of him (pre-injury) were justified and we've ended up with a bargain.

 

[eldorado]

Far too early to claim we've won trades.

Fair enough...although those who were claiming we 'lost' trades didn't even wait until the ink was dry.

 

[HedgeFund]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but Mark has been our List Manager / head of recruitment for 5 seasons.

If so, he has overseen the departure of the following 50 players.

Roughead, T. Mitchell, Burton, McEvoy, Duryea, Burgoyne, O’Meara, Whitecross, Glass, Frawley, Birchall, Smith, Howe, Ceglar, Gunston, Willsmore, Lovell, Scully, O’Brien, Scully, Stratton, Schoenmakers, Shiels, Pittonett, Puopolo, Langford, Brand, Henderson, Mirra, Rioli, Heatherley, Ross, Jones, Hanrahan, Miles, Cousins, Walker, Minchington, Mohr, Greaves, Golds, Patton, Pepper, Brooksby, T. Phillips, Hartley, Downie, Saunders, Callow, Hartigan

….and the acquisition/retention of the following 31:

Frost, Wingard, Day, Maginness, Reeves, Morris, Jeka, DGB, S. Mitchell, Brockman, Newcombe, Bramble, Lynch, Meek, Ward, Long, Serong, Butler, C. McDonald, O’Hara, Blanck, Ramsden, Amon, Weddle,
Bennetts, O’Sullivan, Stephens, Greene, McKenzie, Hustwaite, B. McDonald.

It actually is difficult to assess whether it’s been successful because we have had such enormous upheaval and only a handful of his acquisitions have played more than 25 games.

So I say the jury is still out, but the next 2 years will determine if it’s a net positive result for us or not, and he would be very comfortable if we were pushing back up the ladder. If we are languishing in the bottom 6 in 2024, he might be looking over his shoulder.

 

[HawthornHawk]

So I say the jury is still out, but the next 2 years will determine if it’s a net positive result for us or not, and he would be very comfortable if we were pushing back up the ladder. If we are languishing in the bottom 6 in 2024, he might be looking over his shoulder.

I think that's a bit harsh. Had Clarko making list management calls and also had to deal with the covid draft. I'd push that '24 expectation out to '26 or even '27.

 

[Topiary]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but Mark has been our List Manager / head of recruitment for 5 seasons.

If so, he has overseen the departure of the following 50 players.

Roughead, T. Mitchell, Burton, McEvoy, Duryea, Burgoyne, O’Meara, Whitecross, Glass, Frawley, Birchall, Smith, Howe, Ceglar, Gunston, Willsmore, Lovell, Scully, O’Brien, Scully, Stratton, Schoenmakers, Shiels, Pittonett, Puopolo, Langford, Brand, Henderson, Mirra, Rioli, Heatherley, Ross, Jones, Hanrahan, Miles, Cousins, Walker, Minchington, Mohr, Greaves, Golds, Patton, Pepper, Brooksby, T. Phillips, Hartley, Downie, Saunders, Callow, Hartigan

….and the acquisition/retention of the following 31:

Frost, Wingard, Day, Maginness, Reeves, Morris, Jeka, DGB, S. Mitchell, Brockman, Newcombe, Bramble, Lynch, Meek, Ward, Long, Serong, Butler, C. McDonald, O’Hara, Blanck, Ramsden, Amon, Weddle,
Bennetts, O’Sullivan, Stephens, Greene, McKenzie, Hustwaite, B. McDonald.

It actually is difficult to assess whether it’s been successful because we have had such enormous upheaval and only a handful of his acquisitions have played more than 25 games.

So I say the jury is still out, but the next 2 years will determine if it’s a net positive result for us or not, and he would be very comfortable if we were pushing back up the ladder. If we are languishing in the bottom 6 in 2024, he might be looking over his shoulder.

The convenience of the cycle…….please !!!

 

[KermitJagger]

To switch back to the thread topic, I went back and watched a few of the highlight clips from Jack O'Sullivan and I feel he moves very similarly to Wings. The sharp change of direction, the tight hunched over movement in traffic, and his explosive attributes like his leap are all things that typified early career Chad.

I hope he sees this opportunity and learns as much as he can from Chad whilst he's here.

 

[JZedd]

Jack has too much courage. He needs to protect himself too. I'm confident the coaches will sort this out. Can't wait to see all the draftees.. Whether it's in the AFL or VFL....

 

[HedgeFund]

I think that's a bit harsh. Had Clarko making list management calls and also had to deal with the covid draft. I'd push that '24 expectation out to '26 or even '27.

I did say “might”…….

but if we are still sitting in the bottom rungs by the end of next year (which would mean 5 straight seasons in the bottom 3rd of the ladder) and the pressure was on…..do you think the drums will be beating for Sam’s head?

Or would it be easier to move on the List Manager?

 

[PenAndPaper]

I did say “might”…….

but if we are still sitting in the bottom rungs by the end of next year (which would mean 5 straight seasons in the bottom 3rd of the ladder) and the pressure was on…..do you think the drums will be beating for Sam’s head?

Or would it be easier to move on the List Manager?

Don't think drums would be beating for either head.