Champion decathlete joins SUNS as Queensland Zone Selection
The Gold Coast SUNS have taken Patrick Murtagh as a Queensland Zone Selection to round out the 2019 NAB AFL National Draft period.
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The Gold Coast SUNS have taken Patrick Murtagh as a Queensland Zone Selection to round out the 2019 NAB AFL National Draft period.
A Queensland State Champion decathlete, Murtagh has been part of the GC SUNS Academy as an over-age player for the past year in order to hone his AFL skills.
The 19-year-old showed promise throughout the 2019 Academy Series, playing both in the ruck and as a key forward for the SUNS.
At 196cm, he turned heads in early 2019 when he recorded an 81cm standing vertical jump at a state combine testing day.
Local boy, TSS graduate and former state champion decathlete Patrick Murtagh is now on our list. He's still relatively new to the game so don't expect too much from him in 2020 but an 81cm vertical leap is very impressive. To put that in perspective, Nic Naitanui recorded a vertical leap of 78cm during his draft combine. Natanui stands 201cm so that means Murtagh's maximum vertical reach when jumping is only 2cms shorter than Naitanui's! That's why some believe Murtagh can make it as an AFL level ruckman but it wouldn't be surprising if he used his unique athleticism to become a key forward either. Here's some evidence of how much higher he can get up in the air than others his age:
The best case scenario is we've found our own version of Kurt Tippett (a player who converted to the game in his late teens) and his learning curve is a quick one but it's always important to be patient with players who come to the game late. Anyway, welcome to the Suns Patrick!