Three drafts...
A cavalcade of exciting prospects...
The question being, which year of drafting will we view as the most successful in terms of talent/leadership five years from now?
2007
Craig Cameron's last Hurrah, and what a way to go out. With an extra pick inside the top 20 (thanks to an astute and uncompromising decision made by newly-appointed Dean Bailey to trade Travis Johnstone), the Dees went in with confidence knowing that this would be the beginning of something great for the Melbourne Football Club.
With their first pick, the Dees selected Cale Morton, the silky mover from the West who some believe could have gone as high as two or three. We took him at four. Cale's silky movement and awareness around the ground were likened by some Melbourne supporters to the great Robbie Flower, with our next pick in the draft also drawing comparisions to the great man - but for entirely different reasons.
'Captain' Jack Grimes was a born Demon. Like Flower before him, he would play for the club he loved as a kid. The Dees were laughing as the young midfielder/half back somehow lasted to our pick 14 and his name was read out as fast as you could say 'Future captain'.
With our 21st pick in the draft, we took Addam Maric, the fiery goalsneak from the Cannons. Rated as one of the most accurate set shots for goal, Maric impressed the recruiting staff who would place a major emphasis on kicking ability in drafts to come.
Other notable draftees from 2007 include Kyle Cheney, Stef Martin and who could forget, the Turtle-eating, Freo-beating AUSTIN WONAEMIRRI!
2008
2008 and with it would bring the Dees their first Number 1 pick since Travis Johnstone. As luck would have it, 2008 was also the year Jack 'Jesus' Watts arrived on the footballing scene. The Dees recruiting staff (led by newbie Barry Prendergast) were on the hunt for a long term replacement for the retired David Neitz. Enter Larke medalist and big-game player Jack Watts. The 196 centimetre kid from Brighton Grammar impressed everyone with his pack marking ability and dangerous right boot (though his left wasn't too bad either). Just as is impressive were Jack's maturity and level-headedness in the face of mass media attention and all the hype surrounding his impressive u18 carnival. Young Jack carries with him the burden of all the hopes and dreams of Melbourne supporters, with media snipers like Leigh Matthews waiting in the wings ready to tear him down. But If any kid can take all this pressure and turn it on it's head, its Jack Watts.
The Dees could not have imagined in their wildest dreams that they would leave the 2008 draft with not one, but two gun forward prospects. And who could have imagined that this player would come from the remote community of Yuendumu, 300km northwest of Alice Springs? Whereas Jack grew up kicking a sherrin on the lush, watered fields of Brighton Grammer, Liam Jurrah was used to the the dusty, red plains of outback Australia. Somehow the word 'talented' just isn't enough to describe this 'Warlpiri Wizard'. Mere words cannot describe the acts of magic he performs on the football field - they have to be seen to be believed. One of the all-time draft steals, the demons would take Jurrah with pick 1 in the psd after receiving the go-ahead from Aaron Davey. Jurrah and Watts will together form a serious headache for opposition defenders in the future.
Melbourne was also blessed with a number of other picks in what is considered to be one of the great drafts. Little has been seen of the Roadrunner Sam Blease or the man with a sniper rifle for a leg, James Strauss, but you can guarantee these two players will be a major part of our success going forward.
Other notable draftees from 2008 include The Bunbury boys, Jaime Bennel and Neville Jetta.
2009
It may be hard to judge the 2009 draft, as it is still a couple of months away
but it is hard not to get excited when you have four picks inside the top 20 and gun players like Tom Scully and Jack Trengove are running around winning games off their own boot. Some speculate that is a mere formality that these two players will be drafted to Melbourne with Picks 1 & 2. Both captains in the u18 carnival, both come with big wraps on them, particularly Scully who has been likened to a Chris Judd or a Gary Ablett Jr in the way he plays. His ability to read the drop of the ball and swoop on it like a hawk are exciting to watch and his skills are only matched by his fierce determination and drive to excel as a footballer. This kid will not relax until he has earnt the respect of the football world and even then he will push himself further. A great asset for a club sitting on the bottom of the ladder.
Jack Trengove posesses a hardness and scything kick that make for a powerful combination. He has been likened to Nathan Buckley (or even Colin Sylvia) in the way he plays and, like Tom, Jack has the capacity to take his football to a whole other level. Just a couple of hours before i started writing this (now essay) the 18yr old performed a 'Leo Barry' game-saving mark on the back of 29 possessions against men in a preliminary final for Sturt. He will hopefully continue the fine tradition of us drafting a gun 'Jack' to the MFC each year. Two gun footballers, Two leaders who perform on the big stage - these are the sorts of players that will lead us to our next premiership.
Then there are the other picks in our possesion. Not only do we get the first two picks in the last uncompromised draft before the Gold Coast vikings arrive, we also get two more picks before the second round even begins! With talent such as Carlisle, Temel, Black, Jetta, Cunnington (and possibly even Butcher(?) still possibly being available for our other picks, we are absolutely laughing. Could this just be our best draft yet?
A cavalcade of exciting prospects...
The question being, which year of drafting will we view as the most successful in terms of talent/leadership five years from now?
2007
Craig Cameron's last Hurrah, and what a way to go out. With an extra pick inside the top 20 (thanks to an astute and uncompromising decision made by newly-appointed Dean Bailey to trade Travis Johnstone), the Dees went in with confidence knowing that this would be the beginning of something great for the Melbourne Football Club.
With their first pick, the Dees selected Cale Morton, the silky mover from the West who some believe could have gone as high as two or three. We took him at four. Cale's silky movement and awareness around the ground were likened by some Melbourne supporters to the great Robbie Flower, with our next pick in the draft also drawing comparisions to the great man - but for entirely different reasons.
'Captain' Jack Grimes was a born Demon. Like Flower before him, he would play for the club he loved as a kid. The Dees were laughing as the young midfielder/half back somehow lasted to our pick 14 and his name was read out as fast as you could say 'Future captain'.
With our 21st pick in the draft, we took Addam Maric, the fiery goalsneak from the Cannons. Rated as one of the most accurate set shots for goal, Maric impressed the recruiting staff who would place a major emphasis on kicking ability in drafts to come.
Other notable draftees from 2007 include Kyle Cheney, Stef Martin and who could forget, the Turtle-eating, Freo-beating AUSTIN WONAEMIRRI!
2008
2008 and with it would bring the Dees their first Number 1 pick since Travis Johnstone. As luck would have it, 2008 was also the year Jack 'Jesus' Watts arrived on the footballing scene. The Dees recruiting staff (led by newbie Barry Prendergast) were on the hunt for a long term replacement for the retired David Neitz. Enter Larke medalist and big-game player Jack Watts. The 196 centimetre kid from Brighton Grammar impressed everyone with his pack marking ability and dangerous right boot (though his left wasn't too bad either). Just as is impressive were Jack's maturity and level-headedness in the face of mass media attention and all the hype surrounding his impressive u18 carnival. Young Jack carries with him the burden of all the hopes and dreams of Melbourne supporters, with media snipers like Leigh Matthews waiting in the wings ready to tear him down. But If any kid can take all this pressure and turn it on it's head, its Jack Watts.
The Dees could not have imagined in their wildest dreams that they would leave the 2008 draft with not one, but two gun forward prospects. And who could have imagined that this player would come from the remote community of Yuendumu, 300km northwest of Alice Springs? Whereas Jack grew up kicking a sherrin on the lush, watered fields of Brighton Grammer, Liam Jurrah was used to the the dusty, red plains of outback Australia. Somehow the word 'talented' just isn't enough to describe this 'Warlpiri Wizard'. Mere words cannot describe the acts of magic he performs on the football field - they have to be seen to be believed. One of the all-time draft steals, the demons would take Jurrah with pick 1 in the psd after receiving the go-ahead from Aaron Davey. Jurrah and Watts will together form a serious headache for opposition defenders in the future.
Melbourne was also blessed with a number of other picks in what is considered to be one of the great drafts. Little has been seen of the Roadrunner Sam Blease or the man with a sniper rifle for a leg, James Strauss, but you can guarantee these two players will be a major part of our success going forward.
Other notable draftees from 2008 include The Bunbury boys, Jaime Bennel and Neville Jetta.
2009
It may be hard to judge the 2009 draft, as it is still a couple of months away
but it is hard not to get excited when you have four picks inside the top 20 and gun players like Tom Scully and Jack Trengove are running around winning games off their own boot. Some speculate that is a mere formality that these two players will be drafted to Melbourne with Picks 1 & 2. Both captains in the u18 carnival, both come with big wraps on them, particularly Scully who has been likened to a Chris Judd or a Gary Ablett Jr in the way he plays. His ability to read the drop of the ball and swoop on it like a hawk are exciting to watch and his skills are only matched by his fierce determination and drive to excel as a footballer. This kid will not relax until he has earnt the respect of the football world and even then he will push himself further. A great asset for a club sitting on the bottom of the ladder. Jack Trengove posesses a hardness and scything kick that make for a powerful combination. He has been likened to Nathan Buckley (or even Colin Sylvia) in the way he plays and, like Tom, Jack has the capacity to take his football to a whole other level. Just a couple of hours before i started writing this (now essay) the 18yr old performed a 'Leo Barry' game-saving mark on the back of 29 possessions against men in a preliminary final for Sturt. He will hopefully continue the fine tradition of us drafting a gun 'Jack' to the MFC each year. Two gun footballers, Two leaders who perform on the big stage - these are the sorts of players that will lead us to our next premiership.
Then there are the other picks in our possesion. Not only do we get the first two picks in the last uncompromised draft before the Gold Coast vikings arrive, we also get two more picks before the second round even begins! With talent such as Carlisle, Temel, Black, Jetta, Cunnington (and possibly even Butcher(?) still possibly being available for our other picks, we are absolutely laughing. Could this just be our best draft yet?
Oh no you didn't! 
