Wrong recipient sorry
2001? When we made a grand final and one of the reasons we narrowly lost was Long getting injured a couple of days before the match? Or 2002/2003/2004 when we went deep into the finals? THIS is the argument you want to have?
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No I explicitly said we were not using race as a factor.
We may be using factors that penalise some groups and favour others.
For example if a bank demanded a history of bank activity in order to provide a home loan. A group in the community has historically avoided using banks. That group cannot get home loans and therefore can’t buy homes. There was no deliberate decision to block that group from home loans, but the result was the same.
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Semi final isn’t deep.
Long played 7 games in 2001, barely think he was the difference
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This is kind of my thinking as well.
I felt like yesterday we didn’t give ourselves the best chance of success. I am not sure that we are deliberately overlooking certain types, but I’d love to know historically how “18yo inside mid, overlooked in draft with pace and kicking issues” has gone as a rookie selection.
And I am not commenting on Mynott specifically, and he may be great, it’s a general “use of rookie draft” ideological issue.
We had 2 rookie draft picks available.
I think rookie draft picks can serve 2 very useful purpose.
One is for players like Mynott who missed out as 18yos and have had a couple of years growing into their body and honing their craft at state league level, and now are ready to make the most of their opportunity.
The other is for guys who are undervalued due to a particular issue, such as being new to the game (Eg Day), or being underdeveloped in size such that there is risk in whether their body meets their positional needs (skinny young ruck), or being underdeveloped due to other issues (outside of traditional pathways), or just being undervalued due to inherent biases in recruiters minds.
All these things are legitimate ways to find quality.
But trying to find a quality player in what was perceived to be a weak draft pool by taking the next guy that has been in the system right through and is right in front of all of the recruiters noses…
That’s not “risk averse”, that’s just not taking into account “chances of not making it” into your risk calculations.
I have no doubt that if we’d taken 2 of @benfti s list in the rookie draft, the chances of us finding a player would have been higher. No doubt at all.
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no, just think the correlation you are drawing between having indigenous players on the list and success is pretty stupid
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Of those players you listed…
Only 1 was taken post the Kevin Sheedy era.
That’s part of the argument. We gave opportunities. Somewhere along the line, the preference was to hang on to list cloggers or plodders like Steinberg, Henneman and Jerrett (to name a few) than give another kid an opportunity.
For the record…
I thought we should delist Long. At best give him a rookie spot. Certainly not promote him to the senior list.
I find it surprising that we preferred to have ave an empty rookie list spot than give that opportunity to someone like Sambono. He was expected to go in the top 30 earlier this year and after testing he fell away. He’s from a very remote part of Australia so I’d be very surprised if the ‘flight risk’ factor didn’t come into it. He may not get that opportunity again, while a guy with far less talent, less risk, more support networks will find his way in a local league.
I don’t think It’s directly or purposefully racist. More so the values by which we judge players gives aboriginals a much tougher chance to get a look in with us as it does at other clubs. I’m not saying we have to use the next five draft picks on aboriginal players. But surely a rookie pick can be used for taking a gamble on something that could be special rather than shifting someone from the senior list to the rookie list after five years of opportunity.
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The difference was Rioli doing his shoulder in the first quarter on a 30 degree day.
The defensiveness from the club and the supporters is telling.
It proves to me there is a significant issue.
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if you defend your club, the club is guilty. 10/10
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Indigenous players make up about 9% of those playing “AFL Football” ( source AFL Community)
Indigenous people make up 3.2% of Australias population at the 2016 census. (source ABS)
Indigenous players make up 4.3 % of the AFL playing list of around 760 players ( source Wikipedia )
Indigenous players make up 4.7% of the Essendon playing list, but one more would make it 7.1%
My conclusion is that Indigenous players of Aussie footy are under represented at the highest level. compared with their participation in the sport.
I have no problem with advocates / champions of increased representation at the highest level speaking out, in fact 3 indigenous players at Essendon would take us well over the league average, which is where we sit right now.
In the end, statistically speaking, however, I cannot support a case that we are demonstrably worse than the AFL as a whole, and it would be unfair to accuse the Essendon Football Club list management people of bias or racism.
I would have liked to have seen another indigenous player at the club, they are exciting, dynamic and really enhance the sport. Their participation in the sport says to me they deserve more opportunity at the highest level, but thats only going to happen if they are good enough on a player by player basis.
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And if there’s a sensitive issue being discussed you can bet on absolutists from both sides to post platitudes.
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Port Adelaide would skew the industry average though
- Jake NEade
- Paddy Ryder
- Sam Powell-Pepper
- Karl Amon
- Chad WIngard
- Dom Barry
- Joel Garner
- Steven Motlop
- Jake Patmore
- Lindsay Thomas
so rough figures 10/48 20%
Wouldn’t mind a few of those players at the club!
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X did say they had made a conscious effort to ensure football department spending stayed much the same throughout his time.
Obviously the saga drain on finances and resources huge so that is understandable.
Amount of recruiters. Having the right support in place for indigenous talent etc perhaps affected by that view point.
Whether that changes moving forward we shall see.
Ultimately question is was Houlahan a better shot at 49 than Patmore or Garner.
Maybe he was, but every other club also let those players slide to Port Adelaide.
The other question is did we need Mynott & Guelfi ? or should we have got 1 and also got Narrier or Sambono or another Benfti special.
Priorities were a Tall, inside mid and class Houlahan as best available talent - surprised he was there as he doesnt really fill a need as another HFF.
Patmore was rated higher and slid as well. His pace off the backline with Saad and MCkenna could have been great.
If we are drafting on a needs basis. We needed inside mids.
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There is an AGM on tonight, if you feel strongly enough about this issue I highly recommend you raise it at the AGM.
Pretty valid points raised by both sides of the argument though. It can’t hurt to have a look at our recruiting strategy and to ask some questions as to why we are at bottom representation of indigenous footballers.
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Funny that, how when someone makes it on their own through hard work and diligence, many people want to jump in and grab the credit. Walla is what he is because of who he is.
And; not forgetting some good advice along the way, a family and a second Mum who were determined he was going live his dream.
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That’s the biggest load of horse crap in this thread. People defending the club for having its integrity questioned in one of the areas in which the club prides itself means they’re guilty. Puh…lease.
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