Yep one of my favourite theories…the man child as I call it…if you only have 1 thing in your bag of triacks you can get away it at the u/18 level but when you even step up to the VFL its another huge step away from AFL.
Also remember theres no zoning so a tall contested mark really has a far better run at it then at the higher level even club footy.
A Brayshaw has that burst of acceleration that makes or break a played at the higher level!
Till now, given that we retain pick 11-ish and based on our requirements, my wishlist would be one of these:
1 - Hunter Clark
2 - Lochie O’Brien
3 - Nick Coffield
Clark top of my wish list as well.
Who would be your next best?
Didn’t want to go a slower inside mid?
No, I think there’s enough talent there to not compromise speed. I’m not counting on Begley/Mutch/Langford/Clarke but they can’t be ignored. Conversely, I wouldn’t go all out just for speed with someone like Petrucelle [sp]. I want decent to excellent kicks, 182cm+, hard inside, agile, vision. With McGrath, Zerret, Parish, Zaka we are ok for the smaller evasive mid.
Is Constable a mid? He played as a forward in the GF on the weekend, but he looked a good size and his skills looked pretty good, especially his kicking.
He is. But I’d rather a mid/back, then a mid/forward, he lacks speed, and I reckon Constable looks better at this stage then he will later on. That’s just a guess.
He is a mid and is 2nd to Dow as a clearance specialist in this draft
Has looked best swapping HB he plays that position simailr to Goddard he takes a lot of intercept marks and using his long kick to advantage
The thing with the “manchild” is that it really is a case by case. There’s been plenty who have dominated as juniors who haven’t gone on to be as good as people expected, but there have also been plenty who have been really good as juniors who haven’t been drafted or who have been drafted late because the perception has been that their skillset won’t translate against bigger bodies. And of those there have been a number who have actually shown that their skill set does translate.
So you have to look at the package. And also allow the players to grow and develop. Big kids might appear to dominate at junior level because of their size, but it might be that with development their other qualities, which haven’t needed nurturing previously, can also reach a high standard.
So, be aware of the potential for players games not to translate, but look further. (And it works for speed and tank as well. Because not only are afl players bigger than junior players, they’re faster and have better tanks)
(And at least you know the big kids will be AFL size. That’s something we still don’t know with guys like Gleeson)
I think we do know with Gleeson. The time for hope that he will build up to an average or better physical size is long gone. He is what he is. Some guys just can’t put on the muscle no matter how much time they spend in the gym. I couldn’t help notice how little muscle definition Andrew Mackie has in his arms when the cameras were focussing on him at the end of the PF.
Does anyone have an opinion on Alex Federico from Northern Knights/Marcellin?
On some boards I have seen him as a late pick.
I understand he is dying to get to Essendon and comes a good Essendon family (his 2nd cousin is none other than the Flying Dutchman).
Dying wouldn’t be good… a step too far.
If he could manage Undead… that’d be great.
Is today’s all star match being televised anywhere?
Oops, it’s actually the u17s today. No real fuss then.
u18s is before the grandfinal iirc.
18s is at 10am on AFL site, 17s starts soon I’m just waiting at the gate, this game won’t be streamed at all
That is annoying given both were streamed last season - was hoping to see Mason have a good game.
He has been under a lot of pressure so far, Max King has been a handful so far with 2 goals in the 1st quarter
Team Enright 13 13 91
Team Harvey 7 10 52
Goals
Enright: Zane Barzen 3, Izak Rankine 2(1st half), Max King 2, Riley Bowman 2, Bailey Smith, Michael Mummery, Jackson Hately, Hugo Munn
Harvey: Bailey Williams 2, Izak Rankine 2(2nd half), Irving Mosquito, Jye Caldwell, Hudson Garoni
Best Players
Enright: Izak Rankine, Zane Barzen, Isaac Quaynor, Tom Lewis, Matthew Green, Tom McKenzie
Harvey: Izak Rankine, Jack Bytel, Mitch Riordan, Jye Caldwell, Ed McHenry, Bailey Williams
Team Enright
2. Tom Lewis – South Australia
Lewis was all day in the middle winning plenty of the ball, he loves to hunt the ball and for his small size he really has a dip. He has decent speed and his kicking for the most part was very good. He is clean and hard around the contest and can provide a spark and his tackling pressure was also top notch.
Izak Rankine – South Australia
Rankine kicked the 1st goal and what a goal it was, a freaky goal in the pocket. Rankine provided a spark up forward with his trademark speed and dash on display. He showed his composure and confidence whenever he had the ball and he covered the ground well. He only played the 1st half with Team Enright.
Isaac Quaynor – Oakleigh Chargers
Quaynor was very solid down back playing his normal game that he has done all year in the TAC Cup. Quaynor was strong in the air even out marking top 1 prospect Jack Lukosius in one contest. He showed good composure down back and was very efficient with the ball, he looks to be the best small defender for the 2018 draft.
Tom McKenzie – Northern Knights
McKenzie was very solid down back in the 1st half showing great courage going back with the flight a few times and doing some great spoils, he was composed coming out of defence with ball in hand and kicked very well. He was moved into the middle late in the game to good effect showing his class and vision up the field.
Connor Rozee – South Australia
Rozee was the captain for Team Enright and he was busy early in the game winning plenty of the ball in the middle, a few kicks didn’t come off but he showed his great agility and composure in traffic and his hands as always where very clean. Rozee showed of his good mix of athleticism and footy smarts on many occasions showing a good leap in one contest and giving of a creative handball at the next.
Max King – Sandringham Dragons
King was the dominant big man up forward in the 1st half kicking 2.4, he was moved back in the 2nd half but of course looked most threatening around goal, he was able to get good separation from defenders but also easily outmark them in one on one contests with his impressive height and leap. The wind didn’t help his accuracy and he could have had a big day out. One of his goals was a ripper snap showing he isn’t just a mark and kick type forward.
Zane Barzen – Murray Bushrangers
Barzen was everywhere up forward his leading patterns are first class and he just knows where to lead and gets good separation on his opposition. He is a classy player with ball in hand with many of his possessions hitting the target, he can kick goals in a variety of ways either form set shot or crumbing packs. He kicked 3.2 in a very good display and good reward for his efforts up the ground.
Matthew Green – Northern Territory
This was my first time watching Green and safe to say I was very impressed. He is listed at 190cm but he looked taller, he moves extremely well for his size able to get around smaller players with ease, he showed great composure with ball in hand and often took players on and hit a target going forward. Despite his light frame and playing on a wing he did well to win some contested possession going low and hard at a few contests, Showed some dash to go with his agility late in the game and was quick and clean to use the ball.
Team Harvey
Ed McHenry – Geelong Falcons
McHenry worked hard all game playing through the middle and up forward. He showed his zip and agility on many occasions and he worked hard all over the ground to cover space and work hard on the overlap. Not sure how much of the ball he got but I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up with the most for Team Harvey.
Jye Caldwell – Bendigo Pioneers
Caldwell played in the middle and showed he good influence the contest both inside and outside. He showed great speed and agility around the ball and he showed great composure and confidence with ball in hand. Caldwell wasn’t afraid to tuck the ball under his arm and take the game on and he is a great kick when he is up and running. Kicked a nice goal and he has proven to be a goalkicking midfielder at TAC level.
Mitch Riordan – Dandenong Stingrays
Riordan was all class with ball in hand he was never flustered and nearly always made great decisions with the ball. Riordan’s kicking going forward was superb and he worked hard both inside an outside the contest. His composure was outstanding and class above most players this game and his skill lever was impressive under pressure.
Izak Rankine – South Australia
Rankine was moved over to Team Harvey to give them something extra and he was an instant success kicking 2 goals in the 3rd quarter. His energy around the contest was incredible and his speed and ability to find space also very god. Almost kicked an amazing running goal leaving everyone in his wake.
Jack Bytel – Calder Cannons
Bytel was the captain of Team Harvey and he did everything he could to lift his team in the 2nd half. He was solid in the 1st half but he really stood up in the 2nd half in the middle winning plenty of clearances and was just a force around the ball. Bytel although not blessed with pace was influential at the stoppages using his bigger frame to good use and releasing the ball well by hand he looks the perfect modern big bodied inside midfielder and a player sure to be talked about as an early pick in 2018
Tarryn Thomas – Tasmania
The hugely talented Thomas showed flashes of brilliance in the middle especially in the 2nd half showing his great agility and composure. His skill by hand and foot was first class and he was rarely flustered with ball in hand he also took some great marks overhead. Thomas showed he could play on the inside and outside and if he keeps having good midfield performances he will be a likely top 5 prospect in 2018.
Jack Lukosius – South Australia
Lukosuis didn’t hit the scoreboard today but don’t let that fool you on his impact because he still showed plenty. Up forward he played more of a lead up role and he took some great marks. He was moved to CHB in the 2nd half and played very well with some good spoils, intercept marks and his kicking was long and accurate. He is a star and should go high in 2018
Bailey Williams – Dandenong Stingrays
Williams showed of his trademark leap in the ruck with many of his taps put into dangerous space, he also went forward on occasion kicking 2 goals. Williams with his size, leap and ability to go forward make him the standout ruck prospect for next years draft.
Great piece Don.
So, I’ll be at the game tomorrow. Does anyone have strong suggestions who I should be watching for? Luckily this article has their jumper numbers (at least, they’d better be the jumper numbers): U18: Potential No.1 pick to play on GF stage
Aidan Bonar is a top 20 smokey to keep an eye on. Jackson Ross another who has great potential
Starcevich from WA is another