SUMMER TIME AND THE DRAFTING'S EASY – PART FOUR

SUMMER TIME AND THE DRAFTING'S EASY – PART FOUR by Whispering Jack

At the end of the 2010 NAB AFL Under 18 Championships an All-Australian team is selected and this year's team was as follows:

Defenders: Ben Jacobs (VM), Matt Watson (VM), Dyson Heppell (VC), Shaun Atley (VC), Patrick McCarthy (SA), Brodie Smith (SA)

Midfield: Jared Polec (SA), Daniel Gorringe (SA), Andrew Gaff (VM), Mitch Hallahan (VC), Anthony Miles (NSW/ACT), Tom Liberatore (VM)

Forwards: Harley Bennell (WA), Lucas Cook (VC), Adam Treloar (VC), Jayden Pitt (VC), Steven May (NT), Josh Caddy (VM)

Interchange: Sam Day (SA), Josh Bruce (NSW/ACT), Josh Green (Tas), Sam Darley (TAS)

Coach: Robert Hyde (VC)

Assistant coach: Matt Armstrong (Tas)

I am in the midst of my second conversation on the draft with Stevo, our Demonland draft "insider" and I ask him about the importance of players performing well at these championships.

"Most AFL club recruiters are on to these players for years before you reach the championships. They see some of them as early as their primary school championships at age 11 and 12. They follow the better ones through school, club and interleague competitions, junior squads at under 15 and 16 level etc. Most are well known by the time they reach this stage.

"That said, the championships and competitions such as TAC Cup and (for those from SA and WA) State Leagues, it's particularly instructive to see how they perform under pressure at the higher levels. They can enhance their reputations at such times.

"You'll notice that most of the All Australians are among the potential first rounders in the forthcoming draft, the exceptions being the likes of Treloar and May who have already been grabbed by Gold Coast."

I can't help it but I have an obsession with tall key position forwards so I point to the fact that Lucas Cook made All Australian while a player of similar size in Tom Lynch missed out. Yet it's Lynch who seems to be all the range and considered well beyond Melbourne's choice at 12. Why?

"Lynch is one of those late bloomers who has come out of the clouds. This time last year he was with Sorrento Under 18's. He had to be lured to the Stingrays and it's lucky that one of his mates, Mitch Hallahan was already there.

"Lynch would have been close to AA at the championships but he went on with it, improving over the balance of the season and surprising us all when the Draft Combine results showed he had grown to 199cm".

I wanted to add that he must have surprised a few when he tested slowest over 20 metres but Stevo was already off on another tangent telling me that the Demons should get a quality player with pick 12 but the strength of its drafting will be determined by what the club does with its three remaining selections at numbers 33, 50 and 53.

"I don't know what's in the minds of the club's recruiters and, in this draft, even that won't help a great deal. The first selection is heavily dependent on the eight names to be called from 4 to 11 and half of those picks rest with one club.

"If it's a tough ask to predict 12, then how on earth could you possibly know what's going to happen twenty or thirty picks deeper into the draft?

"I've presumed that the club will pick a medium sized player with its first round selection so it's not exactly rocket science to predict the emphasis will be upon your getting a tall forward or two.

"And just as there are different types of mids, there are also many and varying sorts of talls. I think one of your favourites in Luke Mitchell might be gone by 33 but there should be players like Josh Walker, Alex Johnson (surely the club needs a Johnson now that Paul's gone?) and the VFL's Callum Sinclair".

Inside Football's November edition profiled the three players (Sinclair was mentioned in an article of VFL hopefuls) so here they are for your comparison:

ALEX JOHNSON - defender, Oakleigh Chargers, Vic

Born: 2/3/92 Ht: 195cm Wt: 82kg

"Alex was captain of the Chargers in 2010 and his workrate mainly as a forward is exceptional. Did play as a defender at the national championships as well, so has that string to his bow. Got an outstanding aerobic ability (mid-14 beep test) and his defensive workrate as a forward is, I would rate, as probably the best in the competition." - Oakleigh Chargers coach Steve Grace

Vic Metro representative 2010

LUKE MITCHELL - forward, Calder Cannons, Vic

Born: 28/2/92 Ht: 196cm Wt: 96kg

"Luke had a shoulder reconstruction before the season started. A key forward who played the last three or four home and away games and the finals for a total of about eight games for the season. Each week he progressively got ' better culminating in a five-goal effort in the grand final. Takes a very good contested mark has improved his leg speed and agility and is an accurate kick for goal." - Calder Cannons coach Martin Allison

CALLUM SINCLAIR forward, Port Melbourne, VFL

21 years Ht: 200cm Wt: 95kg

A strong marking, long kicking first-season forward who was named in the VFL team of the year, despite fading through August and September. The son of former Fitzroy and St Kilda player Allan Sinclair.

JOSH WALKER forward, Geelong Falcons, Vic

Born: 12/11/92 Ht: 194cm Wt: 87kg

"Josh is the grandson of Peter Walker who was centre half back in Geelong's 1963 premiership side. There's not too many kids around like him. He's a big boy, big body, runs a plus-14 beep, he's improved his goalkicking and his general kicking. For a club like Port Adelaide who has lost Warren Tredrea, Josh is the sort of player they would be looking for." - Geelong Falcons region manager Michael Turner

Vic Country representative 2010

Stevo reiterates that he has been impressed with Melbourne's recruiting at the latter end of the draft over the past two seasons and believes that this trend will continue this season.

"Barry Prendergast has been pretty resourceful in the past with his drafting of late selections. Bennell, Jetta and Bail are good examples of that so Demon fans should not worry. There will be plenty more talent coming in to replace what's gone."

On the subject of what's gone, I asked Stevo about the departure of Cameron Bruce and he shook his head.

"Every individual coming through the junior pathways these days gets a good grounding in all aspects of what it takes to be a well rounded professional footballer and these things are reinforced by good management once they come into the AFL system. The really good ones never lack in self- belief.

"I fully understand Cam Bruce wanting a guarantee beyond twelve months but I think that after 11years, a best and fairest and a few other podium finishes in a celebrated career with the one club, he should have been able to back himself in. It's disappointing that he didn't".

"I think the next generation of players are better prepared than that to deal with career matters these days and I don't believe you'll witness many such instances of self-doubt from your elite players even when their careers approach the end."

I couldn't allow my sessions with Stevo to come to an end without one more tongue in cheek question on his strong beliefs about not drafting talls early in this draft.

"So what if Barry Prendergast calls out the name of a key position forward or a ruckman at number 12 on Thursday night? Will you write an article on why you were wrong?"

"No, because, if you call me, I'll be in hiding!"

And so end the Stevo sessions for 2010.