The Mini Draft

[old55 21,352]

The advantage that we have over all the other clubs is that our two comp picks can be taken at any time over the next 5 years, allowing GWS to 'stagger' their draft picks more. Other clubs may also have a compo pick but I believe that we're the only one with two as Geelong used one last year.

Yes but GC has got at least one - the Geelong one. If our 2 beat pick 4 they could bundle that in to trump us.

[Straight Sets Simon 23,113]

Thanks for clearing that up.

They have to trade the four picks for the 'mini draft' sometime over the next two years, it could be two this year and next or all four this year or all any other combination you could think of. If they don't trade any of them this year they might be able to pick O'Meara up next year in the draft as they'll most likely finish last unless Port get a PP before them. Of course he might not even be the favoured no.1 choice next year, a lot can happen in 12 months.

But to clarify they're trading picks not players.

Thanks for clearing that up.

[Jarka 767]

Yes but GC has got at least one - the Geelong one. If our 2 beat pick 4 they could bundle that in to trump us.

Not if GWS like the idea of saving the picks for later drafts. They're going to get a heap of talent in this draft even though it's been heavily compromised, they could use our two picks any time over the next five years and spread the age of their talent out more, would also help them with the salary cap issues they're going to face once all of the stars picked up in this draft are due to negotiate their first real contract after two years.

It would ba a much wiser list management decision.

Of course then there's the Sheedy factor, I wouldn't be surprised if he'd love the idea of taking our $cully compensation picks, that would definitely feed his ego and I think we can work on that weakness.

[old55 21,352]

Not if GWS like the idea of saving the picks for later drafts. They're going to get a heap of talent in this draft even though it's been heavily compromised, they could use our two picks any time over the next five years and spread the age of their talent out more, would also help them with the salary cap issues they're going to face once all of the stars picked up in this draft are due to negotiate their first real contract after two years.

It would ba a much wiser list management decision.

I hope you're right.

[Angelus BTVS 31]

GC are definitely in box seat for 1st pick of mini draft, offering GWS the ability to secure thier 4 most wanted juniors this year instead of 3 plus potentially a compensation pick that is flexible for them to use when they wish down the track.

Now currently either way if Demons do want to secure 1st pick of mini draft (and remember this 1st pick is like having the #1 overall pick in next years draft as you get to select the best current under age player in the country as of now, speculative i know but this group of kids is said to be talent packed in strength of depth compared to this years) they will automatically have an offer on table of 2 picks now what these 2 picks are only Melbourne know likely pick 12 from this year and a compensation pick from scully trade or just both compensation picks and not this years pick. However if as consistently spoken of in the football and betting traps GC are so keen on securing O'meara they will up thier offer to this years pick 4 and thier compenastion pick this means that Demons hand will be forced if they do desperately want the 1st mini draft pick to offer up pick 12 & both scully compensation picks to then put themselves in box seat.

do not be surprised if the club are prepared to do this as extreme as it sounds. You must realize you do not get anything for free when 17 other clubs would love to have opportunity to have access to the best 17 year old they determine to be in the country. Now what will be weighed up is this, how confident is the club that O'meara is that much better than likes of a Crouch or potentially a Josh Simpson type down the track both of which would come much cheaper. One thing that will also be weighed up is Jaeger O'meara if as good as recruiters beleive, he is top 1% for repeat sprint, acceleration, speed etc he gets to contests with the ability to burst clear reason why comparison to Judd also is tackling machine is that he,would be a clubs Marketing Dream the potential superstar player with a rockstar name has already been put out there by media.

So Mark Neeld has already declared holes in his preferred lineup how many holes only the club knows and what it takes to fill those holes could be the scully compensation picks and this years pick 12. Are the demons better to use picks to fill a hole and a deemed to be lesser 17yr old or risk all by going for 1 potential superstar. One things for sure the Demons would have loved to be able to secure both J. Watts & Natanui a few years back maybe this time they will take the opportunity to bring in for 2013 season J.Viney & J'Omeara. And have at thier disposal an elite midfield.....

[Jarka 767]

I hope you're right.

It's just a theory, no idea if I'm right or wrong, but I think it makes sense.

Having said that do we know if we're even interested in the u17 kids? Neeld might prefer to use the picks on current players or even just take them to a draft. At this stage it's just uneductaed guesses.

[Lutz 76]

It's just a theory, no idea if I'm right or wrong, but I think it makes sense.

Having said that do we know if we're even interested in the u17 kids? Neeld might prefer to use the picks on current players or even just take them to a draft. At this stage it's just uneductaed guesses.

It's a sound theory.

I've been thinking the same way.

But I think a 2010 and 2012 class is pretty good.

Geelong's major influxes of talent were 2 years apart.

Worked pretty well for them.

I think we'd seriously be asleep at the wheel if we weren't interested in at least 1 of the picks.

[dee-luded 2,958]

GC are definitely in box seat for 1st pick of mini draft, offering GWS the ability to secure thier 4 most wanted juniors this year instead of 3 plus potentially a compensation pick that is flexible for them to use when they wish down the track.

Now currently either way if Demons do want to secure 1st pick of mini draft (and remember this 1st pick is like having the #1 overall pick in next years draft as you get to select the best current under age player in the country as of now, speculative i know but this group of kids is said to be talent packed in strength of depth compared to this years) they will automatically have an offer on table of 2 picks now what these 2 picks are only Melbourne know likely pick 12 from this year and a compensation pick from scully trade or just both compensation picks and not this years pick. However if as consistently spoken of in the football and betting traps GC are so keen on securing O'meara they will up thier offer to this years pick 4 and thier compenastion pick this means that Demons hand will be forced if they do desperately want the 1st mini draft pick to offer up pick 12 & both scully compensation picks to then put themselves in box seat.

do not be surprised if the club are prepared to do this as extreme as it sounds. You must realize you do not get anything for free when 17 other clubs would love to have opportunity to have access to the best 17 year old they determine to be in the country. Now what will be weighed up is this, how confident is the club that O'meara is that much better than likes of a Crouch or potentially a Josh Simpson type down the track both of which would come much cheaper. One thing that will also be weighed up is Jaeger O'meara if as good as recruiters beleive, he is top 1% for repeat sprint, acceleration, speed etc he gets to contests with the ability to burst clear reason why comparison to Judd also is tackling machine is that he,would be a clubs Marketing Dream the potential superstar player with a rockstar name has already been put out there by media.

So Mark Neeld has already declared holes in his preferred lineup how many holes only the club knows and what it takes to fill those holes could be the scully compensation picks and this years pick 12. Are the demons better to use picks to fill a hole and a deemed to be lesser 17yr old or risk all by going for 1 potential superstar. One things for sure the Demons would have loved to be able to secure both J. Watts & Natanui a few years back maybe this time they will take the opportunity to bring in for 2013 season J.Viney & J'Omeara. And have at thier disposal an elite midfield.....

Bid hard and PUSH the suns all the way!

IF he gets to high a cost force the suns to give everything they've got to get him.

Then we can back off to have a crack at Crouch or Docherty, or such. I don't want to lose our 1st pick, 'this year', as I suspect the Suns will prevail. So we can over inflate the kids value and force the Suns to spend big.

Then we go after more kids hopefully at a more realistic cost.

[pilgrim 120]

I'm not sure if anyone else has said this, but am I the only one who would be leaning towards Crouch more than O'Meara? My reasoning: the go home factor. He has said that he'd rather be drafted by a WA side, and I worry that if we spend our top pick on him, put development into him just to lose him as soon as he comes out of contract. I don't want to lose another No.1 draft pick when we could get someone just as good and know that he'd be less likely to get homesick.

Might be too small a thing to worry about if we were able to get the No. 1 pick in the Mini Draft, but I will be very disappointed (and many other adjectives) if we lost this kid to WCE of Freo just because he wants to be home with the family. I will not stand for it.

Here's hoping we make the right decision!

[Redleg 37,635]

The one thing that needs to be remembered in all this O'Meara frenzy, besides the possible "go home" factor, is that Number 1 picks are usually not the best player from that year, when looking back after a few seasons have gone by. Would we better to go for Crouch and pay a lot less and maybe end up in an even better position, with him and another player taken with the pick or picks we retained?

Edited October 9, 2011 by Redleg

[Redleg 37,635]

From Sunday Age :

"There were suggestions yesterday the Magpies had offered three players in a package deal to Greater Western Sydney in a bid to secure boom 17-year-old Jaeger O'Meara, but the Giants resisted the offer."

Could this indicate a deal has already been done, or that the players offered were not good enough, or that GWS want picks, or that there is another answer I haven't thought of.

[Neita3000 37]

From Sunday Age :

"There were suggestions yesterday the Magpies had offered three players in a package deal to Greater Western Sydney in a bid to secure boom 17-year-old Jaeger O'Meara, but the Giants resisted the offer."

Could this indicate a deal has already been done, or that the players offered were not good enough, or that GWS want picks, or that there is another answer I haven't thought of.

Would have thought the latter.

I think everyone is getting a bit carried away with young Jaeger.

There hasn't been a single hint from the club as to whether or not were even interested in selecting him.

Maybe the club thinks its better to have 3 picks in the top 15 next year?

[Redleg 37,635]

Maybe the club thinks its better to have 3 picks in the top 15 next year?

That's not to be sneezed at either. Also see my post 135 on JO'M.

[pantaloons 2,019]

Also from today's Age came this little beauty on Andrew Krakouer (put down your coffee before reading):

Krakouer's manager, Peter Jess, yesterday said the small forward was worth about $500,000 a season

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/krakouer-seeks-an-expanded-contract-20111008-1lf55.html#ixzz1aFgo4Jzd

Seriously, player managers are some of the biggest comedians on the planet. It was great to see Ross Lyon give them a collective reality check a few weeks ago.

[Harry Manback 2]

From twitter:

“@AFL_MarkConway: Don't be surprised if Jaeger O'Meara doesn't go to Gold Coast. Also hearing a big name is keen to move from one Melb club to another #afl”

Interesting...

[warren dean 193]

It's just a theory, no idea if I'm right or wrong, but I think it makes sense.

Having said that do we know if we're even interested in the u17 kids? Neeld might prefer to use the picks on current players or even just take them to a draft. At this stage it's just uneductaed guesses.

They're interested, Jarka! I think for a couple of reasons. 1. The kid can play and 2. Melbourne, and in particular, Lyon want to make a statement to the rest of the competition. You won't hear anything from the Club, obviously - the leaks have all dried up now. Whether they get him, or not, or whether he is worth 2 or even 3 first round draft picks is up for debate, but they are all over this like a cheap suit. They already know they have Viney locked away for next years draft and he would be a top 5 pick in next years draft so unless we finish 14th or worse next year we are getting him for a steal. It makes sense to me to go as hard as possible with this one - if we don't get the first pick, we could still get the second one which might turn out just as valuable. My guy is certain this is all being driven by Lyon - he's a proud guy and wants to leave no stone unturned, apparently.

[Angelus BTVS 31]

I'm not sure if anyone else has said this, but am I the only one who would be leaning towards Crouch more than O'Meara? My reasoning: the go home factor. He has said that he'd rather be drafted by a WA side, and I worry that if we spend our top pick on him, put development into him just to lose him as soon as he comes out of contract. I don't want to lose another No.1 draft pick when we could get someone just as good and know that he'd be less likely to get homesick.

Might be too small a thing to worry about if we were able to get the No. 1 pick in the Mini Draft, but I will be very disappointed (and many other adjectives) if we lost this kid to WCE of Freo just because he wants to be home with the family. I will not stand for it.

Here's hoping we make the right decision!

Not the only one, Crouch is a great prospect, head over the ball, great awareness, has beautiful kick and puts the ball to advantage of teamates and remains in the contest. This is the thing the class does rise to the top you want to be able to have the chance to participate in the mini draft as in all likelyhood all 4 taken will be guns. Never a guarantee but still likely as recruiters appear to be getting more and more 200+ gamers right with the early picks dont get me wrong there will always be the Nat Fyfes of this world come thru but they are alot harder to pick.

Thats why Wellsy from Geelong is so highly regarded makes the absolute most of his clubs picks and they always have a history of being later picks. No coincidence Crouch is high on radar of the cats he is a pure footballer and cats like these type of players and so do I, its one thing to put so much behind all the testing of the combine i.e 3km, Vertical Jump, Agility test etc but if you cannot use these skill sets in an AFL game then they are no good to you. Main priority should always be football ability. Believe both Crouch and O'meara have this in spades but due to the testing most recruiters place O'meara high.

In terms of worrying if a player will go home after 2 years we shouldnt let that be a factor as free agency comes in it will become a regular thing. You cannot afford to become gunshy in business and AFL is a business. If O'meara or any other interstate player for that matter came to demons as a #1 pick and played well for 2 years and wanted to go home then the clubs wanting that player would likely be forced to trade plenty to secure them just like Judd getting to Carlton and giving up likes of Kennedy and high draft picks.

Either way Demons recruiters should ensure they secure one of these kids as the Melbourne midfield is a worry there's potential there but at moment no real elite midfielder, dont get me wrong I believe Trengove will become a star of the competion like a Bartel/Hodge but he will need other elite midfielders with him. Backline of melbourne is solid especially the talls and couple of promising young tall defenders on list already, the forward line is definitely missing a key tall target but give Cook time he may surprise. Melbourne need a quality small defender that can use the ball and shutdown opposistion small forward. Ideally you want to build a 10 player minimum midfield group, demons have some pieces already there but need a couple of those top tier onballers. Viney looks like will be the goods as he is hard as a cats head and always on the bottom of the pack something clearly lacking from Demons this year barring couple of players and the club would also love to get hands on one of these 17yr olds to fill another piece.

[sydneydee 647]

I'm not sure if anyone else has said this, but am I the only one who would be leaning towards Crouch more than O'Meara?

I also would be very happy for us to target Crouch over O'Meara at the right price.

Personally I dont want Melb to give up both priority picks this year. As I would like to keep one up our sleave for next years auction. Giving up 3 1st round picks as some have suggested is too big a risk as a lot can change in 12 months. For three 1st round picks can should be targeting a proven star not 17 yo that cant play for another 18 months.

I understand that GWS want picks but if we could get Crouch for one priority pick plus a player (Davey) then that would be a win. It would mean next year we would have Viney/Crouch and another round 1 pick which would really strengthen our midfield. We can then use pick 12 and/or a player to target an established star midfielder during trade week.

It will be exciting to see what happens next week with the mini draft I just hope we are considered with what we offer.

[Mono 454]

Also from today's Age came this little beauty on Andrew Krakouer (put down your coffee before reading):

Krakouer's manager, Peter Jess, yesterday said the small forward was worth about $500,000 a season

Read more: http://www.theage.co...l#ixzz1aFgo4Jzd

...

Jeez I laughed when read this. Krakouer and his manager really appreciated the lifeline the filth gave him. Quickest way to get himself back into the WAFL I would have thought.

[Redleg 37,635]

According to today's Age O/Meara is off to GC and we will struggle to get Crouch.

[H_T 2,941]

Jeez I laughed when read this. Krakouer and his manager really appreciated the lifeline the filth gave him. Quickest way to get himself back into the WAFL I would have thought.

Peter Jess....enough said.

[Robbie57 1,990]

Dees to focus on 17 yo's.

http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/7415/newsid/124846/default.aspx

[H_T 2,941]

Dees to focus on 17 yo's.

http://www.melbourne...46/default.aspx

I'm pleased to read this. It will be very interesting to see if we can beat the likes of the Bulldogs, Crows, etc to the punch. I think it will involve both compo picks. I know GWS have stated they're only interested in picks, but I wonder if they'll look at any established player(s) offered up as part of the bids... .

[Robbie57 1,990]

I'm pleased to read this. It will be very interesting to see if we can beat the likes of the Bulldogs, Crows, etc to the punch. I think it will involve both compo picks. I know GWS have stated they're only interested in picks, but I wonder if they'll look at any established player(s) offered up as part of the bids... .

I wouldn't be surprised if we get pick 2 and then go on to the draft to do something unexpected.

[BAMF 3,787]

I've said this in another thread but if we use both compo picks then I want something back.

Both compo picks + Pick 12 for Pick 1 mini and Pick 9

maybe upgrade our 2nd round pick too.