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WELCOME TO THE MELBOURNE FOOTBALL CLUB - DECLAN KEILTY

Steve13
in Melbourne Demons

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I will declare my bias off the bat, I have know Declan and his family for a long time and have followed his career very closely. He has had a fantastic year at Casey being voted VFL player of the month in June and culminating in being named in the VFL team of the year. 

At 21, 195cm and 90+ kg, he has shown that he can more than hold down a key position and has battled manfully in the ruck when required this year. 

He must be worth looking at either as a late pick or in the rookie draft. 

Unfortunately I have not seen any Casey games live this year due to work commitments (I have watched a lot on TV/replay) can those how have seen him live shed any more light on Dec and his draft chances? 

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    Would think he's a very good chance for late round pick or rookie draft.

    The only thing that might hold him back is his lack of a position (or some may see that as a good attribute).

    He's spent various times this year up forward, pinch hitting in the ruck, and for the last few weeks has found himself playing as a defender.

    Has the size, skills are decent and plenty of upside still in fitness levels etc. Took a few big hits this year and gets back up more often than not, so loves the physical stuff too.

    Would definitely be an upgrade on Max King for our rookie list, but of course we don't get any first crack at him so will be at the mercy of other teams drafting intentions.

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    On a non-related note, I'd also look at rookie-ing Oscar McInerney for our ruck depth, he certainly looks to have plenty of upside and has forced himself into the Casey seniors at the right time of year for the finals, which certainly puts him in the draft shop window.

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    35 minutes ago, Nasher said:

    One of his family members has been posting here in the VFL threads, might be able to shed some light.

    Paging @Drunkn167... Never tested out the tagging system on here before, let's see if it works!

    Thanks Nasher

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    11 hours ago, Nasher said:

    One of his family members has been posting here in the VFL threads, might be able to shed some light.

    Paging @Drunkn167... Never tested out the tagging system on here before, let's see if it works!

    Sup. What would you like to know? I'll answer any questions as best as I can.

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    13 minutes ago, Drunkn167 said:

    Sup. What would you like to know? I'll answer any questions as best as I can.

    Does big red have mongrel in him? 

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    23 minutes ago, Drunkn167 said:

    Sup. What would you like to know? I'll answer any questions as best as I can.

    Any chance he plays for us next year? Have we shown interest?

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    12 minutes ago, Ethan Tremblay said:

    Does big red have mongrel in him? 

    Only on the football field. He never really used too, his twin sister stole all the grunt. But it's amazing how he can go from chillaxed to completely switched on as soon as he steps onto the grass. He used to be the kid who would pick the opposition off the ground before moving onto the net contest, but not any more. 

    Like earlier this year in Casey's second game v Collingwood which they lost, Dec cleared the ball at one stage and Aish, instead of trying to smother, went for Dec directly to try and take him out. Well Dec still got the clearance and Aish bounced off of him and landed on his back. Dec looked down, saw Aish, and immediately jumped on him. Really gave him a good hammering before being dragged off by 2 Collingwood players. 

    Just now, Steve13 said:

    Any chance he plays for us next year? Have we shown interest?

    Don't think so. When he finished his preseason with Melbourne this year he had a meeting with Roosey and the coaching staff which basically said 'sorry but we don't really have a place for you.' That might've changed since then, but I doubt it.

    Justin Plapp did tell us at the start of the year if Dec has a good year he will be drafted. We know for a fact the North Melbourne, Geelong and Essendon are looking at him, and the staff at Casey believe there is one or two more. He was invited to the state combine, and he did a day of testing with North at the end of last year where afterwards he was told they would be looking at him as a Rookie if he played VFL Seniors all year.

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    3 hours ago, Drunkn167 said:

    Only on the football field. He never really used too, his twin sister stole all the grunt. But it's amazing how he can go from chillaxed to completely switched on as soon as he steps onto the grass. He used to be the kid who would pick the opposition off the ground before moving onto the net contest, but not any more. 

    Like earlier this year in Casey's second game v Collingwood which they lost, Dec cleared the ball at one stage and Aish, instead of trying to smother, went for Dec directly to try and take him out. Well Dec still got the clearance and Aish bounced off of him and landed on his back. Dec looked down, saw Aish, and immediately jumped on him. Really gave him a good hammering before being dragged off by 2 Collingwood players. 

    Don't think so. When he finished his preseason with Melbourne this year he had a meeting with Roosey and the coaching staff which basically said 'sorry but we don't really have a place for you.' That might've changed since then, but I doubt it.

    Justin Plapp did tell us at the start of the year if Dec has a good year he will be drafted. We know for a fact the North Melbourne, Geelong and Essendon are looking at him, and the staff at Casey believe there is one or two more. He was invited to the state combine, and he did a day of testing with North at the end of last year where afterwards he was told they would be looking at him as a Rookie if he played VFL Seniors all year.

    Good info, cheers.

     I am a little disappointed that we are not considering him, but would be happy for him to get an oppertunity at AFL level

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    Declan probably should be put on the senior list next year, Smith and the other basketballer should be added to the rookie list and not be clasified as "B" rookies.

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    Keilty was impressive for Casey in the games I got to see. At 21 yo he is the perfect rookie list candidate. 

    It's a shame to hear we may have already passed on taking him.

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    1 hour ago, Steve13 said:

    Good info, cheers.

     I am a little disappointed that we are not considering him, but would be happy for him to get an oppertunity at AFL level

    The fact that the club's staff reached the conclusion after the preseason that they didn't "really have a place" for him doesn't mean that we're necessarily not interested now. At that point in time, Keilty was on the fringe of breaking into Casey's senior team. In a short space of time, he's established his place and further, gained recognition as a member of the VFL Team of the Year. He's come a long way in a short space of time so I wouldn't discount that there's interest there.

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    53 minutes ago, Whispering_Jack said:

    The fact that the club's staff reached the conclusion after the preseason that they didn't "really have a place" for him doesn't mean that we're necessarily not interested now. At that point in time, Keilty was on the fringe of breaking into Casey's senior team. In a short space of time, he's established his place and further, gained recognition as a member of the VFL Team of the Year. He's come a long way in a short space of time so I wouldn't discount that there's interest there.

    Really hope you're right.

    On the other hand, at that point in time it may say a lot that Roos et al even thought it was worth meeting with a player who wasn't even a regular at Casey. 

    Surely the brains trust would think differently about him now. He could develop into a real utility, in the sense of specialist "makes-a-big-contribution-wherever-the-need-is-greatest" utility, rather than "not-really-good-enough-for-any-one-position" utility. And therefore valuable to have on the list, especially if (God Lucifer forbid) a couple of our falls get injuries next year..

     

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    On 13 September 2016 at 8:59 AM, Steve13 said:

    I will declare my bias off the bat, I have know Declan and his family for a long time and have followed his career very closely. He has had a fantastic year at Casey being voted VFL player of the month in June and culminating in being named in the VFL team of the year. 

    At 21, 195cm and 90+ kg, he has shown that he can more than hold down a key position and has battled manfully in the ruck when required this year. 

    He must be worth looking at either as a late pick or in the rookie draft. 

    Unfortunately I have not seen any Casey games live this year due to work commitments (I have watched a lot on TV/replay) can those how have seen him live shed any more light on Dec and his draft chances? 

    Just out of curiosity, who are you and how do you know us?

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    6 hours ago, Drunkn167 said:

    Just out of curiosity, who are you and how do you know us?

    My wife Tara is long time family friends. Babysat the kids when they were young. Could I ask your relationship? 

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    Feel free to correct any/all of this as I go but from what I've seen and heard:

    He's not big enough or athletic enough to ruck at AFL level. Nor does he have the talent to play forward - very few do. So we are looking at a key defender. 

    To be a key defender I think you need:
    - Endurance: ok for a young VFL player but not amazing from the running I saw in preseason where he was a fair way down the pack
    - Athleticism: think he's pretty good in that regard, moves nicely considering he'll fill out in to a pretty strong lad
    - Speed: pretty solid but not Frost level fast
    - Good mark: yep
    - Competitiveness: yep, is willing to spoil and use his body
    - Kicking skills: doesn't make many mistakes at VFL but probably isn't his strong suit at the next level

    I think with good AFL development he could play a few games but in the few times I've watched Casey I haven't seen anything that really blows me away like a big game of intercept marks or a game where he's rebounded, broke lines and kicked like an AFL flanker. 

    If we move on one of Dunn or Garland we probably need to add another young key defender, I guess time will tell who that will be. I certainly wish him well. It will be a big tick for the Casey program and help both the Dees and Casey to have someone drafted. The more players drafted from your VFL club the more incentive for young players to go there and as that talent develops the stronger your VFL team and the more entrenched your AFL players get with winning and winning culture.

     

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    1 hour ago, Clint Bizkit said:

    I'm flattered that you have started a thread about me with so many comments.

    lol nice try but no

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    1 hour ago, DeeSpencer said:

    Feel free to correct any/all of this as I go but from what I've seen and heard:

    He's not big enough or athletic enough to ruck at AFL level. Nor does he have the talent to play forward - very few do. So we are looking at a key defender. 

    To be a key defender I think you need:
    - Endurance: ok for a young VFL player but not amazing from the running I saw in preseason where he was a fair way down the pack
    - Athleticism: think he's pretty good in that regard, moves nicely considering he'll fill out in to a pretty strong lad
    - Speed: pretty solid but not Frost level fast
    - Good mark: yep
    - Competitiveness: yep, is willing to spoil and use his body
    - Kicking skills: doesn't make many mistakes at VFL but probably isn't his strong suit at the next level

    I think with good AFL development he could play a few games but in the few times I've watched Casey I haven't seen anything that really blows me away like a big game of intercept marks or a game where he's rebounded, broke lines and kicked like an AFL flanker. 

    If we move on one of Dunn or Garland we probably need to add another young key defender, I guess time will tell who that will be. I certainly wish him well. It will be a big tick for the Casey program and help both the Dees and Casey to have someone drafted. The more players drafted from your VFL club the more incentive for young players to go there and as that talent develops the stronger your VFL team and the more entrenched your AFL players get with winning and winning culture.

     

    Pretty well spot on. The only thing I'd like to correct is his ability to ruck. You are right in the sense he can't be a full time ruck but he has an incredible vertical jump that can match/beat most AFL players and the few times he has rucked against AFL listed ruck/forwards this year he has either held his ground or won.

    His endurance is a bit on the average side and always has been and he definitely needs to work on it though 

    Edited by Drunkn167

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    19 minutes ago, Drunkn167 said:

    Pretty well spot on. The only thing I'd like to correct is his ability to ruck. You are right in the sense he can't be a full time ruck but he has an incredible vertical jump that can match/beat most AFL players and the few times he has rucked against AFL listed ruck/forwards this year he has either held his ground or won.

    His endurance is a bit on the average side and always has been and he definitely needs to work on it though 

    Fair enough. I guess just being 195cm it's a fair effort to go against the 2nd rucks that are mostly 200cm plus these days. I'm sure he'd give it a go and probably be better than Pedda or Watts but I wouldn't recruit him for it unless he leaps like Nic Nat! 

    Sounds like he's more of a power athlete so could be a full back a bit like Frost instead of a running CHB like one of the McDonald's. Might suit an Etihad team where he can camp back inside defensive 50 and then pick off contests. Could really suit North at FB whilst Tarrant does the running at CHB. 

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