Looks like a very natural footballer, which I love.

And clearly, the FD believe our key defensive stocks are weak regardless of what @Satyriconhome believes.

I'd go so far as to say that this bloke looks more impressive than Oscar did at the same age.

We now have O-Mac, Frost, Keilty and Petty as developing keys with Lever the only definite best 22 key defender.

Sometimes if the talent is still on the board and is that much better than the "needs picks" available, you go for the talent.

"Draft for talent, trade for needs"

I'm very comfortable with this pick at 36, especially if he comes on but we have no room for him, and we trade him for higher commodities in a few years, a la Adelaide & Lever (although they had no choice in that equation).

Gee that is probably one of the more impressive highlights package (yes, I know) that I have seen from a tall defender.

33 minutes ago, stevethemanjordan said:

Looks like a very natural footballer, which I love.

And clearly, the FD believe our key defensive stocks are weak regardless of what @Satyriconhome believes.

I'd go so far as to say that this bloke looks more impressive than Oscar did at the same age.

We now have O-Mac, Frost, Keilty and Petty as developing keys with Lever the only definite best 22 key defender.

You have come round to TMac playing forward then?

I did a best 22 the other day and the question marks were TMac fwd. OMac and Frost as the KPDs.

 

12 hours ago, DeeSpencer said:

Flags are won with Rance, Astbury and Grimes as well. Or Morris and Hamling (with Roberts) shutting down Franklin. Or Brian Lake. Or Scarlett and Harley. 

If Weeds comes on we trade Tom McDonald or Hogan. Cross that bridge when we come to it. Weeds has all of Cam Pedersen's games to play first before taking games away from those guys.

Jones has plenty of time left. Vince and Lewis were both ordinary for most of the year. Getting Salem, Oliver, Brayshaw and Petracca fitter means they'll be the possession winners with Viney and Tyson. Along with Hunt, ANB, Melksham, Hannan, Harmes, Stretch. Give me those 12 with a lock down defensive unit and a functional forward line and I'll be happy.

3 picks of running players. 1 pick on a tall and I can see a tall defender being of much more value than a tall forward or back up ruck.

Jones missed 6 weeks last year with a quad and has already done a calf this pre-season. Vince is borderline best 22 and has 1 left. Lewis has 1 good season and 1 ordinary season left. Salem and Brayshaw are far from proven, bona fide afl mids capable of playing 20 good games a season. When Viney misses, as we saw last season - it all falls onto Oliver's shoulders. There is not enough depth. I hope Brayshaw and Salem finally begin to justify their draft ranking, and that Maynard, vandenBerg and Harmes come on to help this.  

I like the look of Petty, but it certainly wasn't a need. Our key defenders are young and developing. The way they have pumped games into him, our FD seem to have great faith in Oscar as a long term prospect. Unlike the midfield, no one retires in a year or two, in fact they'll just be entering their prime. Petty now develops behind Oscar, Lever, Frost and Keilty, who have 8-10 years ahead of them. Who knows how Tom Mac goes as a forward when the oppposition start putting work into him as a forward.

I also see no need to bring in a medium forward who is a clone of Mitch Hannan. Fritsch needs two seasons in the gym and has not proven himself of being able to pinch hit in the midfield at VFL level. Once he puts on 8 kilos, will he be good enough to dislodge Petracca, Hannan, Melksham, ANB, Harmes, Bugg etc from a half forward flank? We have them coming out of our ears!

Anyway, good luck to them and I hope I'm wrong, but for mine, Fritsch and Petty picks should have been Pettrucelle and Worpol.

This kid is uncannily like a young Dustin Fletcher. Except .......a much better kick. He along with Lever will create a wall and carve the opposition up on the rebound.

Inspired drafting and a steal at this pick in my opinion.

 

 

33 minutes ago, Watts Jurrah Dunn? said:

Jones missed 6 weeks last year with a quad and has already done a calf this pre-season. Vince is borderline best 22 and has 1 left. Lewis has 1 good season and 1 ordinary season left. Salem and Brayshaw are far from proven, bona fide afl mids capable of playing 20 good games a season. When Viney misses, as we saw last season - it all falls onto Oliver's shoulders. There is not enough depth. I hope Brayshaw and Salem finally begin to justify their draft ranking, and that Maynard, vandenBerg and Harmes come on to help this.  

I like the look of Petty, but it certainly wasn't a need. Our key defenders are young and developing. The way they have pumped games into him, our FD seem to have great faith in Oscar as a long term prospect. Unlike the midfield, no one retires in a year or two, in fact they'll just be entering their prime. Petty now develops behind Oscar, Lever, Frost and Keilty, who have 8-10 years ahead of them. Who knows how Tom Mac goes as a forward when the oppposition start putting work into him as a forward.

I also see no need to bring in a medium forward who is a clone of Mitch Hannan. Fritsch needs two seasons in the gym and has not proven himself of being able to pinch hit in the midfield at VFL level. Once he puts on 8 kilos, will he be good enough to dislodge Petracca, Hannan, Melksham, ANB, Harmes, Bugg etc from a half forward flank? We have them coming out of our ears!

Anyway, good luck to them and I hope I'm wrong, but for mine, Fritsch and Petty picks should have been Pettrucelle and Worpol.

Reckon you might see Petracca and ANB spend more time running through the middle once Vince/Lewis are moved on. ANB certainly has the tank to be a full time mid, and developed wonderfully last year. Melksham also has stints on ball. We will also pick up more midfield talent over the next 2 years to replace the retirees.

 

Love Pettys highlights video. He seems to have something our current Tall Backs lack, and that is a nice accurate kick (yeah I know, its highlights only). While Oscar no doubt improved through the season, I think its nice to have a developing Key Back who can actually be given real time to do just that, rather than being thrown to the wolves against the current forward line monsters who are in most teams now.

Fritsch to me is interesting, in that he has a monster left leg on him, meaning he can roam a bit further from goal and still be a threat.That successful set shot for goal from inside the centre square in his vid was amazing. I prefer Hannan closer to goal. Deep forward pocket. He has an amazing ability to get boot to ball, and an innate sense of where the goals are. Possibly look for Fritsch to play the Petracca role when Trac has stints on-ball in the coming seasons.

 

Two small forwards drafted in the past 2 drafts, and both described as competitive beasts. At least we wont be soft targets any more, at least not against everyone but Norf, who seem to have us mentally/physically beaten every time they play us.

53 minutes ago, Watts Jurrah Dunn? said:

Jones missed 6 weeks last year with a quad and has already done a calf this pre-season. Vince is borderline best 22 and has 1 left. Lewis has 1 good season and 1 ordinary season left. Salem and Brayshaw are far from proven, bona fide afl mids capable of playing 20 good games a season. When Viney misses, as we saw last season - it all falls onto Oliver's shoulders. There is not enough depth. I hope Brayshaw and Salem finally begin to justify their draft ranking, and that Maynard, vandenBerg and Harmes come on to help this.  

I like the look of Petty, but it certainly wasn't a need. Our key defenders are young and developing. The way they have pumped games into him, our FD seem to have great faith in Oscar as a long term prospect. Unlike the midfield, no one retires in a year or two, in fact they'll just be entering their prime. Petty now develops behind Oscar, Lever, Frost and Keilty, who have 8-10 years ahead of them. Who knows how Tom Mac goes as a forward when the oppposition start putting work into him as a forward.

I also see no need to bring in a medium forward who is a clone of Mitch Hannan. Fritsch needs two seasons in the gym and has not proven himself of being able to pinch hit in the midfield at VFL level. Once he puts on 8 kilos, will he be good enough to dislodge Petracca, Hannan, Melksham, ANB, Harmes, Bugg etc from a half forward flank? We have them coming out of our ears!

Anyway, good luck to them and I hope I'm wrong, but for mine, Fritsch and Petty picks should have been Pettrucelle and Worpol.

This post makes little sense...

You wanted us to draft 2 unknowns to boost our midfield depth when we have a few knowns in Brayshaw and Salem who at the moment have to bide their time on flanks where as you say we have them coming out of our ears.

We will be in a good position to trade in class/needs over the next few years as Jones, Vince and Lewis move on. We do that by having better players on our list not by drafting/taking chances drafting players our recruiters and list management people don't rate to fill so called needs now.

 

14 hours ago, DeeSpencer said:

What plethora?

Tom is a forward now. Years of turnovers = no more backline.

Oscar, Frost and Lever are our starters. Joel Smith the back up medium, Wagner a 3rd tall option if needed but really a flanker type. Keilty a rookie list mature back up. That's it. 

Frost is a bit out of favour, Oscar isn't solidfied as a genuine long term option, Joel Smith limited experience, makes a lot of sense to bring in another one.

Frosty should not be out of favour  - he is a genuine talent and lead-taker, he finds space very well and can run, run, run when needed; if our game plan for the coming season turns out as our recruiting efforts predictably indicate, then Frosty's mobility is going to be core to our capacity for 'whole field' running, eliminating the 'bomb' to nowhere. 

luv what l saw in his highlights, will be ready in 12 months.

noticed in his highlights he also played forward, so i wouldn't assume he is necessarily 'just another tall defender'

with a bit of luck he may develop into a versatile kp utility

Looks like a very nice kick from the highlights.

5 hours ago, Vagg said:

The irony is that now, with this guy on our list, some of the "petty" comments on this site might be serious!  LOL

Stop dragging this thread around!

 

3 hours ago, Deemania since 56 said:

Frosty should not be out of favour  - he is a genuine talent and lead-taker, he finds space very well and can run, run, run when needed; if our game plan for the coming season turns out as our recruiting efforts predictably indicate, then Frosty's mobility is going to be core to our capacity for 'whole field' running, eliminating the 'bomb' to nowhere. 

Frost has a limited tank. If he's streaming forward one way he wont' be streaming back. He's also a shonky kick and not a natural reader of the play. His opponents pick up the flight of the ball quicker than him. 

I like him as a player but he's still yet to solidify his spot in the team and the reality might be he's best used as depth.

4 hours ago, Watts Jurrah Dunn? said:

Jones missed 6 weeks last year with a quad and has already done a calf this pre-season. Vince is borderline best 22 and has 1 left. Lewis has 1 good season and 1 ordinary season left. Salem and Brayshaw are far from proven, bona fide afl mids capable of playing 20 good games a season. When Viney misses, as we saw last season - it all falls onto Oliver's shoulders. There is not enough depth. I hope Brayshaw and Salem finally begin to justify their draft ranking, and that Maynard, vandenBerg and Harmes come on to help this.  

I like the look of Petty, but it certainly wasn't a need. Our key defenders are young and developing. The way they have pumped games into him, our FD seem to have great faith in Oscar as a long term prospect. Unlike the midfield, no one retires in a year or two, in fact they'll just be entering their prime. Petty now develops behind Oscar, Lever, Frost and Keilty, who have 8-10 years ahead of them. Who knows how Tom Mac goes as a forward when the oppposition start putting work into him as a forward.

I also see no need to bring in a medium forward who is a clone of Mitch Hannan. Fritsch needs two seasons in the gym and has not proven himself of being able to pinch hit in the midfield at VFL level. Once he puts on 8 kilos, will he be good enough to dislodge Petracca, Hannan, Melksham, ANB, Harmes, Bugg etc from a half forward flank? We have them coming out of our ears!

Anyway, good luck to them and I hope I'm wrong, but for mine, Fritsch and Petty picks should have been Pettrucelle and Worpol.

Jones is 29 and has the fitness and skill to transition to an outside role. A couple of injuries won't change my mind on that. Vince won't be missed if he rarely plays this year, Joel Smith and Lever - different players sure - can replace his backine games. Or Lewis moves to half back and Stretch plays on the wing. Lewis will be clinging to his spot in the side for one more year, that's fine. Pretty much we are phasing out Vince for now and putting in Lever. Phasing out Lewis next year and there's a raft of players ready to replace him - Spargo could play half forward, Melksham on a wing in 2019, easy.

I don't know how Tom Mc will go as a forward but it's increasingly clear he's done as a defender. Oscar and Frost have played games out of necessity. They were good enough to move Dunn on but that's about it, a healthy Garland might've played at times if available. Look at the best and fairest rankings to see the coaches thoughts. Keilty - I don't mind him - but there's nothing to suggest he's a permanent AFL player so far. Right as we sit there's more chance he's delisted than promoted in 12 months and I don't mean that to be harsh, that's the reality for mature age tall pick ups, they have to dominate at VFL and get games to stay on. I actually think Keilty's best value would be as a Pedersen swing man rather than ever being best 22 anyway.

There was no reason to play Fritsch in the midfield at Casey. He was their most consistent path to goal and developing well. The Dogs did the same thing with Hannan, hid him in a forward pocket until he was drafted. Hannan clearly has something to offer up the ground at AFL level. By all reports Fristch has excellent endurance and a lovely kick, so moving him to the wing or half back has to be an option and doesn't require a massive bulking up. 

Petrucelle looks like a forward to me. Too shonky a kick to play midfield until you've done years of work there. Express pace for pressuring would be nice but I'd go for ability to kick and mark more. Worpel seemed a nice player but has to be in the contest, either at half back or on ball. Would he dislodge any of our inside mids? I'll stick with Viney, Oliver, Petracca, Tyson and Brayshaw over Worpel.

9 hours ago, Is Dom Is Good said:

He looks really solid. Could be an astute pick up by Taylor and Co.

Astute with a little inside intel - Todd's nephew was a teammate of Petty's this season.

Selections before academy and father/son bidding: 29, 31, 36, 47
Selections after bidding: 29, 31, 37, 48 
Who they picked: Charlie Spargo, Bayley Fritsch, Harrison Petty, Oskar Baker

Verdict: Spargo is a terrific play-making midfielder-forward, with the capacity to take the play on and create for his team. He is the son of former North Melbourne and Brisbane Lions player Paul. Only a shoulder injury kept him from producing another consistent season. Fritsch is well known to Melbourne after kicking 42 goals in 19 VFL games for the Casey Demons. Petty will add to a developing tall back mix after an outstanding under-18 championships. Melbourne has long been into Baker who comes from Aspley in the NEAFL. Has been dubbed the 'ginger ninja' and it's clear by watching his highlight tapes that Baker has some serious breakaway pace through the midfield. The Demons believed they needed to add to their small forward setup and did so with Spargo and Fritsch. Look for Petty to push to be in senior contention early days too - he can play. - Ben Guthrie

Reads the play very well. And can kick it well. Also in the highlights went forward so that’s handy. 

Hell be given time given there’s no immediate need. 

We will be patient with him i'm sure but with Garland going out, Tommy going forward it gives us a bit more depth down back. 

I think he's definitely someone who looks like he could very easily become a reliable AFL defender 

Some judges have him at selection 22 are they right?

If so we did well at 36 to get him we have to back our Football Department who will never get it right 100% of the time.

The Football Department will always have a comparisons like Parish / Oliver and Curnow /Weideman where their judgement is dependent on who has the final say in the selection?

22 hours ago, daisycutter said:

noticed in his highlights he also played forward, so i wouldn't assume he is necessarily 'just another tall defender'

with a bit of luck he may develop into a versatile kp utility

It's a good point this, Daise, he may well be back up for Weideman as well.

12 hours ago, Males said:

Selections before academy and father/son bidding: 29, 31, 36, 47
Selections after bidding: 29, 31, 37, 48 
Who they picked: Charlie Spargo, Bayley Fritsch, Harrison Petty, Oskar Baker

Verdict: Spargo is a terrific play-making midfielder-forward, with the capacity to take the play on and create for his team. He is the son of former North Melbourne and Brisbane Lions player Paul. Only a shoulder injury kept him from producing another consistent season. Fritsch is well known to Melbourne after kicking 42 goals in 19 VFL games for the Casey Demons. Petty will add to a developing tall back mix after an outstanding under-18 championships. Melbourne has long been into Baker who comes from Aspley in the NEAFL. Has been dubbed the 'ginger ninja' and it's clear by watching his highlight tapes that Baker has some serious breakaway pace through the midfield. The Demons believed they needed to add to their small forward setup and did so with Spargo and Fritsch. Look for Petty to push to be in senior contention early days too - he can play. - Ben Guthrie

Yeah, looking at his highlights, if there are any injuries back there, I'd say he'll get a look in if the FD are convinced he has the fitness base.

The thing about Lever is he has been known to pick up a hammy or two. So there may well be a few games in 2018 that we can use to give Petty a look in.

 

On 25/11/2017 at 12:41 PM, rjay said:

This post makes little sense...

You wanted us to draft 2 unknowns to boost our midfield depth when we have a few knowns in Brayshaw and Salem who at the moment have to bide their time on flanks where as you say we have them coming out of our ears.

We will be in a good position to trade in class/needs over the next few years as Jones, Vince and Lewis move on. We do that by having better players on our list not by drafting/taking chances drafting players our recruiters and list management people don't rate to fill so called needs now.

 

Here it is simplified for you.

We are out of the super draft next year, so there's another opportunity gone to get a quality midfielder.

3 of our mids are almost done.

Only 2 are proven AFL midfielders and will be there in 2020 when we are beating down the door.

We don't need another half forward flanker or key position defender.

Constable or Petruccelle at 31, and Worpol at 37 would have been better selections given our lack of midfield depth.

6 minutes ago, Watts Jurrah Dunn? said:

Here it is simplified for you.

We are out of the super draft next year, so there's another opportunity gone to get a quality midfielder.

3 of our mids are almost done.

Only 2 are proven AFL midfielders and will be there in 2020 when we are beating down the door.

We don't need another half forward flanker or key position defender.

Constable or Petruccelle at 31, and Worpol at 37 would have been better selections given our lack of midfield depth.

Let me simplify it for you...

Maybe none of these players are good enough. The FD would seem to think that's the case.

We don't need more list cloggers but we can develop quality for our own needs and for future trade bait.

You are looking at things in a very one dimensional way and we are far from done and locked out of trading or drafting in 2018...