Love it. Didn't think we'd take him with 8 (12) as he didn't have the usual pathway that a new recruit would - but it's a bold play and the romanticism behind it can't be ignored.

We needed a small forward and we got one that has a sky high ceiling. We're not going to die wondering, and we won't have to cry about seeing him tear it up at another club.

I'm still on the fence about this pick, will be curious to see this one in retrospect. We've rolled the dice and now we cheer him on.

Some of the comments on social media seem to think we picked him far too early (#12) despite being linked at other clubs at round Pick 15.

12 hours ago, manny100 said:

May well play early in the season. Has good endurance and did a good 2km.

Promising rookie me profile. Will allow Kosi to play more mid and be extra dangerous when he (Kosi) drifts forward. Speed and X Factor - i like it.

Latrelle Pickett Draft Profile - Aussie Rules Rookie Me Central (formerly AFL Draft Central)

STRENGTHS:

+ Scoreboard impact
+ Speed
+ Vertical leap
+ X-factor

IMPROVEMENTS:

- Defensive work rate
- Exposure

The last line under "IMPROVEMENTS" is "Exposure". What does that mean?

43 minutes ago, Demonland said:

There was an issue with sharing Twitter/X posts yesterday so here is a dump of some content for posterity.

His surname is Sumner-Pickett - not Pickett - why can't we get this right?

Just now, Neil Crompton said:

His surname is Sumner-Pickett - not Pickett - why can't we get this right?

I feel like his nickname should be Julius.

10 minutes ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

The last line under "IMPROVEMENTS" is "Exposure". What does that mean?

Showers with clothes on?

Wtf does it mean lol....no clue.

IIRC, Kozzie was a real bolter and right up until draft day, wasn't rated in the top 25. Many here and in the media called the pick a reach. Got it horribly wrong

But with Latrelle, whilst starting out as a pick in the mid to late 20's, he ended up being touted as a top 15 pick

Anyway, Taylor knows more than most so if we're ever going to trust anyone, it's JT

By the way, I wouldn't be calling Kolt or Laurie a bust just yet. Laurie has been starved of opportunities whilst Kolt was drafted as a mid/forward and is yet to receive quality minutes in the midfield

All our new additions need time to develop (3-4 years, not some tiny sample size)

Edited 15 hours ago15 hr by Macca

I can understand the worry around Latrelle only playing ‘reserves’. Kozzy was playing the same level when he was drafted yes he was slightly younger but Glenelg was looking to 3 peat this year and has been the best SANFL team over the past few years so the fact that he was able to break into the side for a few games in the seniors shows there’s been sharp improvement in him considering he wasn’t even in a SANFL program 12 months ago. High risk high reward pick in what is considered a weak & even draft but has shown the scope to play up to a higher level of competition in a small period of time.

35 minutes ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

The last line under "IMPROVEMENTS" is "Exposure". What does that mean?

Means he hasn't played a lot of top level footy at either underage or state level.

29 minutes ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

I feel like his nickname should be Julius.

Why is it so?

16 minutes ago, AB10 said:

I can understand the worry around Latrelle only playing ‘reserves’. Kozzy was playing the same level when he was drafted yes he was slightly younger but Glenelg was looking to 3 peat this year and has been the best SANFL team over the past few years so the fact that he was able to break into the side for a few games in the seniors shows there’s been sharp improvement in him considering he wasn’t even in a SANFL program 12 months ago. High risk high reward pick in what is considered a weak & even draft but has shown the scope to play up to a higher level of competition in a small period of time.

I think this is the view that takes in the bigger picture and highlights why we picked him. JT said he has always had the talent but he as applied himself and made his way into the glenelg seniors. Only had 1 preseason with them and saw big improvement and growth, (topped the state combine 2km) imagine what he could do in an AFL system.

Definitley the small forward we have been missing with kozzy going into the midfield

29 minutes ago, Macca said:

IIRC, Kozzie was a real bolter and right up until draft day, wasn't rated in the top 25. Many here and in the media called the pick a reach. Got it horribly wrong

But with Latrelle, whilst starting out as a pick in the mid to late 20's, he ended up being touted as a top 15 pick

Anyway, Taylor knows more than most so if we're ever going to trust anyone, it's JT

By the way, I wouldn't be calling Kolt or Laurie a bust just yet. Laurie has been starved of opportunities whilst Kolt was drafted as a mid/forward and is yet to receive quality minutes in the midfield

All our new additions need time to develop (3-4 years, not some tiny sample size)

This is completely fair, he was well and truly in the sights of both North and GWS by all reports, with picks that were merely 3 and 4 picks later than our Pick 12. It's a pretty big overreaction by some to say he wasn't worthy of Pick 12.

12 hours ago, BoBo said:

Some very nice field kicking in those highlights

Thank god the footage wasn’t as offensive as the music, 🤮

Interview with Latrelle Pickett on SEN on 19th November 2025 after he was drafted.

On 03/11/2025 at 11:45, BLWNBA said:

What I'm about to say is completely my take, but I would go as far to say that if we're unable to move capital around in order to take both 7 and 8 to the draft this year, in addition to moving into that second order of say Pick 12 - 20ish, then we may even considering taking Sumner-Pickett at 8. I think we're really enamoured by him so we could potentially see both Cummings and Sumner-Pickett come to us if we're not able to move.

I too, will give myself a shameless re-post, inspired by @rpfc and @JJJ

Edited 14 hours ago14 hr by BLWNBA

Irrelevant question: If Essendon went Robey and Sharp, what would we have done if Taylor and Farrow were still on the board? 🤔

As someone who has been sceptical of taking him with one of our first two picks, I think it helps to think about it in terms of “what gets us closer to our next Premiership”

There will naturally be questions on whether we should have taken Sharp as the next “best available”, but as much as I rate him as a player it’s possible that he doesn’t get us closer to our next flag when compared to Pickett

For instance, Sharp as a great and dependable inside mid probably gets Essendon closer to their next flag, but that type of player might not help us get there based on our current personnel and the style of game King wants to play

Pickett on the other hand might be surplus to needs for other clubs, but for us we desperately need a small forward with X factor who can pressure and hit targets, and because of that he has the potential to make a far bigger impact than Sharp would for us over the next few years

There’s a good chance that Sharp will end up being the “better” player, but clearly JT and co thought Pickett was the “better” player for us

5 minutes ago, Mouseymoo said:

Irrelevant question: If Essendon went Robey and Sharp, what would we have done if Taylor and Farrow were still on the board? 🤔

We seemed to have Pickett locked in by Tuesday, so I’m guessing we would have only taken one of Taylor or Farrow to keep balance (one def/mid and one small fwd)

Also we supposedly rated Robey, Cumming and Taylor the highest, so perhaps Farrow was actually further down our draft order than suspected 🤷

11 hours ago, redandbluemakepurple said:

A poor selection probably based on family connection.

I expect most close observers would at least have some concern over using a comparitivley early first round pick on a player that couldnt even make a SANFL grand final team.We dont get many first picks so they should be cherished and applied to best accelerate our rebuild .They shoudnt be speculative picks,We can use second and third round picks for that.The only factor that stops me seeing Pickett as a companion pony selection is that JT saw an untapped upside which would transform Latrelle .

2 hours ago, joeboy said:

Just as a matter of interest for the doubters, Cal Twomey had Kossie as a speculative Phantom Draft pick 30 prior to us making one of the most important club decisions EVER in selecting him

Memory is a funny thing.

If asked before last night when Koz was taken in his draft, I suspect many dees fans might have guessed top 10 such has been the level he has played at since being drafted

And many might also have forgotten that he was not projected by most draft watchers to go as high as 12. If IIRC many pundits had us linked to Cody Weightman, who ended up going to the dogs at pick 15. Weightman is an excellent player but i very much doubt there's many dees fans who regret the fact we took Koz.

Side note:

It would be a fascinating hypothetical exercise to redo the 2019 draft order - Rowell and Anderson were the deserved top 2, but geez in hindsight i'd be taking Koz over Jackson at pick 3, or for that matter any other player who went top 10, with the possible exception of Caleb Serong.

Speaking of Jackson an interesting factoid is only three first rounders have played in a winning flag from the 2019 draft - Jackson, Koz and Sam De Koning. And i think I'm right in saying of the 2019 first round draft picks only Koz, Anderson Rowell and Serong have been All Australian.

Edited 13 hours ago13 hr by binman

A very interesting draft selection. The recruiting team had mentioned that they've been watching him for ~3 years, so they're going in eyes wide open.

We all hope he'll be a star.

The benchmarks for LSP are Dyson Sharp and Lachy Dovaston. Some have said that Sharp is too much like Viney/Steele, but don't forget those guys are past their prime and we will want someone Sharp's age to replace them when they go. Dovaston was clearly the best small forward in the draft and was among the all-time best scores in the agility tests in the combine (and we're prioritising speed). If LSP doesn't acheive what those two players do (and we expect them to be very good) then we'll look back and say this was a bad call.

Edited 14 hours ago14 hr by JeffWhitesShinguard

2022 Exciting

2023 Exciting

2024 Getting hard to watch

2025 Largely unwatchable

The last two seasons we’ve been slow, boring, predictable and poorly skilled, the gameplan was stale and some of our players were confused. In 2026 we’ve got a new coach , gameplan and some new faces. I can’t wait to see Miohcheck and Pickett operating inside our fwd 50 along side two very handy players in Fritsch and Melksham. We need a reason to get excited again, a reason (for some) to get to as many games as possible and to get out of our seats when we are there. I’m hoping to get to Melbourne for three games this year plus watching us play the Swans at the SCG. What an exciting time to be a member of this great club.

13 hours ago, Bates Mate said:

Cuz Pickett. Has to be the nickname.

Cuz and koz bring it on

Yeah - Kozzie and Cuzzie! And a new name for the line coaches to use - Dee-fence and Pickett-fence!