Gawndog98

Anderson I believe has the potential to be a star of the competition but just from the games I've seen of him I think he needs to tidy up his ball use to reach an elite level. He seems a bit meat-and-potatoes at the moment who doesn't have a heap of damaging weapons to his game. I remember in his under 18 year he kicked a lot of goals as a midfielder but so far in his career he has kicked 4 goals from 35 games (0 this year) which is something he needs to rediscover. I'm not saying he is a dud I just think he's a tad overrated from what I've seen. Something I remember which was interesting is that we didn't have him in our top 5 on our draft board (was Rowell, Jacko, Green, Young, Dev Rob) so if GC wasn't given those draft concessions and we had pick 2 we still probably would've taken Jacko which probably would've caused a lot of outrage at the time. Just on that too I think I'd rather target Dev Rob than Anderson just because he would come way cheaper, I think he has a similar game and ceiling, I think he'd be more likely to leave because of opportunity (Lions midfield is stacked), and we have some connections with him playing a lot of junior footy with Jacko and Riv.

Don't really understand why some on here are so keen on Gunston. Had back surgery in December which didn't work, now he is having more back surgery, there's no guarantee it will fix him if the last lot didn't work. Serious back injuries can be one of the most debilitating injuries you can cop, and especially at the age of 30 next year his movement could be completely cooked which is a large part of his game. If we brought in Gunston and his body was okay it also means he's kicking one of BB, Tmac, Jackson, or Fritsch out of the team (you couldn't play Gunston with all of them). Big no from me, if he gets his body right I think he'd be perfect for Gold Coast as someone coming in who knows how to win and he could be groomed for a coaching role post footy.

Not sure if it has been brought up but I want to shoutout Clarry who copped a really heavy, relentless tag from Hutchings but still managed to have a big impact on the game. 21 contested touches, 9 clearances, and stood up in huge moments, hats off to him as in the past tagger's have got the best of him sometimes (DeBoer round 3). Harmes had his best game of the season, barely wasted a touch and his work rate with phenomenal. Needs to bring that every week. Bowey looking like a lock in the side, apart from that holding the ball he was so composed all night and you just feel safe and confident when he has the ball. I reckon its a safe bet that Salem will be rested this week so will get even more opportunity to show what he can do.

I'm not sure what to make of Billings either, looks awesome when he's on, but terrible when he's not and unfortunately those two outcomes occur as often as each other. I think Saints have stuffed with his role heaps and he'd do better if he was given just one position to knuckle down and in general I think he needs a change of scenery to get the best out of himself.

Would be a great deal for us but something to be considered is any picks Collingwood bring in this year are going to be swallowed up by a Daicos bid so they are likely going to be after picks in next years draft. Personally I rate Maynard so highly and would be vital to our structure (Hibbo replacement) id be happy to hand over our future 1st and be done with it. I think Maynard + Sidebottom for Weideman + future 1st is a fair deal for both sides that benefits what each side is trying to accomplish.

Can you play all of Brown, Tmac, Jackson, Fritsch, Gunston in the same forward line? Gunston is an absolute jet but IMO we already have our Gunston in Fritsch. Gunston might be cooked as well he has missed the entire year pretty much with a back injury, which is pretty bad especially for an older player. I'd like to see Fritsch drift higher up the ground more like Gunston does, his field kicking exquisite, especially going inside 50 always lowers his eyes.

Considering he barely gets a game for GC I doubt he'd be in the best 22 picture for us. Very, very lazy footballer who also is a inconsistent finisher, he's not really a pressure forward or a goal kicking forward I don't love him. Don't like Hanrahan either he reminds me of a poor man's ANB, he tries hard but just doesn't have the skills required to be an AFL footballer (not hating on ANB just a comparison in play style). I like your Stephens call though definitely potential there he does very much need to put on size though. The one I don't understand how he's not playing is Riccardi, definitely would be worth a crack, still just 21 not sure if this is a big call but I reckon he's got better upside than Weideman. After today still got some concerns with our midfield. Harmes' skills are a real worry, if he's not got a defensive job he can be very meh, Viney been a bit better but just trickling along, I've also got concerns with Viney's long term sustainability with his injuries and the way he plays though that 5 year deal was a mistake and reckon it'll come back to hurt eventually. Sparrow pretty meh as well I've got my doubts if he'll ever make it as a mid, Jordan does have better upside though. Think our mid depth might get found out come finals, just gotta hope our defence can stand tall, but its an issue we need to address this off season.

I'd argue Cerra doesn't have too much versatility either. Agreed it will be funny to see Carlton put all theirs eggs in one basket again which will destroy their salary cap overpaying B-graders like St Kilda and will be stuck mid table.

I agree with all of that, Viney, Harmes, and Brayshaw are all very limited footballers at times and fairly inconsistent. I think Rivers is the answer long term, Yeo is a great example of the type of player he could be. I think we should take a punt on someone like Constable and if Crouch didn't cost too much salary wise and his body was right I would welcome him.

Really like the Duggan call, gone very under the radar as still out of contract, exactly what we need in our midfield and he might lack opportunity in that Eagles midfield as Shuey, Kelly, Yeo, Gaff, Sheed all still have plenty of footy left in them. I believe Duggan still has a lot of untapped potential as an inside or outside mid who has just lacked opportunity. I actually believe our biggest need aside from a lockdown small defender to replace Hibbo (Maynard perfect target) is a quality inside mid. If you look at our midfield in comparison to the other top 4 teams it can fall away very quickly after Clarry and Trac. Saying that as well I reckon Trac is so dangerous when 1 out up forward and should be spending more stints deep forward 1v1, and he does do a lot of hack kicks out of the midfield. Here are the inside midfields of the other top 4 teams: Western Bulldogs: Bont, Macrae, Libba, Dunkley, Treloar, Bailey Smith Geelong: Dangerfield, Guthrie, Duncan, Selwood, Menegola, Parfitt Brisbane: Neale, Lyons, Zorko, McCluggage, Bailey, Dev Rob (not high quality yet but really like him) Melbourne: Oliver, Petracca, Viney, Harmes, Jordon, Brayshaw The bulldogs are a bit of an anomaly with how ridiculously good their midfield is but if you look past the first two names of our midfield in comparison with the other teams I believe there is a stark difference. Our midfield can become too reliant sometimes on Clarry and Trac and worst case scenario if one of them ever got injured we would be in serious strife. We ain't gonna have the cash to chase the big names like J.Kelly so here are a few cheaper mids that might be available. Adam Cerra - I believe whoever lands Cerra is going to significantly overpay for him, I personally don't see the insane hype he gets from the media sometimes, yeah his kicking looks sexy sometimes but I have my doubts he will ever reach those elite disposal numbers plus we won't have the assets to pluck him out of Freo which will be required which is a top 10 pick (which I think is way overs). Matt Crouch - All signs point to him heading home to Victoria. Not a sexy player as he is known to be low-impact-per-possession but hard to argue with an average of over 30 disposals per game every year since 2017 (taking out last year with shortened quarters). His kicking and lack of versatility aren't great, I see him as a similar player to Jarryd Lyons. Bit of an injury risk too with him sitting out this year with a groin injury. However these factors mean he isn't going to cost a bucketload of cash, he is a free agent so doesn't cost anything at the trade table and is still just 26, I think he would add really good depth to the midfield. Charlie Constable and Quinton Narkle - Both have lacked opportunity in the Geelong midfield and have a lot of untapped potential. I have my doubts as to whether Narkle has enough of a defensive side to his game and ball-winning ability to make it as a quality midfielder. Constable has been tearing up the VFL, 191cm strong mid again in the Lyons mold who also has a nice defensive side to his game. Averaged 21.4 touches in his debut but since lacked opportunity in his preferred role. Narkle is the better kick but Constable possesses a strong set of hands where either can be up forward too. Both will cost nothing, low risk, high upside. Patrick Lipinski - Very similar player to Narkle, with the same strengths and weaknesses I mentioned. Diinterested with defensive side of the game at times is why he can't hold a spot in the dogs side but a good ball user who can also play across half forward but best position is inside mid. Brayden Fiorini - In a rich vein of form at the moment after getting his inside mid opportunity. Can rack up touches with ease but ball use is iffy at times and small frame can lead to him being exposed defensively sometimes. Gold Coast has a lot of high draft picks to fit into their midfield there may be better opportunity elsewhere however is under contract until 2023. Luke Dunstan - Had a good year but is a bit vanilla. Similar player to Matt Crouch but Crouch does it with better production. Also a free agent but a pass for mine there are better options. Liam Duggan - mentioned above, originally drafted as an inside midfielder he has a really nice blend of inside/outside to his game. Tough as nails and a really nice ball user who is accountable defensively as well. Similar player to Cerra, I believe he could be even better than Cerra provided the opportunity to thrive as an inside mid. As mentioned OOC, from Vic, and still just 24. Few others to mention who I believe are unrealistic targets, Cam Guthrie is surprisingly still OOC and a free agent at that but just can't see him leaving Geelong. Tom Mitchell might be up for grabs but Hawks will be looking for a top 10 pick which we won't have. One more which is a bit off topic is I reckon a Steele Sidebottom for Weideman swap with a few other assets moving in there is a deal makes a lot of sense for both parties. I also believe in time Laurie can develop into a damaging high-impact midfielder in the Shane Edwards mold, as could Kozzy in a mid Walters mold. Those 2 will predominately still be small forwards though, just can provide valuable POD to run through there. In time Rivers could become an elite pure midfielder as he has that inside/outside blend which he showed great production as a pure mid in his under 18 year, but he doesn't have the tank yet to do it, in time though that's a move I'd make and Bowey can take his spot at half back. Goody will never do mid Salem and I'm okay with that as he is elevated himself to a very good-elite half back this year which im happy not to mess with that. I think Jordon and Sparrow's potential is capped as role players which is okay but when you come up against the top 4 midfields as mentioned is that enough to get you over the line? That might be a bit harsh on Jordon as his production has been capped by opportunity and time-on-ground but I think you'd want to see another step-up in his development next year.

Cya Weid, a rebuilding club will stupidly take a punt on him. Fling him off for any pick or a vet, we can use the cash on an actual best 22 player.

Is Laurie playing? saw mentioned he was warming up but haven't heard any mention of him in the game so far.

Was there genuine interest in Jack Carroll?

This is what I'm going with: B: Hibberd, May, Lever HB: Rivers, Mcdonald, Bowey Int: Tomlinson I really like the May, Lever, McDonald down back as all 3 are capable of stopping a forward obviously with May being the best but all 3 are great intercept marks which I think will be hard to get past. Hibberd will take the best small forward, Rivers will make the half back his own next year, and then I've got Bowey slotting in on a half back which I think will be his best position (he's a clone of Caleb Daniel just a bit taller). His elite kicking behind the ball and zip will provide a lot to our side, and he has the toughness and courage to do defensive stuff as well, as well as a nice vertical, he can play taller than his listed 175cm height. I've got Tomlinson as the 7th defender as just a solid role player who can play on talls, mediums, or even smalls, or if it looks to big May is actually pretty quick so he could play on a small. I also like Tomlinson's ball use behind the ball where he will provide good rebound from half back. C: Langdon, Brayshaw, Salem R: Gawn, Oliver, Hamres Rotating: Petracca, Viney, Jackson Firstly on the wings I've got Langdon to just keep on doing what he does and that's run all day and I'm moving Salem up to the wing which I think is his best position where he can use kicking placement and footy IQ to hurt teams and I see him as the perfect compliment to Langdon because they both offer something very different. Brayshaw can chop out on the wing when the two of them need a rest. Jackson obviously back up ruck to Gawny, I expect there to be about a 80/20 split between Gawn and Jackson. My starting on ball mix I've got Oliver, Brayshaw, Harmes which in my opinion is our best midfield mix because Oliver does the in and under inside stuff, Brayshaw knows where to position himself for the handball receive for the outside stuff, and harmes will lock down the oppositions best midfielder and also expose them for them for workmate going forward. Rotating I've got Trac splitting his time 50/50 between forward and midfield, Viney splitting his time 75/25 between forward and midfield, and Jackson splitting his time 50/50 between forward and midfield (25% ruck, 25% inside mid). Petracca obviously has a massive impact in both areas of the ground, Viney I've got pinch hitting for a bit of a lift around the ball when needed, and Jackson I'm keen to see him get some on-ball minutes next year as teams won't know what to do and he can definitely match in there with his mobility and ground level ability. HF: Fritsch, Weideman, Petracca F: Pickett, B.Brown, Viney I: Jackson, Melksham, Laurie So I'm lining up with 3 tall forwards (Brown, Weideman, Jackson), 3 medium forwards (Fritsch, Petracca, Melksham), and 3 small forwards (Pickett, Viney, Laurie). As discussed before a few of those players will be rotating through the midfield. Tall forwards are nice, if Ben Brown gets back to how he was it will cause Weideman to get the number 2 defender which I could see big bags of goals from both. If Fritsch could kick straight he could kick a lot of goals and will get even less attention with Brown in there. I still feel as if we miss Petracca's goals up forward when he's in the midfield, which he showed in the game against St Kilda, he's still so deadly, so I want to see like a Dusty 50/50 mid forward split next year. Melksham needs to go back to his role as a bit of minimising the best defenders influence on the game, his inside 50 kicking is still there he just needs to get back the areas of his game. He's played a lot of important jobs like his job on McGovern in that Round 22 win over West Coast in 2018, that's what I want to see him do every week because he's very smart at taking his man away from dangerous positions and then still impacting himself. Small forwards Kozzy and Laurie will cause havoc next year, watch for Laurie's elite ball use going inside 50, he might not kick many goals but he will set up a ton. I've got Viney playing predominantly as a small forward which is out of necessity to fit everyone into the midfield but also because I think he's got some really good traits up forward. Absolutely relentless tackler he will really help inside 50 retention, Viney wins just about every 1v1 on the ground and his finishing skills are underrated. I'd like to see him work on his snaps and goal kicking all summer, in my opinion Viney has a crucial role to play up forward as a pressure forward. E: Sparrow, Hore, Petty, Spargo Overall I'm expecting top 4 next year, I think on paper we have a better team than we did in 2018 and anything less is a failure IMO. Goodwin needs to work out how to get the best out of every player and find the right position for each player. This is my opinion of the best 22 and it will be very different to everyone else's but with amount of versatile players on our list it will be interesting to see what our team looks like in round 1.

Overall im quite happy with how we went tonight. Laurie and Bowey are two of the absolute best kicks in the draft which is obviously what we've been crying out for. Laurie I think is a really good chance to play round 1 next year who should be able to slot straight in as a small forward. Bowey could be a chance as well up forward depending on what structure we want to go with, or he could even line up on the opposite wing to Langdon round 1 if he's fit enough. Laurie and Bowey are both very zippy, good tacklers, and most importantly have elite skills and are elite decision makers with ball in hand. When Taylor said we were after quick, creative, classy players that is Laurie and Bowey to a tee and very happy with the pickups. A bit disappointed we didn't go for Carroll but there must be some valid reason we didn't pick him but never less Fraser Rosman is another exciting youngster who could be anything. Extremely raw with having played only a few NAB league games as a 17 year old but has some serious weapons with height, pace, endurance, and booming kick. Could potentially become a unique wingman or key forward. Apparently tore up a practice game for Sandringham at the start of the year and could've shot up the boards. Definitely a pick on potential and we probably won't see much of him next year but it looks like a potential high reward investment in years to come.

happy with that, Bowey probably would've been available at 28 but both suit our needs, either could play on a wing as well long term

Laurie and Carroll please

thank you hawthorn, that gives us a good chance to get gulden

Great write up, I think the way the order stands at the moment the most probable outcome is Carroll, Holmes, Bowey. It would take trades or selection surprises tonight for players like Macrae, Laurie, Cook to slip through or for us to trade up.

One thing I'm concerned about is if Essendon move down the order in a trade with Collingwood say its 8 for 16 and a future first. Essendon like Carroll but won't take him with one of their top 10 picks but could be a chance to take him if they moved down the order. They do like Macrae as well though so they could take him if he was still on the board if they moved down the order. Something I think we want to happen is Giants and Crows to exchange picks (9 and 22 for 13 and 15), because then Laurie will be a good chance to be available at our pick. There is also talk this morning that Essendon is a chance to take Powell with one of their top 10 picks, this would have a flow on effect of Bruhn sliding because I think North goes Perkins. Bruhn would probably get through to Giants pick 15 where they like him, causing Laurie to slide to us. Tigers also like Bruhn which could cause Macrae to slide to us too. I'm still holding out hope for Macrae to make it to our pick, there's a lot of teams that like Pedlar ahead of us including the Tigers, if he slots in ahead of our pick might mean Macrae slips that one extra spot to us.

With all these phantom drafts out these are a few things I've noticed to watch for tomorrow night: * If Cook gets past Fremantle's pick he appears a fair chance to get to our picks * If Laurie gets through GWS' picks he appears a good chance to get to our picks * If Macrae gets past Adelaide's pick 9 he seems a good chance to slide far however no one has him getting to our picks, but most seem to have him getting close, could we trade up? do Richmond still consider trading their pick if Macrae is on the board? * Holmes seems unlikely to be available at pick 28, Richmond, St Kilda, and Hawthorn all very interested * If Hawks are very interested in Holmes would they consider not matching a bid on Downie? who do they rate higher? * If Hawks bid on Campbell at pick 4 watch to see if Sydney will match a bid for Gulden at our picks, they will go into draft deficit next year if they do * bit of interest in Bowey if we keep our second round pick and Holmes is off the board * A few scenarios had me thinking (Adelaide and GWS swapping picks is one) could Perkins slide all the way through to our picks? * nearly ever single phantom draft has us taking Carroll which is very exciting, but you never know still keeping my fingers crossed

I've seen rumoured the Crows and Giants to do a swap of their first rounders where Adelaide would send 9 and 22 to the giants for 13 and 15. This deal would be good for us because it means Laurie probably gets through to our pick since the Giants are the big threat of taking him at 15, obviously with that pick out of the picture hopefully Laurie would get through.

This is my final phantom draft for the year including a few live trades. I have us at the moment trading pick 19 + 28 for Collingwood's pick 14 because if Macrae keeps sliding I can't see us not trading up to get him knowing the Tigers will take him. The trade also makes sense for Collingwood because they have a big interest in Poulter who they can grab at 19 and they are looking to take 5-6 picks in the draft due to their list exodus in the trade period, and we solve our problem of only wanting to use 3 picks. Macrae and Carroll is a terrific result, both are extremely versatile, extremely good ball users and could fit straight in at a wing/half back/half forward round 1 next year, if your looking for any extended write ups of them they shouldn't be too hard to find in this thread. Winder at our third round pick is a great result too, has enormous amount of skill and talent and has the potential to be a real hidden gem, I liken him to Sydney Stack. R1 1. Western Bulldogs (NGA) – Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (VIC) – key forward 2. Adelaide – Riley Thilthorpe (SA) – key forward/ruck 3. Hawthorn (traded from North for 5+30) – Logan Mcdonald (WA) – key forward 4. Sydney – Denver Grainger-Barrass (SA) – key defender 5. North Melbourne (trade from Hawthorn with 30 for 3) – Elijah Hollands (VIC) – balanced midfielder/general forward 6. Gold Coast – Will Phillips (VIC) – inside midfielder 7. Essendon – Tanner Bruhn (VIC) – inside midfielder 8. Essendon – Zach Reid (VIC) – key defender 9. Sydney – Braeden Campbell (NSW) – balanced midfielder/small forward 10. Essendon – Oliver Henry (VIC) – medium utility 11. Adelaide – Reef McInnes (VIC, Collingwood bid not matched) – inside midfielder/medium utility 12. GWS – Nik Cox (VIC) – tall utility 13. North Melbourne – Archie Perkins (VIC) – balanced midfielder/medium forward 14. Fremantle – Brayden Cook (SA) – outside midfielder/general forward 15. Port Adelaide (NGA) – Lachie Jones (SA) – general defender 16. GWS – Heath Chapman (WA) – general defender 17. Melbourne (traded from Collingwood for 24+34) – Finlay Macrae (VIC) – balanced midfielder 18. GWS – Bailey Laurie (VIC) – small forward/balanced midfielder 19. Brisbane (NGA) – Blake Coleman (QL) – small forward 20. Collingwood – Connor Stone (VIC) – medium utility 21. Collingwood (traded from Richmond for future 1st) – Tom Powell (SA) – inside midfielder 22. Sydney (NGA) – Errol Gulden (NSW) – outside midfielder/small forward 23. Melbourne – Jack Carroll (WA) – balanced midfielder/general defender 24. Collingwood (traded from Melbourne with 34 for 17) – Caleb Poulter (SA) – balanced midfielder/general forward 25. Hawthorn (NGA) – Connor Downie (VIC) – outside midfielder/general defender 26. GWS – Luke Pedlar (SA) – inside midfielder 27. St Kilda – Nathan O’Driscoll (WA) – balanced midfielder/general defender R2 28. Adelaide – Zane Trew (WA) – inside midfielder 29. Adelaide – Liam Kolar (VIC) – key forward/outside midfielder 30. North Melbourne (traded from Hawthorn with 5 for 3)– Sam Berry (VIC) – inside midfielder 31. GWS – Shannon Neale (WA) - ruck 32. Geelong – Kaine Baldwin (SA) – key forward 33. Fremantle (NGA) – Brandon Walker (WA) – general defender 34. Collingwood (traded from Melbourne with 24 for 17) – Matt Allison (VIC) – key forward/outside midfielder 35. North Melbourne – Jake Bowey (VIC) – small utility 36. Fremantle – Joel Western (WA) – small utility 37. Carlton – Corey Durdin (SA) – small forward 38. Essendon (NGA) – Josh Eyre (VIC) – tall utility 39. Richmond – Max Holmes (VIC) – outside midfielder 40. Carlton – Eddie Ford (VIC) – general forward/inside midfielder 41. Essendon (NGA) – Cody Brand (VIC) – key defender 42. North Melbourne – Ryan Angwin (VIC) – outside midfielder/general defender 43. Adelaide – Zavier Maher (VIC) – inside midfielder R3 44. Hawthorn – Max Heath (VIC) – ruck 45. Richmond (NGA) – Maurice Rioli Jnr (NT) – small forward 46. Melbourne – Isiah winder (WA) – small utility 47. Geelong – Henry Walsh (VIC) – ruck 48. Port Adelaide – Fraser Rosman (VIC) – outside midfielder

it probably depends where a bid a comes for Braeden Campbell. Sydney don't want to go into draft deficit next year because they don't want their first round pick to move down spots like Fremantle this year, if they go into deficit there's a fair chance they won't match a bid for Gulden. Hawthorn have been rumoured to bid on Campbell, if that happens and we bid on Gulden they'd be going into deficit and probably don't match a bid. But if say Essendon bid on Campbell at pick 8 and we bid on Gulden they should have enough points to cover both so we'll be rooting for Hawks on the night to put a bid on Campbell. Gulden wold be a great get.

I too would be very surprised if we took Holmes, especially when Poulter and O'Driscoll are on the board who seem much better options in the same position as an outside mid. Again like you've been saying would be thrilled with Carroll who suits our needs to a tee on a wing or at half back.