buck_nekkid

He's out. Doesn't matter to me where he is going. I like that it stitched the Tigers up a bit (it may have changed their drafting and trading strategy), and will cost them some cap. They will also need to find a long term replacement. We would be howling if one of our top 4-5 players decided to retire like this. I also ask how it came to this. Should Rance have 'surprised' the club like this? Did he know for a while? Was it a re-injury? Did he not like the effort he had to put in? I imagine if this were a demons player, we would be crying foul relating to player management, connection between club and player and appropriate player monitoring. The timing is dreadful for them.

Shame for the kid. Glad the club is getting behind him. The training reports were very positive, so hopefully he can come back and show something. If he and KK go on the LTI, does that allow us to top up with some additional rookies?

He was only a ‘puppy’ last year, and was only introduced to Casey as the season progressed. He showed a few things of real interest, and I am keen to see how he develops. As you say, Saty, Casey will have a very interesting forward line with Jackson and Bradtke, until they get call ups to assist in the seniors. If Kozzie is buzzing at their feet....

This list of elite players does not tally with common sense. How can Daw be ‘elite’ if he didnt play last year? And Nic Nat? And Old ‘swayback no hammies’ Franklin. He was a great, but only got our of first gear a couple of times. And Ablett - elite at whinging. Walker - really? Sook to momma in the big games. This looks like a ‘fanboy favourite’ list, rather than reality. If this is how they judge ‘elite’ then it is no wonder the rankings they provide per team are so divorced from reality.

One of our biggest problems last year- and earlier than that- was the lack of contested marking ability around the ground. His ability to push up and back, as well as Tomlinson’s, might give us so much more that we lacked previously. To both compete on the way out, or to link up on the way in, were critical gaps. This may be an inspired pick up in ways people are not considering. He could play high hff, roll down to make contests and give us link up options that don’t involve 100% chaos ball. i have no evidence that this was the club’s thinking, but I don’t see him as a TMac or Weid replacement., or even competition.

I rated it ‘A’: we got who we wanted with our picks 1 and 2 We got a slider who we rated higher with our pick 3 we were shrewd in moving resources around, from next year to this year, and from 8 to 10 plus 28. we didn’t get sucked in, or bullied into a bad deal. we got needs met that dovetailed with the trade period, and the 2 train with players. cant know how good they will be, but I rate the process and outcome highly.

Interesting retrospective, thanks DL, but also meaningless stats to the job at hand. The data is skewed by a few superb players, and has nothing to help predict how any individual from this year will go. what would be interesting is understanding the selection algorithms of different teams, and see if there are factors for repeated success/failure. some in other threads have also made the point that it is less about draft, more about development and culture. Fair discussion points, I reckon. ...but #3 looks a winner!

There we go! Thats the spirit!!

Green (if matched, Jackson) Sarong Pickett (slips through)

Can you see it already? The problem with having a high draft pick? Lets call it the Jack Watts effect, or the Jimmy Toumpas Syndrome, or the Voldemort quandry, or the Hogan homesick hiccup.... No matter who we select at #3 they will be compared to every player we could have selected after that point. If someone turns out to be brilliant at #7, MFC will be seen as negligent for picking our guy. Even if they only have one good game, the ‘we should have chosen Nic Nat over Watts’ etc will start up with fury. #10 gets a bit more grace, and by #28, if we get any upside we will be happy. My hope is that we will select some superstars, but it is a lottery. Just calling it early, and hope that the kids that we select get a chance to play to their potential and help deliver us a flag, no matter what number they were drafted at.

Which is the first session with the new recruits? Is that Monday 2nd?

In a way, we have traded next year’s first (in a highly compromised draft) for a top 10 this year. We still hold a pick in the 20’s, just shifted back a pinch. Overall, I think that is a good play. Some additional thoughts: 10 will now be about 12, with Green and Henry nominations to happen before then. 97 will not have to be used, so expect no upgrades of rookies. 10 still sits in play for live trading, if a desperate suitor comes knocking... I suspect we know the order of the top 10, and are comfortable that we can get our targeted players with these picks, and then we add a further player as well.

We dont hand Giants anything. We make a choice, then they respond. Our decisions need to be based around us winning a flag. GWS have put themselves in a great position (with massive kick along from AFL and academies), but we have to focus on us, not get distracted with this stuff. It is all nasty froth and bubbles and the moment. Lets see how it drops, but the recruiters (I assume) are thinking about MFC, making us the best that we can be. At the moment they are only kids with talent, but we are led to believe that they are all somehow ‘superstars’ that will impact games from day 1 (Toumpas anyone, or is it still too soon?). Its a fun time for the couch experts, but (player X) is not the messiah, he is just a naughty boy...

The time trial is not what they are training for, but rather a measure of one type of fitness. Regardless of what they run in the time trial, the players are being developed around specialised programs and the time trial time is only a marker of where they are at now. DB spoke about the number of repeat sprints required for footballers, so this is probably more ‘match like’ to train than the 3Km. Good to see the guys put in solid efforts, and I’m sure there will be PB’s and improvements for players. However, I want to see them with footies in their hands, repeat sprints and skill training. Looking at the photos, so many players have returned in great physical nick, and are throwing themselves into a program that will make them better and ready for 2020. This i am liking!

Looking at this, its Anderson / Jackson and Ash https://apple.news/Axx_5B9duSWm0TcaqRY4fRA Champion Data makes interesting reading of the top 30.

I have settled on Young at 3, and Serong at 8. Jackson would need to be out of the box special to go at 3 in this draft, and so I think there are others better for us right now. I also think 8 is so open, with Kemp, Flanders etc also potentially being available. I think we would need to be offered way overs in value to trade down the order, and We can always have this as an option in play if the price is right - very right - to make us give up the chance to draft at 8. The only way I see it happening is if the players we would want at 8 are already taken.

It would be good to also have a depth measure. Last year, we would have been 18th. Hopefully we keep our best players on the park. Pushed us down the list last year when we had too many injuries. BTW we are equal 7th! Certainly follows the trends - last year Brissie would not have made his top 8, now they are top 4! Does this system mean Collingwood are nearly twice as ‘talented’ as us??

Sounds like a viable tall half forward ‘roamer’ rather than a kp forward. With Preuss, Weid, TMAc and Petty (+/-) as tall forwards, I think he is depth and coverage. However, as 2019 shows, you gotta bat deep.

I hope GCS pick him back up. Laughs all round, I’d reckon!

Cal Twomey had us with young at 3 and weightman at 8! Agree with Young, don’t think so re Weightman. Would take Sarong by a mile.

But he didn’t spew, so he’s not training hard enough. Who else wants to write to the club and demand more?

If we believe he is worth it, we should go hard at him with 3, and see if GWS want to play. If they do, it costs them and we move on to next best, and if not we get a gun midfielder. Would not be surprised if this plays out on draft night.

But don’t touch the face! Channel 4 news....

If we were going to sign him DFA, wouldn’t we have done so by now? Perhaps we are looking at rookie or supplemental list? We would have to be certain no one else wanted him as well if we were to do this.

Wow. Fantastic. What a brilliant interview. So pleased he is in the red and the blue!