DeeSpencer

Again, that doesn’t specify anything about cat B’s staying as cat B. I suggest you’re right but it’s not unreasonable to think there’s still a 3 year limit on cat B after which they transfer to cat A for up to 2 more years. We’ll soon find out.

The Age seemed to think he had to slide across to the Cat A list. Not sure the AFL ever publicly clarified if players can stay as Cat B rookies for longer than 3 years. The 5 years might be for the overall rookie list. Either way, we'll have 3 main list spots. Judd McVee will be upgraded to the primary list, and Andy Moniz-Wakefield can no longer be a category B rookie.

Yes we are. That was known. Main list still at 33 with 3 spots. Our 6 man A Rookie list is full, hence Melk getting re-promoted: Hore, AMW, Sestan, Verrall, Brown, Kentfield. Cat B Rookie list is empty.

6 Brisbane for 2 picks. +4 3 Gold Coast for 1 pick. +2 7 Essendon picks. Not sure what they'll do with them but assume at least 2 go for Kako. +1. 5 Carlton picks post 38 that probably go on 3 players. +2 there St Kilda have some pick shuffling to do to get in position to match their academy players No doubt a few clubs pass and go with rookies/train on instead once it gets right to the back. Probably ends up around 60-70. Cal says somewhere between 63-72 picks and ours will be somewhere between the 5th and 10th last.

In what sense? Dusty was an under 18 All Aus in the centre and TAC team of the year averaging 24 disposals and a goal. Lalor jogged around the forward pocket in the carnival and only played 4 Coates league games this year. There’s a lot to work with, I don’t think any of the other prototypes in the Tracc, De Goey mold have the clean skills Lalor does. Heck even Dusty burnt the footy a fair bit. But those other guys all had dominant midfield games as juniors. Id be making the same pick but it’s a brave choice and the Dusty comparisons will be a lot to carry.

Any of them available at 6 (yet alone whatever pick 9 becomes) in this draft? Watson and Windsor are the only 2 who weren’t top 2 pick level talents. 23: Sanders, Windsor 22: (5-8) Tsatas, Humphrey, McKenzie, Clarke 21: 6-7 Rachele, Ward 20 5,7, 9 Braeden Campbell, Hollands, Perkins 19: 5, 7, 8 Dyl Stephens, Young, Serong Probably have to go back to Freo’s picks in 2019 for guys who made consistent impact in their first 3 years.

Lalor needs to recover from a major injury and do his first ever preseason, he’s more a year 3+ guy. Langford should play some but a big slow kid in the forward line with 3 talls and Fritsch probably just gets in the way. Jagga has no aerial ability, has strong evasion in traffic but not speed to run down or run away from opponents and his kicks hang in the air. He’d be a liability down back. Probably plays a fair bit as a high half forward but if we have an elite midfield he won’t be in it much year 1. Slightly more run to get games as a forward but slighter body, I see him on par with Sanders as a year 1 option. Goody generally plays and sticks with his high picks but I think expectations for performance are way too high. These guys aren’t Clarry/Gus level ready to go and if we are bouncing back up the ladder it won’t be on the back of first year kids.

As opposed to which players who are instantly ready? Riley Sanders last year was a plug and play midfielder. Made no impact. I get the Armstrong skepticism, he’s more raw than you’d like and just drops more marks than he should. But if JT pulls the trigger I can see why he’s rated. Not many talls move like he does and present as well as he does. Also, let’s be honest, it’s a rebuild in all but name unless we get a drastic Clarry and Tracc turnarounds and find a few players out of thin air (which is hard when you keep the same list year on year). Gawn, Viney May aren’t every week guys any more, we don’t have any experienced tall forwards and kids aren’t going to cover the midfield and flanker gaps like for like.

I love him, beautiful kick. Realistically it should be both in consideration for pick 9. But if we took both and swapped them mid and forward I’d be delighted

You, me and JT is all we need!

There’s room on the Ollie Hannaford bandwagon! You’re welcome to join.

Nothing more on brand for SEN to publish one of their lackeys completely unsourced ‘phantom’ draft before their actual reporters produce something on value as the week goes on.

What about the middle ground? North take Tauru. Carlton are in to Draper. Crows take Langford. No one seems to be predicting FOS getting through to us? Is he a lock 2, 3 or 4 despite those teams all getting linked to other players?

We can, but I don’t think height alone makes a guy able to play anywhere. I haven’t seen an aerial game from Smillie worthy of saying he’s a marking target /interceptor and I don’t think he runs like a flanker. To me he’s a fairly pure midfielder aside from filling in certain roles in case of emergency. Langford has a marking and more natural outside run game that I think translates better to versatility but the speed will limit that too. The game has also sped up and spread out and smaller mids ripped us apart some times at stoppages and absolutely in space. We had to put Nibbler on ball to take away Daicos, Merrett etc. I suspect if we draft Langford and go a second bigger mid it will be Travaglia or Bo Allan who are proven flankers and move like it.

They’re also strong on GWS trading up for 8. I wonder who GWS are trading up for if it’s true. Armstrong - Hoges is 30 in February, quality key forwards are so hard to find. Allan - he’d be a jumbo Peatling replacement. They need midfield depth Travaglia - suits their game plan They’d be the 3 I’d expect GWS are keenest on.

Vikings, Eagles, Bills

Cam Rayner did his 2km in 7:57 before the draft. Did anyone care when he kicked a snag on his non preferred from 50 out to win brisbane a final? Got a time for Sam Lalor, I’d be shocked if it’s below 7 minutes. How about Kai Lohmann, 5 goals in 9 games in his draft year! He’d now go top 10 in a 2021 redraft, ahead of all the midfielders aside from the 3 freaks at the top. Kossie Pickett, did stuff all in the national champs and played 1 great sanfl reserves game but otherwise didn’t touch it for most of the year. Hannaford kicked 21 goals in 9 games, more than just one good game. Then he went on ball in the grand final and looked perfectly comfortable mixing it with Ashcroft, Reid and Marshall. There’s value in Jagga’s reading of the play and his clean hands especially at stoppages. But he has so little razzle dazzle. Pick out his best plays each week and you’ll make a nice highlight video because he’s so prolific. But watch each game at a time and there’s a lot of nothing around the ground stuff and to me a big doubt on the value of possessions without impact.

21- 5 Mac Andrew was seen as a later first until closer to the draft? 17 - 9. Not sure Naughton was a top 10 lock until late in his draft year. 16 - 8. Griff Logue 14- 6. Marchbank Tauru’s had a big rise but I think Twomey said the other day he’s a sure thing top 10 and rated by a lot of clubs. He’s not a complete bolter.

AFL clubs are apparently super keen to draft him and he’s not keen, got to respect that. 83 - Ajang Kuol mun (Geelong vfl)

More than happy to admit I don’t have access to the interviews, GPS, family background etc so I’d need to work out just what’s going on with the 2km time. If there’s no dedication it’s a risk. If it’s a kid who’s a bit chunky in the boarding house then I’m all for it. Every time Hannaford goes near the footy he’s electric. I watched a half of GWV v Gippsland the other day just to increase my sample size. In a half deep forward he ran down Ricky Mentha to set up a shot at goal, took a contested mark on 2 opponents, set up a goal by winning the ball bursting though congestion, casually goals from 50 and kicked another bouncing off an opponent whilst winning the footy. Jagga, he’s Alex Neal-Bullen level talent with the ability to play an extra year of Coates league. He’ll have a solid career, but marking, tackling, burst speed, long kicking, breaking tackles, opposite foot kicking, he doesn’t do any of that. Big body - nope. Aggressive - nope. Speedy - nope. Elite endurance - nope. And if you’re relitigating that era of demon drafting then there might not have been a worse pick than Tom Scully at 1 with Dusty on the board. The draft is for finding long term talent not who the best junior footballer is.

The thinking seems to be that Cerra and Walsh are both strong boys and what they really need is some speed to play off those guys and Cripps. But I agree whilst he doesn’t help their speed issue Langford has nice outside run and a left foot. Plus he can rest forward and switch with Cripps and take away their need for a 3rd tall forward too. Nick Austin comes from the dogs too, his time there was Weightman and Bailey Smith but you can’t have been around Bont and not want some of Langford’s Bontiness. Who knows, it’s probably FOS or Draper, heck are we sure they don’t just take Tauru if North don’t?

5 - Langford just over Tauru. Really hoping one of them is available 9 - Hannaford. This kid is legit. Speedy, explosive, one touch, physical. He’ll be a quality small forward who transitions to a good midfielder once he builds his tank. 83 - Tye Hourigan

Absolutely agree. It could well be Draper the Crows want and that’s the link to move ahead of Carlton. But just as easily it could be Langford or FOS. In fact I suspect it is one of those 2. I’m not sure the Crows offer a f1 (even with a North f2 coming back) and I doubt North bother moving for a pair of F3’s even if it almost certainly costs them nothing.

Whose mail? Seems conflicting to the report just above

He played half back on the G in the futures game last year and he looks excellent distributing the ball. We drafted Bowser off a similar performance (with no under 18 year due to covid). I’d like him to have just a little more height or natural aerial ability, or a little more high end speed so he can be a more complete flanker. Hopefully he has at least high end endurance to keep linking up. But as is should be a quality half back kicker, not as reliable getting out of trouble as prime Salo but with more penetration.