Demon Dynasty

You are going to pick a ruckman to try and hold down a key tall forward role as an untested number 3 behind T-Mac and Weids with a top 10 pick on a wing and a prayer? If we are that keen on tallish No.3 to sit alongside T-Mac and Weid, someone who has shown genuine cred to play and hold down such a position and convert accurately in front of goal, Kemp at 8 would seem to make more sense imv.

Where is the evidence he can play more forward and take pack clinkers, mark on a lead and kick accurately D11?

From what i saw in the Nats he didn't play forward nor did i see him kick a goal or take a grab there other than around the arc drifting forward maybe on a rare occasion. If he doesn't offer a genuine forward goal kicking option or isn't likey to then why would we want a third ruckman on the list with pick 3 or 8 (which LH has highlighted, technically includes our first rounder from 2020)? Makes no sense for mine. So we are happy to push Big M out of the ruck and start blooding this fella in the next few years? Where does Maxy go if that is the case? Certainly not a genuine tall goal kicking forward option either and hit out talents would be wasted if he spent most of his time forward.

Is the the talk of us picking Jackson with pick 3 a ruse by someone hoping we will waste it so they move higher up the order and get someone they want or get an extra pick in the top 10 in the case of Freo? The Blues wanting to make more certain they might grab Kemp? Freo wanting us to use 3 on Jackson hoping we don't bid on Henry and they get another pick in the top 10. The crows wanting to grab Young stepping up a rung with pick 4? Surely Taylor (Goody) aren't looking to grab another ruckman with such a valuable pick given we don't need a third? Nobody in their right mind would be that foolish.

Me after reading this one LH...

We certainly need more marking power down the line and up forward DD. Hopefully Tomo will bring a little of that and a fit May/Lever as well. I'm still majorly concerned about the forward set up in this regard and in general. We lack serious aerial contested beasts with a bit of height that can take a number of big grabs under heat, locking the ball i50 for longer and taking a few more set shots that will do the same (even if they miss). Crucial as it allows mids and defenders to recover and set up behind play instead of the many sling shot rebounds (under little or no pressure) we saw this season. A decent small pressure forward or two would also obviously help here. Would be a little surprised if we aren't seriously considering Weightman if we split pick 8.

Can't a poor guy fantasize for even a few hours 247!

I personally think he will be bid on before 7 CJ. He is in the top 5 by a long way and others would want to test the waters surely.

AM are you referring to someone in particular as the next potential Dusty or was that just a general comment re passing up on recruiting a genuine mid in this draft vs a small forward?

They would need to give 22 back to us also if they don't want a significant (700+) points deficit going into 2020. While you have to be willing to give up Young, some of the 'potential' combos with 7, 8, 10 & 22 are pretty enticing... Kemp, Stephens, Weightman and one of Kozzie or Taylor. Ash, Kemp, Jackson and same. Ash, Stephens, Weightman and same. Serong, Robertson, Weightman and Gould. Serong, Stephens, Weightman and one of De Koning, Sharp or Schoenberg. Etc.

Will happily line up with you LT in terms of our own needs. Having said that he looks like a very solid ruck prospect that will present any opponent with a big headache, especially once the ball hits the deck. When you say undersized. On the surface yes but this kid has a super leap on him enabling him to match it with somewhat taller opponents and best them on many occasions just through pure athleticism. His ability/agility to work himself 'off' the ruck contest quickly and present himself as a 4th balanced mid, either on the receive or getting his hands dirty if needed , is also astonishingly good and will no doubt be a point of difference and great asset to any team. Think a slightly smaller version of Nic Nat but better hands to distribute, allowing other mids to release on the burst but without the goal kicking / high marking cred (at this point...i could also be wrong here re: not appearing to be a dangerous/handy part-time forward or pack busting marking prospect so far. Just going on the vision from the Nats replays).

Thanks Buck. Here's the podcast if anyone's interested (apologies if posted already in this thread)... https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9yc3Mud2hvb3Noa2FhLmNvbS9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC9pZC80MDg3&episode=NTU2M2M2ZDYtNTBhMC00NzdlLWJmYzktM2Y3NDQ1ODI3NzQ3 Serong is certainly right up there in terms of inside mids (pushes forward at times as well). Is there a place for another on our list i wonder?

I can't see any advantage in us trading with Freo at least. 8 for say their 10 leaves them having to cough up pick 60. They have 58 but why would we bother? If we were sure to land say Weightman with 10 and they gave us 22 assuming we were able to land another needed player (eg; Kozzie or Taylor) then maybe but is that even allowed (ie; a surplus of points at our end after the swap?).

Ok so they can't pick and choose but will receive equivelant balance points as a lower extra pick. Interesting. A bid for Henry at 3 might throw the cat amongst the Docker's pigeons, especially if they are eager (hoping) to land both Henry & Jackson with their 7 & 10. Worth bidding even if we don't land him then.

Ah yes the cozy discount to keep the interstate coffers bolstered LT. Forgot avout that thanks. Seems like a rediculously biased system. Without trading down and including the discount, Freo can use 10 & 22 (slightly over the discounted points requirement...is that allowed? I assume yes) or 7 & 58 (again slightly over) to counter a bid from us using pick 3 for Henry.

I could be wrong but my understanding is other clubs need to match our bid with the same number of points as what our bid is worth. LH, DD, NS and others are much more in the know here and will be able to clarify

Courtesy AFL website: Mock Draft based on 'needs' not where the player might be rated (Sheehan a strong believer that you don't rank draftees...rather you judge selection on consistency of performance/talent and other traits). Join AFL.com.au draft experts Callum Twomey and Nat Edwards as we track the best prospects in the land all the way to November's NAB AFL Draft. Featuring exclusive interviews with some of the top draft prospects, leading AFL recruiters and talent experts, Road to the Draft airs every week in the lead-up to the NAB AFL Draft. https://player.whooshkaa.com/episode?id=463864

Jack & Dworship have pretty much covered this but to extend a little.. The SSP begins from 1 Dec (ie; after all drafts are completed) and finishes on 15 March. Our first training session from then is Tues 3rd Dec which is the reason that date is being mentioned. I assume Bennell can do any official program/customised training with us from the 1st as deemed appropriate. My take is Bennell is then officially part of the club (albeit only under the SSP deal) and receives a base minimum salary up to the 15th (or more serious $$ if signed under a standard AFL contract before then).

After watching the NAB championship series again DD i've cooled a little on his worth in comparison to say a Henry or Weightman. It's not what he does when he gets it. Just the work rate (commitment?) to get to contests or present that worries me vs say a Henry or Taylor option. If we had a pick 20 to 35 he is more tempting. Henry is obviously Freo bound but ideal for us at 3 if he wasn't. Seems to be the No.1 silk of this draft along with Taylor (a tad more raw imv but does show a few sublime tricks at times also). I'm not convinced any small 'opportune' forward (Weightman/Pickett) or a ruckman are worth a top ten pick (Jackson) but then who else are we needing at 8? Kemp would be very handy but he's out for a year. Plenty of other reasonable options of course but many are inside mids. One who really impressed me in the NAB series was Schoenberg as a balanced mid option. Edwards as well but think he plays a bit more off HB and already flagged under father son i think. So do we just stick with Young at 3? His kicking is certainly top of this year's class but what else does he truly offer us? Is that skill, along with some reasonable intercept marking/tackling and distribution, enough? Personally i really think he would need to play as a balanced mid to get full value from him at 3 (hoping that he of course grows slowly / strongly into that role). Then there's Ash who had a stellar NAB series alongside Jackson & Henry. Ash was equally impressive as Young across the series in terms of damage + consistency off HB. Gould not far off those HBs...also very impressive in straight lines and accurate kicking/finish and impressive intercept marking (reading the flight). Stephens at 8? Looks good but also big moments of lappsing out of games or not really impacting imv. Or do we go for Kemp? After re-watching the final of that NAB series Kemp was certainly super impressive in helping Vic C get back into that match and won another on that final kick. But that was mostly as a medium forward. Barely saw him played through the middle. The other player that had an amazing final quarter out of the middle in the final was Isaac Wareham. He was the one on the end of the much talked about 45 kick from Young that helped put Vic C in front just before the last winning kick from WA a minute later. Just before that he was also the one getting the inside 50 to Kemp for a shot he missed to put us in front on a tight angle. I'm not saying you pick him based on that but he was certainly impressive in that short burst (eg; line breaking run, taking the game on & standing up under heat!). All very confusing really. I guess we just leave it to the experts and pray to lucifer!

I can't recall Jackson playing in a designated 'forward role' during the entire u18 champs (on the vision/matches i could access anyway). Not sure where the 'potential gun forward' idea has eminated from tbh. Although scouts/recruiters may well be basing this on his local WA matches assuming he has been played in this role quite a bit and performed. Pickett as an 'opportunist small forward' is a very apt description Biff. He is mecurial around goals with ball in hand that's for sure. The trouble is he doesn't work nearly hard enough when he doesn't have ball in hand to get on the end of it again and get into positions (ie; work hard to get some separation on opponent) where he could imho. He also appears to have a very bare bones tank which might explain the former. In theory he shouldn't go any higher than 15 and more likely around the mid 20s to 30ish. That's probably a fair reflection of where he is at given those constraints. You would have seen more had he not been suspended for one of the nat matches. The best small forward who does it well with and without ball in hand, if the u18 champs are anything to go by, is Weightman imv and the phantoms have him going roughly around pick 12/13ish.

Having re-watched all available u18 championships i'm now a Henry convert at 3. Freo will no doubt match the bid but he is worth a try. Easily one of the stand outs in the championships along with Jackson and a handfull (or maybe two) of others imv. Ash also had a very good series. More so than Young imv who was ok but not sure he gets involved often enough to impact often enough, especially from a run POV. Not quite able to break free or get into space enough to receive and effect the contest if that makes sense. Can do so don't get me wrong and very worthy of top 10 to 15. Just not sure he is a clear No.3 after a full (and more considered/focussed) re-watch. And i'm not saying pick Jackson at 8 either as im still not sure we can afford a third ruckman nor need one with a top 8 pick. If i had more evidence he was a genuine forward prospect i would be alot more eager. Is Jackson worth a top 10 pick for a team that is in need of a ruckman? Hell yes.

Cheers Bob not sure i make it better but glad we have the forum to vent and share some diff views & info. Some of it is very informative and at times also entertaining! ✌?

Of course Bob. I'm only going on vision seen and draft reports from others considered experts and who, if you believe their background write ups, have supposedly seen the players they are rating live. Much of what i say is tongue in cheek from the armchair and i'm fully aware that my knowledge base / experience is at amature level. Sometimes i even lead (or finish) the odd post stating that fact. But i also don't feel it necessary (and it would be pretty bloody boring) if i mentioned that every time. I figure most regulars would know it by now anyway and won't be taking anything i put up as anything other than just another bog ordinary opinion and/or have put me on 'ignore' already. Tbh who the hell (at a meaningful AFL level) is going to take any notice of what i say anyway. It's certainly not going to have any impact on draft outcomes nor people's own views (draft preferences) on here.

Where's Oli ...gonna love seeing this contested stuff