Player Watch #14: Luke 'Gav' Urquhart - selected with Pick 57 in the ND - Welcome to North Melbourne

[shintemaster]

Although in saying that, not many of the below are poor kicks at all.

Since in charge, he's drafted:

Colby McKercher
Zane Duursma
Taylor Goad
Will Dawson
Riley Hardeman
Finbar Maley
Geordie Payne

Finn O'Sullivan
Matt Whitlock
Luke Urquhart
River Stevens


Pretty much every single player on that list is an amazing standout athlete, with exceptional speed or a massive vertical/elite agility.

The only non standout athlete is Dawson, however he's 203cm, has some of the longest arms as a % of his height and biggest hands measured in the combine in the last 4-5 seasons. Physically, he's a standout for a KPD prospect.

River isn't a standout athlete, but he didn't pick him openly obviously.

I made that point somewhere else in here or one of the other threads and agree. We have a clean high skilled bunch, on top of those recruited under this regime you have Powell, Sheezel and a few others that are very, very neat with ball in hand.

 

[KangaRooster]

Quite like this pick.

Our midfield is built to out-finesse anyone they come up against, but midfield footy can be brutal and there will be quarters, halves and opponents where mass and defensive intent can win the day.

You need the right players to counter those matchups and curb that momentum when it’s going the wrong way.

 

[DuckYeah]

That's probably the worst possible thing to ask of him. If he's going to improve his kicking, the lowest risk and best place to do so is in the VFL where he does so under pressure in an actual game so he can improve.

Marginal improvements. Shit kicks always stay shit kicks. You wont turn into a wellsy in a few games of VFL. Waste of a pick

 

[muttley45]

So i see he was mentioned as a defensive style inside mid, Dunkley, Rowbottom and Drew a few of that type that come to mind, a pretty important role in a good midfield.

 

[krakouers]

West is best! WA kids fly off the shelf on second night

Hugh Boxshall is about to cut his ‘leavers’ celebrations short as he prepares for life under Ross Lyon at St Kilda, with the midfielder among eight West Aussies snapped up at the draft.

thewest.com.au

Kayle Gerreyn, Will Hayes

Multiple players found. Use birthday to differentiate. eg [PLAYERCARD="23/11/1962"]Joe Smith[/PLAYERCARD]

and Luke Urquhart were all picked up on Thursday in the draft. Credit: Ian Munro / Danella Bevis

"One selection later, East Fremantle midfielder Luke Urquhart was taken by North Melbourne.

Urquhart’s rise to a draftee has been incredible, having been sidelined for most of last year needed a full hip reconstruction, having been diagnosed with hip dysplasia with acetabular retroversion as well as a labrum tear and cam impingement.

The former talented junior water polo player didn’t let the setback stop him from driving towards his AFL dream.

Urquhart worked hard and finished the under-18 championships as one of WA’s best, averaging 21 disposals (11 contested) and 5.5 clearances while he was sensational for the Sharks in the colts with 23.3 disposals, five clearances, 9.5 tackles and two goals in three games.

Luke Urquhart. Credit: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos/AFL Photos via Getty Images
“I was hoping for the best but preparing for the worst,” he said after being drafted.

“I had chats with my manager (Luke Morabito) and had somewhat of an idea what was going to happen.

“From my first interview with North Melbourne I always thought it was going to be them ... they made me feel at home straight away.

“I’ve had a long journey to get here, lots of hardship but I put my best foot forward this year, played a lot of good footy and it paid off for me tonight.”

One of the first people to congratulate Urquhart was Sydney star and family friend Chad Warner

1

Chad Warner

Age

23

Ht

185cm

Wt

82kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

7.0

2star

K

4.5

2star

HB

2.5

2star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.5

3star

CL

0.0

1star

D

7.0

1star

K

4.5

2star

HB

2.5

2star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.5

2star

CL

0.0

1star

D

7.0

2star

K

4.5

2star

HB

2.5

3star

M

1.5

2star

T

1.5

4star

CL

0.0

1star

.

But it’s a North Melbourne superstar who Urquhart is looking to learn off when he lands at Arden Street.

“I am super keen to get over there. There is a lot of young talent coming through like Harry Sheezel but it’s probably LDU (Luke Davies-Uniacke

9

Luke Davies-uniacke

Age

25

Ht

188cm

Wt

89kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

13.1

3star

K

6.5

3star

HB

6.6

4star

M

2.5

3star

T

2.2

4star

CL

2.0

4star

D

7.0

1star

K

3.0

1star

HB

4.0

3star

M

2.0

2star

T

1.0

2star

CL

2.0

4star

D

9.8

3star

K

5.0

2star

HB

4.8

4star

M

1.6

2star

T

1.8

4star

CL

1.2

4star

),” he said.

“I styled my game off him a lot this year. I am super excited to get over there and meet all the boys.”"

 

[roos_fanatic08]

So i see he was mentioned as a defensive style inside mid, Dunkley, Rowbottom and Drew a few of that type that come to mind, a pretty important role in a good midfield.

Arguably one of the most important roles in the midfield.

Dunkley allows Neale and McLuggage to flourish. Rowbottom allows Warner and Heeney to do as they please. Drew gives Butters and Rozee attacking freedom.

All of those defensively minded players can also win their own ball and beat players one on one, exactly the same as Urquhart.

 

[Souup]

Marginal improvements. Shit kicks always stay shit kicks. You wont turn into a wellsy in a few games of VFL. Waste of a pick

Yeah and if we use pick 57 to draft a 188cm elite ball user by foot at pick 57 who is shit overhead who gets burnt and beaten regularly due to being poor athletically (Brad Mckenzie) you'll complain.

Alternatively, we draft a small forward who's not strong enough and constantly gets pushed off the ball (Spicer), you'll bitch and moan again.

Can't win with your type.

 

[roos_fanatic08]

Wild that he was able to get so much improvement in his running capacity and body after such a serious hip surgery.

Makes his rise even more impressive.

 

[year of the roo]

im hearing 191cm

Do I hear 192cm?

 

[cybercrab]

I don't think he is 190cm. Everywhere has him listed as 184 or 185 including Rookieme that get their measurements from the combine, except for WAFL which has him at 190cm but people are saying that is incorrect

Could they be from pre-season testing? I'd be shocked if he's 184 or 5 he looks bigger than that

 

[Val Keating]

We spend PICK 57 on a 190cm kid who runs a sub 3second 20m sprint, has great work ethic leading him to work his ass off with a national steeplechase team in the preseason to develop a top-end tank, is powerful and has leadership traits which led to him captaining WA. He's also a contested beast who loves the rough stuff.

Response: "Has a weakness though: seems a shit kick. North have done it again."

You realise if he could kick he's not going at pick 57 but pick 7? No shit he has a weakness, every player at pick 57 does. We'll back in Barlow and co. to work on his weaknesses and accentuate his strengths.

It was just an observation because everything else is so strong it stood out. I haven’t seen him play at all and obviously hope he goes on to play 200 games.

 

[Karanicolas]

He is very clean in his ball handling; always one touch, even under pressure, and very quick to move it on to the next player in the chain.

His kicking … well why not continue the tradition of Simpson, Ziebell, …

 

[joegreen]

Wild that he was able to get so much improvement in his running capacity and body after such a serious hip surgery.

Makes his rise even more impressive.

And you'd think he still has further improvement, which when looking at his 20m and 2kms is seriously impressive.

Also, the fact his hip stood up to this load level is a good sign it has healed up nicely. Very hard to hit those numbers and play consistently through the year carrying any level of residual hip soreness.

FWIW I'm on the side you can improve your skills if you dedicate the time. There is a ceiling but if you are able to work with someone and set a structured and tailored program you can re-train the body to move the way you want it to.

I'm excited to watch Luke develop.

 

[Souup]

I rather we picked Jaxon Atermis. But whatever. We are a laugh anyway.

Good luck to the boy

Oh so the skinny 180cm kid who goes missing for large parts, who'll be a defensive liability and won't be ready for 3 years while we wait for him to put on 12kg who defaults to kicking long because he struggles to make the right short-medium decision by foot?

See how I can play these games too if I want to be negative for the sake of it?

 

[amaz199]

Elite ball-use shouldn't be the only metric when it comes to drafting players. Sure, it makes things easier but if the coaching structures are sound then players that don't have the prolific ball-use traits can still flourish.

I've always maintained that players should be doing everything they can to make themselves an easy target to hit as opposed to expecting the bullet pass everytime. Urquhart can burst away and find space. You'd expect his teammates to do the same.

 

[amaz199]

and players around Urquhart should be working hard to spread from the contest to build up the chain.

No point in winning contested possessions if it ends up in the opposition's hands at the stoppage or 50m away.

 

[Karanicolas]

Oh so the skinny 180cm kid who goes missing for large parts, who'll be a defensive liability and won't be ready for 3 years while we wait for him to put on 12kg who defaults to kicking long because he struggles to make the right short-medium decision by foot?

See how I can play these games too if I want to be negative for the sake of it?

I am enjoying these critiques.

 

[The Filth Wizard]

We are a laugh anyway.

The people you are worried about laughing at you are the wrong people to be worried about laughing at you.

This team is going to tear others to shreds in 20-50 games. The laughter will be much more enjoyable.

 

[Shermanator]

And you'd think he still has further improvement, which when looking at his 20m and 2kms is seriously impressive.

Also, the fact his hip stood up to this load level is a good sign it has healed up nicely. Very hard to hit those numbers and play consistently through the year carrying any level of residual hip soreness.

FWIW I'm on the side you can improve your skills if you dedicate the time. There is a ceiling but if you are able to work with someone and set a structured and tailored program you can re-train the body to move the way you want it to.

I'm excited to watch Luke develop.

He’ll thrive under Barlow.

 

[amaz199]

Marginal improvements. Shit kicks always stay shit kicks. You wont turn into a wellsy in a few games of VFL. Waste of a pick

Defensively minded midfielders usually don't have the required skillset to be elite by foot otherwise they wouldn't be a defensively minded midfielder.

Their main role is covering holes and sticking to the opposition's best midfielder then winning their own ball to release someone in congestion. The added bonus is Urquhart has burst speed and endurance to do that too so that's actually good for versatility.

We've seen seemingly average kicks become very good (Enright from his Geelong days comes to mind). Not saying Urquhart will follow the same development trajectory but it's not his job to be the main delivery man anyway. He is there to do the dirty work behind the scenes so that we are not always lagging behind when we do win the ball and expect us to weave through multiple walls.

I can recall so many occasions this year where we won the footy but couldn't advance the footy quickly enough since our midfielders had to be more careful in case of a turnover. Then when we didn't win the footy, we had a tough time keeping up because we've forced players with very powerful offensive traits to do too much for us.

The balance in the midfield should be much better next year and I would be bullish on Urquhart getting an early crack at it.

 

[amaz199]

He’ll thrive under Barlow.

I can already see the benefit of him.

A few players that didn't seem to be getting anywhere have started to get busy on the development front.

It's a really good sign. If the improvement goes to another level it will reflect on the ladder.

 

[archerboy]

I rather we picked Jaxon Atermis. But whatever. We are a laugh anyway.

Good luck to the boy

Mate take a Bex and have a good lay down, I think you need it. Life ain't that serious

 

[roospur]

Marginal improvements. Shit kicks always stay shit kicks. You wont turn into a wellsy in a few games of VFL. Waste of a pick

Who would you have taken at 57?

 

[roospur]

Sorry just seen who you would have taken. Don't know much about Artemis.

 

[The Nostradamus]

West is best! WA kids fly off the shelf on second night

Hugh Boxshall is about to cut his ‘leavers’ celebrations short as he prepares for life under Ross Lyon at St Kilda, with the midfielder among eight West Aussies snapped up at the draft.

thewest.com.au

Kayle Gerreyn, Will Hayes and Luke Urquhart were all picked up on Thursday in the draft. Credit: Ian Munro / Danella Bevis

"One selection later, East Fremantle midfielder Luke Urquhart was taken by North Melbourne.

Urquhart’s rise to a draftee has been incredible, having been sidelined for most of last year needed a full hip reconstruction, having been diagnosed with hip dysplasia with acetabular retroversion as well as a labrum tear and cam impingement.

The former talented junior water polo player didn’t let the setback stop him from driving towards his AFL dream.

Urquhart worked hard and finished the under-18 championships as one of WA’s best, averaging 21 disposals (11 contested) and 5.5 clearances while he was sensational for the Sharks in the colts with 23.3 disposals, five clearances, 9.5 tackles and two goals in three games.

Luke Urquhart. Credit: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos/AFL Photos via Getty Images
“I was hoping for the best but preparing for the worst,” he said after being drafted.

“I had chats with my manager (Luke Morabito) and had somewhat of an idea what was going to happen.

“From my first interview with North Melbourne I always thought it was going to be them ... they made me feel at home straight away.

“I’ve had a long journey to get here, lots of hardship but I put my best foot forward this year, played a lot of good footy and it paid off for me tonight.”

One of the first people to congratulate Urquhart was Sydney star and family friend Chad Warner.

But it’s a North Melbourne superstar who Urquhart is looking to learn off when he lands at Arden Street.

“I am super keen to get over there. There is a lot of young talent coming through like Harry Sheezel but it’s probably LDU (Luke Davies-Uniacke),” he said.

“I styled my game off him a lot this year. I am super excited to get over there and meet all the boys.”"

the more you read about this guy the more i love it

was already a big fan but just keeps seeming more and more impressive