BigFooty Official 2022 OFFICIAL BIGFOOTY PHANTOM DRAFT

[PMBangers]

IF YOU WANT TO READ THROUGH THE THREAD AND ONLY SEE THE SELECTIONS RATHER THAN COMMENTARY FROM NON-DRAFTERS, CLICK 'READER MODE' NEXT TO YOUR 'WATCH' BUTTON

If you want to read a specific player profile/ selection, you can use the 'Search' function on the top right of your page, and change the area from 'Everywhere' to 'This Thread'

Round 1
Pick 1 - Brisbane - Will Ashcroft [Matched Bid]
Pick 2 - GWS - Aaron Cadman
Pick 3 - North Melbourne - Harry Sheezel
Pick 4 - North Melbourne - George Wardlaw
Pick 5 - Essendon - Elijah Tsatas
Pick 6 - Gold Coast Suns - Mattaes Phillipou
Pick 7 - Hawthorn - Cam MacKenzie
Pick 8 - Geelong - Darcy Jones
Pick 9 - West Coast Eagles - Jhye Clark
Pick 10 - St Kilda - Bailey Humphrey
Pick 11 - Carlton - Lewis Hayes
Pick 12 - Western Bulldogs - Reuben Ginbey
Pick 13 - West Coast Eagles - Elijah Hewett
Pick 14 - Melbourne - Matthew Jefferson
Pick 15 - Sydney - Jedd Busslinger
Pick 16 - GWS - Oliver Hollands
Pick 17 - Essendon - Alwyn Davey

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

[Matched Bid]
Pick 18 - Brisbane - Jaspa Fletcher [Matched Bid]
Pick 19 - Collingwood - Isaac Keeler
Pick 20 - Sydney - Brayden George
Pick 21 - GWS - Jacob Konstanty

Round 2
Pick 22 - GWS - Coby Burgiel
Pick 23 - West Coast Eagles - Olli Hotton
Pick 24 - Western Bulldogs - Josh Weddle
Pick 25 - North Melbourne - Lachlan Cowan
Pick 26 - Hawthorn - Charlie Clarke
Pick 27- Collingwood - Harry Barnett
Pick 28 - West Coast Eagles - Henry Hustwaite
Pick 29 - Adelaide - Max Michalanny [Matched Bid]
Pick 30 - Collingwood - Mitch Szybkowski
Pick 31 - St Kilda - Max Gruzewski
Pick 32 - Carlton - Ed Allan
Pick 33 - Fremantle - Jed Hagan
Pick 34 - GWS - Harry Rowston
Pick 35 - St Kilda - Harry Lemmey
Pick 36 - Port Adelaide - Kobe Ryan
Pick 37 - Melbourne - Nick Sadler

Round 3
Pick 38 - Western Bulldogs - Jaiden Magor
Pick 39 - North Melbourne - Tom Scully

21

Tom Scully

Age

33

Ht

181cm

Wt

80kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

20.7

5star

K

9.9

4star

HB

10.8

5star

M

3.8

4star

T

3.5

5star

CL

2.3

4star

D

12.6

3star

K

7.5

3star

HB

5.1

3star

M

2.4

3star

T

1.1

2star

CL

0.8

3star

D

19.8

5star

K

8.8

4star

HB

11.0

5star

M

3.0

3star

T

4.6

5star

CL

3.8

5star

Pick 40 - Hawthorn - Anthony Munkara
Pick 41 - Sydney - Adam D'Aloia
Pick 42 - North Melbourne - Cooper Harvey
Pick 43 - Fremantle - Jed Adams
Pick 44 - Gold Coast Suns - Sam Gilbey
Pick 45 - St Kilda - James Van Es
Pick 46 - Hawthorn - Brandon Leary
Pick 47 - Carlton - Billy Dowling
Pick 48 - Hawthorn - Jake Walker
Pick 49 - Collingwood - Jakob Ryan
Pick 50 - Hawthorn - Cooper Vickery
Pick 51 - Richmond - Phoenix Foster
Pick 52 - Essendon - Bailey MacDonald
Pick 53 - GWS - PASS
Pick 54 - Geelong - Hugh Davies

Round 4
Pick 55 - Adelaide - Jonti Schuback
Pick 56 - Port Adelaide - Ryan Eyers
Pick 57 - GWS - PASS
Pick 58 - Essendon - Jack O’Sullivan
Pick 59 - Richmond - Harvey Gallagher
Pick 60 - Geelong - Lachlan Scannell
Pick 61 - Adelaide - Will Verrall
Pick 62 - Hawthorn - Jerome Lawrence
Pick 63 - Carlton - Blake Drury
Pick 64 - Fremantle - Jaxon Binns
Pick 65 - Essendon - Jayden Davey
Pick 66 - Western Bulldogs - Ethan Phillips
Pick 67 - North Melbourne - PASS
Pick 68 - Gold Coast Suns - Josh Draper
Pick 69 - Essendon - PASS
Pick 70 - Gold Coast Suns - Tyrell Dewar
Pick 71 - Sydney - PASS
Pick 72 - Fremantle - Noah Long

Round 5 (To get teams to 3 picks)
Pick 73 - Port Adelaide - Kyle Marshall
Pick 74 - Richmond - Luke Teal
Pick 75 - Melbourne - Harry Cole
Pick 76 - Brisbane - Tom McCallum

BID Matching details
Pick 1 Will Ashcroft - Brisbane use Picks 34,35,36,38,55 and take on a 150 point deficit for 2023

Pick 17 Alwyn Davey

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

- Essendon use Pick 23 to match

Pick 18 Jaspa Fletcher - Brisbane have no picks with points, so take on a bigger deficit with the Ashcroft one

Pick 29 Max Michalanny- Adelaide use 44 and 53 to match, 53 moves to 61

2023 MINI DRAFT ORDER
Pick 1 - North Melbourne - Harley Reid
Pick 2 - West Coast Eagles - Daniel Curtin
Pick 3 - GWS - Ashton Moir
Pick 4 - Essendon - Nick Watson
Pick 5 - Adelaide - Zane Duursma
Pick 6 - Gold Coast Suns - Jed Walter [MATCHED Bid]
Pick 7 - Hawthorn - Archer Reid
Pick 8 - North Melbourne (From Port Adelaide) - Nate Caddy
Pick 9 - St Kilda - Koltyn Tholstrup
Pick 10 - Carlton - Riley Hardeman
Pick 11 - Western Bulldogs - Jack Delean
Pick 12 - GWS (From Richmond) - Will Lorenz
Pick 13 - Melbourne (From Fremantle) - Sam Frangalas
Pick 14 - Melbourne - Nathan Philactides
Pick 15 - Western Bulldogs (From Brisbane) - Will Patton
Pick 16 - Collingwood - Cooper Simpson
Pick 17 - Sydney - Riak Andrew
Pick 18 - Geelong - Jayden Matz

 

[Pie 4 Life]

I remember this last year. Saints passed on windhager. Let’s not have any howlers like this again this year lol

Yeah much like the actual Saints, the guy in charge was sacked.

 

[Ysaye]

Gold Coast Pick 6: Matteas Phillipou

Height: 190cm Weight: 80kg

Strengths: Aggressive quick decision making, footskills, marking, size and athleticism, versatility, goal kicker, very bottom aged

Areas for Improvement / queries: Exposed Leadership, tackling, exposure to SANFL seniors

Justification / Other Players Considered:
My rule is go best available with a top 20 pick; but obviously that needs some clarification. In the end I have gone with Phillipou here; I would probably pick Jhye Clark here (I had even written up my reasons for doing so) if I wanted to pick what I thought was going to happen in reality (or otherwise trade the pick down for Hollands), but what instead I have gone with the available player that excites me the most. Historically pick six compared to pick seven gets a bad reputation and it is probably for the very reason that it is often at the tipping point between a safe choice but potentially underwhelming, or an exciting but potential bust pick; in this instance I am probably going with the latter.

Short Player Profile / Discussion on Position:
Phillipou potentially fits a large number of positions including potentially any midfield position, forward or off a half back flank. I think Phillipou starts off forward; he can take marks anywhere and can also pick goals from a large number of locations with ease and has a high goal rate per game (think his average was 1.5). I think longer term though he probably moves closer to the centre and is an offensive weapon delivering into the forward 50.

I guess we are sticking Youtube videos in at this point these days?

 

[Ysaye]

Davo-27 yourup.

 

[KinderSmock]

I love the authentisity of this thread too. We are a bit over 3 hours in and we have 5 picks done which is about the same speed I expect things to be done on the real draft night too.

The draft has become increasingly duller with each year that goes by.

 

[KinderSmock]

Davo-27, please select Jhye Clark.

 

[Ysaye]

The draft has become increasingly duller with each year that goes by.

Do you mean the actual draft, or the BigFooty Phantom draft?

I think in general the actual draft process via which players get picked has been refined a lot and as a consequence there is a lot less wriggle room / variability between what clubs think is the best available player, and as a consequence it is a lot easier to pick what will happen early. For mine, the draft gets more interesting after say (very generally) pick 25 - that is where people really earn their keep.

 

[Davo-27]

Hawthorn Pick 7:
Cam Mackenzie 187cm 80kg
Sandringham Dragons
Midfielder

A player that has increasingly impressed me as the season went on, for context he was playing hbf last year for VM and this year he finally got his chance as a midfielder in his draft year and has taken huge strides forward, the trial games were the first time I saw him blitz open a game and since then he has been consistently dominant in games showing speed, agility, footy smarts and most importantly composure and clean skills/ high quality decision making skills, he is linked to the Saints as an NGA, but has no chance of getting past pick 40, he stepped up in the absence of Wardlaw and Tsatas to give Ashcroft a partner in crime for VM which was the difference this year and meant a championships win for VM.

Hawthorn are rebuilding our midfield and I think Phillipou or Mackenzie are high on our wish list, so I'm happy to take 1 of them here.


Chris25 youre up

 

[TDS7]

Yeah much like the actual Saints, the guy in charge was sacked.

Does that make me Ross Lyon?

PMBangers is it too late to relinquish a team?

 

[PMBangers]

Does that make me Ross Lyon?

PMBangers is it too late to relinquish a team?

"TDS7 the Boss"

Just doesn't have a good ring to it

 

[TDS7]

"TDS7 the Boss"

Just doesn't have a good ring to it

Too late, already changed my profile.

 

[roos_fanatic08]

Hawthorn Pick 7:
Cam Mackenzie
Sandringham Dragons
Midfielder

A player that has increasingly impressed me as the season went on, for context he was playing hbf last year for VM and this year he finally got his chance as a midfielder in his draft year and has taken huge strides forward, the trial games were the first time I saw him blitz open a game and since then he has been consistently dominant in games showing speed, agility, footy smarts and most importantly composure and clean skills/ high quality decision making skills, he is linked to the Saints as an NGA, but has no chance of getting past pick 40, he stepped up in the absence of Wardlaw and Tsatas to give Ashcroft a partner in crime for VM which was the difference this year and meant a championships win for VM.

Hawthorn are rebuilding our midfield and I think Phillipou or Mackenzie are high on our wish list, so I'm happy to take 1 of them here.


Chris25 youre up

Nice one Davo-27. McKenzie offers a good point of difference in the Hawks midfield with his speed and ability to play both inside and out.

Newcombe, Worpel, Ward and McKenzie is a very solid foundation to a rebuilding midfield.

 

[Chris25]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton

29

Shai Bolton

Age

25

Ht

176cm

Wt

77kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.3

3star

K

6.9

3star

HB

5.4

4star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.9

4star

CL

1.4

4star

D

12.7

3star

K

9.2

4star

HB

3.5

2star

M

3.0

3star

T

2.7

4star

CL

1.8

4star

D

9.2

3star

K

4.6

2star

HB

4.6

4star

M

2.0

3star

T

2.6

4star

CL

0.0

1star

, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

 

[TDS7]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

This is gonna make the guys on the Hawks board that want him at 24 very unhappy.

Actually, you know what, I reckon they'll be fine with it.

 

[Monocle]

Pick # 9. West Coast. Jhye Clark. 181 cm 77 kg.
Midfielder. Geelong Falcons.






Clark is one of those unique players who has no elite qualities in his game style, yet he still gets consistently mentioned as being a candidate for a single digit draft pick.

The inter play to that is the fact that neither does he have any glaring weaknesses to his game.

I would however challenge the no elite qualities notion ..... because he possesses one playing trait that, I happen to rate very highly and thats consistency.

He is a consistent contributor in all quarters and through out the entire game.
Likewise he is consistent week in, week out, from one season to the next.
How many times do you hear or read about player X mentioned and that if he is on song that will go a long way to winning the game.
Clark doesn't go missing in games.

He is a contested ball winner who best work is done on the inside, where he is often the first set of hands that starts a chain of moves in motion.
Being a high volume, contested ball gets winner, is just such a valuable in the modern game ( actually in any era).

There are certain players that I use the term bust proof on and ,IMO, there are three in this years cohort.
Sheezle, Busslinger and Clark, now the term bust proof should not be misconstrued as being the best players, rather it means they display a skill set that is difficult to see them failing at the next level.
I think all three of those, mentioned will be 200 game players.

Clark has been an acknowledged leader at all levels that he has played at, and is the current Geelong Falcons and Vic Country Captain.

He is also a person of high character , an intangible thats sought by all Clubs, as it makes them very low risk off field.

While he isn't the quickest on the ground, the role he plays need more strength to get the ball away to the outside run and carry and its a link role that he does well.

Of course you will always get the pessimists that say an interstate player is a flight risk, thats implied in any kid that moves interstate.
That should not deter a Club before some background check is done on the prospective draftee.

Over its history West Coast have been good at retaining its interstate players.

Successful Clubs back them selves in, its not perfect but I think our record stands up well.

There are some who point to the Judd defection as exhibit A as to why to not draft interstate kids................ lets just put it this way, if Clark leaves after five season as a Premiership Captain, Norm Smith Medalist and a Brownlow Medalist, I can live with that.


He brings a skill set that West Coast are in real need of and his inclusion on our list instantaneously make us a better list.

Therefore it's a pretty easy decision to call his name out at pick # 9 come draft night.

 

[RUNVS]

Pick # 9. West Coast. Jhye Clark. 181 cm 77 kg. Midfielder. Geelong Falcons.

Write up latter tonight either after pick 13 or tomorrow.

TDS7 Saints are up.

If I were a West Coast fan and my club just picked Clark I would hope like hell they know what they are doing as that just screams "request trade back to Geelong in 2 years time"

 

[TDS7]

Pick 10 | Bailey Humphrey | 186cm 86kg | Inside Midfielder/Medium Forward

Bailey "Humphrey B. Bear" Humphrey has landed down at Moorabbin. The definition of an upside prospect, Humphrey has all the physical tools and mental strength to carve out a place among the greats. To get there, he'll need to overcome the bane of many a footballer: kicking. While Bailey's skills with the footy have been overblown a touch, there's no doubt that he's dreadful with a set shot and pretty ordinary around the ground. He also needs to build up his tank a bit more to play further up the ground, something he's been working on throughout the season. With his deficiencies out of the way, let's get onto what he brings to the St. Kilda Football Club. Baz is a strong, agile, fast midfielder with vices for hands, dynamite in his footy boots, and a rousing will to get his team over the line. A vocal leader who impacts the game with every kick, Humphrey injects some excitement into St Kilda's one-paced midfield and some grit into their forward line. He finds his way on the scoresheet an incredible amount for someone who splits their time between the forward line and the midfield, tackles hard, and runs both ways with a ferocious dedication to getting the footy. Despite an interrupted year, Bailey has shot right into top-10 contention. With a few preseasons in the AFL system, his drive and leadership coupled with the mountain of upside he has St Kilda are in a perfect place to inject some excitement and ferocity into their new future under Ross Lyon.


Arr0w is up with the Blues.

 

[CaptainMurphy]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

Love this pick, just got through saying I'd be happy with him at our first

 

[chopflop]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

Great call.

 

[Monocle]

If I were a West Coast fan and my club just picked Clark I would hope like hell they know what they are doing as that just screams "request trade back to Geelong in 2 years time"

Such an optimist.



West Coast have put lots of time into him with interviews with him and his family, when we were considering who would we would take with pick 2.

Our retention rate has been pretty good over the journey, he is one of the more mature grounded kids in this cohort, I will back the Club in.

He ticks so many of the boxes that we need addressing.

Kids not a Cats fan either.

If you star getting spooked by where they come from then you are already defeated.

 

[Obeanie1]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

If the Cats pick Darcy Jones with pick 7/8 I will eat my dog.

And I really love my dog. THATS how confident I am........that I wont be eating my dog.

 

[Arr0w]

Pick 11 Carlton - Lewis Hayes

199cm/84kg
17/12/04
Eastern Ranges
Key defender

Write up tomorrow

Strong considerations: Busslinger, Hotton

goodcop badcop you are up

 

[roos_fanatic08]

Such an optimist.



West Coast have put lots of time into him with interviews with him and his family, when we were considering who would we would take with pick 2.

Our retention rate has been pretty good over the journey, he is one of the more mature grounded kids in this cohort, I will back the Club in.

He ticks so many of the boxes that we need addressing.

Kids not a Cats fan either.

If you star getting spooked by where they come from then you are already defeated.

Jhye is a country boy as well. The vic country boys tend to have less issues surrounding the whole go home thing. Draftees with Jhye’s sort of leadership and professionalism tend to also be very loyal.

 

[Obeanie1]

If I were a West Coast fan and my club just picked Clark I would hope like hell they know what they are doing as that just screams "request trade back to Geelong in 2 years time"

The kid is a Pies / Blues fan.

But yes, it would be a ballsy call.

Not sure what the "Eagles have difficulty retaining players" noise is based on. Freo sure but the Eagles seem very good at retaining players.

 

[jesterwester]

#8 Geelong - Darcy Jones (175cm, 67kg forward/mid from WA)

It seems like there’s always someone in the draft that people are saying ‘if only he was taller…’. Well size isn’t everything. If Darcy Jones was 185cm, he’d be in the #1 mix in my opinion. So why can’t 175cm get him into the top 10?

As we get closer to the draft, Jones is the player I’m liking more and more and I’ve well and truly given up on my dream of him coming to Fremantle. It’s not a draft stock full of elite attributes, but Jones has them in his athletic ability, running patterns and scoreboard impact. Plus his genuine ball winning and reading of the play. And he actually uses his athleticism and speed on the ground - which is definitely not always the case with the draft combine stars.

It seems high, and I don’t think this happens on draft day. But I think Jones is the closest prospect we’ve seen to Shai Bolton, and using a top 10 pick on him would look pretty good. I expect Jones to start as a small/half forward but in a few years I see no reason he won’t be able to go through the middle. But for now, it makes the Geelong forward half faster and more.

Otherwise, Jedd Busslinger was high on my list for Geelong and I think he’s a very good chance to be the pick in the real thing. I’d take him over Jhye Clark who is probably the bookies favourite here. But Geelong will bring him ‘home’ in 2 years anyway, so why waste the pick. But with my two late picks I think I’m a better chance of finding a tall defender I like than a game changing small.

Monocle I think is up next

Love this pick.

175cm isn’t crazy small either. I think he will be one that invariably will be a head scratcher in 5-10 years time why he didn’t go this high in the real thing.

 

[goodcop badcop]

Pick 12 - Western Bulldogs - Reuben Ginbey
189cm, 85kg
East Perth
Midfielder/defender

In a few words, Ginbey is a powerfully built specimen and a competitive beast.

Spoiler: How did he perform?

Ginbey has had an outstanding year and performed well at all levels and in multiple roles. Starting off the year as backman at WAFL U18 level where he performed well, Ginbey moved into the midfield in the U18 championships and surprised us all winning the MVP for his state side and claiming All Australian honours. He then went back to the WAFL and managed 4 senior games where he impressed again as a defender. He then topped it off with a superb combine with top 10 finishes in leap (70cm), 20m sprints (2.92s) and 2km time trial (6.15m).

Spoiler: What does he bring? (Strengths)

Ginbey for one is a very consistent performer, that rarely plays a bad game. He's solid, dependable, competitive and versatile. Down back he has the defensive capabilities and athletic capabilities to shut out an opponent. He's also quite reliable with his disposal with time and space.

In the midfield he has the ability to break tackles with strength and burst out of stoppages with speed. He has very clean hands and uses his running ability to spread away from the contest as well as defend. His attack on the ball is very good also and by all reports he has some good leadership qualities captaining his school side. He should also be able to make an impact very early as he's well built and has a good fitness base.

Spoiler: What can he improve on?

Adding more class to his game is the biggest one. A bit too often he can get it and boot the ball out of congestion as far as he can if there's no handball option rather then assessing for better kicking options. He also usually runs fast and straight like a bull which is a very good thing to have, but it could be more beneficial to his side if he could add more of a sidestep to his game. He could also learn to hit the scoreboard a bit more too if I'm being picky.

Spoiler: Where does he fit into the doggies side?

With the bulldogs backline being highly attacking, Ginbey provides a defensive skillset that our other defenders don't have and could play as early as round 1 next year. He may also be used in small bursts in the midfield after the loss of Dunkley. In a few more years time he should be able to make the full transition into the midfield with Libba and Treloar most likely finding themselves in retirement.

Spoiler: Others I considered here

Brayden George, Oliver Hollands, Lachie Cowan, Jedd Busslinger, Josh Weddle

Monocle you're up