Preview 2024 National Draft Preview Thread

[The Talent Scout]

is draft assisant still a possibility or has that ship sailed?

Its just about sailed. Andrew Dillon has already come out and said that its on the agenda and that after this year its hopefully abolished forever. So what that means is that depending where we finish/how many wins we have for the year and if we are in dire straights again it will be up to AFL headquarters to help us out one last time before it is abolished, as I'm pretty sure that next year it will be written in the book and priority picks to teams rebuilding or at the bottom of the ladder will never be seen again. The end of this year from what I've heard can be applied, if needed.

 

[The Talent Scout]

In an ideal world we need other clubs to get into a bidding war for Zurhaar so we get band 1 again.

Picks 1 & 2 to kick us off would be great.

Take Guy Smillie @ 1 and then do a trade with GCS with pick 2 and change.

View attachment 1973626

Having 8, 11 and 20 gives us options to trade for an already established gun electric SF/KPP or otherwise keep drafting first rounders.

I don't mind that deal actually Shermanator, the thing is Gold Coast are not interested in pick 2 as they have more Academy kids coming through and need points to get them. That is their big aim at the end of the year. Fremantle would be the team to do that deal though I've heard they are going to offer 3 first rounders for someone at the end of the year. But IF we got the first two picks in the draft, pick 2 for picks 9/10/14 would be my play, I believe Fremantle could be enticed to do that deal.

The sweet spot, I think Cam stays so pick 2 isn't happening unless we know someone is leaving. This is so hypothetical and early its crazy BUT lets have a little bit of fun. Say Cam leaves and we get band 1 again as three or four clubs want Cam, and say {this is even crazier} we get pick 2 or 3, and we do the above scenario, I possibly would take Josh or FOS or even Sid if he exploded at the champs at pick 1, pick 9 with certain players probably gone I'd take Luke Trainor or Harry O'Farrell, pick 10 Taj Hotton, no surprise here with my final pick 14 would be Kayle Gerryn.

So One gun mid at pick 1 then a key defender at pick 9 followed by Taj Hotton who can be our small forward as well as push up the ground to play wing at times at pick 10 and a key forward at pick 14, as of April!

 

[Shermanator]

I don't mind that deal actually Shermanator, the thing is Gold Coast are not interested in pick 2 as they have more Academy kids coming through and need points to get them. That is their big aim at the end of the year.

They can trade pick 2 for some future picks eh?

 

[Passmore]

That ship has sunk and is on the bottom of the ocean never to be seen again. In years to come AFL recruiters will scour the ocean floor looking for the good ship HMAS AFL Assistance and her bounty of treasured late first round assistance picks that must be traded.

 

[tales129]

How do we get smilie and trainor?

Probably costs us LDU

 

[shinboner magic]

Don't really know if he can be a key forward but his marking is pretty good and the least of his worries, his main go is half forward flank/ midfielder. Good thinking tho shinboner magic as I did think about this myself but he's a runner with power, who knows he might end up 197cm, and when he grows from a boy to a man and gets on the weights as well as perfects his skills the world could be his oyster.

Jeremy Cameron like

 

[Twangler]

How do we get smilie and trainor?

Probably costs us LDU

Only way is Zurhaar has a massive rest of year….

 

[Shermanator]

Another strong performance from Josh Smillie for the AFL Academy. He played the majority of the game forward or back showing his versatility as a prospect and he was one of few Academy players able to match Footscray for physicality. The only thing to criticize would be his occasional kicking struggles, though his disposal was fine for the most part.

He's a cross between Corn-Francis and Reid. Powerful unit who kicks 60m for fun, but disposal looks to be a bit erratic.

Trainor looks like a beauty too.

Would be a dream if we could somehow get them both next year.

 

[The Talent Scout]

They can trade pick 2 for some future picks eh?

Oh for sure Sherm, but I guess why would they help us out when with picks 9/10/14 they can deal with multiple clubs and get all the points they need.

 

[TurnoverMerchant]

I like Smillie, but gee his disposal is really underwhelming.

 

[Jimmy's Hot Dogs]

I like Smillie, but gee his disposal is really underwhelming.

Very high content to username correlation.

I’m not sure on Guy either.

 

[Slamming Sam]

Surely NMFC invest in a key position forward and a key position defender this year? If LDU can't be convinced to sign on the dotted line by the end of the year, I guess then you might have to choose one of Smillie or Finn O'Sullivan. This team won't see wins until they address the key forward and key defender deficiencies on the list.

 

[The Talent Scout]

Surely NMFC invest in a key position forward and a key position defender this year? If LDU can't be convinced to sign on the dotted line by the end of the year, I guess then you might have to choose one of Smillie or Finn O'Sullivan. This team won't see wins until they address the key forward and key defender deficiencies on the list.

Hi Slamming Sam, we did address the key defender issue last year and used one of our first rounders on Wil Dawson, though I believe we need one more. The usual strategy of trading for one is so baron at the moment that the draft is our last option. We got very lucky with Griffin joining us from Fremantle but I guess that was due to a set of circumstances and all the good key defenders are either locked away or are in a position to play in finals.

The other question you have to ask yourself is WHY would anyone want to come to us at the moment? We also went and got Finnbar and Tyler for the key forward post but believe we need one more young key forward in the squad to nurture and bring through. This is providing we don't go after a key forward at the end of the year but then my first point comes into fruition. LDU's contract expires at the end of 2025 so he's pretty much got all this year and all next year.

 

[Slamming Sam]

One of the biggest mistakes NM has made over the last 5 years was delisting BBB. Brown was one of the 17 players cut at the end of 2020. Plan A - Rawlings should have signed him up as a priority. Plan B - knowing full well, at this point, that BBB was out, the priority should have been a replacement during trade. They could not find one. Plan C - Having not traded one a replacement in, the focus needed to shift at the draft table. It didn't and they went with Will Phillips. Now ... I like Phillips but this one off season highlights how bad the football department has been. 5 years in, the club is still looking for a ready to go replacement. It astounds me how bad the decision making has been at times and still continued to be, with those that hold the power in building or destroying (a matter of how you look at) the NM list.

 

[FootySmartSimpson]

I hope the emphasis is on the psychological aspects.

Which one is mentally tougher, communicates well, doesn't retreat into their shell, plays for their teammates, is going to stick fat etc.

That's the one we need to pick but I agree Trainor and Smillie both look good for us.

And one that is going to impact the contest with dogged white line fever.

Whoever we draft has to hate being beaten.

 

[Sphynx]

Would you trade our 2025 first rounder for a mid first round this year?

Absolutely not.

The potential #1 pick of 2025 has similar wraps to Harley Reid did as a 16 year old.

Im expecting him to have a similar impact as an underage player at the Champs in a month or so.

The other top pick for that year is Willem Duursma, who is basically a CHB version of Zane at this early stage, who is probably even more athletic given his exploits in track and field at the state level.

He's already 192cm and an elite high jumper. So may be genuine KPP size.

 

[JGreezy]

In an ideal world we need other clubs to get into a bidding war for Zurhaar so we get band 1 again.

Picks 1 & 2 to kick us off would be great.

Take Guy Smillie @ 1 and then do a trade with GCS with pick 2 and change.

View attachment 1973626

Having 8, 11 and 20 gives us options to trade for an already established gun electric SF/KPP or otherwise keep drafting first rounders.

In that scenario we surely take Smillie and Trainor.

Noting that I'd prefer to avoid pick 1 and losing Zurhaar.

 

[Merlin007]

In an ideal world we need other clubs to get into a bidding war for Zurhaar so we get band 1 again.

Picks 1 & 2 to kick us off would be great.

Take Guy Smillie @ 1 and then do a trade with GCS with pick 2 and change.

View attachment 1973626

Having 8, 11 and 20 gives us options to trade for an already established gun electric SF/KPP or otherwise keep drafting first rounders.

I don’t want Zurhaar to leave, but if he does I can’t see who’s going to pay a million a year for 5+ years to get to band 1

Good player with attributes - yes; marquee player? Don’t see it

 

[Fart Cummings]

one things for sure we will be picking 1....And reckon we are favs for pick 1 in 2025 as sad as that is.

 

[Shermanator]

I don’t want Zurhaar to leave, but if he does I can’t see who’s going to pay a million a year for 5+ years to get to band 1

Good player with attributes - yes; marquee player? Don’t see it

We thought the same about Magoo too.

As Boom Crash Opera once said.. these here are crazy times..

 

[kool kangas]

I don’t want Zurhaar to leave, but if he does I can’t see who’s going to pay a million a year for 5+ years to get to band 1

Good player with attributes - yes; marquee player? Don’t see it

If Freo , WC and Sydney want him it might get there..

 

[remfan101]

He's a cross between Corn-Francis and Reid. Powerful unit who kicks 60m for fun, but disposal looks to be a bit erratic.

Trainor looks like a beauty too.

Would be a dream if we could somehow get them both next year.

He's doing a lot of jogging & missing targets in this clip. @the draft watchers- hows his stoppage craft? Looks to lack explosiveness a bit, but if he's Tom Green like around the ball it matters less.

 

[RHLK]

So Smillie with AFL Assistance pick #1, Trainor with our #2, O'Sullivan with Zurhaar compo #3....?

 

[DesertRoo]

So Smillie with AFL Assistance pick #1, Trainor with our #2, O'Sullivan with Zurhaar compo #3....?

Safe to say the other afl clubs would riot, so won't be happening.

 

[Merlin007]

We thought the same about Magoo too.

As Boom Crash Opera once said.. these here are crazy times..

true, but I reckon there's a substantial difference in player type - KPD gorillas don't grow on trees (no pun intended), whereas Cam is a med forward with no proven impact from his admittedly infrequent visits into the middle.

As for crazy times, they are indeed, but if Zurhaar gets a million a year, despite my preference to keep him, I would say we bow out - of all the positions on the ground, med forward is probably the one we have most depth in (and that's without Sheezel going forward)