AFL Player # 3: Darcy Parish

[Beerfish]

Contract Status: Unrestricted free agent 2028 or 2029
My Boy Draft 2024: Pick 18, doug85

 

[Doss]

Welcome to Essendon, Darcy Parish!

Credit to Knightmare for this quality write up!

Darcy Parish (VIC – UTIL)
Height: 181cm, Weight: 73kg, DOB: 25/07/1997
Recruited from: Geelong Falcons
Reminds me of: A slightly better Zac Merrett
Best position/role: Midfield (outside leaning)/flanker.
Strengths:
Footskills – Parish is a very good user of the footy. He uses it efficiently and can hit his targets over short, medium and long distance. In traffic he is quick getting the ball onto his boot. He has good penetration with a 50m – 55m kick on him and can finish when within range from goal.
Vision – Parish has excellent vision finding some good targets other will often miss. When a guy is in a central position and open he’ll find them and similarly kicking into the forward 50 he finds the open man and puts it out in front of them for the easy mark.
Decision making ability – Parish is an excellent decision maker, particularly with time and space on the outside. On the outside he will find his targets up the field but also picks and chooses the right time to go to a target in the centre of the ground or go for a higher risk long target up the field.
Run and carry ability – Parish is a very good run and carry player consistently showing a real willingness when he has space in front of him to take on the game with his run. He is not freakishly fast, but has above average pace and at times will use it in game.
Versatility – Parish is a very versatile player. He is able to play both as an outside or inside to a strong standard. He can also play in the back half having spent most of the 2014 season playing off a back flank where he showed he could set up play by foot, provide some run and carry and take some intercept marks and also has the ability to push forward onto a forward flank.
Ability to read the flight – Parish reads the flight very well behind the ball, reading the flight early on a consistent basis enabling him to peel off his direct opponent for easy intercept marks. He has clean hands overhead and uncontested is a reliable mark.
Production – Parish has the performances behind him as a long time high level performer. With his performances on the board with his ability to find the footy inside and outside the contest, provide run and carry, use the footy and the read the flight of the ball, it is fair to assume that he can play as soon as round one, year one as an AFL standard performer today.
Inside/outside ability – Parish in this draft has among the better inside/outside game balances in this draft. Parish can win the contested footy to a good level and can win some clearances, but then also has the footskills, pace, composure and ability to find plenty of the outside ball.
Athleticism – Parish is not a great but certainly a very good athlete. He has excellent agility and very good pace and leaping ability. His endurance is also good. So while he is not elite in any one athletic category and it is not a point of difference for him, he none the less athletically stacks up well in each category.
Questionmarks:
Inside game – Parish has proven that he can win some contested footy and clearances this season, proving that he is able to play as an inside midfielder as required. When under pressure after winning the footy he can release the ball quickly by hand and foot, and generally do so reliably which is pleasing, and he has good contested ball winning and tackling ability. So he is able to play inside, but not so dominant that I expect that to full time be what he does at AFL level. Height/size –As a relatively smaller and shorter midfielder Parish to an extent may be limited as to just how good he can become. At 181cm he is hardly likely to get forward and take contested grabs or lead his team in contested possessions or clearances through the midfield. But it’s hardly stopping him from being a high level pro. It’s more just what probably stops him from being the absolute number one best player in this draft class.
Weaknesses:Lack of a point of difference – Parish overall is a very well rounded footballer with an excellent footskills particularly but for me he lacks that one thing that sets him apart from everyone in the competition and will make him an out and out dominant player which for me suggests he’ll be a very good, but not great player.
Contested marking ability – Parish while a clean and reliable mark overhead is not someone who will take contested grabs or 1v1 marks with frequency as evidenced by the fact that he only took one contested mark through 14 TAC Cup games last season.
Summary: Parish is a low risk choice who will add precision footskills and class wherever he plays and looks set to become a very good footballer at AFL level, capable of playing 150 games.

 

[Loonerty]

PARISH DAY!

 

[Old Campaigner]

Should be good, needs some time in the gym with Gleeson.

 

[marky53]

CHURCH!

 

[Rack Watts]

Yes! Finally
Great stuff Dons.

 

[YEMOC NAYR]

YES!!!!!!

 

[vast]

Cool. Welcome.

 

[BomberFan355]

Welcome! Now, hit the gym.

 

[Loonerty]

Apparently was desperate to get to Essendon.

 

[boncer34]

I was meh before hand. I'm still semi meh but I'm warming.

 

[MightyDons4]

Should be a good solid 200 gamer.

 

[RedmanWasHere]

Welcome to Bomberland Wurzel.

HELL YEAH!

 

[quotemokc]

Awesome, even though he is on the small side, remember the human body keeps growing until 21 so he could still gain a few centimetres.

 

[matty lloyd the champ]

WOOHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Rack Watts]

Awesome, even though he is on the small side, remember the human body keeps growing until 21 so he could still gain a few centimetres.

I have gained a few centimeters since we drafted him!
Stoked

 

[pepsi]

Born in 1997. I started high school in 1997. **** I'm getting old.

Welcome Darcy.

 

[ant555]

Was originally the bloke I wanted with our first pick so happy we have him despite going off him a little.
Will be a good player, most players who play 2 years of champ footy end up being good.

 

[BomberFan355]

He actually doesn't look that small on stage, decent shoulders on the boy.

 

[Autobahn]

Darse, welcome!

 

[Harlequin]

Welcome Darcy

 

[katana]

"a slightly better version of zac merrett"

I stopped reading there

 

[Fear Boner]

Best Mid in the draft

 

[daz17]

Nice!

 

[carloss]

His inside work kinda reminds me of Priddis. All he needs now is a perm

 

[Doss]

His inside work kinda reminds me of Priddis. All he needs now is a perm

And a Brownlow.