Recruiting EFC Trade/Draft Talk II with F/A rules in OP - Billings for a fourth rounder the latest rumour

[WEEVZ]

I was a little perplexed by his comments about McKenna playing half back, but you would imagine that it'd be to get the game to come at him rather than go and create as a half forward must do.

True maybe the the club wants to turn him into a Tadhg Kennelly clone?

 

[Red Black and Blue]

True maybe the the club wants to turn him into a Tadhg Kennelly clone?

Would prefer a Hanley clone myself.

Half back is just the best place to learn the game. It plays out in front of you and your good opponents will teach you about postioning/where to run. For mine there is little indication from where they start him in regards to the vision they have in mind.

 

[Snake Charmer]

Johnny Rayner Delisted. Is anyone else surprised at this? Thought he did well in the VFL

 

[Yoda_]

Johnny Rayner Delisted. Is anyone else surprised at this? Thought he did well in the VFL

My biggest query on him was his kicking, lacked penetration and distance. Despite all his other attributes, kicking is still the biggest skill required to play AFL football and unfortunately, Johny lacked in this department.

 

[GUMBLETRON]

Would prefer a Hanley clone myself.

Prompts the question, is Hanley better than Kennelly? He has a fair claim to it I think.

 

[Yoda_]

Prompts the question, is Hanley better than Kennelly? He has a fair claim to it I think.

Kenelly understood the game better than any small irishman. Hanley is probably more skilful and more dynamic though

 

[Autobahn]

Johnny Rayner Delisted. Is anyone else surprised at this? Thought he did well in the VFL

Studying to be a doctor probably doesn't help with his workload. I remember his interview on bomber tv, joking about taking Dr Reid's job someday. So who knows, Rayner might be the one to roll out Fletcher in a wheelchair for his 600th milestone.

 

[Yoda_]

So, Im cooling a bit on wanting De Goey at 17/20. Would still absolutely love Cockatoo at 17 but rumours strongly around the Roos will nab him.

The guy I'm starting to really warm to is Connor Menadue. Likened to Ryan Griffen by some, and Isaac Smith by others Menadue is that rare inside.outside combination midfielder with decent enough foot skills.

at 69kg (start of the season's measurements you would hope) he is still quite skinny but has all the attributes we are after.

Here is what some of the more highly reputable phantom drafters are saying about Connor Menadue.

Paige Cardona's phantom draft

Connor Menadue

Position: Midfielder/forward
Height: 188 cm, Weight: 69 kg, DOB: 19/09/1996
Club: Western Jets
Projected draft range: 20-40
Plays like: Isaac Smith

An explosive yet nimble midfielder, don’t let Connor Menadue’s light frame fool you into thinking he isn’t up to the rigours of AFL football. Averaging 18 disposals for the Western Jets behind the likes of Liam Duggan, Corey Ellis, Dillon Viojo-Rainbow and Jayden Laverde, Menadue’s ability to cut open a game with his speed and penetrating kick makes him an exciting prospect for a club that’s looking for pace in their midfield. Although on the skinny side, Menadue cracks in hard when it comes to tackling, and has a knack for kicking goals on the run. He gets a big tick for versatility, playing mostly off half back and on a wing, albeit with stints up forward for the Jets. He takes the game on, rating among the best performed for handball receives, while also making good decisions. With the ability to use the ball by both hand and foot, Menadue has a certain amount of polish that a player of his ilk needs. He slips through congestion with his breakaway speed and loves to run and carry up a wing, not too dissimilar to Hawthorn’s Isaac Smith. I rate him highly particularly due to his agility, game awareness, and clean hands. Named best on ground in the Jets’ elimination loss, Menadue almost willed the Jets over the line off his own boot, accruing 27 disposals at 87 per cent efficiency, 18 handball receives and two goals.

Connor Menadue (VIC – Mid/Def)Height: 188cm, Weight: 69kg, DOB: 19/09/1996
Recruited from: Western Jets
Range: 10-35Best position/role: Midfield – on the ball. Strengths: Explosive sidestep – Menadue probably has a more explosive sidestep than anyone else presently in the game. He has some evasiveness and avoids tacklers to a high level but it is less in that Pendlebury evasive style where he looks like he has more time and space than anyone else but more an explosive, leave you in my wake variation on that. It starts with his explosive first step that he uses to get around guys and avoid tackles, moving explosively sideways to create separation and exploding past you. It is his major point of difference and is something he can use frequently in game whether it is in general play or after a mark.

Acceleration – In addition to the explosive sidestep Menadue has elite acceleration. He has that explosive first step, gets up to top speed quickly and has a top speed few others possess. He can go on long, full exertion runs with ball in hand and break away from the contest or break the lines on the outside to a high level, typically with runs of 20m-40m until he is either in range to finish for a goal or hit a target inside 50 lace out. Skillset – Menadue from a skillset standpoint has it all. He is a precision kick and hits his targets over a variety of distances. He is an excellent kick under pressure and when tackled has shown that he can even in these situations find long targets lace out. He has the vision to find the best targets and the most damaging long targets. He consistently makes the best decisions by foot, looking for open targets rather than going long down the line to a contest. He is also an excellent finisher when within range from goal in general play whether on the run or from a stationary position. His work by hand is also excellent and he also by hand has the vision to find targets over a variety of distances and has the vision to find the most damaging outside runners.

Gamechanging ability – Menadue is a real highlight reel player and on his day has the talent to change games with his influence with his mix of traits with his sidestep, acceleration and his footskills and he showed in his only final v Dandanong that he can put forward a game whereby he can really exert his influence on numerous plays across the four quarters. It is also possible given his performance in his one final that he is a big game specialist but a larger sample size of big games would be required to determine this. He also has during the season for Western Jets had his moments where he has lifted in critical moments, exerting his influence which I have also been encouraged by.
Goalkicking – Menadue is a genuine goalkicking midfielder and has managed multiple goals in a number of his games through the midfield this year with his finishing ability from general play excellent. Many of those goals come thanks to his explosive ability to burst through the midfield to around the 50m mark and then kick the 45-55m long goal and it is something I expect to see a lot of at AFL level. He can also when in the forward 50 sidestep guys to create space for the easy finish which is another of his ways from general play to hit the scoreboard.

Versatility – Menadue has shown that he can not only play through the midfield but also be utilised off a back flank as a rebounder with his explosive pace and footskills real weapons if you can get the ball into his hands on a back flank, so he is someone who while best utilised through the midfield can as required get thrown behind the ball.

Upside – Menadue given his mix of dominant traits with his pace, explosive sidestep and footskills gives off the sense that he has tremendous scope to develop. He had that breakout final performance and given he has a light body it can reasonably be assumed that he has significant footballing and physical growth remaining that could further help him elevate his game.

Weaknesses:Light body – Still only 69kg and will need to put substantial weight onto his frame before he is ready to play at AFL level. As such a light body it also brings into question once he puts on the weight whether he will retain that explosiveness, with that an unknown until we see it.
Contested ball winning ability – Still a work in progress and not something he does enough when played through the midfield as more of a receiver at this stage but the hope would be that as he puts more size onto his frame and that the contested side to his game will improve. What he can do well is read the ruck taps to get first possession and then use his explosiveness to burst forward which is one positive sign that he can develop his inside game.

Ability to take easy marks around the ground – While Menadue is capable overhead and capable even of taking some strong contested marks at times he lacks on the outside the ability to be a linkup target in forward chains at this stage as someone who outside the contest does not find much of the ball all that easily and really needs to be fed the ball by hand to get his hands on it much of the time rather than being in position to take those easy marks outside the contest. Understanding this Menadue will need to improve his running patterns in general play and start to work more into space so that he can find more of the ball.

Relatively lean and inconsistent production – Menadue at this stage while a high impact player when he has the ball, does not accumulate big numbers every game. He can at this stage have his quiet games and more quiet games than you would ideally like. He can also get tagged out of games and with it struggle to find the footy. What I expect will improve:I expect Menadue to continue doing what he does but also put weight onto his frame, to find more of the footy more often and to improve his inside game as he has played much of the past couple of seasons in the back half and will with more time on the ball improve his inside game.

Who he can become?I see Menadue as being a slightly less productive Jonathan O’Rourke as a similar tallish but lightly built dynamic midfielder with that same explosive pace and excellent footskills. When will he be ready to play?I see Menadue taking some time and likely looking to establish himself as a regular in season three once he has put some size onto his frame and improved his inside game.
How to best utilise him?Menadue is more an outside type at this point but once he puts some size onto his frame I expect will be best utilised on the ball through the midfield as someone you want around the ball and consistently impacting games.

Interpretation of his numbers:Menadue’s numbers both through the U18 Championships and at TAC Cup level have lacked some consistency and have been only moderate. He has over the second half of the season shown strong signs through the midfield and has hit the scoreboard with frequency which is something he did not do last year or in the first few games this season. His disposal efficiency is excellent both at TAC Cup level and particularly through the U18 Championships with his role primarily in the back half helping with that efficiency through the U18 Championships. His tackle numbers are also very good by position and are helped by his speed and agility. He finds a large proportion of his ball through handball receives and will need to start winning more of his own ball and taking more marks around the ground to take that next step towards becoming a high production player.

And the forever reliable Skiposs' phantom draft profile

Connor Menadue (Vic Metro, Linebreaking outside midfielder)

188 cm, 69 kg, 19/9/96
Range: Top 40
Comparison: Jono O'Rourke

Connor Menadue is the bolter right now, partially started by his amazing performance in the first round of the TAC cup finals. The talent has always been there though. He's a tall outside leaning midfielder who could go in any number of directions due to his size and rawness. He's incredibly quick with his pace elite and his acceleration exceptional. His evasive movement is elite with his sidestep the best in the draft. That with his pace makes his linebreaking ability fantastic. By foot he's great. Hits targets, picks the right ones, directs the play well by foot and has some penetration. Despite his size on the inside he can win his ball. He reads the tap well and moves well enough to win the hard ball. His disposal under pressure is great. His ability to receive the ball on the outside is excellent with his timing of runs to receive a highlight. For a thin fella his tackling is great. His ability to hit the scoreboard is a highlight.

The knock on Menadue is production. So far he's rarely produced the kind of games he did in week one of the finals. In the champs he showed flashes but hardly imposed himself. There's a lot to like but he's raw. At his size he still has 10-20 kilos to put on still and that could change the kind of player he is. He occasionally tries to do too much with the ball. He's prone to floating in and out of games. Though he seems to have a natural ability to win his own ball his inside game is very much a work in progress and will take time to develop.

The upside in Menadue is really high. He's the kind of player who can break and win games on his own. With what he's doing at his size there's some real indication he might make it. He projects as a higher level Jonothan O'Rourke with that high level receiving game and silky smooth outside game. He'll take time but by season three with a few pre seasons he's someone that could really impose himself on the AFL.

Really thinking I would take him if he were on the table.

Perhaps a combination of Cockatoo/Menadue/De Goey/ Blakely/Pickett/Garlett/Keitell/Lamb/C.Ellis with our picks at 17 and 20 would do me just fine

 

[Red Black and Blue]

Prompts the question, is Hanley better than Kennelly? He has a fair claim to it I think.

Yep. Kennelly has longevity but I think Hanleys year was better than any from Tadhg.

 

[ghostdog]

Prompts the question, is Hanley better than Kennelly? He has a fair claim to it I think.

It always irks me that Aboriginal players are usually likened to other Aboriginal players. Now we're comparing Irish with Irish. It's weird, like there is no comparison easily made otherwise.

 

[JDavey]

So, Im cooling a bit on wanting De Goey at 17/20. Would still absolutely love Cockatoo at 17 but rumours strongly around the Roos will nab him.

The guy I'm starting to really warm to is Connor Menadue. Likened to Ryan Griffen by some, and Isaac Smith by others Menadue is that rare inside.outside combination midfielder with decent enough foot skills.

at 69kg (start of the season's measurements you would hope) he is still quite skinny but has all the attributes we are after.

Here is what some of the more highly reputable phantom drafters are saying about Connor Menadue.

Paige Cardona's phantom draft





And the forever reliable Skiposs' phantom draft profile




Really thinking I would take him if he were on the table.

Perhaps a combination of Cockatoo/Menadue/De Goey/ Blakely/Pickett/Garlett/Keitell/Lamb/C.Ellis with our picks at 17 and 20 would do me just fine

Lets face it, what we take is largely going to depend on what falls out of the top 16 with De Goey/Cockatoo looking to be around the mark at 17.

 

[Ashton Agar]

Heppell's move to the midfield was also disastrous.

Was always going to play in the midfield.

I thought McKenna was a forward flanker/winger?

Does he actually have a position yet, seeing as he hasn't played the game properly before?

 

[monty1104]

It always irks me that Aboriginal players are usually likened to other Aboriginal players. Now we're comparing Irish with Irish. It's weird, like there is no comparison easily made otherwise.

Massively irritates me too.

 

[Zach Package]

It always irks me that Aboriginal players are usually likened to other Aboriginal players. Now we're comparing Irish with Irish. It's weird, like there is no comparison easily made otherwise.

Given Conor has played one game of Australian rules football i think any comparison is pretty ridiculous at this stage.

Is quick and kicks with both feet, that's about all we know at this stage

 

[Snake Charmer]

Given Conor has played one game of Australian rules football i think any comparison is pretty ridiculous at this stage.

Is quick and kicks with both feet, that's about all we know at this stage

Never forget M Quinn

 

[TheFrenchCut]

Never forget M Quinn

Medicine woman.

 

[ghostdog]

Just read the summaries on Connor Menadue. This was exciting to read; "He's incredibly quick with his pace elite and his acceleration exceptional. His evasive movement is elite with his sidestep the best in the draft. That with his pace makes his linebreaking ability fantastic. By foot he's great. Hits targets, picks the right ones, directs the play well by foot and has some penetration."

Just to highlight the language on Menadue from these three lines; incredibly quick, elite (x2), exceptional, best, fantastic, great, well.

After all the talk of De Goey and Cockatoo et al, and now Menadue, I'm less and less concerned about nailing picks 17 and 20. I'm confident we're going to pick up two very good players.

 

[Towno78]

Just read the summaries on Connor Menadue. This was exciting to read; "He's incredibly quick with his pace elite and his acceleration exceptional. His evasive movement is elite with his sidestep the best in the draft. That with his pace makes his linebreaking ability fantastic. By foot he's great. Hits targets, picks the right ones, directs the play well by foot and has some penetration."

Just to highlight the language on Menadue from these three lines; incredibly quick, elite (x2), exceptional, best, fantastic, great, well.

After all the talk of De Goey and Cockatoo et al, and now Menadue, I'm less and less concerned about nailing picks 17 and 20. I'm confident we're going to pick up two very good players.

Rely on the descriptions in these mock drafts, you wouldn't even bother paying recruiters, cos there'd be 200 superstars ready to go.
Hint, there isn't.

 

[GUMBLETRON]

My favourite is definitely "projects as a better version of (insert 200-gamer)."

 

[Howard Moon]

A friend of mine out west (i know we hate these) knows Hardingams partner, reckons she does not want to move back.

Could we re rookie him? He can play and valuable swing man. May have beaten the man Steinberg didn't in the final...

 

[threeleggedgoat]

He's an absolute liability with ball in hand, don't want him in the side and definitely not in the backline. Our focus should be on recruiting guys with at least neat footskills

 

[Snake Charmer]

A friend of mine out west (i know we hate these) knows Hardingams partner, reckons she does not want to move back.

Could we re rookie him? He can play and valuable swing man. May have beaten the man Steinberg didn't in the final...

I like Hardingham. Like most essendon players. But I think it's time to move on.

Are there any mature age guys we would be looking at?

 

[jasonstackhouse]

^mitch robinson

 

[eth-dog]

^mitch robinson

No

 

[Duckworth]

What is everyones thoughts on the contracted player to be delisted? I'm not sure I've seen an indication from the club.

My preference would be to send Pears to the rookie list.