List Mgmt. List Management 2024-25

Remove this Banner Ad

The list management team is currently paying the debt for poor drafting and development of tall players.

Our spine this year was almost entirely trade-ins (Dixon, Soldo/Sweet, Aliir, Zerk-Thatcher), not to mention Ratugolea. This is the most of any top 8 team, all the others have at least 2, most have at least 3.

Since 2012 we have drafted 19 talls (Georgiades/McKenzie and taller). Every other top 8 team this year has drafted more despite most of them already having better Tall players on their list throughout this period.

We have targeted 15 talls through trade/free agents. This is equal first of all teams, alongside Hawthorn (Who have attempted to recruit some absolute piss blasters in Vickery, Patton, and Hartigan and recruited back Gunston) and Carlton (who couldn't stop themselves when it came to GWS rejects). We don't rate drafting talls as much as other clubs, so we pay up for them in draft capital and salary.

Each of the other clubs has had late draft picks give value because they keep going back to the well.

Payne (54), Aliir (44), Stewart (40), Kolodjashnij (41), Riccardi (51), Sweet (R23), Sicily (56), Silvagni (53)

Our best late-drafted contributors are Clurey who was ok but we've put a line through, as well as Howard and Ladhams, who we traded and aren't best 22 at their new clubs. Lord might come good, we'll see.

The numbers I've worked off using draft guru and a bit of adjusting on the fly (Tom Green, Finn Callaghan are not talls but James Sicily is depsite being shorter). There are certainly some mistakes, but the difference between the other clubs and us is so stark that I think my point stands.

ClubsDrafted Players in 2024 SpineTalls Drafted since 2012 (191cm + ish)Tall Free Agents/Trades (191cm + ish) in since 2012
Brisbane42513
Bulldogs32214
Carlton32315
Geelong32712
GWS4279
Hawthorn23115
Port11915
Sydney42711


The question is what came first the chicken or the egg? Did we decide to not focus on drafting talls because we can't develop them, or can we not develop them because we don't draft enough?

Great analysis.

Not only do we have to pay a kings ransom to fill the tall holes on our list, we also miss out on another little bonus that other clubs get: Trading out surplus talls for draft capital. Look at Geelong getting a 2nd round pick out of us so we can take their depth tall.

We did it with Howard, and that's about it in the last couple of decades.
 

Log in to remove this ad.

In what world are Rory Atkins, Matt Crouch and Jed McEntee on an AFL list but Brad Crouch is not?

I think I’ve woken up in an alternate universe.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

List Mgmt. List Management 2024-25

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top