An interesting draft it was, it seems to have been pretty kind to us in terms of key position players and we’ve also gotten a solid load of midfielders mixed in there too. Two years into their careers, it’s time to make some calls on who went right and who went wrong. This count will be based on current output, not based on potential or end of career predictions, so taller players who tend to take more time to develop might be disadvantaged to a degree. Please also note that I’ve excluded rookies in the list.
The info on the draft can be found here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_AFL_draft) it contains the entire national and rookie drafts. Plus pre-season draft if you feel Jason Tutt has changed Carlton’s direction by himself.
Top 10 of the draft in 2014.
Pick 1: Patrick McCartin (St Kilda)
Pick 2: Christian Petracca (Melbourne)
Pick 3: Angus Brayshaw (Melbourne)
Pick 4: Jarrod Pickett (GWS Giants, now at Carlton)
Pick 5: Jordan De Goey (Collingwood)
Pick 6: Caleb Marchbank (GWS Giants, now at Carlton)
Pick 7: Paul Ahern (GWS Giants, now at North Melbourne)
Pick 8: Peter Wright (Gold Coast)
Pick 9: Darcy Moore [F/S] (Collingwood)
Pick 10: Nakia Cockatoo (Geelong)
REDRAFTED
Pick 1: Isaac Heeney (formerly Pick 18 to Sydney) – 38 games, 44 goals
I think he’s the clear cut best performing player from the get-go. He’s stood up immediately and sat down in a splendid Sydney team that has made top four in both of his two seasons and he hasn’t gotten up. He’s played down forward and bagged plenty of goals whilst swinging into gear in the middle and getting 30+ possessions. Will be an all-time Sydney great.
Pick 2: Caleb Daniel (formerly Pick 46 to Western Bulldogs) – 34 games, 17 goals
Caleb solidified his position at the top end of the list, rounding out the year in 2nd place in the NAB Rising Star and becoming one of three drafted in 2014 to win the history-making premiership with the Dogs. The kid averaged 21.6 touches a game in 2016, and looks to be developing nicely as a goal kicker.
Pick 3: Jake Lever (formerly Pick 14 to Adelaide) – 36 games, 2 goals
Jake is surprisingly the only player from this draft to feature in 100% of 22under22 teams. He is known for his maturity, and being very classy despite not often associating that term with key defenders. The 194cm will be an All-Australian in the not too distant future, you can assure yourself of that.
Pick 4: Peter Wright (formerly Pick 8 to Gold Coast) – 20 games, 28 goals
Picking between he and next was harder than splitting atoms but I’ve gone against my heart and gone with 2-metre Peter. After just 3 senior games in his debut season, he came back in 2016 and delivered 27 goals in 17 games, a terrific turnout for a 2nd year key forward, especially one sitting under Tom Lynch, an elite forward in his own right. There is nothing but upside on the horizon for Peter, he’ll continue to develop into an elite 2nd forward/2nd ruck player like a younger Jarryd Roughead.
Pick 5: Darcy Moore (formerly Pick 9 to Collingwood) – 26 games, 33 goals
Darcy is quite a different forward to Wright who some might say has a higher ceiling. He has one of the best set of hands I’ve ever seen on a 20 year old, clunking in marks from anywhere. He made the 22under22 team in 2016 and also received a Rising Star nomination despite having played only 34% of the game. Darcy is a freak, and will continue to develop nicely.
Pick 6: Touk Miller (formerly Pick 29 to Gold Coast) – 40 games, 11 goals
With a bit of consistency, I believe this kid could make a run for Heeney at the top. His last 8 games he went 20+ and 5 times all season he went 27+ including a 39 touch, 1 goal game against the Bombers. The Suns absolutely nailed this draft.
Pick 7: Mitch McGovern (formerly Pick 43 to Adelaide) – 23 games, 32 goals
Despite having not played in 2015, I decided his 2016 was too good not to feature. Despite playing in an already packed forward line full of stars like Betts, Jenkins and Lynch; McGovern starred as a third tall. He had a couple of quiet games but for a first season in the seniors, that’s expected. 32 goals including a few 3’s and 4’s is a great turnout for a young forward.
Pick 8: Connor Blakely (formerly Pick 34 to Fremantle) – 16 games, 1 goal
I respect those who disagree due to so few games played but I really rate this guy. He averaged 20 touches a game, nearly half of which were contested and raised a 3-vote game in there also for his 29 touch, 14 contested game against Brisbane. Could be the long-term replacement for David Mundy.
Pick 9: Jordan De Goey (formerly Pick 5 to Collingwood) – 36 games, 22 goals
The kid is coming along very nicely – he’s playing a bit too much forward for comfort but we Pies supporters love his scope for being an inside mid. Enjoys winning some ball in the contest and he also has a good set of hands he can use in the 50 to go back and kick one. If he starts playing more midfield minutes, he’ll likely make his way up the list.
Pick 10: Lachie Weller (formerly Pick 13 to Fremantle) – 25 games, 12 goals
The Dockers also nailed this pick pretty well I think. Weller oozes class and attack and he will be part of the next generation of goal kicking midfielders. He racked up a lot of ball in some games, commonly entering the 20’s in disposals, but conceding-ly does go missing occasionally.
Continuing on:
Pick 11: Christian Petracca (formerly Pick 2 to Melbourne) – 17 games, 12 goals
Pick 12: Patrick McCartin (formerly Pick 1 to St Kilda) – 17 games, 17 goals
Pick 13: Angus Brayshaw (formerly Pick 3 to Melbourne) – 31 games, 12 goals
Pick 14: Harris Andrews (formerly Pick 61 to Brisbane Lions) – 36 games, 6 goals
Pick 15: Toby McLean (formerly Pick 26 to Western Bulldogs) – 19 games, 16 goals
Players I think could climb into the top 15 eventually: Nakia Cockatoo, Kyle Langford, Jack Steele, Paul Ahern, Corey Ellis, Brayden Maynard
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What does your revised draft look like two years in?
The info on the draft can be found here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_AFL_draft) it contains the entire national and rookie drafts. Plus pre-season draft if you feel Jason Tutt has changed Carlton’s direction by himself.
Top 10 of the draft in 2014.
Pick 1: Patrick McCartin (St Kilda)
Pick 2: Christian Petracca (Melbourne)
Pick 3: Angus Brayshaw (Melbourne)
Pick 4: Jarrod Pickett (GWS Giants, now at Carlton)
Pick 5: Jordan De Goey (Collingwood)
Pick 6: Caleb Marchbank (GWS Giants, now at Carlton)
Pick 7: Paul Ahern (GWS Giants, now at North Melbourne)
Pick 8: Peter Wright (Gold Coast)
Pick 9: Darcy Moore [F/S] (Collingwood)
Pick 10: Nakia Cockatoo (Geelong)
REDRAFTED
Pick 1: Isaac Heeney (formerly Pick 18 to Sydney) – 38 games, 44 goals
I think he’s the clear cut best performing player from the get-go. He’s stood up immediately and sat down in a splendid Sydney team that has made top four in both of his two seasons and he hasn’t gotten up. He’s played down forward and bagged plenty of goals whilst swinging into gear in the middle and getting 30+ possessions. Will be an all-time Sydney great.
Pick 2: Caleb Daniel (formerly Pick 46 to Western Bulldogs) – 34 games, 17 goals
Caleb solidified his position at the top end of the list, rounding out the year in 2nd place in the NAB Rising Star and becoming one of three drafted in 2014 to win the history-making premiership with the Dogs. The kid averaged 21.6 touches a game in 2016, and looks to be developing nicely as a goal kicker.
Pick 3: Jake Lever (formerly Pick 14 to Adelaide) – 36 games, 2 goals
Jake is surprisingly the only player from this draft to feature in 100% of 22under22 teams. He is known for his maturity, and being very classy despite not often associating that term with key defenders. The 194cm will be an All-Australian in the not too distant future, you can assure yourself of that.
Pick 4: Peter Wright (formerly Pick 8 to Gold Coast) – 20 games, 28 goals
Picking between he and next was harder than splitting atoms but I’ve gone against my heart and gone with 2-metre Peter. After just 3 senior games in his debut season, he came back in 2016 and delivered 27 goals in 17 games, a terrific turnout for a 2nd year key forward, especially one sitting under Tom Lynch, an elite forward in his own right. There is nothing but upside on the horizon for Peter, he’ll continue to develop into an elite 2nd forward/2nd ruck player like a younger Jarryd Roughead.
Pick 5: Darcy Moore (formerly Pick 9 to Collingwood) – 26 games, 33 goals
Darcy is quite a different forward to Wright who some might say has a higher ceiling. He has one of the best set of hands I’ve ever seen on a 20 year old, clunking in marks from anywhere. He made the 22under22 team in 2016 and also received a Rising Star nomination despite having played only 34% of the game. Darcy is a freak, and will continue to develop nicely.
Pick 6: Touk Miller (formerly Pick 29 to Gold Coast) – 40 games, 11 goals
With a bit of consistency, I believe this kid could make a run for Heeney at the top. His last 8 games he went 20+ and 5 times all season he went 27+ including a 39 touch, 1 goal game against the Bombers. The Suns absolutely nailed this draft.
Pick 7: Mitch McGovern (formerly Pick 43 to Adelaide) – 23 games, 32 goals
Despite having not played in 2015, I decided his 2016 was too good not to feature. Despite playing in an already packed forward line full of stars like Betts, Jenkins and Lynch; McGovern starred as a third tall. He had a couple of quiet games but for a first season in the seniors, that’s expected. 32 goals including a few 3’s and 4’s is a great turnout for a young forward.
Pick 8: Connor Blakely (formerly Pick 34 to Fremantle) – 16 games, 1 goal
I respect those who disagree due to so few games played but I really rate this guy. He averaged 20 touches a game, nearly half of which were contested and raised a 3-vote game in there also for his 29 touch, 14 contested game against Brisbane. Could be the long-term replacement for David Mundy.
Pick 9: Jordan De Goey (formerly Pick 5 to Collingwood) – 36 games, 22 goals
The kid is coming along very nicely – he’s playing a bit too much forward for comfort but we Pies supporters love his scope for being an inside mid. Enjoys winning some ball in the contest and he also has a good set of hands he can use in the 50 to go back and kick one. If he starts playing more midfield minutes, he’ll likely make his way up the list.
Pick 10: Lachie Weller (formerly Pick 13 to Fremantle) – 25 games, 12 goals
The Dockers also nailed this pick pretty well I think. Weller oozes class and attack and he will be part of the next generation of goal kicking midfielders. He racked up a lot of ball in some games, commonly entering the 20’s in disposals, but conceding-ly does go missing occasionally.
Continuing on:
Pick 11: Christian Petracca (formerly Pick 2 to Melbourne) – 17 games, 12 goals
Pick 12: Patrick McCartin (formerly Pick 1 to St Kilda) – 17 games, 17 goals
Pick 13: Angus Brayshaw (formerly Pick 3 to Melbourne) – 31 games, 12 goals
Pick 14: Harris Andrews (formerly Pick 61 to Brisbane Lions) – 36 games, 6 goals
Pick 15: Toby McLean (formerly Pick 26 to Western Bulldogs) – 19 games, 16 goals
Players I think could climb into the top 15 eventually: Nakia Cockatoo, Kyle Langford, Jack Steele, Paul Ahern, Corey Ellis, Brayden Maynard
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What does your revised draft look like two years in?
