Recruiting Trade & Free Agency VIII

[Lore]

ATTENTION OPPOSITION POSTERS: You are on the Essendon board - not the draft board, or the main board or your club board. You are welcome to post here but you will mind your manners or you will be carded. Don't waltz in here telling the locals what's happening/not happening, what's dumb etc. By the same token sealioning will also not be tolerated so be warned. You do not have equal standing here no matter how right you think you are.

Spoiler: AFL TRADE, DRAFT AND FREE AGENCY KEY DATES 2020

Draft Combine
Tuesday October 1 - Friday October 4

AFL Grand Final
Saturday October 24

Free Agency Window
Friday October 30 – Friday November 6

AFL Trade Period (Players and picks)
Wednesday November 4 – 7.30pm Thursday November 12

List Lodgement 1
Wednesday November 25

Delisted Free Agency Window 1
Thursday November 26 - Sunday November 29

List Lodgement 2 (Final date for primary list delistings)
Monday November 30

Delisted Free Agency Window 2
Monday November 30 - Tuesday December 1

AFL Trade Period (Picks only)
Concludes Thursday December 3

National Draft
7pm Wednesday December 9

Preseason and Rookie Drafts
12pm Thursday December 10

Final List Lodgement
Mid-December (tbc)

Pre-Season Supplemental Selection Period (SSP)
Wednesday January 6, 2021 – will conclude prior to the start of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season

Spoiler: DRAFT ORDER

Any issues with it post in this thread:

Draft discussion goes here: Draft Watch

Father/Son & NGA discussion goes here: James Hird Academy (Father/Son and Next Generation)

Poll results: Who should stay? | Which key forward do you want? | What would you give up to get Josh Dunkley

5

Josh Dunkley

Age

27

Ht

191cm

Wt

87kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

21.8

5star

K

10.4

4star

HB

11.3

5star

M

4.3

4star

T

5.8

5star

CL

3.2

5star

D

20.7

5star

K

7.0

3star

HB

13.7

5star

M

2.3

2star

T

5.3

5star

CL

2.7

4star

D

14.2

4star

K

7.2

3star

HB

7.0

5star

M

4.8

5star

T

4.0

5star

CL

1.4

4star

?

 

[eth-dog]

He can’t kick, that’s why they put him forward....

And even though he tries hard, he's not that great a defender either.

 

[faible]

And even though he tries hard, he's not that great a defender either.

Would look great in an EFC headband at least.

 

[Zach Package]

Won’t need the small defender if we have the balls to play McQuillan. Or you just do what Brisbane have done and draft genuine small utilities that can play anywhere and plug an play as needed.

I like Smith back because he generally sticks his tackles and is always positive with ball in hand and looks to take us forward and change angles of attack, Redman you just play through his funk and hope he gets back on the road to being very, very good.

 

[doug85]

Brad Crouch on Bombers' radar as Crows continue talks

Brad Crouch has indicated he would prefer to remain with the Crows but the Bombers are one of a number of clubs assessing his worth.

www.theage.com.au

Crouch on our radar.

 

[eDPS]

Brad Crouch on Bombers' radar as Crows continue talks

Brad Crouch has indicated he would prefer to remain with the Crows but the Bombers are one of a number of clubs assessing his worth.

www.theage.com.au

Crouch on our radar.

That will really hurt our wallet, would need to make some big calls on some of our own.

 

[doug85]

That will really hurt our wallet, would need to make some big calls on some of our own.

How good is Crouch defensively? How good is crouch at the coal face? I know he’s a good accumulator. But is he the type we want to empty our wallets for?

Genuine questions. I don’t know heaps about him. We also need to factor in the we’d lose compo for Joe if he leaves as a FA and we take Crouch as an FA.

 

[Howard Moon]

That will really hurt our wallet, would need to make some big calls on some of our own.

Can have McKenna's money

 

[eDPS]

How good is Crouch defensively? How good is crouch at the coal face? I know he’s a good accumulator. But is he the type we want to empty our wallets for?

Genuine questions. I don’t know heaps about him. We also need to factor in the we’d lose compo for Joe if he leaves as a FA and we take Crouch as an FA.

He is slightly taller and heavier than our current mids, he plays a lot like Shiel with his burst although he usually prefers to handball rather thank kick

 

[doug85]

Lower DE than Dylan

 

[faible]

I know he’s a good accumulator

That's the other one; Matt accumulates without being damaging, Brad is the more damaging of the two but hasn't been durable at all.

 

[Fin ice Smuggler]

Can have McKenna's money

And Fantasias but I'm not sure I want, i'd be concerned about previous injuries flaring up again. I also dont think at age 26 turning 27 he is going to play in our next flag.

 

[Bjchan13]

He'll go to whoever pays him the most, if thats Adelaide he'll stay. He wanted a million a year to go to the gold coast last trade period didnt he? He'll be 27 round 1 next year. If you were a genuine contender and thought he could help get the flag maybe, but we're rebuilding.

 

[eth-dog]

Pass.

 

[Howard Moon]

And Fantasias but I'm not sure I want, i'd be concerned about previous injuries flaring up again. I also dont think at age 26 turning 27 he is going to play in our next flag.

I'm not even sure heath Hockings new born son will be around in our next flag

 

[Milanista28]

He'll go to whoever pays him the most, if thats Adelaide he'll stay. He wanted a million a year to go to the gold coast last trade period didnt he? He'll be 27 round 1 next year. If you were a genuine contender and thought he could help get the flag maybe, but we're rebuilding.

The club think the list is close to contending

 

[eDPS]

The club think the list is close to contending

Until we finish a year in the top 4 the club is delusional to think that

 

[Milanista28]

And Fantasias but I'm not sure I want, i'd be concerned about previous injuries flaring up again. I also dont think at age 26 turning 27 he is going to play in our next flag.

Dale Morris was 32 when the Dogs looked a basket case in 2014, won the flag 2 years later.

 

[Milanista28]

Until we finish a year in the top 4 the club is delusional to think that

I'd agree, but it's fairly clear they think we are close, If we could trade our 1st I guarantee that we would.

 

[Zach Package]

Can think of 10 blokes that are a better fit than Crouch.

Although I will say he is certainly a better fit for us than Matt Crouch, so he has that going for him.

 

[andleanback]

Dale Morris was 32 when the Dogs looked a basket case in 2014, won the flag 2 years later.

Do you think Fantasia’s body will last til then? He has 2-3 years left at best, with the amount of injuries he’s coping.

 

[eth-dog]

Crouch adds what to our midfield? Not overly big, not overly quick, not a great user.

 

[andleanback]

Will be so disappointed if we go after Crouch. Injured riddled b-grade midfielder and we’ll pay him 700k a year.

 

[Yoda_]

Crouch adds what to our midfield? Not overly big, not overly quick, not a great user.

We like vanilla midfielders that are eerily similar to what we have already. He'd fit right in

 

[Fin ice Smuggler]

Dale Morris was 32 when the Dogs looked a basket case in 2014, won the flag 2 years later.

We are Essington though?

Dale Morris - tough, tenacious, loved his club and had pride in wearing his jumper.

 

[BrunoV]

Can think of 10 blokes that are a better fit than Crouch.

Although I will say he is certainly a better fit for us than Matt Crouch, so he has that going for him.

Only guy I can think of that is more overrated than Matt Crouch is Jake Lever. Matt Crouch is the definition of the lose ball get contested possession specialist. Smart player who gets to the right spots. He's B grade at his absolute best. I'll say if we want Matt Crouch we could just play Hibberd.

The Brad Crouch of his first 50 games was projecting as one of the better inside mids in the competition. Something like a Libba/Beams hybrid. A bit more than just an inside pig, he had the ability to use the ball in a very damaging way by foot.

Injury then struck and there has been a bit of a loss of momentum which he now seems to have corrected, though I can't say I've seen a lot of him in the last few years.

Assuming a BnF last year reflects something like that kid who was a mini-draft pre-selection (and started with a bang), the list of Essendon mids I would play him in front of is titled "everyone". In fact, he comes in as the best midfielder and, in a very round about way, the player who then probably frees up Shiel to be the best midfielder (allowing Shiel to play a more second touch, dynamic role in the middle).

Can't speak to the sort of guy he is and whether the Crows complacency in terms of offering him the sort of money he wants reflects the view that he's a character they're really saying they can do without. I don't like negatively talking character without knowledge but there have been constant murmurings surrounding the better Crouch that I reckon date back to 2017. Don't ask me what, it's primarily that he seems to have been gettable that whole time. It would be like McGrath only ever being a first round pick on the table away from us trading him. If he hasn't been the Crows best mid he's been projecting that way the whole time (and now seems quite clearly to me to be their best mid).

Would not use the first round pick unless it is to get multiple first round picks (2 highly touted Falcons and Geelong's glut of first round picks presents as an opportunity to turn a pick at around 7 to two pick in the teens which would have to be carefully considered).

As a free agent, with the loss of McKenna, Brad Crouch would be a no-brainer for me.