Article on Cooper from Code-
Why Dandenong Stingrays star Cooper Simpson could be the steal of 2023 AFL draft
As bad luck and injuries mounted, Dandenong Stingrays coach Nick Cox kept saying: ‘Don’t forget Cooper Simpson.’ The gun midfielder could prove a major AFL draft steal, writes PAUL AMY.
Dandenong Stingrays coach Nick Cox said it a few times during the year: “Don’t forget Cooper Simpson.’’
The remarks would come as he discussed match results and the progress of his players during the Coates Talent League season.
As other Under 18s paraded their ability, it was easy to overlook the injured and often-absent Simpson.
Cox called it a case of “out of sight, out of mind’’.
The midfielder had brilliantly won the Stingrays’ best and fairest as a bottom-age player last year, the first Ray to do so since future Swans great Luke Parker.
Going into 2023, Simpson was placed in the AFL Academy and named co-captain of the Stingrays.
Cox and region manager Toby Jedwab had high hopes for what he would achieve, for his club and for Vic Country on the national stage.
But corkies to his quads and shin – the result of bad luck, not any underlying issue with his body – held back a player his coach says has “huge talent’’ and is “an ultimate professional’’.
“He’s a star, a seriously good player,’’ Cox declares.
With his injuries, a stop-start fixture and an involvement in three programs, Simpson twinkled rather than blazed this year.
He did, however, play the Stingrays’ last four games of the TCL season.
And just to remind recruiters of his talent, he played well.
In his first game back, he was on restricted minutes but had 18 possessions.
He had 22 touches and kicked two goals against Murray Bushrangers in round 16. There were 28 possessions for him in round 17 against the Tassie Devils and another 20 in the wildcard match against Gippsland Power.
It was a strong finish to an otherwise frustrating season for Simpson, a Year 12 student at Flinders Christian College who admits he is “consumed by footy’’.
“It probably didn’t go the way I was hoping,’’ he says.
“I was pretty unfortunate to miss a lot of footy, especially coming off last year where there was the individual aspect for me and we got a lot of spotlight as a team.’’
Simpson’s first setback came before the season had even started, copping a corkie at the “captain’s run’’ and missing round one.
He picked up the same injury twice in the following few weeks.
And, blow of blows, he suffered another corkie against South Australia in Vic Country’s first game at the national Under 18 championships.
He did not play for Country again.
“I went to pick up a ground-ball and a big ruckman came bolting straight into the side of my leg. It was a bad one. It felt like a sledgehammer going into my leg. Extremely painful. I missed the whole carnival and was out for five or six weeks,’’ Simpson says.
“The physios and I talked about it at the Stingrays. I was wondering if it was something I was doing wrong, like putting my body in the wrong positions. We thought they were all different circumstances that I couldn’t control. It was just really bad luck.
“Pretty frustrating. It got tough mentally. I would have preferred to just break an ankle and be out for eight or nine weeks and then play six weeks straight. My whole year was ins and outs. At times I felt disconnected from the Stingrays team, being at Vic Country and the Academy. But I was grateful to play three or four in a row at the back-end, play some regular footy with the team and have that connection again.’’
Simpson says he appreciated the support of the Stingrays, particularly Cox and wellbeing co-ordinator Darren Jenkins, as well as his parents, Jason and Jodi, for helping him through his disappointments.
He also took to mentoring the Rays’ bottom-age players, relating his experiences in 2022.
Simpson played junior football at Mt Martha, the same club as Lachie Whitfield, Jacob Weitering, Nic Newman, Hunter Clark and the De Koning brothers.
Noting the pipeline from Mt Martha to the AFL via the Stingrays, Simpson says: “It’s a great club. They’re so good at letting the kids have fun as they play footy and there’s a great community feel to it as well with all the parents.’’
He says he wasn’t a “standout player’’ in his under-age teams, never winning a best and fairest (his award at the Stingrays last year was his first top trophy).
He credits his work with David Dunbar, a former senior coach in the VFL and WAFL, for his improvement.
He’s done many one-on-one sessions with Dunbar and spent the Covid lockdowns at home completing Dunbar drills.
“We bought an NFL punters net where I could practice my left and right-foot kicking, we bought a rebound netball for handballs and clean hands,’’ he says.
“It was sort of like, when everyone else stopped working, I was still working. It was a blessing in disguise for me almost.’’
Simpson took the best-afield medal in a grand final win in his last season at Mt Martha – “a bit of a shock to me, because I never really got any awards after the games or stuff like that’’ – and started with the Dandenong Stingrays Under 16s.
Last year, as a bottom-ager, he came through quickly in the Coates Talent League, making a midfield position his own and being entrusted with the captaincy for one game.
This year he was named co-captain with Harry DeMattia, who, having gone with football over cricket, has emerged as a top-30 hope for the draft.
DeMattia was invited to the AFL national combine and so was Simpson.
He was pleased. Clubs hadn’t forgotten him. The intrigue is where he will be selected.
Some at the Stingrays are adamant he should be a first-round pick but might go later.
“I’m not in the media like all the superstars of this age group this year,’’ Simpson says.
“But I think I’m in the eyes of the AFL clubs, which is where I want to be, rather than getting that media attention. Coming out of last year, I thought that would be different. Way it goes. Nothing’s guaranteed. It’s an anxious and nervous time for me and a lot of other young blokes in my position. ’’
Cox says it was a challenging year for Simpson, but good can come from it.
“He had some setbacks, hit a few real roadblocks for the first time. To his credit, he knuckled down, got back and the last month of his season was better than OK, which we were all expecting,’’ he says.
“Missing so much football, there was a little bit of a concern from his point of view about whether he would be able to remind everyone that he was around. He certainly did. To be honest, I think a few people had forgotten about him, out of mind, out of sight sort of thing. Like every 18-year-old he was worried about the unknown. All he could control was getting back on track. When he gets to where he wants to, I think he’ll look back and say, ‘You know what, it wasn’t that bad, I got through it, that resilience will help me grow as a person’.’’
AFL DRAFT GURU KEVIN SHEEHAN ON COOPER SIMPSON
“An ultra-professional midfielder with pace, composure and great finishing skills. He also has a neat step through traffic and runs hard both offensively and defensively. Has shown the ability to perform when challenged and in the big moments when the game is on the line.
“Started the season in good touch with the Dandenong Stingrays but suffered an ankle injury in Victoria Country’s opening game of the National Championships and was unable to play any further matches at that level. Made an impressive return for the final four matches with the Stingrays including having 28 disposals against the Tasmania Devils which reminded scouts of his class and AFL potential.’’
HERALD SUN DRAFT SCRIBE DAN BATTEN ON SIMPSON
“Where would Simpson be in draft calculations if he wasn’t sidelined for the national championships? The AFL Academy graduate is a forgotten man, but his 20 disposals and two goals in the final round was a stern reminder of his talent. Could prove to be a serious steal if he slides.’’
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Why Dandenong Stingrays star Cooper Simpson could be the steal of 2023 AFL draft
As bad luck and injuries mounted, Dandenong Stingrays coach Nick Cox kept saying: ‘Don’t forget Cooper Simpson.’ The gun midfielder could prove a major AFL draft steal, writes PAUL AMY.
Dandenong Stingrays coach Nick Cox said it a few times during the year: “Don’t forget Cooper Simpson.’’
The remarks would come as he discussed match results and the progress of his players during the Coates Talent League season.
As other Under 18s paraded their ability, it was easy to overlook the injured and often-absent Simpson.
Cox called it a case of “out of sight, out of mind’’.
The midfielder had brilliantly won the Stingrays’ best and fairest as a bottom-age player last year, the first Ray to do so since future Swans great Luke Parker.
Going into 2023, Simpson was placed in the AFL Academy and named co-captain of the Stingrays.
Cox and region manager Toby Jedwab had high hopes for what he would achieve, for his club and for Vic Country on the national stage.
But corkies to his quads and shin – the result of bad luck, not any underlying issue with his body – held back a player his coach says has “huge talent’’ and is “an ultimate professional’’.
“He’s a star, a seriously good player,’’ Cox declares.
With his injuries, a stop-start fixture and an involvement in three programs, Simpson twinkled rather than blazed this year.
He did, however, play the Stingrays’ last four games of the TCL season.
And just to remind recruiters of his talent, he played well.
In his first game back, he was on restricted minutes but had 18 possessions.
He had 22 touches and kicked two goals against Murray Bushrangers in round 16. There were 28 possessions for him in round 17 against the Tassie Devils and another 20 in the wildcard match against Gippsland Power.
It was a strong finish to an otherwise frustrating season for Simpson, a Year 12 student at Flinders Christian College who admits he is “consumed by footy’’.
“It probably didn’t go the way I was hoping,’’ he says.
“I was pretty unfortunate to miss a lot of footy, especially coming off last year where there was the individual aspect for me and we got a lot of spotlight as a team.’’
Simpson’s first setback came before the season had even started, copping a corkie at the “captain’s run’’ and missing round one.
He picked up the same injury twice in the following few weeks.
And, blow of blows, he suffered another corkie against South Australia in Vic Country’s first game at the national Under 18 championships.
He did not play for Country again.
“I went to pick up a ground-ball and a big ruckman came bolting straight into the side of my leg. It was a bad one. It felt like a sledgehammer going into my leg. Extremely painful. I missed the whole carnival and was out for five or six weeks,’’ Simpson says.
“The physios and I talked about it at the Stingrays. I was wondering if it was something I was doing wrong, like putting my body in the wrong positions. We thought they were all different circumstances that I couldn’t control. It was just really bad luck.
“Pretty frustrating. It got tough mentally. I would have preferred to just break an ankle and be out for eight or nine weeks and then play six weeks straight. My whole year was ins and outs. At times I felt disconnected from the Stingrays team, being at Vic Country and the Academy. But I was grateful to play three or four in a row at the back-end, play some regular footy with the team and have that connection again.’’
Simpson says he appreciated the support of the Stingrays, particularly Cox and wellbeing co-ordinator Darren Jenkins, as well as his parents, Jason and Jodi, for helping him through his disappointments.
He also took to mentoring the Rays’ bottom-age players, relating his experiences in 2022.
Simpson played junior football at Mt Martha, the same club as Lachie Whitfield, Jacob Weitering, Nic Newman, Hunter Clark and the De Koning brothers.
Noting the pipeline from Mt Martha to the AFL via the Stingrays, Simpson says: “It’s a great club. They’re so good at letting the kids have fun as they play footy and there’s a great community feel to it as well with all the parents.’’
He says he wasn’t a “standout player’’ in his under-age teams, never winning a best and fairest (his award at the Stingrays last year was his first top trophy).
He credits his work with David Dunbar, a former senior coach in the VFL and WAFL, for his improvement.
He’s done many one-on-one sessions with Dunbar and spent the Covid lockdowns at home completing Dunbar drills.
“We bought an NFL punters net where I could practice my left and right-foot kicking, we bought a rebound netball for handballs and clean hands,’’ he says.
“It was sort of like, when everyone else stopped working, I was still working. It was a blessing in disguise for me almost.’’
Simpson took the best-afield medal in a grand final win in his last season at Mt Martha – “a bit of a shock to me, because I never really got any awards after the games or stuff like that’’ – and started with the Dandenong Stingrays Under 16s.
Last year, as a bottom-ager, he came through quickly in the Coates Talent League, making a midfield position his own and being entrusted with the captaincy for one game.
This year he was named co-captain with Harry DeMattia, who, having gone with football over cricket, has emerged as a top-30 hope for the draft.
DeMattia was invited to the AFL national combine and so was Simpson.
He was pleased. Clubs hadn’t forgotten him. The intrigue is where he will be selected.
Some at the Stingrays are adamant he should be a first-round pick but might go later.
“I’m not in the media like all the superstars of this age group this year,’’ Simpson says.
“But I think I’m in the eyes of the AFL clubs, which is where I want to be, rather than getting that media attention. Coming out of last year, I thought that would be different. Way it goes. Nothing’s guaranteed. It’s an anxious and nervous time for me and a lot of other young blokes in my position. ’’
Cox says it was a challenging year for Simpson, but good can come from it.
“He had some setbacks, hit a few real roadblocks for the first time. To his credit, he knuckled down, got back and the last month of his season was better than OK, which we were all expecting,’’ he says.
“Missing so much football, there was a little bit of a concern from his point of view about whether he would be able to remind everyone that he was around. He certainly did. To be honest, I think a few people had forgotten about him, out of mind, out of sight sort of thing. Like every 18-year-old he was worried about the unknown. All he could control was getting back on track. When he gets to where he wants to, I think he’ll look back and say, ‘You know what, it wasn’t that bad, I got through it, that resilience will help me grow as a person’.’’
AFL DRAFT GURU KEVIN SHEEHAN ON COOPER SIMPSON
“An ultra-professional midfielder with pace, composure and great finishing skills. He also has a neat step through traffic and runs hard both offensively and defensively. Has shown the ability to perform when challenged and in the big moments when the game is on the line.
“Started the season in good touch with the Dandenong Stingrays but suffered an ankle injury in Victoria Country’s opening game of the National Championships and was unable to play any further matches at that level. Made an impressive return for the final four matches with the Stingrays including having 28 disposals against the Tasmania Devils which reminded scouts of his class and AFL potential.’’
HERALD SUN DRAFT SCRIBE DAN BATTEN ON SIMPSON
“Where would Simpson be in draft calculations if he wasn’t sidelined for the national championships? The AFL Academy graduate is a forgotten man, but his 20 disposals and two goals in the final round was a stern reminder of his talent. Could prove to be a serious steal if he slides.’’
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
