Player Watch Welcome to Hawthorn pick 13: Will Day 2023 PCM!

[Randy Campbell]

I always worry when a man child is chosen, it is easy to dominate when you have far greater physical development. Will Day is playing the game and is not much more than a boy physically, but he has good skills anticipation and courge. At 18 he is likely to still grow several cm and will get stronger. Unless he packs on the Kgs on the next 6 months I doubt we will see him play firsts, a year at Box Hill learning our game and he will be ready to go 2021.
I see another strong marking player, Clarko is hatching a plan to defeat the current trend.

I agree, no point picking someone who could of peaked in high school.

 

[KermitJagger]

There are a lot of people attempting to compare will as a player to other players they've seen, but I don't think that does him justice. Let him develop.

I don't dislike this pick though there were a few I would have liked ahead of him, he is definitely a huge upside player. Good athleticism, good size, clean skills and a very smart footballer.

What makes me confident on his prospects moving forward is that Richmond were very keen on him with their pick had he slipped through, and recently they've been very astute with their talent identification.

 

[Xtreme]

Where there's a will there's a way. There's also Will Day.

Hope he becomes another icon in Hawthorn's history.

 

[LRobbo]

If people can’t see how we are list building they either are blind or don’t no football.
Scrimshaw, elite foot skills, tall, good overhead.
Sicily, same.
Day, same.
Greaves, to a lesser extent same.

We are picking elite ball users that can play from half back, through the middle on wings and half forward if need be.

That’s one area since our flag winning years that’s waned, our ball use.
We are looking to rectify that.

Day getting the footy on the MCC wing and hitting Lewis or Patton lace out, it’s gonna happen.

 

[matey]

Meet the Pack - Will Day - West Adelaide Football Club

westadelaidefc.com.au

Video of will on the home page , he seems a great kid . Models his game on luke Hodge to .

When he gets the ball he seems like a player that has plenty of time on his hands, doesn’t panic when making his decision to dispose. Great kick!

 

[Pessimistic]

Did anyone notice Clarkos eyes were visibly moist on the TV? embarrassed or emotional, who knows?

 

[buddy2fernando]

After watching footage of Will I am starting to really like the pick. Great user, calm and moves well.

For his size he inst afraid to throw himself around either.

After some time in the gym I can see him being similar to Birch but with a bit better aerial ability.

 

[hawkheart]

Who needs to add muscle to be a champ?

 

[killerspud]

Welcome Will.

Just watch this one.

We won 4 flags by being the most skillful team in the comp. This kid has athleticism and by all reports a good footy brain and a disposal efficiency of over 80% - This is the perfect selection here.

 

[Hawk_francais]

Id love to see us take the pair of Day and Gould. Two SA boys who already played in a backline together.

 

[killerspud]

Hey! Come on mate. He was probably BOG up to half time. Came to us with a big reputation and was to be the Hudson feeder with his precise kicking. Arrived with a lot of body wear and tear and never reached the hoped-for level until the grand final where he had a brilliant game until injured. Would not have been selected for the Granny only for the injury to Knights.

So Day replaced Knights

 

[Kenyan]

Natural footballer with excellent skills, athletic - really like the pick.

 

[killerspud]

Id love to see us take the pair of Day and Gould. Two SA boys who already played in a backline together.

This would allow Sicily, Hardwick and Impey all to play midfield/forward. Live the possibilities

 

[KermitJagger]

View attachment 785973

Who needs to add muscle to be a champ?

I agree tbh. I think there are certain players you want to develop muscle because it will compliment their play style, and there are others where it runs the risk of ruining their natural advantages.

He'll develop naturally as he gets older and works through a normal AFL routine, no need to really try to bulk him up.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

The HUN, should be known as the DUMB.

“The Hawks secured creative but lightly-built defender Will Day at pick 13 to help replace departed veteran defenders Grant Birchall and Luke Hodge.”

Yes, we decided we needed to replace Hodge two years after he left, and a guy who played 5 games in 3 years.....that was our exact thinking for taking Day.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

Id love to see us take the pair of Day and Gould. Two SA boys who already played in a backline together.

I’d love that too

 

[killerspud]

Dont think to much about it, a lot of people were keen on Kemp so naturally will be disappointed we didn’t go down that path.. Everyone will want to see the kid dominate, and it won’t take long for people to jump on board but for the moment some posters need to expect some challenges/questions as to this selection.

On face value in its most simplest terms we’ve selected a player in a position we really don’t need, complicating the motive around the selection is we have Downie as an academy choice next year who is also a top 10 prospect that plays half back. From a personal POV I thought there was a chance to fill a more relevant need, but meh whatever, the choice is made and I’ll support the club.

I’ve got to say I’ll be shattered if Kemp goes on to be a star with the blues.

The interesting thing about Kemp was that we weren't the only ones who overlooked him. Gold Coast, Port and Geelong all overlooked him.

Also interesting that it has been stated that Port, Geelong, Gold Coast and Richmond were circling to pick up Day. That's 5 recruiting departments that rated the kid.

So relax Tige this one will be a ripper.

.

 

[The Jet From Poowong]

In most pre draft listings, Day was expected to go in teh teens, at worst early second. Which tells you he was always valued highly. His skill level and reading of play is of a high quality. And that is very important.

 

[TallyHawk]

When he gets the ball he seems like a player that has plenty of time on his hands, doesn’t panic when making his decision to dispose. Great kick!

Seems very confident hitting those precision kicks to switch the play or through the corridor and goes when it’s his turn.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Bugs1977]

I like many thought I'd sleep on our decision to select young Will Day last night rather than post an emotional opinion. The first thing I thought of when I woke up was what I always say about selecting players in the higher end of drafts (no matter the sport) and that is to go for who you think is the best talent of positional need. The other thing that I thought of was that talent can't be taught but size / weight can be added. Todays game is nowhere near as physical as it used to be so players don't always need the ridiculous size to succeed at the top level and yes the kid will need to eventually add 10 or so kegs but with the assistance of a full-time nutritionist this can be done relatively easy as long as he follows the plan that is set up to him. Finally the last thing I thought of was to always trust the guys pulling the strings at the HFC wether they make a mistake or not (ride the bumps with a grin).

FWIW I wanted us to get the chance to draft Kysaiah Pickett who I feel will be the steal of the draft. Everything that young kid has done at an underage level will translate to top flight and was really a perfect fit for what we have going on in our forward line but that's the way it pans out. If I was Clarko then I'd consider bring in Xavier Ellis as young Will's nutritionist for the 2020 season and for all we know we might have a Chip replacement by round 15

 

[Mojo]

I feel like these threads tend to follow a similar pattern: melts followed by a few hours of internal reflection then the conclusion "I'm starting to really like this pick".

 

[Hodgey 15]

I must admit initially I was a little sceptical about picking up Day. Knowing how this club operates and hearing how good this kid actually is and potentially will be, I'm bloody excited to have him at Hawks.

 

[vanders]

After watching this video I'm excited. Hes a right footer but is also good on the left boot and is confident using it too. He looks quick and makes good decisions under pressure.

 

[Brishawk]

The HUN, should be known as the DUMB.

“The Hawks secured creative but lightly-built defender Will Day at pick 13 to help replace departed veteran defenders Grant Birchall and Luke Hodge.”

Yes, we decided we needed to replace Hodge two years after he left, and a guy who played 5 games in 3 years.....that was our exact thinking for taking Day.

Who is dumber, the herald sun or the people who read the herald sun?

 

[Brishawk]

Kid looks an absolute jet. I’m very excited will