Welcome Welcome to Hawthorn: Pick 18, Josh Weddle

[Strapping Young Lad]

Sam says Blicavs…

 

[matey]

What’s his footy smarts like from those who have seen him in training? Does he know where to run etc?

Lots of guys have athletic tools at afl level but wing needs a fair bit of footy nous these days. Only need to be out of position for a second or two and your opponent is away.

It’s what makes smith (and hill pre saints) so special - they have the tools and know how to use them.

From watching him when he is close to a ruck contests it’s a bit hard to tell so early unlike Macca and Day that have shown some really nice reading of play and done some clean work moving the ball quickly out of congestion …….. but he does look like a very nice footballer with a solid kicking technique on the run and can mark. And he can run ok as well if anyone doesn’t know . His left foot is pretty good too doesn’t mind using it. For a kid just jumping straight into a different tempo at the highest level he’s doing bloody well. Running patterns and knowing the team strategies etc are probably his biggest focus at the moment to best utilise his traits.

 

[The hands of stone]

What’s his footy smarts like from those who have seen him in training? Does he know where to run etc?

Lots of guys have athletic tools at afl level but wing needs a fair bit of footy nous these days. Only need to be out of position for a second or two and your opponent is away.

It’s what makes smith (and hill pre saints) so special - they have the tools and know how to use them.

Messaged my mate regarding this , this is is response

' no issue at all. You dont have an athlete only who will need to be trained up and be a long burn high risk .
He will need time to adapt to AFL but no different to the other draftees.
Absolute high end talent . You have a ripper .

He also added
' you guys will have a very decent side in a few seasons , opinion is youve nailed last few drafts . Enjoy the ride '

Is a Bomber supporter btw .

 

[TDS7]

He also added
' you guys will have a very decent side in a few seasons , opinion is youve nailed last few drafts . Enjoy the ride '

Is a Bomber supporter btw .

Not sure I trust his judgment or footy IQ tbh.

 

[tl92]

Messaged my mate regarding this , this is is response

' no issue at all. You dont have an athlete only who will need to be trained up and be a long burn high risk .
He will need time to adapt to AFL but no different to the other draftees.
Absolute high end talent . You have a ripper .

He also added
' you guys will have a very decent side in a few seasons , opinion is youve nailed last few drafts . Enjoy the ride '

Is a Bomber supporter btw .

We definitely appear to have nailed 2021 draft, a similar return from the 2022 group would hold us in very good stead. Our strong mid season drafting has also been a real bonus.

 

[cs61]

Newman on SEN comments on Weddle:

“He’s a really good size, great runner, shows a lot of speed with a great work ethic,” Newman told SEN’s Dwayne’s World.
“He’s shown some things early on in the pre-season, we’re really excited by the way he attacks the game.
“He’s one of those players with really good size and good endurance that could fit it anywhere and any position that would suit the way we want to play.
“We feel like we’ve got some upside there and look forward to him progressing his journey.”

The Hawthorn draftee that has Newman "excited"

“He’s shown some things early on in the pre-season."

www.sen.com.au

 

[CHUBBSS]

Imagine lining up next to weddle, Nash, meek and Newcombe in the tap

Two more years and we have a few who will be brutal in tight

 

[tommyk72]

Think of the opportunity & advantage of a Wingman being 6 inches taller, 10kg heavier & strong in the air (whilst being quick & with an awesome tank).

I think of when Richo finished up on the Wing & when Nick Reiwoldt used to play there.

I'd not play him there just because of his size, but if he could play well there, his size & aerial ability would likely be a massive advantage over his opponent. Not to say he couldn't roll through CBA as well, like Amon does.

I’d be interested in seeing him and Finn on the wings really bullying opposition outlet wingmen. Hard running, but more importantly strong hard tackles, physicality in marking contests, etc. will make it a lot harder for them to break away from us. If we then have big boys on the inside like Newcombe and Nash feeding it out we could start to see our midfield gain some traction.


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[Brant]

I’d be interested in seeing him and Finn on the wings really bullying opposition outlet wingmen. Hard running, but more importantly strong hard tackles, physicality in marking contests, etc. will make it a lot harder for them to break away from us. If we then have big boys on the inside like Newcombe and Nash feeding it out we could start to see our midfield gain some traction.


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I'd rotate them.
Don't want to lose the genuine attack that Amon brings by playing defensive on both sides.

 

[big footy cyril]

Were LZ really metal or just a very loud folk, blues, rock outfit with some pretty talented musicians?

Pretty talented..? bonzo is widely regarded as one of the best rock drummers to ever hit the skins. They were much too early to be considered ‘metal’

 

[TDS7]

I'd rotate them.
Don't want to lose the genuine attack that Amon brings by playing defensive on both sides.

Karl wants to play through the inside more, so there's an opportunity to have him and Finn rotate on the small wing depending on if we want Finn to play on target or we need Karl to hit up a target fast from the bounce. Then we leave Weddle to rotate with Day, CJ, Scrimshaw, or any of the other half-backs to play on the fat-side wing and zone off the ground with their two-way-running and intercepting. When it comes down to it, you have two types of wing. While Finn is great at shutting down the opposition, he's not a defensive wing as much as he's a negator of offensive wings. He isn't an interceptor or potential outlet kick. There's a world where we line up against Melbourne, throw Finn on the Langdon wing to shut off his run and an outlet for Clarry's quick handballs out, get Amon in the guts to get the delivery forward up to the level where May, Salem, and Lever won't shut it down, and get Weddle on the Harmes wing to zone off and cover the clearance forward from Oliver/Petracca or present a short option for our mids on the 45. It won't be our best 22 setup, but I would not be shocked to see this rotation in a match.

 

[Easy Slips Catch]

What’s his footy smarts like from those who have seen him in training? Does he know where to run etc?...

He's not scared to run the length of the ground. In one drill he regularly was involved in the play deep in defence, then as the ball was swept forward, you'd see him ahead of the footy in space.

Comparing that to Billy Hartung. Billy could follow and track the footy but struggled to read what was going to unfold. Weddle may be similar, maybe not, but his tank and speed are such that he can just burst forward time and time again. Plus, he seems more willing/committed to be involved than Billy.

 

[phlogiston]

Were LZ really metal or just a very loud folk, blues, rock outfit with some pretty talented musicians?

I'd consider them a blues / rock / folk outfit, but I wasn't going to let accuracy get in the way of a line!

 

[Ned Ryerson]

Hey at least you metalheads get some representation - very unlikely we are drafting kids these days into math rock and post-hardcore.

 

[Jazzfan]

Feel he has the most upside of anyone on our list. Sky is the limit. Will be great watching him develop.

Gee man, loving reading about him. But I think we all need to take a breath and see him play before suggesting his upside is greater than Newcombe, Day, Lewis, CJ, Moore, Ward or CMAC to name a few.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

I get the feeling the kind of music the best suits his gamestyle will come from the soundtrack to DOOM by Mick Gordon.

 

[Agent Smith]

Think of the opportunity & advantage of a Wingman being 6 inches taller, 10kg heavier & strong in the air (whilst being quick & with an awesome tank).

If he learns how to use his elbows correctly, put him in the number 9 and just unleash him every week*.

*six weeks (taking into account suspensions)

 

[Randy Campbell]

Pretty talented..? bonzo is widely regarded as one of the best rock drummers to ever hit the skins. They were much too early to be considered ‘metal’

The only reason Led Zeppelin was early was because they built the forge.

 

[Brishawk]

Gee man, loving reading about him. But I think we all need to take a breath and see him play before suggesting his upside is greater than Newcombe, Day, Lewis, CJ, Moore, Ward or CMAC to name a few.

Yeah he has got to prove himself n games to realise his potential but few come to the afl with his potential ceiling. I don’t expect him to necessarily be best 22 in 2023 but it will be exciting to see how good he can actually be in the next few seasons.

 

[arupist]

The only reason Led Zeppelin was early was because they built the forge.

But they didn't light the fire. It was always burnin' since the world was turnin'.

 

[Randy Campbell]

But they didn't light the fire. It was always burnin' since the world was turnin'.

 

[The Chad and I]

Weddle hype couldn't be higher if we had taken him at Pick 1 in the draft.
Given his attributes and pre-season training, probably earned it.
It's a good example of waiting to judge trades and not judging the exchange of picks based on prior valuations.

We don't know the player.
We don't know the draft/talent pools.
Mark McKenzie does...and of all the supposed draft gurus we've had, he's done the most with the least.
I'm incredibly impressed by his work in such a short period of time.

 

[HedgeFund]

Weddle hype couldn't be higher if we had taken him at Pick 1 in the draft.
Given his attributes and pre-season training, probably earned it.
It's a good example of waiting to judge trades and not judging the exchange of picks based on prior valuations.

We don't know the player.
We don't know the draft/talent pools.
Mark McKenzie does...and of all the supposed draft gurus we've had, he's done the most with the least.
I'm incredibly impressed by his work in such a short period of time.

I might reserve my assessment until later….like when any of the draftees have actually played a game, an AFL game, maybe 25 AFL games.

No one can tell if Weddle (or any of the 2022 crop) will be able to comfortably play at the level until the real stuff starts and he has played more than a few matches.

 

[Slainte]

The club has updated the player profiles and photos on the website. Weddle is listed as a key defender and the profile focuses on those attributes. No mention of him as a potential mid or utility. Not what I expected given the comments from Sam and MM. Has there been a recent re-think?

 

[The Spirit of Cricket]

Hey at least you metalheads get some representation - very unlikely we are drafting kids these days into math rock and post-hardcore.

one day we'll draft a kid into gospel and at the drive in... one day

 

[HedgeFund]

The club has updated the player profiles and photos on the website. Weddle is listed as a key defender and the profile focuses on those attributes. No mention of him as a potential mid or utility. Not what I expected given the comments from Sam and MM. Has there been a recent re-think?

Means absolutely nothing.

That’s just where he played his junior footy.

No doubt when Blake Hardwick first popped up on our website he was listed as a small forward.

Didn’t turn out that way did it?