Draft Strategy

congorozides · Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:11pm

My draft strategy is VERY simple.

Get the BEST midfielder in the country playing senior football in the country under 23y.o.

So the best midfielder from the VFL, SANFL or WAFLE. Simple. Forget the Under 18 comp (ARmo and Mcqualtar are duds) and look at what Priddis has done. Get a 20-22 year old that dominates senior footy week-in, week out and has some toe.

ausfatcat · Post: # 448906Post **ausfatcat** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:21pm

most overage players in the VFL SAFL ect have already been looked at as juniors and didn't make the grade (several times over several drafts). Why would you take them now with your first draft pick??? when if they wanted to play have them as a mature age rookie.

The young groups 18 and below haven't been through the system yet they are the best chance.

Animal Enclosure · Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:22pm

Just like they did with Clinton Jones last year???

riccardo · Post: # 448911Post **riccardo** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:28pm

I'd be looking at a mature bodied ruckman first.

Note: mature in BODY, not in years. No more 30 year olds, please.

congorozides · Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:57pm

riccardo wrote:I'd be looking at a mature bodied ruckman first.

Note: mature in BODY, not in years. No more 30 year olds, please.

not another dud ruckman pleeaaaseee....

some players mature later - i want a sam mitchell or a matt priddis.

congorozides · Mon 03 Sep 2007 1:58pm

clinton jones cant play footy. Matt priddis was ten times better than him. We have to look nationwide. Not just in our own dirt patch.

Stephen Theodore · Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:05pm

Drums still beat loud up here about Charman heading South. Just the sort of player we need, good modern day ruckman who does his share of hard bullocking work, and clears the way for the midfielders. Can also go forward and kick a goal. AND STILL YOUNG.

Animal Enclosure · Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:11pm

ah Con, Jones played in the WAFL last season, came second in the sandover, was thought by our recruiting staff to be the best (quickest) mature on baller available at that time (rookie draft).

As others have noted our draft strategy should be draft the best available talent regardless of position. Be aggressive in trade week, be prepared to give up players outside of the top 15 to get what we need (good ruckman, goal kicking 6 footer).

spert · Post: # 448940Post **spert** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:18pm

Jones did very well over in the west, so it would have been silly not to grab him. He has had one year with us, and just as he was showing good form had a serious injury to inerrupt it for a number of weeks...not the kind of injury you bounce back from in a hurry. I think with an uninterrupted pre-season for 2008 he will be a plus for us. Priddus was not "10 times better than Jones" and Priddus has deficiencies in his game -you can always look good stepping into a championship team full of stars like WCE.

congorozides · Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:18pm

it aint easy. but CJ must have been a low pick because we got armo at around 10 didint we?

Animal Enclosure · Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:28pm

He was picked up in the rookie draft, rookie listed & promoted after someone (BJ, Hamill or Gardiner) was added to the long term injury list.

So he wasn't drafted by anyone in the main national draft.

The Peanut · Post: # 448944Post **The Peanut** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:29pm

spert wrote:Jones did very well over in the west, so it would have been silly not to grab him. He has had one year with us, and just as he was showing good form had a serious injury to inerrupt it for a number of weeks...not the kind of injury you bounce back from in a hurry. I think with an uninterrupted pre-season for 2008 he will be a plus for us. Priddus was not "10 times better than Jones" and Priddus has deficiencies in his game -you can always look good stepping into a championship team full of stars like WCE.

. . . forgot about that injury - I thought he was coming along quite well when that happened - except for his nerviousness once got the ball and his poor disposal skills.

PRE SEASON
7. Saints Matthew Clarke (Adel)

ROOKIE DRAFT
9. Saints Clinton Jones (SFreo)
25. Saints Luke van Rheenen (Scsby)
39. Saints Robert Eddy (GpPwer)
51. Saints James Wall (Syd)
58. Saints Jarryn Geary (BenPion)
62. Saints Jayden Attard (Lions)

Mr X from the West · Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:36pm

Look I don't know how we best do it but we are a good ruckman, another key defender and 2-3 really good (and fast) mid-fielders away from being a good team. This wish list is non-negotiable - without them, 2008 will likely be a repeat of this year.

I guess I'm just hoping we can get them in the draft.

Unforgiven · Post: # 448951Post **Unforgiven** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:39pm

congorozides wrote: We have to look nationwide. Not just in our own dirt patch.

What? Clint is from W.A you do realise, you cant get much further away than W.A from Vic.

Everyone is pretty harsh of clint, obviously his disposal is an issue. Though we only rookied him, we have not lost a pick or anything like that. Clint will work on his kicking to hopefully get it upto an ok standard. I think we should persist with him for another season definitly.

Priddis had taken time to develop and has been on the eagles list for a while as well.

Im not to keen on drafting mature agers. Though players like Priddis, Thomo, Sam Fisher(was 21? when drafted) show otherwise. The mature age spot on a rookie list is a worthwhile feature to look into.

Unforgiven · Post: # 448953Post **Unforgiven** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:42pm

Mr X from the West wrote:Look I don't know how we best do it but we are a good ruckman, another key defender and 2-3 really good (and fast) mid-fielders away from being a good team.

I guess I'm just hoping we can get them in the draft.

Can't say it better myself, though I think getting them in the draft is a big ask. You have to consider all angles...

Player development
Trading

I assume by draft you mean pre-season draft and rookie draft as well.

joffaboy · Post: # 448959Post **joffaboy** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 2:51pm

Now I have heard everything.

Apparently Armo is a dud, an 18.y.o. after one season and about 2 seniors matches.

Apparently Gilbert was a dud last season as well.

You complete cabbage.

Otiman · Post: # 448982Post **Otiman** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 3:30pm

If only we could do a carlton and play the strategy of: Flood, put numbers behind the ball and take up all the low picks.

Otiman · Post: # 448999Post **Otiman** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 3:52pm

Seriously though, see what we need in our team in 3 years time. No draft pick should be expected to come up in their first or second years. So let's look at our team in 2011 (or at the end of 2010) and where it would be deficient.

Let's call 31 at the end of a season "retirement age", if we're being conservative. Perhaps with the potential change to interchange rules, it's good to be conservative.

Retirements:

Hamill
Harvey
Hudghton
Gehrig
Gardiner
Thompson
Voss

Getting on (30yrs+)
Hayes
Baker
Milne
Rix

These are the guys we must be looking at replacing. I haven't included M. Clarke because I believe he was a stopgap + insurance for Gardiner this year.

Here is what it boils down to.

3x 1st Grade Mids
Harvey, Hayes, Baker.

1x 2nd Grade Mid
Thompson

1x Full Back
Hudghton

1x Forward Pocket/Goalsneak
Milne

2x Half Forward Flankers + Hard men.
Voss, Hamill

1x Coleman Medalist
Gehrig

Of ready made replacements, I'm probably confident we have 3 points covered, already or next year.

1x 1st Grade Mid
Armitage

1x 2nd Grade Mid
Birss

1x Forward Flanker
X. Clarke

What does that leave?

Full Forward
Full Back
Forward Pocket
1x Forward Flankers
2x Hard Men
2x Ruckmen

IMO - pick BEST available with our first rounder out of these 6 categories.
Do NOT recruit Wingmen, Medium Defenders, CHF, CHB, or Wing men. Look for hardness and mental toughness in the kids.

vacuous space · Mon 03 Sep 2007 4:47pm

Otiman wrote:IMO - pick BEST available with our first rounder out of these 6 categories.
Do NOT recruit Wingmen, Medium Defenders, CHF, CHB, or Wing men. Look for hardness and mental toughness in the kids.

Just pick the best kid with the most talent and a good attitude regardless of position. It would be stupid to pass on a gun KPP to take a mediocre midfielder. Most 18-year olds aren't totally settled into a position anyway. There's no point in passing on a future gun player just because you already have somebody who plays his natural position.

The key positions are relatively the same anyway. Watch a Freo game and tell me which of Pavlich and Tarrant is the FF and which is the CHF. Most forwards are leading forwards, so big bodied defenders are near useless. The way the game is played nowadays you need all your players to have a reasonable amount of endurance, regardless of if they're deep forwards or play futher up the ground. Flankers are just displaced midfielders and undersized keys. Very few small forwards are ground level specialists.

To me, the important thing is to find guys with good ball skills and natural athleticism. Everything else they'll learn as they gain experience.

Otiman · Post: # 449035Post **Otiman** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 4:52pm

I don't think that we'll cripple ourselves too much by choosing not to pick Wing/Medium Defenders, or CHF/CHB's. Beyond that it's best available player. I like the idea of developing some quick mids through the rookie system though.

Otiman · Post: # 449037Post **Otiman** » Mon 03 Sep 2007 4:53pm

The Peanut wrote: ROOKIE DRAFT
9. Saints Clinton Jones (SFreo)
25. Saints Luke van Rheenen (Scsby)
39. Saints Robert Eddy (GpPwer)
51. Saints James Wall (Syd)
58. Saints Jarryn Geary (BenPion)
62. Saints Jayden Attard (Lions)

That's amazing. Perhaps our two best performing Rookies were the last two selected.

The Saintsational Man · Mon 03 Sep 2007 5:05pm

I say we get Shaquille O'Neil.....

7'1" (216cm in our language)
350lbs (150 kgs in our language)

Pay him in gross amounts of food and watch him dominate the ruck!!!

Oh When the Saints · Mon 03 Sep 2007 5:21pm

Priddis had spent 2 years on the West Coast list being developed ... he didn't pop up overnight.

You need to be patient with draftees.

Look at Montagna ... struggled for 3-4 years before becoming one of the top 30 mids in the AFL.

I could cite a hundred other similar examples.

Armo, Howard and Geary/Eddy will be in the same boat.

2-3 years and they will be solid AFL players.