AFL Draft - Early Team Grades
West Coast: A plus
If they were able to get Ebert at pick 3 it would have been a great draft, they got him at 13 so a very successful day for the Eagles. Masten joins as a midfield general, the new Selwood can play that role in the back line. Notte gives them someone who could star in a few years. With Mr Kennedy, and probably a preseason draft pick too, the Eagles have reloaded.
3 Chris Masten, midfielder
13 Brad Ebert, midfielder/medium forward
20 Tony Notte, tall forward
22 Scott Selwood, small defender/midfielder
Richmond: A plus
If the Tigers had taken Rance at pick 2, people could have accepted that as they need that one more quality tall defender. Rance fell to 18, so Richmond should be very excited. Cotchin plus Deledio should be a great and unstoppable duo in the middle, and hopefully their coaches understand that Deledio needs to play in the middle. Putt can be put in a forward pocket if they need more height, nothing wrong with picking the tallest towards the end of the draft.
2 Trent Cotchin, midfielder
18 Alex Rance, tall defender
51 Dean Putt, ruckman/tall forward
64 PASS
Geelong: A plus
They won't need to pick any talls next year, when they will probably add midfielder Ranga Ediriwickrama, as they loaded up with height in this draft. Taylor has to make the jump from the WAFL, a speculative pick early in the draft but Geelong must really like him and must have thought he would not be there at their next selection. They added two more key position players so the odds are good that they find at least one star, S Simpson should be backup behind Mooney while McKenna has the ability to play at full back and that could be the spot Geelong develop him for. Dawson Simpson is landing in a good spot and he will have a few years to learn, and can get even bigger in that time, and he could replace Ottens in the future.
17 Harry Taylor, tall forward/defender
34 Dawson Simpson, ruckman
44 Scott Simpson, tall forward
50 Dan McKenna, tall defender/forward
60 Adam Donohue, small defender
Essendon: A
Myers gives their midfield some size and dash, and great kicking. Pears could be added to the lineup very soon too. Daniher was a good move with the father/son pick but maybe they could have found some more pace at the end of the draft. They do have a chance in the preseason draft to find another player.
6 David Myers, midfielder/medium defender
23 Tayte Pears, tall defender
39 Darcy Daniher, tall forward/defender
54 Cale Hooker, tall forward
68 PASS
St Kilda: A
They got a big forward for now, and Gehrig is still a chance to kick 100 goals, and they also added McEvoy who should become a dominant forward in the AFL.
9 Ben McEvoy, tall forward/ruckman
42 Jack Steven, midfielder
57 Fraser Gehrig, tall forward
70 Eljay Connors, midfielder
Melbourne: B plus
They needed a leader added to the midfield, Grimes is a good fit. Grimes should be seen as a future captain there. Morton should bring skill to the back half and Maric will do the same up forward. Their last two picks also add options in the back line. Nothing wrong with what the Demons did in the draft, except they didn't want to be referred to as Demons.
4 Cale Morton, midfielder/tall defender
14 Jack Grimes, midfielder
21 Addam Maric, small forward
53 Kyle Cheney, small defender
66 Tom McNamara, medium defender
73 PASS
Hawthorn: B plus
They can put three or four tall forwards out there but needed a bit of variety, Rioli can be a leading forward like Mark Williams or a midfielder/forward like McGlynn. Dew can join Franklin in kicking long goals. Whitecross gives them another fast midfielder, an eventual replacement for Crawford. A successful draft, maybe a tall defender would have been another player to target but Renouf should help there and maybe Murphy or Dowler can play there too if needed.
12 Cyril Rioli, small forward/midfielder
29 Brendan Whitecross, midfielder
45 Stuart Dew, medium forward
Port Adelaide: B plus
Lobbe makes J Westhoff look strong. But as that Westhoff showed, sometimes the players don't need to be huge to have a big impact. The other Westhoff continues the tradition the Power have going with brothers. Farmer gives them someone who can play in Wilson's role if he is out, Motlop gets added to the group of Pearce, Gray, Krakouer and their other exciting small forward/midfielders.
16 Matthew Lobbe, tall forward
28 Marlon Motlop, small forward/midfielder
33 Matthew Westhoff, tall forward
49 Mitchell Farmer, small defender/midfielder
Carlton: B
They really just had pick 1, as the other players won't be playing for a while. But all they needed was Kreuzer to greatly improve their team. Adding two midfielders in the draft didn't make a lot of sense, as they already added two more midfielders through trades.
1 Matthew Kreuzer, ruckman/tall forward
36 Steven Browne, midfielder
46 Dennis Armfield, midfielder
65 PASS
Brisbane: B
Henderson might be a good player at centre half back for them, Merrett is in the full back spot and Drummond and Roe can play on smaller players and use their attacking skills and long kicks. Collier could be the very big midfielder they were after. He might be one of the steals of the draft. Coach Matthews would know about the Polkinghornes, and they are adding some football history after taking a Sheldon last year.
8 Lachlan Henderson, tall defender/forward
25 Tom Collier, midfielder/tall defender
41 James Polkinghorne, small defender/midfielder
52 Bradd Dalziell, midfielder
56 Matt Austin, midfielder
Collingwood: B
They have shown with past drafts that they know what they are doing, and they might have McCarthy becoming another big midfielder.
31 John McCarthy, medium forward/midfielder
47 Toby Thoolan, tall forward/defender
61 Jaxson Barham, small defender/midfielder
Sydney: B
They must like Playfair, or expect big things from Barlow or White, as they didn't go tall with any of their picks. What they did leave the draft with was three players who can help them next season, so that is a good idea. They also seem to be players that already play in the Sydney style.
11 Patrick Veszpremi, small defender/midfielder
26 Brett Meredith, midfielder
59 Craig Bird, midfielder
Fremantle: C plus
They drafted Palmer, and that might be all they get out of this draft. It is sort of looking like an Essendon retirement home.
7 Rhys Palmer, midfielder
24 Clayton Hinkley, midfielder
40 Chris Mayne, medium forward
55 Mark Johnson, small defender
69 Kepler Bradley, tall defender/midfielder
74 PASS
Kangaroos: D plus
They have Petrie, Hale, used a very high draft pick on Hansen, and also have Thompson available in 2008, so the role that Tarrant would take is hard to detail. Greenwood should step right into the round 1 team.
15 Robbie Tarrant, tall forward
32 Levi Greenwood, midfielder
37 Scott Thompson, tall defender
62 Josh Smith, tall forward
72 Blake Grima, midfielder
Adelaide Crows: D
In a few years, they might look back and say they just got Walker and Dangerfield out of this draft. The Dangerfield pick doesn't make a lot of sense anyway, as they traded for Symes who is similar. Maybe Otten can give them something, it is unlikely that he plays forward there, probably in the middle of the ground.
10 Patrick Dangerfield, medium defender/midfielder
27 Andy Otten, tall defender/midfielder
30 Jarrhan Jacky, midfielder
38 Myke Cook, midfielder
58 Tony Armstrong, midfielder
71 Aaron Kite, tall forward/defender
75 Taylor Walker, tall forward
Western Bulldogs: F
The Bulldogs don't know where they are, they might be trying to win now and Hudson and Welsh point to that. But the players they took in the national draft won't do anything soon and Johnson, West, Akermanis and others will be long gone before any of these players contribute. There was a time when people said Where's The Beef, and unfortunately for fans of the Bulldogs they will continue to ask. Every single one of their picks is described as an athlete, it would have been a better idea to select some footballers.
5 Jarrad Grant, tall forward
19 Callan Ward, midfielder
35 Sam Reid, midfielder
43 Easton Wood, medium forward
48 Jarrad Boumann, tall forward
63 Guy O'Keefe, midfielder/small forward
67 PASS
If they were able to get Ebert at pick 3 it would have been a great draft, they got him at 13 so a very successful day for the Eagles. Masten joins as a midfield general, the new Selwood can play that role in the back line. Notte gives them someone who could star in a few years. With Mr Kennedy, and probably a preseason draft pick too, the Eagles have reloaded.
3 Chris Masten, midfielder
13 Brad Ebert, midfielder/medium forward
20 Tony Notte, tall forward
22 Scott Selwood, small defender/midfielder
Richmond: A plus
If the Tigers had taken Rance at pick 2, people could have accepted that as they need that one more quality tall defender. Rance fell to 18, so Richmond should be very excited. Cotchin plus Deledio should be a great and unstoppable duo in the middle, and hopefully their coaches understand that Deledio needs to play in the middle. Putt can be put in a forward pocket if they need more height, nothing wrong with picking the tallest towards the end of the draft.
2 Trent Cotchin, midfielder
18 Alex Rance, tall defender
51 Dean Putt, ruckman/tall forward
64 PASS
Geelong: A plus
They won't need to pick any talls next year, when they will probably add midfielder Ranga Ediriwickrama, as they loaded up with height in this draft. Taylor has to make the jump from the WAFL, a speculative pick early in the draft but Geelong must really like him and must have thought he would not be there at their next selection. They added two more key position players so the odds are good that they find at least one star, S Simpson should be backup behind Mooney while McKenna has the ability to play at full back and that could be the spot Geelong develop him for. Dawson Simpson is landing in a good spot and he will have a few years to learn, and can get even bigger in that time, and he could replace Ottens in the future.
17 Harry Taylor, tall forward/defender
34 Dawson Simpson, ruckman
44 Scott Simpson, tall forward
50 Dan McKenna, tall defender/forward
60 Adam Donohue, small defender
Essendon: A
Myers gives their midfield some size and dash, and great kicking. Pears could be added to the lineup very soon too. Daniher was a good move with the father/son pick but maybe they could have found some more pace at the end of the draft. They do have a chance in the preseason draft to find another player.
6 David Myers, midfielder/medium defender
23 Tayte Pears, tall defender
39 Darcy Daniher, tall forward/defender
54 Cale Hooker, tall forward
68 PASS
St Kilda: A
They got a big forward for now, and Gehrig is still a chance to kick 100 goals, and they also added McEvoy who should become a dominant forward in the AFL.
9 Ben McEvoy, tall forward/ruckman
42 Jack Steven, midfielder
57 Fraser Gehrig, tall forward
70 Eljay Connors, midfielder
Melbourne: B plus
They needed a leader added to the midfield, Grimes is a good fit. Grimes should be seen as a future captain there. Morton should bring skill to the back half and Maric will do the same up forward. Their last two picks also add options in the back line. Nothing wrong with what the Demons did in the draft, except they didn't want to be referred to as Demons.
4 Cale Morton, midfielder/tall defender
14 Jack Grimes, midfielder
21 Addam Maric, small forward
53 Kyle Cheney, small defender
66 Tom McNamara, medium defender
73 PASS
Hawthorn: B plus
They can put three or four tall forwards out there but needed a bit of variety, Rioli can be a leading forward like Mark Williams or a midfielder/forward like McGlynn. Dew can join Franklin in kicking long goals. Whitecross gives them another fast midfielder, an eventual replacement for Crawford. A successful draft, maybe a tall defender would have been another player to target but Renouf should help there and maybe Murphy or Dowler can play there too if needed.
12 Cyril Rioli, small forward/midfielder
29 Brendan Whitecross, midfielder
45 Stuart Dew, medium forward
Port Adelaide: B plus
Lobbe makes J Westhoff look strong. But as that Westhoff showed, sometimes the players don't need to be huge to have a big impact. The other Westhoff continues the tradition the Power have going with brothers. Farmer gives them someone who can play in Wilson's role if he is out, Motlop gets added to the group of Pearce, Gray, Krakouer and their other exciting small forward/midfielders.
16 Matthew Lobbe, tall forward
28 Marlon Motlop, small forward/midfielder
33 Matthew Westhoff, tall forward
49 Mitchell Farmer, small defender/midfielder
Carlton: B
They really just had pick 1, as the other players won't be playing for a while. But all they needed was Kreuzer to greatly improve their team. Adding two midfielders in the draft didn't make a lot of sense, as they already added two more midfielders through trades.
1 Matthew Kreuzer, ruckman/tall forward
36 Steven Browne, midfielder
46 Dennis Armfield, midfielder
65 PASS
Brisbane: B
Henderson might be a good player at centre half back for them, Merrett is in the full back spot and Drummond and Roe can play on smaller players and use their attacking skills and long kicks. Collier could be the very big midfielder they were after. He might be one of the steals of the draft. Coach Matthews would know about the Polkinghornes, and they are adding some football history after taking a Sheldon last year.
8 Lachlan Henderson, tall defender/forward
25 Tom Collier, midfielder/tall defender
41 James Polkinghorne, small defender/midfielder
52 Bradd Dalziell, midfielder
56 Matt Austin, midfielder
Collingwood: B
They have shown with past drafts that they know what they are doing, and they might have McCarthy becoming another big midfielder.
31 John McCarthy, medium forward/midfielder
47 Toby Thoolan, tall forward/defender
61 Jaxson Barham, small defender/midfielder
Sydney: B
They must like Playfair, or expect big things from Barlow or White, as they didn't go tall with any of their picks. What they did leave the draft with was three players who can help them next season, so that is a good idea. They also seem to be players that already play in the Sydney style.
11 Patrick Veszpremi, small defender/midfielder
26 Brett Meredith, midfielder
59 Craig Bird, midfielder
Fremantle: C plus
They drafted Palmer, and that might be all they get out of this draft. It is sort of looking like an Essendon retirement home.
7 Rhys Palmer, midfielder
24 Clayton Hinkley, midfielder
40 Chris Mayne, medium forward
55 Mark Johnson, small defender
69 Kepler Bradley, tall defender/midfielder
74 PASS
Kangaroos: D plus
They have Petrie, Hale, used a very high draft pick on Hansen, and also have Thompson available in 2008, so the role that Tarrant would take is hard to detail. Greenwood should step right into the round 1 team.
15 Robbie Tarrant, tall forward
32 Levi Greenwood, midfielder
37 Scott Thompson, tall defender
62 Josh Smith, tall forward
72 Blake Grima, midfielder
Adelaide Crows: D
In a few years, they might look back and say they just got Walker and Dangerfield out of this draft. The Dangerfield pick doesn't make a lot of sense anyway, as they traded for Symes who is similar. Maybe Otten can give them something, it is unlikely that he plays forward there, probably in the middle of the ground.
10 Patrick Dangerfield, medium defender/midfielder
27 Andy Otten, tall defender/midfielder
30 Jarrhan Jacky, midfielder
38 Myke Cook, midfielder
58 Tony Armstrong, midfielder
71 Aaron Kite, tall forward/defender
75 Taylor Walker, tall forward
Western Bulldogs: F
The Bulldogs don't know where they are, they might be trying to win now and Hudson and Welsh point to that. But the players they took in the national draft won't do anything soon and Johnson, West, Akermanis and others will be long gone before any of these players contribute. There was a time when people said Where's The Beef, and unfortunately for fans of the Bulldogs they will continue to ask. Every single one of their picks is described as an athlete, it would have been a better idea to select some footballers.
5 Jarrad Grant, tall forward
19 Callan Ward, midfielder
35 Sam Reid, midfielder
43 Easton Wood, medium forward
48 Jarrad Boumann, tall forward
63 Guy O'Keefe, midfielder/small forward
67 PASS
but of course u know more than scott clayton and co.
The Bulldogs are lacking when it comes to strong key position players, that is why they can't compete.
The Bulldogs fans can't blame Wallace for their small team anymore, Eade is obviously happy to let his recruiters bring in thin athletes, not strong footballers. A change needs to be made there soon, as teams don't win without size.
we went into the draft looking for a tall. result, we got two.
we went into the draft looking for an inside mid. result, we got two.
who do you suggest we draft instead of the likes of cooney, griffen, ray etc?
tell me a good kpp forward that came from the 03' draft?
2004 saw us pick williams and griffen. now dont say u should have gone for franklin because even the hawks bypassed him for roughead.
now back to your hybanation chamber little boy because you seriously dont have a clue.
Who has described Ward as an athlete before a footballer? Clearly you have something against the Bulldogs as this just smacks of either
A) stupidity or
B) attempting to get more visits by writing something so stupid.
I'm going with option B) and honestly it has obviously seeing as I have come here but you have lost the small amount of cred that you had.
You also forget the main thing that the Bulldogs needed and that is a few hard at it types which they seem to have gotten.
I'm sure by the time these boys are making careers for themselves you will be no where near the AFL industry still.
Think back to the short players like Kretiuk, Croft and Reynolds who were asked to play in key positions. It didn't work then and it isn't working now at the Bulldogs, like when Murphy or Hahn is centre half forward.
Scott Welsh is a third tall, in a few years when Jarrad Grant puts on weight it is very possible he will only be a third tall. Unless Minson or McDougall can make an impact up forward the Bulldogs will continue to struggle.
Have a look at the size that the winning teams have, and then look at the difference between them and the Bulldogs. It is simple, the Bulldogs recruiters and coaches are sticking with a losing strategy and until they are gone the Bulldogs won't be contending.
To rate there selections as an F is an embarrassment to this site. How do expect to be taken seriously?
For the 2007 draft, it did not deliver a real key position forward, their biggest need. J Grant may fly over a pack and take mark of the year, but it is likely that he is never going to become a strong target to continually kick to. Scott Simpson and Ben McEvoy would have brought the height and bulk that the Bulldogs needed.
The only embarrassment is that the Bulldogs continue to draft athletes, instead of huge key position footballers, and maybe if they have a review of the place they will make some changes because if they dont they will continue to get out-marked and out-muscled on the field.
And im intrigued as to why you keep on referring to our players as athletes. Who have we drafted in the last couple of years that could account for the tag 'athlete'?
Im not sure how much this site would turn over but id be prepared to put 5k on the fact that you have never seen any of these players play and you only come to your decision to label them athletes because of their skinny frame that you have most likely read on the western bulldog website.
Also, finally, how about you answer some of the questions that we have asked instead of blabbering on about irrelevent things that happened a decade ago?
The Eagles certainly had a great draft, and they also have a preseason pick and rookie choices to make too.
Masten will probably be used like J Selwood was last year by Geelong, playing most or all of the games but starting on the bench. There is no reason why Ebert can't play a lot too.
Notte is a pick for a few years from now, S Selwood might be able to find a role in the back line in 2008. The Eagles could play Wirrpanda up forward, and S Selwood could join his brother in the back line.
The Bulldogs could certainly learn a lot from the Eagles, a year ago the Eagles went key position prospect with every pick. So they have Hansen, Q and Staker now and in the future they have Brown, Kennedy and Notte.
One thing the Eagles didn't pick was a ruckman, and there are several good ones available and that might be who they go with in the preseason draft.