Crows can’t throw Daniel Curtin to the wolves like they did in 2020 | Graham Cornes
Adelaide‘s draft coup grants all of Matthew Nicks’ wishes, writes Graham Cornes. But it should come with a word of caution.
Opinion
Don't miss out on the headlines from Opinion. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The response was interesting.
“We’re not wedded to need”, said Hamish Ogilvie, the Crows national recruiting manager. Going into Monday night’s national draft, Ogilvie had been asked what the Crows needed from the draft.
It was a reasonable question one would have thought, but the battle-hardened Ogilvie appeared to dismiss need as a primary factor.
“We didn’t need another tall defender when we drafted Daniel Talia …. Geelong didn’t need another midfielder when they drafted Joel Selwood”, he continued.
It was a strong argument for selecting talent first over positional need, but it was all a ruse.
In a triumphant night, the Crows selected three young players that they absolutely needed, even though two of them had been completely overlooked in the phantom drafts as first round prospects.
Ogilvie denied any suggestion that Adelaide coaches have ever supplied the recruiters with a wishlist but if Matthew Nicks had his way, there would definitely have been three requests.
One, they need a tall defender. Tom Doedee has left and Nick Murray is injured.
Two, they need a big-bodied midfielder because the best teams in the competition have them and the midfield was one of the Crows weaker areas last year.
Plus they need leg-speed.
Every team needs leg-speed, but players with fast-twitch fibres are a rarity.
Leg speed alone doesn’t make you a great player, but it provides an “x-factor”.
One of the great sights in Australian football is that of the dashing defender turning defence into attack.
So Ogilvie, despite the denials, proceeded to give Matthew Nicks exactly what he needs: a tall defender in Daniel Curtin from WA, a big-bodied midfielder in Charlie Edwards from the Sandringham Dragons in Victoria, and another Victorian, a quick, medium sized defender named Oscar Ryan who was completely blindsided by his selection.
The young Western Australian had been regarded as the best tall defender in the draft and clubs were clamouring for his service but the Crows trumped them.
In an astute strategic move Adelaide, at little cost, was able to advance its draft selection to ensure his selection.
The young man seems happy to be coming to Adelaide: “Absolutely stoked to be picked up by Adelaide”, he said in the press conference after his selection.
“I definitely think I’m ready for that spot in round one”.
He may be.
He’s tall and mobile and possesses one of football’s great weapons – an accurate, penetrating left foot.
Given Adelaide’s issue with tall defenders, he may very well come into calculations for one of those spots in round one, 2024.
However, just a word of caution.
Adelaide can’t throw him to the wolves like they did with another early pick in 2020.
Fischer McAsey was regarded as the best tall defender in the 2019 national draft when the Crows drafted him with pick number 6.
He was selected in round one of 2020 and played in the first 10 games of the season.
He never looked comfortable or confident and averaged only 3.5 kicks in those 10 games.
It didn’t help that the Crows were having their worst year ever.
In that first season, he didn’t play in a winning game, lost his spot and never played in the Crows AFL team again.
A fine young man of good character and obvious football ability, he could have been handled differently.
Of course not all footballers are the same.
First year player Max Michalanney was selected in round one last season and played every game as confidently as a 10-year veteran.
Curtin may be of the same temperament but patience is sometimes required with these bigger youngsters. Just don’t give him the number six jumper! In fact, it might be prudent to retire that jumper for good, such has been the bad luck that has accompanied it since Tony Modra was traded out of the club.
Charlie Edwards was the next player the Crows selected at pick 21. None of the “experts” saw that coming.
He hadn’t been invited to the draft combine where the very best young talent is on display to be measured and assessed.
He didn’t feature highly in any of the mock or phantom drafts, but he has blossomed in the last half of the U-18 season.
He’s from Bendigo in country Victoria but had been at school in Melbourne.
A big-bodied midfielder is what every team wants these days and while it is too early for bold predictions, it won’t be too long before we see him at the AFL level.
He spoke most impressively on Fox Footy immediately after being selected, an indication that character was a factor in his selection as well as his obvious football ability.
Then, at pick 27 came Oscar Ryan.
He wasn’t expecting to be drafted on the first night.
He’d come along with a group of his mates to support three other teammates from the Murray Bushrangers who were drafted early.
When his name was called out, he was as shocked as the expert commentators who hadn’t rated him. He didn’t have a team shirt on like the other draftees and scrambled to find one from one of his amused, surprised and delighted Murray Bushrangers teammates.
However, throughout the year he had put some thought and effort into his chances of being noticed.
He had imposed a social media blackout to eliminate the distractions and emotional upheavals that beset so many teenagers and worked hard on his fitness.
It obviously paid off. Significantly, he’s another player from country Victoria.
He’s from Shepparton like his new teammates Josh Rachelle and Nick Murray.
It’s significant because the Crows have had difficulty retaining Victorian kids.
Although the club now claims it is now better equipped to retain them, those from Melbourne are at greater risk of walking out on the club than those from country Victoria.
Time will tell.
At Port Adelaide, on the second night of the draft, there was very little to see.
However, they at least selected for need.
Having traded away all of its early draft picks for established players it had only three picks late in the draft.
Small forwards were the target. They picked three of them and all three are interesting – for different reasons.
Thomas Anastasopoulos from the Geelong Falcons will bring high intensity, quick legs and much-needed accuracy.
(He kicked 21.2 in 11 games for the Falcons.) Lachie Charleson is another quick country boy, and Will Lorenz is the grandson of Graham Arthur, Australian Football Hall of Famer and Hawthorn’s first premiership captain.
There are definitely vacancies in that Port Adelaide forward 50 for one of those boys to grab. But it’s fair to say that Port’s focus was on trading, not on drafting.
The AFL draft is fast becoming an inequitable farce given how heavily it has been compromised by father/son selections, academy selections, priority picks and future trading. And spreading it over two nights is just ridiculous.
Fortunately, it is still underpinned by two of football’s fundamentals – the ambition of young players to play at the highest level; and the need for AFL clubs to accommodate them.
More Coverage
Penbo: Hinkley ‘incident’ exposes Australia as a snowflake nation
Australians like to think of themselves as a tough bunch with a sense of humour, writes David Penberthy. But that’s not reality.
Maiden: Albo’s pressure inducing Tarzan threat has no trigger
With the Prime Minister accused of threatening to call a double dissolution election, there’s one problem, he doesn’t have a trigger, writes Samantha Maiden.