Adelaide Crows draft courageous Magpies key position player Keenan Ramsey

ADELAIDE has pulled off one of the feel-good stories of the rookie draft, selecting Port Magpies key position player Keenan Ramsey.

17/5/14 Keenan Ramsey at Sacred Heart College oval where he goes to school. Keenan lost his eye to cancer at the age of two and is now in the state under-18 squad for the national football championships.

ADELAIDE has pulled off one of the feel-good stories of the rookie draft, selecting Port Magpies key position player Keenan Ramsey.

Ramsey, 18, lost an eye to cancer at age two but didn’t let the massive setback hold him back.

Hailing from Port Lincoln, Ramsey moved to Adelaide to board at Sacred Heart College and progressed through the Magpies’ junior grades.

He played all six matches for SA’s victorious AFL under-18s championship side this year.

“Keenan’s a beauty, a great kid,’’ SANFL high performance manager Brenton Phillips said.

“I didn’t know about the eye until he came into the squad and someone mentioned it, but you would never notice it watching him play, he’s super clean with how he takes the ball.”

Ramsey, 192cm, is equally at home as a key forward or defender.

He was taken by the Crows with pick 27.

Adelaide used its first selection (No. 9 overall) to boost its ruck stocks, taking 201cm, 19-year-old Reilly O’Brien from Calder Cannons.

O’Brien is raw but talented and is considered a nice project player.

Adelaide’s third and final selection was used to add some blistering pace to the team.

Norwood’s Anthony Wilson, 22, is regarded as the quickest player in the SANFL.

Reilly O'Brien marks the ball for the Calder Cannons. Photo: Mark Wilson.

After starting the 2014 season in the Redlegs’ reserves, Wilson became a regular fixture in the league team, playing 16 games, including the grand final win against the Magpies.

The wingman has a good eye for goal and, with work, could develop into a quality AFL player.

He was taken at pick 44.

The Crows surprisingly overlooked West Adelaide utility Jonathon Beech, who trained with them last week and had seemingly impressed new coach Phil Walsh.