AFL draft 2020: Adelaide faces a difficult choice between local and interstate talent for the No. 1 pick

Adelaide is facing its biggest ever local or interstater call when it heads to this year’s AFL draft. Who should the Crows take with the top pick?

A smattering of jeers rang through Adelaide Convention Centre when Don Pyke read out Tom Doedee’s name at pick 17 in the 2015 national draft.

The local crowd was surprised – a video on the Crows website later called it a “mixed reaction” – and seemingly did not know what to make of Adelaide’s decision.

Nor did Crows fans watching at home, as many took to social media to angrily question it.

Not only was Doedee a draft bolter – a basketball convert tipped to be taken with a much later pick – he was not Ryan Burton.

Burton was the hometown hope, a North Adelaide swingman who draft pundits said would likely have been a top-10 choice if not for a leg injury that ruined his season, and phantom drafts predicted the Crows would take him with their second selection.

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Will the Crows take Riley Thilthorpe with the No. 1 pick? Picture: Tricia Watkinson

He was available, but Adelaide instead opted for Geelong Falcons defender Doedee.

Burton went to Hawthorn two selections later at No. 19.

Five years on, Doedee is the Crows’ captain-in-waiting, having already skippered the side in Rory Sloane’s absence this year, and, as promising as Burton has been for the Hawks and Port Adelaide, those draft night boos look silly in hindsight.

Now, the Crows are preparing to make their biggest local or interstater call when they decide between West Adelaide’s Riley Thilthorpe, West Australian Logan McDonald and Victorian Elijah Hollands on December 9 with the first top pick in their history.

Former Crows recruiting manager Matthew Rendell last week urged Adelaide to choose Thilthorpe, saying when it was a close race, not having to worry about the go-home factor should give the SA player the edge.

McDonald has since scoffed at suggestions he is a flight risk and says he wants to be a one-club player.

Rendell believes the pressure on a number-one pick coming from interstate to Adelaide will be enormous.

He is very familiar with the scrutiny that comes with the Crows taking the unpopular route by choosing a non-local over a highly-touted South Australian with an early selection.

In 2007, Rendell was behind Adelaide drafting Victorian Patrick Dangerfield over Port Adelaide Magpie Brad Ebert at pick 10, in a controversial decision that shocked many.

Rendell and the Crows were lambasted on talkback radio, internet forums and in newspaper columns for passing on a player deemed the best local talent for one who would be staying home near Geelong the next season to complete his schooling.

The Advertiser headline the day of Dangerfield’s introductory press conference was “New Crow had better be good”.

He was – much better than good.

Dangerfield won countless games for Adelaide, among his 154 matches for the club, and claimed its best and fairest in 2015, before joining Geelong.

Taking Victorian Jake Lever over local Sam Durdin at pick 14 in 2014 was another Crows draft decision that raised eyebrows, even more so given Lever missed that whole year with a knee reconstruction.

By the time Lever left Adelaide for Melbourne after 54 games, he was considered one of the best young defenders in the league.

Some might argue Dangerfield and Lever’s departures made them disappointing picks.

But the Crows were compensated with trades, including with draft selections that became Wayne Milera, Darcy Fogarty and Ned McHenry.

Logan McDonald has said he wants to be a one club player. Picture: Getty Images

Milera was taken in 2015, six spots before Doedee and when his name was called, the crowd cheered.

He was a South Australian, from Central District.

As Milera was about to be chosen, former Crows coach Brenton Sanderson conceded on Fox Footy that homegrown versus interstater had been a hot topic in his time at the club.

“I’ve sat on that (Adelaide) table before and I know the discussions will be go-home factor,” Sanderson said.

“They’ll be looking for the next best South Australian talent.”

Whether that is the case on December 9, only time will tell.

The Crows’ call is considered 50-50 between Thilthorpe and McDonald and it is not known if where they are from will influence who lands at West Lakes.

Adelaide has been burnt several times by players seeking go-home trades over the past decade, but its captain, Sloane, and reigning best and fairest, Reilly O’Brien, are Victorians.

Choosing an interstater over a local has not always worked out for the club – think Laurence Angwin rather than Kane Cornes with pick seven in 2000.

The jury is also still out on taking Tasmanian Chayce Jones at nine in 2018, instead of Jackson Hately (pick 14), although Adelaide has managed to land Hately this off-season.

But Doedee’s emergence as a leader and Dangerfield’s time in the tri-colours are reminders that if McDonald’s name is called instead of Thilthorpe’s on draft night because the Crows deem the West Australian the best available, being quick to judge is not wise.

Patrick Dangerfield was a controversial pick from the Crows.

WHY NEW CROW IS READY TO MAKE AN IMPACT

The opportunity to become a regular player and security of a two-year contract has led Mitch Hinge to return to SA with the Crows.

Adelaide signed Hinge as a delisted free agent on Thursday, a day after the half-back/wingman parted ways with Brisbane.

The Lions had offered the Glenelg product a one-year deal to stay at the club.

But after being limited to three games in four seasons, including just one for the preliminary finalist in 2020, Hinge believed a move would benefit his career.

Delisted Brisbane free agent Mitch Hinge has officially joined the Crows. Picture: AAP/Darren England

“I loved my time in Brisbane and I have got nothing bad to say about Brisbane, but the opportunity that came up I think it’s too good to (knock back),” said Hinge, who joined the Lions as a rookie at the end of 2016.

“I was a little bit starved of opportunity at Brisbane.

“I feel like I’m AFL ready and am ready to back myself to really make an impact at AFL level.

“The two-year deal was a selling point and I had some good chats with people from the club and it excited me a lot.”

Among the Crows he spoke to before sealing his switch was former Lions teammate Ben Keays, who made the same move 12 months ago.

Keays was a shining light for the wooden-spooner this past season, finishing fifth in its best and fairest.

“He’s up in Brisbane at the moment and I still keep really close tabs with him,” Hinge said.

“He’s one of the better blokes going around and is really happy for me.”

Hinge, who hails from Mundulla in SA’s southeast, is following in family footsteps by joining the Crows.

His older brother, John, played one game for Adelaide in 2007.

New Crow Mitch Hinge with his brother, ex-Adelaide player John Hinge, ahead of the 2016 draft. Picture: Keryn Stevens

“Coming from a small country town in South Australia, it was a big deal when I was younger,” he said.

“If I’ve got questions or things to get off my chest … he’s always someone good to bounce off.

“It’s a silver lining that I’ve ended up in Adelaide and really close to my family.”

Hinge planned to head back to SA next week and was keen to meet his new teammates.

“It’s exciting, there’s a good core group of emerging young players,” he said.

Crows list manager Justin Reid said Hinge’s versatility would be an asset.

“Mitch is competitive, excellent one-on-one, has a strong left-foot kick and the ability to play either a lockdown role or use his power and attacking skills to break lines,” Reid said.

“He was an emergency for both of Brisbane’s finals this year in a really talented squad and has shown what he can do at state league level, so we really see a lot of opportunity for him.”