AFL Rookie Draft 2023: All the news and every selection
Sam Clohesy looked on with joy when VFL teammate Shaun Mannagh got his AFL shot, only for his to come not long after. Check out every rooke draft pick here.
Draft news
Don't miss out on the headlines from Draft news. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Sam Clohesy watched on with a smile on his face when his Werribee VFL teammate Shaun Mannagh finally earned his AFL shot with Geelong, but there were mixed emotions when the national draft finished.
Despite several clubs showing interest in Clohesy – including the Cats, who are just up the road for the St Joseph’s product – he remained on the board.
The rebounding defender won the Fothergill-Round-Mitchell Medal as the best young player in the VFL after a breakout season, and the award is generally a golden ticket into the AFL.
However, last year’s recipient Ethan Phillips was left undrafted after receiving a state combine invite.
Seeds of doubt started to creep in. Fortunately, Gold Coast came calling late on Tuesday night to settle his nerves.
SCROLL DOWN TO SEE EVERY PICK IN THE PRE-SEASON AND ROOKIE DRAFTS
There was a sense of familiarity when his name was read out by the Suns. Clohesy had been part of the club’s academy for three years as a junior when he and his family lived on the Gold Coast.
The Suns were also the side to inflict VFL grand final heartbreak on Clohesy and Mannagh – but their recruiting team had front-row seats to Clohesy’s promising 22-disposal display.
“Definitely a weird one but I think I’ll be able to get over it pretty quickly as I’m now part of the Suns, so I’ve got to get past it don’t I,” Clohesy said with a laugh.
“It’s a dream come true, I can’t even describe the emotions right now. It’s unbelievable, I can’t imagine anything better in my life.
“I wasn’t banking on the fact that last night was going to be it, because I did know that there’s the rookie draft and there’s always a chance you can get taken, but disappointment was definitely there.
“I found out late last night that it was looking pretty good for me for a Suns rookie pick, obviously nothing is a shoo-in until your name is actually called out so I was still pretty nervous.
“There was a bit of other interest but I didn’t really know what was going to happen last night, but definitely glad of the result now.
“I loved my time up there (on the Gold Coast) and it’s probably one of my favourite places ever and I cannot wait to get back there.”
The story of Clohesy, who turns 21 next month, is much different to 26-year-old Mannagh.
Clohesy has played footy all over the country: Geelong, Gold Coast, Ballarat, north-west Melbourne for the Calder Cannons, the Northern Territory and Werribee.
The 189cm defender had the belief he could make it to the next level, but last year he was a fringe player at Werribee and was playing primarily in the Geelong Football Netball League for St Joseph’s.
Clohesy set about becoming a senior regular at the Tigers this season.
He ended it as the best young player in the competition, showcasing his offensive flair, elite kicking and ability to defend talls and smalls.
Clohesy’s selection by the Suns made it three VFL players taken from the national and rookie drafts, including Mannagh and Northern Bullants bolter Finnbar Maley, with a further six taken in this year’s mid-season draft.
“It changed a lot (in a year) actually and I give full credit to the boys down at Werribee. All I wanted to do at the very start was earn my position and earn trust off my teammates and I was able to do that,” Clohesy said.
“At the back-end of the year I was really able to kind of show everyone what I can do and it paid dividends really well.
“It is a tough gig VFL, it is hard to balance part-time footy with full-time work but hopefully this shows that it is definitely worth sticking with it and playing the highest level of footy that you can.
“No one deserves it more than Shauny. He’s an absolute star, he’s worked so hard for it.
“Obviously at that older age it is so good to see him get that opportunity and there’s no doubt he will show everyone what he’s made of.”
Clohesy also has plenty of love for St Joseph’s for helping him achieve his AFL dream.
“It’s a club that is always inviting. I spend a lot of time there and they were huge for my development – even at senior footy last year, absolutely huge,” Clohesy.
EX-HAWK LOOMS AS CATS ESAVA REPLACEMENT
- Josh Barnes
Recycled Hawthorn forward Emerson Jeka looms as Geelong’s replacement for Esava Ratugolea and his former coach says the new rookie will be a “steal” if played in defence.
Jeka, 22, was taken by Geelong with the seventh pick in Wednesday’s rookie draft, crossing between rivals after seven games as a forward for the Hawks.
Ratugolea was moved down back in late 2022 and played 16 AFL games there this year before being traded to Port Adelaide.
With Ratugolea gone, Geelong’s depth for genuine tall defenders behind Sam De Koning and Jack Henry was limited to draftee Connor O’Sullivan.
Jeka was largely played upfront by the Hawks and in the VFL with Box Hill, but 2022 Box Hill coach Clint Proctor said the 198cm tall would be a gem down back.
“He is more than capable and ready body wise, he is a ready-made player for sure,” Proctor said.
“(If played in defence) they have got a steal, he will be a great player for them. In my opinion he will be a great defender and a good player, he just didn’t get the chance at Hawthorn.
“If he gets the right environment in terms of development and the opportunity to play down back, I think he can thrive there.”
Proctor was Box Hill’s forwards coach in 2021, when Jeka averaged 2.9 goals per game.
But a shift midway through a match in 2022 opened the coach’s eyes to Jeka’s potential down back.
The tall enjoyed some dominant marking VFL games this year, taking 11 grabs and five intercept marks against Richmond and four intercept grabs against Werribee.
“We were struggling in the back half and it was a rough day for a key forward … we needed a bit of drive off half-back and Emerson went down there and he actually turned the match,” Proctor said.
“After that he probably turned our season around a little bit and gave us a point of difference down back. He can use both feet, really skilful and an excellent intercept marker.”
Because of his ability to intercept and launch a quick rebound, Proctor compared Jeka’s game to All-Australian dominant defenders James Sicily and Tom Stewart.
Jeka was the third tall taken by Geelong in this week of drafting, after O’Sullivan and ruck Mitch Edwards.
Rookie Draft: See every pick as state league stars get their chance
There have been a few more surprises in Wednesday’s rookie draft which had a distinct mature-age flavour.
After the Eagles took Sturt’s Loch Rawlinson of the board, North Melbourne grabbed Northern Bullants big man Finnbar Maley with the second pick, before Gold Coast jumped in front of Geelong to land VFL star Sam Clohesy.
The Fothergill-Round-Mitchell medallist as the best young player in the VFL, Clohesy joins the Suns, where he was previously an academy member, a night after Werribee teammate Shaun Mannagh was taken by the Cats.
Geelong, instead, went with versatile swingman Emerson Jeka, who spent several years on Hawthorn’s list, three selections later.
Earlier, in a move not many expected, St Kilda handed delisted Port Adelaide defender Riley Bonner an AFL lifeline in the pre-season draft, adding further dash to its list after selecting Darcy Wilson, Lance Collard and Angus Hastie over the first two nights.
Clubs again used the rookie draft as a list management tool, with eight selections used to re-select recently delisted players, a group headlined by Chad Wingard (Hawthorn) and Sam Reid (Sydney).
But there were a number of fresh faces, with Sturt forward Loch Rawlinson (West Coast), Sandringham pair Vigo Visentini (Essendon) and Matt Carrol (Carlton), Norwood’s Will Rowlands (Gold Coast) and East Perth forward Xavier Walsh (Port Adelaide) the teenagers given a chance after being overlooked in the national draft.
After Melbourne committed to taking him as a rookie pre-draft, Kynan Brown, the son of 146-game Demon Nathan, officially joined the club’s list as a Category B rookie.
Originally published as AFL Rookie Draft 2023: All the news and every selection
‘Fyfe-like’ bolter’s breakout final puts AFL recruiters on notice
There’s no better way to announce yourself as an AFL draft contender than kicking four goals in a final like Claremont’s Hamish Davis writes Eliza Reilly.
Watch replays: Hannaford, Hicks power Rebels to Coates League boilover
Forget reputations, forget famous names. The GWV Rebels have shown what is possible after powering their way past the highly-fancied Falcons in the Coates League. Watch the REPLAY.