The best fourth-round picks in the AFL draft since 2000

YOU don’t need to be a top draft selection to win a premiership or best-and-fairest, or even become an All-Australian, and there are plenty of them in our list of the best fourth-round picks.

YOU don’t need to be a top draft selection to win a premiership or best-and-fairest, or even become an All-Australian.

And there are plenty of them in our list of the best fourth-round draft picks since 2000.

BEST FIFTH ROUND OR LATER PICKS

MARK WILLIAMS: FAVOURITE DRAFT INTERVIEWS AND MISSES

GARY BUCKENARA: BIG SLIDER IN BUCKY’S TOP 50

2000

BEST PICK: Dominic Cassisi (No. 50, Port Adelaide)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Chris Newman (No. 55, Richmond), Daniel Cross (No. 56, W. Bulldogs)

Cassisi pips Newman and Cross for the No. 1 spot in 2000. A Port Adelaide premiership midfielder and captain, Cassisi retired after 228 games. Taken five picks later, Newman was captain at Richmond and finished on 268 games. Cross was a heart-and-soul player at Whitten Oval, winning a best-and-fairest and pre-season premiership in 249 career games.

2001

BEST PICK: Dane Swan (No. 58, Collingwood)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Adam Schneider (No. 60, Sydney), Paul Medhurst (No. 56, Fremantle)

Dane Swan’s CV takes some beating — not just by his fellow fourth-round picks but by some of the greatest to play the game — premiership player, Brownlow medallist, three-time Copeland Trophy winner, AFL MVP, five-time All-Australian and all it cost Collingwood as pick No. 58. Adam Schneider won a premiership of his own with Sydney in 2005 but finished his career with four Grand Final losses.

Dane Swan has an impressive CV for a No. 58 pick. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

2002

BEST PICK: Kade Simpson (No. 45, Carlton)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Ryan Crowley (No. 55, Fremantle), Adam Selwood (No. 53, West Coast)

Simpson is the clear top pick from the fourth round of the 2002 draft, the Blues star is set to play game No. 300 in 2018 and has one John Nicholls Medal to his name. Crowley also as a best-and-fairest to his name after 188 games at Fremantle. He added eight at Essendon during the club’s Banned Bombers season. Thirdly, Adam Selwood might not get the same plaudits his brother, Joel, gets but he’s a premiership player in his own right.

2003

BEST PICK: Sam Fisher (No. 55, St Kilda)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Michael Rischitelli (No. 61, Brisbane), Daniel Jackson (No. 53, Richmond)

Sam Fisher was a superstar in defence at St Kilda and claimed two best-and-fairests and an All-Australian cap in his 228 games. What could have been if not for three fruitless Grand Finals. The final pick of the fourth round in 2003, the Lions found a gem in Richitelli as he went on to win one Merrett-Murray Medal before shifting to Gold Coast to be an inaugural Sun in 2011. Daniel Jackson pips Ben Hudson for the last spot on the podium.

2004

BEST PICK: Matthew Egan (No. 62, Geelong)

HONOURABLE MENTION: James Gwilt (No. 63, St Kilda), Chris Knights (No. 56, Adelaide)

Egan starred in Geelong’s all-conquering 2007 team but missed out on the premiership and likely the two that followed due to a career-ending foot injury. The defender was named All-Australian that year but never played again, finishing with just 59 games. With the next pick, St Kilda found James Gwilt and he went on to play 152 career games.

Matthew Egan was unlucky to miss out on the premiership.

2005

BEST PICK: Mathew Stokes (No. 61, Geelong)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Joel Patfull (No. 56, Brisbane), Clint Bartram (No. 60, Melbourne)

Stokes pips Patfull to the No. 1 spot here. Two premierships (2007 and 2011) and a pre-season flag certainly help. A short stint at Essendon helped him to 200 AFL games. Patfull claimed two best-and-fairests at Brisbane after starting his career as a rookie at Port Adelaide. He didn’t play a game and was snapped up by the Lions were he featured in 182 before finishing his career at GWS.

2006

BEST PICK: Robbie Gray (No. 55, Port Adelaide)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Lindsay Thomas (No. 53, North Melbourne), Tyson Goldsack (No. 63, Collingwood)

The definition of a draft gem, drafting Robbie Gray was a masterstroke by Port Adelaide and he’s rewarded them with three B&Fs and three All-Australian caps in 178 games so far. Two picks earlier, the Kangaroos selected Lindsay Thomas and the fan favourite delivered 325 goals in 205 games, twice winning the club goalkicking award. Not far behind, another fan favourite, Tyson Goldsack was a member of the 2010 premiership team after replacing Leon Davis for the replay.

Robbie Gray is a three-time Power best and fairest winner. Picture: Sarah Reed

2007

BEST PICK: Cale Hooker (No. 54, Essendon)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Kyle Cheney (No. 53, Melbourne), Craig Bird (No. 59, Sydney)

Essendon secured Cale Hooker with pick No. 54 and he’s gone on to win a best-and-fairest in 2015 after being named All-Australian in 2014. Not a bad return on their investment. Kyle Cheney and Craig Bird have bounced around the AFL but have provided valuable service throughout their careers.

2008

BEST PICK: Michael Walters (No. 53, Fremantle)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Neville Jetta (No. 51, Melbourne), Aaron Cornelius (No. 57, Brisbane)

After 111 games and three Fremantle goalkicking awards, Walters has proved an astute pick at No. 53. Two picks earlier, Melbourne secured Neville Jetta and while it took him a while to get started he’s become of the AFL’s best small defenders, rewarded with a place in the All-Australian 40-man squad this season and representing Australia in the international rules.

Michael Walters has been a prolific goalkicker for the Dockers. Picture: Daniel Wilkins

2009

BEST PICK: Ben Sinclair (No. 62, Collingwood)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Jack Fitzpatrick (No. 50, Collingwood), Josh Cowan (No. 56, Geelong)

A trio of hardluck stories. What could have been for Sinclair. He looked a player of the future at the Magpies until concussion ended his career prematurely after just 63 games. Fitzpatrick suffered chronic fatigue syndrome as a child and was then diagnosed with diabetes at 21 but still managed to play 26 AFL games while Josh Cowan was repeatedly struck down by injury at Geelong and was delisted this year after 16 games.

2010

BEST PICK: Paul Puopolo (No. 66, Hawthorn)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Jarryd Lyons (No. 61, Adelaide), Paul Seedsman (No. 76, Collingwood)

Hawthorn found a gem in Puopolo when they pounced at pick No. 66 with the pressure forward going on to play in 148 games and three premierships. Jarryd Lyons was a solid pick for the Crows and had a breakout year in 2016 before moving to Gold Coast while Paul Seedsman was a part of Adelaide’s Grand Final backline after being initially drafted by Collingwood.

2011

BEST PICK: Jarrod Witts (No. 67, Collingwood)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Cameron Sutcliffe (No. 71, Fremantle), Orren Stephenson (No. 78, Geelong)

A small field with only four players drafted, the rest of the picks used to re-draft veterans or elevate rookies. Jarrod Witts arrived at Collingwood as a NSW Scholarship holder and this season established himself as Gold Coast’s No. 1 big man. Cameron Sutcliffe reached 100 games this season. Orren Stepheson edges out Beau Maister for the second honourable mention for his journey to the AFL that took him from country NSW to the big time.

2012

BEST PICK: Kaiden Brand (No. 66, Hawthorn)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Rory Atkins (No. 81, Adelaide), Dean Terlich (No. 68, Melbourne)

In one of the weaker fourth-round draft classes, Hawthorn’s Kaiden Brand looks the pick of the bunch after establishing himself in Hawthorn’s defence this season. Rory Atkins is also progressing nicely at Adelaide with 57 games to his name while Dean Terlich also gets a mention after a stellar debut season that saw him finish third in Melbourne’s best-and-fairest but three years later he was delisted after 35 games.

Kaiden Brand emerged in 2017. Picture: Michael Klein

2013

BEST PICK: Jayden Hunt (No. 57, Melbourne)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Tom Langdon (No. 65, Collingwood), Sam Lloyd (No. 66, Richmond)

Jayden Hunt is one of Melbourne’s exciting young talents and is a standout here with 41 games to his name so far. Tom Langdon has 57 to his name at Melbourne but just five and 11 in the past two years due to injuries while Sam Lloyd was unlucky to miss out on Richmond’s premiership.

2014

BEST PICK: Harris Andrews (No. 61, Brisbane)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Zaine Cordy (No. 62, W. Bulldogs), Dan Butler (No. 67, Richmond)

Brisbane’s Andrews looks one of the league’s best young defenders and he’s had plenty of work to do to start his career. The Aspley product pips premiership Bulldog Zaine Cordy — who was taken with the following pick. Dan Butler is also a premiership player after breaking through for his AFL debut at Richmond in Round 1 and holding his place for much of the year.

2015

BEST PICK: Tom Phillips (No. 58, Collingwood)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Declan Mountford (No. 60, North Melbourne), Jordan Dawson (No. 56, Sydney)

With only eight selections made in the fourth round, it’s not a big field to chose from. However, Phillips stands out after playing 24 games in his first two years, including 18 in 2017. Mountford broke through for his debut this season and finished with 12 games as did Jordan Dawson at Sydney, but the Sturt product only managed the one game.

2016

BEST PICK: Luke Ryan (No. 66, Fremantle)

HONOURABLE MENTION: Tom Williamson (No. 61, Carlton), Josh Daicos (No. 57, Collingwood)

We’ll give this to Ryan but a nose from Williamson and Daicos. The Dockers’ mature age pick played 11 games after overcoming an early-season injury and looks set to be one of Fremantle’s attacking weapons off half-back. Williamson made his Carlton debut in Round 3 and finished with 15 games on the year as a reliable defender and Daicos looks a future star for Collingwood after being secured as a father-son selection.

Originally published as The best fourth-round picks in the AFL draft since 2000