AFL Draft Intel: The late bolters, what Duursma could offer Eagles, Cats’ eye next draft steal
Willem Duursma has been talked up as the prospective No.1 pick all year — here’s what he can bring to the Eagles. Plus, who the Cats are eyeing as the next Shaun Mannagh. See the latest draft intel.
Less than two weeks remain before the AFL National Draft as clubs begin to finalise their draft boards.
In our Phantom Draft we revealed which clubs had their eyes on who, and where bids for club-tied prospects will likely come.
The draft will be held on November 19 and 20.
Here’s the latest draft news from around the country.
WHAT WEST COAST IS GETTING IN DUURSMA
Willem Duursma once split his head open on the corner of a spa after being out-bodied by brother Zane during a backyard football battle.
The youngest of four football-loving children, he was used to being pushed around.
But now the one-time little brother is the biggest member of the family and he is ready to join his siblings on the biggest stage as prepares for a likely move to Perth as West Coast’s No. 1 draft pick.
“A fair chunk of time I was getting pushed around,” Willem said of his childhood.
“I’d like to see them try that now though, now I’m bigger than them all.”
Willem measured 192.5cm at the national draft combine last month, taller than each of his three siblings who are already in the AFL system in Xavier (Essendon), Zane (North Melbourne) and Yasmin (Carlton AFLW).
Not only is he the biggest, but recruiters also believe Willem will be the best footballer of the quartet.
There were Coates Talent League games this year where club scouts said the Gippsland Power product was “30 per cent better than anyone else” on the ground as he put his athleticism and skills on show.
“He’s got the size, the speed, the endurance. If he doesn’t kill you with one weapon, he’ll get you with another,” Gippsland Power talent manager Scott McDougal said.
“He’s just a bit of a unicorn.”
Duursma ran 6 Min 19sec in the 2km time trial at the draft combine but had been prioritising a weights program in the lead-up to the event as he looks to fill out his frame.
“I think with a pre-season, he’ll be breaking 6 minutes,” McDougal said.
“Yassy was a fantastic athlete and so was Xav. Zane’s as talented a kid as we’ve had through the program. Then Willem’s got both. He’s as not as talented as Zane with the finishing, but the power is there and the athletic ability.”
McDougal said he expected Willem to start his AFL career as a running halfback or outside wingman who could cover the ground and break the lines with his penetrating kick.
“As he progresses, though, he could hold the fort down back or play inside midfielder as well,” he said.
“He’s done all of that for us. That’s the upside – we don’t really know where he’s going to finish up.”
CLUBS EYE VFL SMALL AS CATS CONSIDER MATURE-AGERS
Another two clubs are eyeing Geelong VFL forward Tobyn Murray as the Cats are considering a trio of mature-age talents.
Murray, 20, toured Carlton’s facilities, completed testing and had an interview with the Blues, and is set to meet with Port Adelaide.
The Power and Blues both have a need for a ready-made small forward and Geelong VFL coach Mark Corrigan declared in August that Murray is AFL-ready with his running capacity and goal sense.
The hardworking 180 centimetre goalsneak also had interest from West Coast and completed a medical with Geelong, as did Cats VFL best-and-fairest winner Marcus Herbert.
Murray kicked 22 goals and averaged 15 touches across 17 VFL matches this season, having been in the mid-season draft mix last year before an injury setback, while composed midfielder-halfback Herbert averaged 25 disposals across an impressive campaign.
Fothergill-Round-Mitchell medallist Tom Blamires, 23, has also captured the Cats’ attention after a standout season for Frankston.
West Coast is another club to show interest in the defender-midfielder.
The last 18 winners of the VFL’s best young player have ended up on an AFL list and Blamires’ attacking flare, defensive mindset and versatility can allow him to impact at AFL level in a variety of roles.
Geelong has had plenty of success picking mature-age players in the past, most recently plucking Shaun Mannagh from Werribee VFL and Lawson Humphries from Swan Districts in the 2023 national draft.
The Cats will take two picks in the national draft and also have three rookie spots, having committed to redrafting delisted duo George Stevens and Keighton Matofai-Forbes as rookies.
Geelong has nominated U18 All-Australian forward Jesse Mellor and AFL Academy defender Ben Rongdit as Next Generation Academy prospects, but have not committed to taking either.
Meanwhile, four clubs have inquired about Swans Academy graduate Caleb May, a 208cm ruckman, after an eye-catching finish to the SANFL season with West Adelaide.
The 20-year-old averaged 30 hit-outs (eight to advantage), 14 disposals, 12 contested possessions and kicked two goals in his last three games for the Bloods.
May was invited to the 2023 state combine.
THE NEXT BONT, DAICOS, McCLUGGAGE AND JACKSON?
They are not household names just yet, but this year’s crop of AFL Draft hopefuls could one day be as big as their idols.
We asked 28 draft hopefuls who they modelled their game on, with many of the AFL’s biggest stars featuring prominently in the responses.
Expected No. 1 pick Willem Duursma nominated two modern-day stars.
“I watch Marcus Bontempelli pretty closely,” Duursma said.
“Him and Finn Callaghan are probably my closest player types as those taller midfielders with a bit of extra pace and polish and they have that aerial effect as well.”
Essendon Next Generation Academy prospect and midfielder-forward Adam Sweid looks up to a Collingwood superstar.
“My favourite player is Nick Daicos,” he said.
“I love to watch it the way he goes about it. He’s so smart, so classy.”
Brisbane Lions onballer Hugh McCluggage was another popular pick, along with Fremantle ruckman Luke Jackson.
“Jackson (is a) similar sort of mobile ruckman,” Oakleigh Chargers tall Louis Emmett said.
“Just the ability to follow-up as that extra midfielder. Jackson sometimes plays on-ball, which I find it very fascinating how he can do that. So he’s one of those players I really model my game off.”
DRAFT INVITEES REVEAL LIKELY TOP PICKS
No.1 draft prospect Willem Duursma headlines a group of 12 players who have been invited to the opening night of the AFL national draft on November 19 as the top picks become clear.
Exciting ruck-forward Cooper Duff-Tytler, Gold Coast Academy members Zeke Uwland and Dylan Patterson, Brisbane Lions Academy member Dan Annable and Carlton father-son prospect Harry Dean have also earnt invites to the first night.
Draft bolter Sullivan Robey will be there alongside Eastern Ranges teammate Xavier Taylor, while Sam Grlj, Jacob Farrow, Dyson Sharp and Sam Cumming are others set to be in attendance.
A few more invites are expected to be handed out when more of the first-round selections become clear as clubs finalise their draft boards over the coming week.
LATE DRAFT SMOKEYS EMERGE
Three players who didn’t even receive state combine invites have attracted a little bit of late interest and are shaping as rookie draft chances.
Sandringham Dragons forward Willis Reidy and Gippsland Power duo Jonah Walker and Tom Matthews are three players who didn’t make headlines this year but still caught the eyes of some recruiters in the Coates Talent League.
A 170cm small forward, Reidy kicked four goals for the Dragons in the Coates Talent League Grand Final in September, including three in a third-quarter purple patch.
The 191cm Walker was used as an intercept defender, forward and ruckman for the Power this season and is viewed as another player with real upside.
Matthews, a 171cm small forward, was hampered by a knee injury this year but can take a hanger, loves to tackle and has great goal sense.
WILL THE SAINTS SECURE NGA PROSPECT?
St Kilda will not overstretch to match a bid on Next Generation Academy midfielder Kye Fincher if it risks impacting the club’s first-round pick in 2026.
The Saints’ first selection this year currently sits at pick 50, but that will come in a few spots after other bids are matched by northern academy clubs.
Some rival clubs believe Sandringham Dragons product Fincher could attract a bid in the 20s, but others believe one won’t come until the mid-30s or later.
St Kilda is a good chance to match a bid from around pick 35 onwards but is likely to let Fincher go elsewhere if a bid comes in the 20s.
The Saints don’t hold a second-round pick next year, so carrying a points deficit into next year could impact their first-round pick in what is viewed by scouts as a stronger draft.
Fincher was a consistent performer this season, impressing across halfback for Vic Metro at the under-18 national championships and as a midfielder-forward for Sandringham.
He also starred playing onball in a late-season VFL debut for the Sandringham Zebras, gathering 26 disposals, four clearances and six tackles.
ANDREWS-LIKE DEFENDER SURGES INTO FIRST-ROUND CONTENTION
A Harris Andrew-like defender has shot into first-round contention after a bumper finish to the season.
Sturt key back Blake Thredgold was sidelined for most of South Australia’s national championships win with a broken wrist, but he made up for lost time, leading the Double Blues to a SANFL U18 premiership with a best-on-ground display in the grand final against West Adelaide.
The 194 centimetre defender then showed off his speed and spring at the draft combine with top-10 finishes in the 20m sprint – with a blistering 2.918-second run – and the standing and running vertical jump tests.
His strong back-half of the year may see him taken on the first night of the draft, with Geelong, Fremantle, Essendon and Hawthorn – who all hold back-end first-round picks - showing interest.
North Melbourne has put in plenty of groundwork on Thredgold and shape as a possible landing spot with their back-to-back selections at the start of the second round.
Sydney is also understood to be big fans, but he may be off the board before their two second round selections — currently at 31 and 32, which could be used to match bids on Swans academy talents Harry Kyle, Max King and Lachlan Carmichael.
South Australian coach Tony Bamford is bullish on Thredgold, likening him to Brisbane co-captain Andrews.
“When he is in full flight and intercepting, he looks exactly like Harris Andrews does when he plays. It’s the same thing,” Bamford said.
“He’s the best key back that we’ve had in our program for a number of years, he is ready to go.
“The most impressive thing is his composure, he just doesn’t seem to get flustered by anything that the game presents.
“Whether his team is under pressure or his team is in full control, it doesn’t matter. He is very consistent with his mindset and application and emotions.
“You don’t normally see that kind of composure at such an early age, that maturity. But he already plays with that.
“He played a lot in the last 12 months around getting best position on his opponent, and now he’s got the confidence to do that but still mark the ball.”
THE OTHER TOP-10 TALL WITH AN ELITE BASKETBALL BACKGROUND
A top-10 prospect who is being linked to Essendon and Melbourne says footy has always been his No. 1 passion despite a promising junior basketball career.
Aidan Schubert had represented SA Country at national basketball championships in recent years, which had pitted him against other AFL draft prospects including Cooper Duff-Tytler, Louis Emmett and Jasper Hay.
“I played bottom age and top age 18s and 16s, which was really nice,” Schubert said of his basketball.
“The high performance environment is something I love being in and they offered it early.
“It’s always been footy, though. Dad and the whole family plays footy. I was always going to pick footy if I had I had to make the choice.”
Schubert grew up with two younger brothers on 20 acres, with footy and basketball just two of the sports played around the house.
“At home we’ve got a golf set up, two holes, we’ve got a little footy oval, we’ve got cricket nets, we’ve got basketball hoops around,” he said.
“It’s a pretty good set up.
“We’ve never really had any animals. It’s just for us to run amok on.”
A 197cm forward who can also pinch-hit in the ruck, Schubert has strong endurance, works hard, impacts aerially and was a regular goalkicker this year.
THE CRICKET CONVERT WITH BIG UPSIDE
One of the players with the widest draft range this year is South Australian wingman Matt LeRay, who could fall anywhere from pick 20 to around pick 40.
Recruiters have differing views on LeRay, who has interviewed with 16 clubs.
There have been whispers linking him to clubs including Essendon early in the second round, but he is also a chance to slide to the early 40s where he would surely be quickly snapped up.
Some scouts have questioned LeRay’s endurance, but it has also been noted that he has never completed a full football pre-season due to cricket commitments.
He served as captain South Australia during the under-19 national championships last December before turning his attention to football this year and impressing on a wing for his state during the under-18 national championships mid-season.
Measuring 191cm, LeRay is a good size, great mark and can kick on both feet so he shapes as a player with enormous scope once inside a full-time AFL environment.
Originally published as AFL Draft Intel: The late bolters, what Duursma could offer Eagles, Cats’ eye next draft steal
Stephenson wins praise at Port as new Eagle pushes for early debut
