Western Bulldogs rookie-list Western Jets tall Luke Goetz

SHANE Sexton says the Western Bulldogs have drafted a “Mark Blicavs” prototype in Western Jets ruckman Luke Goetz.

TAC Cup footy: Western Jets (blue) V Calder Cannons (white) at Burbank Oval, WIlliamstown. Jets ruckman Luke Goetz. Photo taken on the 12th of July, 2015. Photo Christopher Chan.

SHANE Sexton says the Western Bulldogs have drafted a “Mark Blicavs” prototype in Western Jets ruckman Luke Goetz after they pounced on the 18-year-old in Friday’s AFL Rookie Draft.

The Altona junior had recruiters talking in the second half of the TAC Cup season after debuting with the Jets against the Eastern Ranges in Round 10.

The 202cm tall collected 14 hit-outs and three tackles on debut, earning himself a permanent spot in the Jets’ best 22 for the second half of the year.

But it was Goetz’s athletic ability and training ethic that impressed the Western Jets most.

He managed nine games for the blue and gold, his best output coming in Round 14 when he managed 18 hit-outs, two marks, three tackles and nine possessions.

The Vikings product logged four mentions in his Western Region Football League under-18 side’s best players from seven games before earning a call up to the TAC Cup.

“I was on long service leave at the time, but the first thing I did when I got back was go and watch Altona play Albion and he dominated that game,” Jets talent manager Sexton said.

“He dominated in the ruck, he was taking marks around the ground. I don’t think he came into our program until Round 10 as an 18-year-old this year, and I think he played every game for the rest of the season.”

Sexton said the club knew early on that Goetz had elite athletic ability.

“One night we had a bit of a running session, and on numbers we rated him the second best athletically at the club,” he said.

“It was only two or three weeks after arriving at the footy club and word spread around the place a bit.”

Sexton said the former cross-country runner could be compared to Geelong best-and-fairest Mark Blicavs.

“You look at the guy who won Geelong’s best-and-fairest and he’s a fantastic athlete,” he said.

“There’s a bit of a prototype there. They put a lot of time into him.

“We had already invited — and he had been accepted — to play as a 19-year-old in the TAC Cup next year, had he not been drafted, because obviously people were interested on the basis of his athletic progress.”

Western Jets coach Torin Baker said it was a terrific story.

“It shows you can be a late bloomer and it can all come off,” Baker said.

“He grew considerably in the space of 12 to 18 months, combined with his ability to cover the ground, he became a really draftable prospect.”

Goetz was one of three TAC Cup players given permission to train with the Bulldogs before the draft, alongside Collingwood recruit Brayden Sier and North Ballarat Rebels’ Charlie Lee.

Goetz — who is currently on a school trip in Cambodia — was the only Jet to find an AFL home in 2015 after the club produced six draftees in 2014.

Originally published as Western Bulldogs rookie-list Western Jets tall Luke Goetz