Draft-off semi-final: Best of 2001 AFL draft against class of 2006

WHICH AFL draft class was the best of the 2000s? We select a 22-man team from the 2001 and 2006 drafts and pit them against each other. VOTE NOW

Tom Hawkins and Matthew Leuenberger. 2006 NAB AFL draft.

WHICH AFL draft class was the best of the 2000s?

We’ve selected a 22-man team from each national draft between 2001 and 2008 and pitted them against each other.

And you get to decide which is the best draft by casting your vote.

We have hit the semi-finals, following the four draft-off quarter-finals ...

Semi-final 1: ‘01 draft v ‘06 draft

Semi-final 2: ‘05 draft v ‘07 draft

Quarter-final 1: ’01 draft (98%) def ’03 draft (2%)

Quarter-final 2: ’05 draft (62%) def ’02 draft (38%)

Quarter-final 3: ’07 draft (57%) def ’08 draft (42%)

Quarter-final 4: ’06 draft (74%) def ’04 draft (26%)

The semi-final winners progress through to the Grand Final later this week.

Remember it’s you who decides who should advance to the Grand Final, so make your votes count.

Former Geelong Falcon now Gold Coast Sun Gary Ablett.

BEST OF ’01 DRAFT

B: Jason Gram (Pick 19) Brian Lake (71) Brent Reilly (12)

HB: Luke Hodge (1) Matt Maguire (21) Sam Mitchell (36)

C: Leigh Montagna (37) Dane Swan (58) James Kelly (17)

HF: Steve Johnson (24) Jarrad Waite (46) Nick Dal Santo (13)

F: Jimmy Bartel (8) David Hale (7) Adam Schneider (60)

Foll: Mark Seaby (22) Chris Judd (3) Gary Ablett (40 — F/S)

I/C: Luke Ball (2) Campbell Brown (32) Lewis Roberts-Thomson (29) Paul Medhurst (56)

THE stats speak for themselves.

Six Brownlow Medals, six Norm Smith Medals and 29 premiership medallions have been awarded to players from this Super Draft team.

And don’t get us started on All-Australian jumpers and club Best and Fairest wins.

The starting midfield is glittered with stars, led by Judd and Ablett — arguably the best two midfielders of the 2000s. But there’s not shortage of rotation options either, with Montagna, Dal Santo, Bartel and Johnson all more than capable of running through the guts.

Two very solid half-back flanks in Hawthorn premiership captains Hodge and Mitchell, while most forget that back pocket Gram was very close to winning the 2009 Norm Smith Medal.

If there are any knocks on this side, it surrounds a lack of depth among the big men. No disrespect to Seaby, Waite, Hale and Maguire, but the ‘06 draft’s tall stocks are seemingly stronger.

Jack Riewoldt has won Coleman Medals since Richmond drafted him in 2006.

BEST OF ’06 DRAFT

B: Ben Reid (Pick 8) James Frawley (12) Eric Mackenzie (29)

HB: Lachie Hansen (3) Nathan Brown (10) Mitch Brown (16)

C: Travis Boak (5) Bryce Gibbs (1) David Mackay (48)

HF: Shane Edwards (26) Justin Westhoff (71) Robbie Gray (55)

F: Jack Riewoldt (13) Tom Hawkins (41 F/S) Kurt Tippett (32)

Foll: Todd Goldstein (37) Josh Kennedy (40) Joel Selwood (7)

I/C: Matthew Leuenberger (4) David Armitage (9) Shaun Grigg (19) Andrejs Everitt (11)

WHILE the Super Draft may lack classy talls, the ‘06 draft is chock-full of them.

Premier key forwards Hawkins, Riewoldt, Tippett and Westhoff would stretch the ‘01 team’s defence, while you’d take Goldstein over Seaby in the ruck.

Having said that, are there too many talls in this 22-man team?

Eleven of the starting 18 are over 190cm, while every player in the starting back six are over 193cm.

They have an A-grade midfield, led by Selwood, Kennedy, Boak and Gibbs, while Gray could switch between the forward 50 and centre square.

However that’s where the midfield depth ends, whereas the ‘01 team is blessed with supreme mid-sized talent.

Originally published as Draft-off semi-final: Best of 2001 AFL draft against class of 2006