NAB League 2019: Archi Manton bags five goals in Western Jets’ win
Developing forward Archi Manton showcased his ability for Western Jets in the NAB League on Saturday, producing his best performance of 2019.
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The son of a former AFL defender showcased his ability in the attacking half for Western Jets on Saturday.
Archi Manton, the son of ex-Carlton and Essendon player Glenn, booted a season-best haul of five goals in the Jets’ NAB League loss to Oakleigh Chargers.
The 193cm forward had just seven kicks and three marks, but was particularly influential in the final term of his side’s 22-point loss.
The 18-year-old Williamstown CYMS product has 25 goals from 14 games in 2019, kicking three majors against Northern Knights and Tasmania Devils earlier this season.
“He started the game the little slowly, but he was quite pivotal in the last quarter,” Western Jets talent manager Luke Williams said of Manton.
“His hands were really clean in crucial marking contests and he finished off his work, which was good.
“He relies pretty heavily on his marking, but a really competitive kid and he’s proven to be a bit of a leader amongst the group.”
Manton is in the formative stages of his career, having focused on his basketball as a youngster.
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While the developing talent still has a long way to go, the performance shows he could be one to watch.
Manton is eligible for this year’s draft and qualifies as a potential Carlton father-son.
He has only been held goalless in two matches this season.
“This is his first year of actually playing a full year of footy, so from that point of view he’s made some great improvements,” Williams said.
Josh Honey, the son of former pole vaulter Neil Honey, racked up 24 touches, seven tackles and 10 clearances for the Jets in the midfield.
Usual forward Emerson Jeka impressed in defence with 13 touches.
The Jets conceded six unanswered goals in the third quarter of the 12.8 (80) to 9.4 (58) defeat.
“With the exception of a 15-minute patch in the third quarter where they (Oakleigh) got on top of us and made the best of their opportunities, I thought we certainly mixed it with them,” Williams said.
“The end result was probably of reflection of who the better team was, but it wasn’t a true reflection of the entire game.
“I thought we had the better of them for a lot of parts of the game, but couldn’t get the job done in the end.”
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