NAB League Boys: Max Ramsden makes strong debut for Sandringham Dragons

‘Athletic freak’ Max Ramsden was in the best on a day when the Sandringham Dragons fell short of a classy Oakleigh Chargers combination.

Will Ashcroft of the Dragons and Elijah Tsatas of the Chargers ahead of the Round 1 clash. Pic: AFL Photos

It didn’t take big Max Ramsden long to show he would be a player to track in the NAB League Boys competition this season.

The 19-year-old ruckman, who played at Melbourne Grammar last year, made an excellent debut for the Sandringham Dragons against a talent-rich Oakleigh Chargers last Sunday.

“He was good. He’s obviously a bit of an athletic freak the way he moves around the ground,’’ Dragons coach Wayne Cripps said of 202cm Ramsden.

“He was up against a couple of high-end ruckmen and I thought he handled himself pretty well.

“He had some really good moments. He launched at the ball and took a couple of nice marks…he has that little bit of X-factor about him. Not too many other ruckmen play like him in the comp at the moment.’’

Ramsden had 11 possession and 16 hit-outs, and was named in the Dragons’ best players.

He was one of 11 Sandy Dragons players making their NAB League debut.

The Chargers won 11.15 (81) to 9.9 (63).

“I was happy with how we competed in the contest,’’ Cripps said.

“We got our hands on the ball a lot. We just weren’t able to get into our mode of offence, the way we wanted to move the ball. Oakleigh got us on the outside. They spread a little bit better than we did.’’

Cripps was an assistant at the Chargers last season and was expecting three of the players he coached as bottom-agers, George Wardlaw, Elijah Tsatas and Blake Drury, to have a big influence on the match. They did.

Wardlaw had 24 possessions, Tsatas 27 and Drury 21.

“A bit bitter-sweet. It was hard watching them tear us apart but at the same time I was happy for them because I know how hard they’ve worked at their footy. They’re great kids and to see they’ve taken their footy to the next level is awesome,’’ Cripps said.

Defender Archie Roberts, 16, from Hampton Rovers, led the Dragons’ possession count with 22.

“He fought to the death,’’ Cripps said. “He’s a massive driver for us in terms of getting our ball movement going.’’

Lachie Benton, a 19-year-old player this year, had 17 disposals and kicked three goals.

Cripps called him a “really smart footballer who reads the game well and gets to the right spots…it was good to see him get forward with his work rate and hit the scoreboard, which is something he needs to do’’.

The Dragons were also pleased with the performance of Luca McNab on a wing and the classy Harry Sheezel up forward.

Cripps said Sheezel was a “serious talent’’ and “as the season goes on he’s going to be one who keeps climbing that draft board’’.

“Everyone is going to know who he is. He’s got some great forward craft, just knows how to find the goals,’’ he said.

Cripps said he expected the Chargers to set the standard in the NAB League this season.

“They haven’t really got any weaknesses over the ground.

“They’ve got some big talls up forward and some great ball users. They’re definitely the team to catch.’’