AFL draft 2015: Charlie Curnow still hot property despite arrest
CHARLIE Curnow’s pre-draft arrest has failed to turn clubs off the man rated the most versatile player the Geelong Falcons have produced in two decades.
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CHARLIE Curnow’s pre-draft arrest has failed to turn clubs off the man rated the most versatile player the Geelong Falcons have produced in two decades.
The Jarryd Roughead-clone has expressed “deep embarrassment” and regret after spending Friday morning in a Geelong police lock up and has vowed to make amends at his AFL club.
The Herald Sun on Friday revealed Curnow, 18, faces several charges including being drunk in a public place after refusing a breath test about 3.30am in Torquay.
But the shock arrest won’t dampen his prospects in Tuesday night’s national draft, with talent scouts ruling out any prospect the hard-running big man will replicate Jack Darling’s dramatic slide down the order in 2010.
Darling tumbled to pick No.26 after a nightclub incident saw the forward labelled with a “bad boy” tag.
Essendon could pull the trigger on the Geelong Falcons powerhouse as early as pick No.5.
Falcons regional manager Michael Turner said not one AFL club had expressed concerns to him about last week’s incident.
“I spoke to Charlie and his mum and dad for an hour on Friday and he is very embarrassed and disappointed in himself,” Turner said.
“There is a ripple affect in this, it affects a lot of people and Charlie has a brother (Ed) who plays AFL (for Carlton).
“But he comes from a great family and I have had not one AFL club ring me about it, so it tells you it is business as normal.
“A lot of young players make mistakes and he will have to learn from this. But it is very much out of character.”
Turner said Curnow’s ability to play key position and midfield, at 191cm, made him one of the most damaging and flexible players to come through the TAC Cup system.
On pure talent, one club rated Curnow the second best player in the talent pool after earning comparisons to big-bodied midfielders Patrick Cripps (Carlton) and Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs).
“I haven’t seen a player like him in my 20 years,” Turner said.
“He can play full forward, centre half forward, centre half back and before he hurt his knee he was playing for us as a ruck rover. So he can be that big-bodied midfielder and he’s an elite runner. So he has enormous potential.”
Carlton football manager Andrew McKay said he was unsure whether Curnow would be available at the Blues’ pick No.11.
“As far as we know Charlie is a good young lad so we make mistakes and we learn from those and I am sure he’s pretty embarrassed about the whole thing,’’ McKay told the Herald Sun.
“Certainly his brother is embarrassed as well but he is a good kid and we all make mistakes and I am sure he regrets what he did a couple of nights ago but there is no doubt he can play footy.
“I don’t know if he will be available for us to pick up but he will go reasonably early.”
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