AFL Draft 2020: The best tall prospects and key-position players from each state
Last year, the AFL Draft was dominated by midfielders. But 2020 is the year of the big man, with likely No. 1 pick Jamarra Ugle-Hagan leading a talented group of talls. Here are the top key-position prospects from around the country.
Draft news
Don't miss out on the headlines from Draft news. Followed categories will be added to My News.
The upcoming draft crop is jam-packed with talented talls at the pointy end.
Melbourne ruckman Luke Jackson was the only player above 194cm taken inside the top 10 in the 2019 national draft, a group blessed with midfielders who have made an immediate impact this season – headlined by NAB League exports Matt Rowell, Noah Anderson and Rising Star winner Caleb Serong.
Twelve months later in a trying season for draft hopefuls – particularly those from Victoria – the early picks are likely to be occupied by key-position players.
Tall talents are harder to come by and often take more time to develop, but twin towers Max and Ben King have bucked that trend after being taken as top-six picks from the Sandringham Dragons in 2018.
Watch the 2020 Toyota AFL Finals Series on Kayo with every game before the Grand Final Live & On-Demand. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
Arguably the most exciting prospect of them all this year is athletic tall forward Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, who hasn’t been able to take the field due to the NAB League shutdown as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Fortunately, Ugle-Hagan put his name up in lights as a potential number one pick during the 2019 season with eye-catching performances that have seen him draw comparisons to Sydney superstar Lance Franklin.
Big men often burst onto the scene in their top-age year, with West Australian sensation Logan McDonald rocketing his way up draft boards after a stunning 2020 season for Perth in the WAFL.
Check out the best key-position prospects from Victoria and the standout talls from West Australia and South Australia.
BEST TALL DRAFT PROSPECTS FROM VICTORIA
Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (Oakleigh Chargers)
Key forward, 196cm, 85kg
There’s plenty of buzz surrounding potential number one pick Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and for good reason. The Warnambool product set the NAB League alight for the Oakleigh Chargers last season, booting 24 goals in nine games, turning heads with his fantastic leap, speed and athleticism. Ugle-Hagan took some of the marks of the year in the NAB League competition, dominating the air and exuding confidence. His athletic profile is spectacular for someone standing 196cm: at the league’s testing day earlier this year, he recorded a 21.3 yo-yo test (the same score as Matt Rowell last year), and won both the 20 metre sprint (2.945 seconds) and standing vertical jump (93 centimetres) tests. This makes him a dangerous threat both in the air and on the ground and a nightmare match-up for opposition defenders.
Ugle-Hagan was even thrown into defence during the pre-season and performed strongly. He leads by example at the Chargers off the field and his teammates gravitate to him. Like most young key-forwards, he will have to add to his frame, but a long and decorated career awaits him at the top-level. As a Western Bulldogs’ Next Generation Academy member, he appears set to be in the red, white and blue next year, but is likely to attract an early bid regardless.
Chargers talent manager Jy Bond says: “I’ve seen him do some things at training and you look around and you’re like ‘wow, what was that?’ I’ve got nothing but positive things to say about him… he’s going to be a fantastic talent for years to come.”
Zach Reid (Gippsland Power)
Defender, 202cm, 86kg
Teammates generally aren’t licking their lips when a 202 centimetre product has the ball in their hands, but Gippsland’s Zach Reid is the exception to the rule. A unique player who looms as a possible top-ten selection, Reid possesses elite skills by foot for a big man, setting up the play from defence with aplomb for his teammates. He hit the target with 74 per cent of his kicks in he NAB League last season and averaged 11 touches, four intercept possessions and 68 SuperCoach points, holding his own against the premier tall forwards in the competition. Intercept marking is another strength of the key-defender, making him a similar prospect to Essendon best-and-fairest winner Jordan Ridley - only with extra height. Reid has proven his versatility at Gippsland, swung forward in what proved to be a match-winning move against Geelong Falcons last season and often spending time in the ruck, where his great tank comes to the fore. His high footy IQ and reading of the play means he is best suited down back and was set to play mostly as a defender in 2020. While he has the skillset to have an impact at senior level, he will take time to develop his slender frame to compete against AFL key forwards. Like most country prospects, Reid had the opportunity to play local footy in the middle of the year, dominating the air for Leongatha in the Gippsland Football League.
Power talent manager Scott McDougal says: “We always get excited in the box when they’re coming out of defence and the ball ends up in Reidy’s hands. He’s in the top five percent of kicks that you’ll ever see, athletic and ticks a lot of boxes.”
Nikolas Cox (Northern Knights)
Key defender/forward, 199cm, 82kg
Nikolas Cox is a versatile swingman with freakish athletic traits and good skills, both by foot and at ground level. Cox was set to play predominately in defence this season but is just as impactful up forward, slotting four goals in a match in 2019, or even on the wing due to his phenomenal endurance. The rangy prospect runs 2km in an elite six minutes and five seconds and his enormous work rate is highlighted in his GPS numbers each week.
Cox also has strong aerial ability and the Knights believed he could have been one of the best marking talents in the competition if it had gone ahead this year. However, Cox has said the season shutdown has been a blessing in disguise, allowing him to build size and strength to his 82-kilogram build. This is the major area of improvement for Cox to be able to match it with bigger bodies at the next level. He is co-captain of the Knights side and has proven himself as a leader, described as a measured and deep thinker. He tallied 12 disposals (at 73 per cent efficiency), five marks and 75 SuperCoach points per game in the NAB League in 2019.
Knights talent manager Rhy Gieschen: “Someone who can cover the ground (like he does) for a tall, he’s a pretty rare prospect. When he speaks it normally pretty measured and accurate, which is rare for a young kid.”
Henry Walsh (Geelong Falcons)
Ruckman, 203cm, 86kg
Henry Walsh, the brother of Carlton sensation Sam, is a completely different prospect to the 2019 Rising Star winner. He towers over him as a 203cm ruckman and is a playful personality, rather than a natural born leader. But when it comes to on-field matters his thirst for the contest is there for all to see, with his natural aggression his undoing at times. Walsh proved to be one of the most-promising ruckman from the 2020 crop in the NAB League last season, averaging seven disposals and 27 hitouts - five to advantage - per game up against older opponents for the Geelong Falcons. The beanpole ruckman has sharp skills and mobility for his size and was tipped to have a significant impact on games in his top-age year.
Walsh, who began a farming apprenticeship in Drysdale this year, has added to his size but will need to continue building his frame and conditioning and shapes as a project player. Walsh trained with his brother at Carlton alongside their potential father-sons in late 2019 and continued specialised ruck training with veteran Matthew Kreuzer earlier this year, before coronavirus restrictions were enforced. Could Kreuzer’s retirement and the lack of ruckman in this draft crop lead to a dream scenario where the Walsh brothers are reunited at Carlton?
Falcons talent manager Michael Turner says: “Henry would have dominated this year and he would have played for Vic Country. He is naturally aggressive… and he always competes really hard.”
Josh Treacy (Bendigo Pioneers)
Forward, 193cm, 92kg
Josh Treacy is strong key-forward with great physicality and an impressive aerobic base. Treacy plays in the mould of Collingwood’s Brody Mihocek, a tough tall forward who can clunk pack marks and compete in contest after contest. He averaged 12 disposals, six contested possessions a goal and 90 SuperCoach points in his bottom-age year for the Bendigo Pioneers and was also set to spend time in defence in 2020. Treacy already tips the scales at 92kg as an 18-year-old – which doesn’t come as much of a surprise considering he hails from a farm in regional town Cohuna – and didn’t look out of place training with Essendon during the pre-season, where he threw his weight around.
The prospect is a vocal leader with high training standards and was named as joint captain for season 2020. While the big-bodied forward already has the frame to compete at the elite level, his agility and speed are areas of his game he will need to improve on, shaping as a secondto-third round chance in the upcoming draft. Treacy was able to play under-18 footy for local club Echuca for a brief period and shone as a deep forward and second ruckman.
Pioneers coach Damian Trustlove says: “There’s not too many kids as tough as him that I’ve come across. He’s not dirty at all but if someone gets in his way, look out… he’s a brutal beast.”
BEST TALL FROM WA
Logan McDonald - Perth
Forward 193cm, 79kg
It’s rare to see an 18-year-old leading the goalkicking of a state league competition, and that’s exactly where Logan McDonald sat before he was pipped in recent weeks. McDonald’s stocks have risen considerably this season for Perth after booting 21 goals in nine WAFL games - ranked fourth in the competition - with seven of those coming in his first two games at senior level. His stellar season has elevated him into the number one pick conversation, taking full advantage of opportunities Victorian prospects were starved of in 2020.
The tall forward already has the strength to win one-on-one contests and compete against seasoned defenders, clunking two contested marks per game and averaging 11 disposals, five score involvements and 97 SuperCoach points. McDonald has great hands overhead, covers the ground well for a player his size and his consistent performances in the toughest position on the ground for a young player make his achievements even more remarkable. Has improved rapidly from the player who averaged a solid 12 touches and a goal per game at last year’s national championships for Western Australia.
McDonald’s WA teammate, Denver Grainger-Barras, an intercept star who has also been playing senior footy in the WAFL, is also set to feature very on early on draft night.
BEST TALL FROM SA
Riley Thilthorpe – West Adelaide
Forward/Ruckman, 201cm, 102kg
Riley Thilthorpe is the standout draft hopeful from South Australia and, like McDonald, is in pick one contention and has had the benefit of playing senior football all season. A key forward/ruck, Thilthorpe is capable of taking towering contested marks and has strong hands overhead. While he hasn’t dominated at SANFL level for West Adelaide, he has averaged 12 disposals, four marks, three tackles. 10 hit-outs, 85 SuperCoach points and has slotted five goals in nine matches. Thilthorpe won’t look out of place against hardened bodies at AFL level with his imposing frame and he covers the ground well for a tall. Previously he has showcased his versatility playing in defence and on the wing.
MORE DRAFT
Vic Metro’s Top 12 Draft prospects in 2020
Vic Country’s Top 12 Draft prospects in 2020