Draft prospect Cody Weightman tours Whitten Oval
AFL clubs like to keep their draft plans close to their chest. But the Bulldogs may have let the cat out of the bag today when they rolled out the red, white and blue carpet for a top junior talent.
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Western Bulldogs are zeroing in on teenage small forward Cody Weightman, who would complement spearheads Aaron Naughton and Josh Bruce in a potent attack next season.
Weightman toured Whitten Oval today and was interviewed by a panel of Bulldogs recruiters in a sign he is in the mix to be recruited at pick 13 in the national draft on Wednesday night.
List manager Sam Power and head recruiter Nick Austin introduced the 177cm goalkicker to football boss Chris Maple and the Dandenong Stingrays product then watched the club’s youngsters train.
Weightman wouldn’t exactly crumb at the feet of Naughton and Bruce, given he is an excellent overhead mark himself and plays in the mould of Collingwood’s Jamie Elliott.
The lively prospect and Magpies supporter also models his game on Sydney’s Tom Papley and Brisbane’s Charlie Cameron.
Weightman’s nine goals for Vic Country this year earned him All-Australian honours. The Pakenham junior kicked two bags of four goals in the under-18 national championships, netting him 132 and 102 SuperCoach points in those games.
Weightman is one of the more popular players in the draft pool, with recruiters liking his charismatic personality.
The Bulldogs are actively hunting a speedy small forward, given premiership sharpshooter Tory Dickson, 32, is nearing the end of his career.
While Weightman is in the mix at the Bulldogs, they are still considering multiple players at pick 13.
Kysaiah Pickett (171cm) – who is the nephew of Norm Smith Medallist Byron Pickett – is another small forward in contention, while Miles Bergman is also around the mark.
The Bulldogs are admirers of defender Fischer McAsey, although he could be taken as early as Adelaide’s pick 6.
There is a chance Melbourne — which tabled Elliott a contract this year before he re-signed at the Pies — swoops on Weightman at pick 10 after moving on Jeff Garlett and Jay Kennedy-Harris.
Recruiters are completing their final interviews and it is not uncommon for prospects to tour several clubs on the eve of the draft.
Last year Ben King and Bailey Smith were invited to Whitten Oval in the days leading up to the draft, with the Bulldogs ultimately drafting Smith directly after Gold Coast selected King.
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Weightman played school football with King at Haileybury last year and has also learnt from former teammates including Andrew Brayshaw (Fremantle) and Aiden Bonar (North Melbourne).
Weightman remains close friends with Richmond’s Jack Higgins, bonding when they trained under the same running coach seven years ago.
“We’re both similar heights, but we play pretty different styles,” Weightman said.
“He’s a much better small forward in the traditional way, whereas I like to play taller as a small forward.”