Paul Roos says struggling clubs should be able to draft extra mature-age recruits

IS A 23-year-old Williamstown midfielder the answer to Carlton or Gold Coast’s on-field problems? Paul Roos says struggling clubs should be given a ‘free hit’ at mature-age recruits.

Tim Kelly of the Cats.

IS A 23-year-old Williamstown midfielder the answer to Carlton and Gold Coast’s on-field problems?

As the AFL weighs up giving struggling clubs priority picks — which could come at the start, end or middle of the first round in November — premiership coach Paul Roos says more talented teenagers won’t lift the Blues or Suns up the ladder, at least not for several years.

He has instead thrown his support behind a plan to give struggling clubs priority access to players passed over in previous drafts, which he says would deliver much faster results.

DRAFT SPECIAL: BUCKY’S TOP STATE LEAGUE PROSPECTS

Roos advocated the plan on radio over the weekend and expanded on it last night on Fox Footy’s On the Couch, using Williamstown’s Michael Gibbons to sell the idea of allowing some clubs to add up to five mature-age players to their lists as a “free hit”.

Gibbons, won the 2016 Liston Trophy and was runner-up last year, following a similar path to gun Geelong midfielder Tim Kelly, who finished runner-up in the 2017 Sandover Medal, and Tiger Kane Lambert, who was repeatedly passed over in the draft despite finishing fourth in the 2013 Liston Trophy.

Williamstown midfielder Michael Gibbins.

Tim Kelly has made a seamless transition from the WAFL to the AFL.

Demon Bayley Fritsch, who has played 20 games this year after being recruited from Melbourne’s VFL affiliate Casey Scorpions, is another success story.

More than 15 mature-age recruits were given a lifeline in last year’s drafts including Magpie Brody Mihocek, Gold Coast’s Nick Holman and Carlton’s Cam O’Shea.

Former Hawthorn recruiter Gary Buckenara last week listed former Fremantle defender Sam Collins, ex-Hawk Angus Litherland and Essendon VFL player Nick Hind as among the top candidates to be drafted from state leagues this year, along with Gibbins.

“What a recruiter does is he (looks at) a Micky Gibbins 23 and he and goes ‘Oh, I might take a punt on an 18-year-old because there’s a bit more upside’ and he doesn’t get a chance, and there’s plenty of them out there,” Roos said.

“What I’m saying is let’s give clubs down the bottom four or five of these kids extra, so they get a free hit at a Micky Gibbins … Let’s give them four or five free hits, the old supp list — they have to be 21-24.

“They mightn’t all go on and play but what they do is they help the young kids in the seconds … they’re the ones you have to get back in the system and they’re the ones that are going to make a difference.”

David Mirra made his AFL debut this year at age 27. Picture: Michael Klein

In the 1990s clubs could list up to 10 players on a supplementary list who could play reserves but wren’t eligible for senior footy. It was superseded by the rookie list which was introduced in 1997.

MATURE AGE CLASS OF 2017

NATIONAL DRAFT

24 Tim Kelly, Geelong (South Fremantle)

31 Bailey Fritsch, Melbourne (Casey Demons)

61 Dom Barry, Port Adelaide (Glenelg)

76 Matt Guelfi, Essendon (Claremont)

77 Billy Hartung, North Melbourne (Hawthorn)

78 Jarrod Garlett, Carlton (South Fremantle)

PRE-SEASON DRAFT

1 Cam O’Shea, Carlton (Northern Blues)

ROOKIE DRAFT

3 Matt Shaw, Carlton (Gold Coast)

9 Billy Gowers, Western Bulldogs (Footscray)

12 Lindsay Thomas, Port Adelaide (North Melbourne)

15 Dylan Buckley, GWS (Carlton)

18 Liam Baker, Richmond (Sturt)

19 Nick Holman, Gold Coast (Central District)

22 Brody Mihocek, Collingwood (Port Melbourne)

23 David Mirra, Hawthorn (Box Hill Hawks)

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