Brisbane Lions disappointed to miss Lachlan Johnson, son of Chris, in AFL Draft
When Lachlan Johnson’s name appeared on the draft board, the Lions had a chance to snare the son of triple premiership legend Chris. But they let him go to Essendon. Here’s why.
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Brisbane missed out on a son of a gun but the Lions left Melbourne happy with their haul from the AFL drafts.
The Lions were poised to select Lachlan Johnson – the son of triple-premiership player Chris Johnson – in Friday’s rookie draft, but Essendon beat Brisbane to the punch by grabbing him with pick 63 on Thursday night.
The spitting image of his dad, Johnson was eligible for both Brisbane – through the father-son rule – and the Bombers after being a part of Essendon’s Next Generation Academy.
He played for the Oakleigh Chargers – the same side as No.1 draft pick Matt Rowell – in the NAB under-18 competition this year, but injured his knee playing school football and will miss the 2020 season after having a reconstruction.
“We would have loved to get Lachie on our list,” Brisbane national recruiting manager Stephen Conole said.
“We knew Essendon were a danger late because they had done a lot of work with him through their NGA and they had that late pick, so there wasn’t much we could do about it.
“It’s probably a bit of a disappointing end because we would have liked to bring him into the club. He’s a terrific young fella and we are looking forward to watching his progress at the Bombers.’’
The Lions went into the draft looking to bolster their midfield stocks as well as adding depth to their half-back line.
They ticked all those boxes by securing highly rated WA onballer Deven Robertson, Morningside utility Keidean Coleman, who is capable of having an impact anywhere on the ground, and defenders Brock Smith and Jaxon Prior.
“Keidean is really well balanced and such a nice ball user. He just adds a bit to our group that we probably need, he’s got terrific versatility and his kicking will be top-end in our group,’’ Conole said.
“He’s shown great resilience after missing out in last year’s draft and had a consistent year in the NEAFL.
“We are also bringing an outstanding young man and young footballer (Robertson) on to our list. He led WA so well this year.’’
Conole said Richmond picking Lions Academy players Noah Cumberland and Will Martyn was good for the talent pathway in Queensland and a tribute to the work being done at the academy.
He said there was debate in the Brisbane bunker about matching Richmond’s bids but the Lions were keen to secure rebounding defender Prior, who was part of the WA side with Robertson that won the national under-18 championships.
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On Friday Carlton pounced on former Suns forward Jack Martin in the pre-season draft after the two clubs could not come to an agreement during the trade period.
The 24-year-old veteran of 97 senior games requested a trade away from the Gold Coast at the end of the 2019 season.
Key position player Josh Walker has found a new home at North Melbourne after being delisted by the Lions.
DRAFT WRAP
Brisbane Lions
Pick 22: Deven Robertson (WA, midfield)
Pick 33: Brock Smith (Vic, defender)
Pick 37: Keidean Coleman (QLD, utility)
Pick 59: Jaxon Prior (WA, defender)
• The Lions re-selected Sam Skinner, Corey Lyons, Archie Smith and Matthew Eagles in the rookie draft.
Gold Coast
Pick 1: Matthew Rowell (Vic, midfield)
Pick 2: Noah Anderson (Vic, midfield/forward)
Pick 11: Sam Flanders (Vic, midfield/forward)
Pick 27: Jeremy Sharp (WA, midfield)
Pick 60: Jy Farrar (SA, forward)
• The Suns re-selected Josh Schoenfeld in the rookie draft.
Queenslanders selected:
Pick 37 (Brisbane): Keidean Coleman (Morningside)
Pick 43 (Richmond): Noah Cumberland (Maroochydore)
Pick 44 (Richmond): Will Martyn (Aspley)
• Connor Budarick (Labrador) and Matt Conroy (Townsville) were pre-drafted by Gold Coast. • Darwin’s Malcolm Rosas Jr was also a pre-draft selection by the Suns.
•Former Brisbane Lion Ben Keays (Morningside) was picked up by Adelaide in the rookie draft.
Originally published as Brisbane Lions disappointed to miss Lachlan Johnson, son of Chris, in AFL Draft