Wreck It Ralph: Rating every club on use of future picks as Roos sweat on the Matt Whitlock trade

As North Melbourne sweat on their move to give up this year’s first round pick, Jon Ralph looks at every club’s success at future trading.

Football is about to enter rocky and turbulent waters.

One in which clubs will trade away first-round selections two years into the future with absolutely no idea where those selections will land.

Even though North Melbourne already handed over this year’s first round pick, which is currently No. 2 overall pick to Richmond for the Matt Whitlock deal, it is entirely possible to defend that deal.

North Melbourne loved the Murray Bushrangers defender so much that it was putting its future first-rounder on the table for any club to trade from pick eight onwards until Richmond finally agreed with the No. 27 selection last November.

The Roos took a massive gamble on young tall Matt Whitlock. Picture: Michael Klein

A club pilloried for continually taking midfielders desperately wanted another key back to pair with fellow key tall Wil Dawson, taken at pick 22 the previous year.

So while rivals will say the Roos traded pick 2 for 27 and a Richmond second-rounder likely to fall somewhere around pick 30, the Roos rated Whitlock so much higher on their draft board.

And if they tried to secure a key back in this year’s national draft … well good luck.

Carlton father-son Harry Dean is a top-10 pick but there isn’t another genuine key back in the top 25 selections.

Charlie Comben recently backed in Whitlock’s future in an interview with the Herald Sun, adamant he will be a ‘player’.

“Matt Whitlock will be an incredible player. He’s got some really good skills, he reads the ball well, he’s already done a job on Nick Larkey multiple times in the pre-season which I failed to do once,” he said.

“He’s got some serious, serious talent in the air. His kicking is elite so from a key back department we have got some really strong development.”

So it is up to the Roos to develop not only Whitlock, but a defensive system that will allow him to thrive when he is actually ready to play regular senior football.

Whitlock should thank his lucky stars he isn’t in the North Melbourne AFL side right now.

That back six isn’t laden with talent but against Geelong they were lambs to the slaughter as the team conceded 77 inside 50s – with the ball so often going in at warp speed.

Whitlock is this year’s version of Liam Stocker, six years after the Blues gave up a future first-rounder for the tough midfielder then followed that big trade with a 2019 stinker.

Carlton controversially traded up to get Liam Stocker. Picture: Graham Denholm/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

And yet if he can turn into a 10-year player for the Roos they will back the call in a draft where they could have had a good think about drafting 191cm utility Willem Duursma, whose brother Zane is on the same list and trying to establish himself in the same mid-forward position.

So the risk is apparent with future trades.

And yet under new AFL rules clubs can now trade picks two years into the future, not sure whether they will finish first or last.

And not even sure who their coach might be 24 months into the future.

Port Adelaide would try to offer St Kilda its 2026 and 2027 draft haul if Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera left, fully aware they have no idea if they will finish top four or bottom four in those years.

It is why future trading is a throw at the dartboard rather than an accurate, analytics-led process.