AFL Draft 2020: Check out the best midfielders in this year’s class
Twelve months ago Elijah Hollands was touted as a clear top pick in the draft. But has an ACL injury changed that? Check out the top midfield prospects from all over the country to find out who your club could target.
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This year’s draft pool may not have the same top-end midfield talent as 2019 but a number of quality ball-winners are capable of having an impact at senior level next year.
A bumper crop of midfielders entered the AFL ranks via the draft last season – including top two selections Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson and Rising Star winner Caleb Serong – making it a hard act to follow for the 2020 draft pool.
A trio of midfielders already shone alongside Rowell and Anderson for the Oakleigh Chargers last season and have been unable to show their wares in their top-age year.
Meanwhile perhaps the best midfielder of the lot, Elijah Hollands, knew his fate at the beginning of the season after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in February.
Check out the most highly touted midfielders from the NAB League and the top two midfielders from outside Victoria.
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ELIJAH HOLLANDS – MURRAY BUSHRANGERS
190cm, 85kg
Inside midfielder/forward
Highly touted draftees often fall down the order after suffering season-ending injuries, but Elijah Hollands hasn’t missed any under-18 football due to the cancelled NAB League season.
Hollands remains a potential top-three pick despite rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in February, and has attacked his recovery with the same dedication and professionalism he has displayed throughout his time at the Murray Bushrangers.
Hollands, the son of former Richmond player Ben, is the modern prototype midfield/forward: he wins the ball in the clinches, possesses a penetrating kick, is a dangerous marking presence and hits the scoreboard.
In his bottom-age year, the versatile 190cm prospect showed promise as a key forward at the national championships – against 2019 draftees – and capped it off with a powerful midfield display in the under-17s All Stars game at the MCG on AFL Grand Final day.
He was arguably best afield that day after finishing with 24 disposals and two goals. A proven match-winner with speed and a strong tank, Hollands was given the nod as Bushrangers co-captain despite being sidelined for the season – speaking volumes of his leadership qualities.
The only thing standing between him and senior footy next year is his knee injury, which is tracking well. The blow has allowed him to hit the gym and add strength to his frame.
Bushrangers talent manager Mick Wilson says: “He’s very similar in many ways (to Patrick Cripps and Marcus Bontempelli). He’s just such a talented player, I don’t think he’ll drop down (the order) too far at all.”
TANNER BRUHN – GEELONG FALCONS
182cm, 73kg
Balanced midfielder
Tanner Bruhn is a natural footballer with great game sense and tidy skills on both sides.
The Falcons product played just two NAB League games last season – juggling school footy for Geelong Grammar and overcoming a knee injury – but impressed in both, averaging 17 disposals, 12 contested possessions, five clearances and 115 SuperCoach points.
Bruhn has had limited opportunities to show off his talents since his exemplary form in the national under-16 carnival due to a bad run with injury.
He wowed talent scouts last season with a standout display against Dandenong Stingray, slotting two classy goals in congestion and providing x-factor.
Likened to Port Adelaide star Travis Boak by Geelong Falcons talent manager Michael Turner for his ability to make things happen on the inside and outside, Bruhn also possesses strong leadership qualities and shapes as a potential top ten selection.
Bruhn is more likely to play as an outside midfielder in the early stages of his career while he develops his slender frame.
The 182cm midfielder will need to build on his size, speed and endurance at the next level but has the talent and football IQ to have an impact at senior level in 2021, fitting in seamlessly training with Geelong’s AFL side during the pre-season.
Turner says: “The benchmark game for him was against Dandenong … every time he got it, something happened. He was ready to go for the start of the season and I’m sure he would have had a good season.”
WILL PHILLIPS – OAKLEIGH CHARGERS
180cm, 79kg
Inside midfielder
The expectations were sky-high for Will Phillips as the number one midfielder at the Chargers – without Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson stealing his thunder this season.
He proved to be a prolific ball-winner in his bottom-age year while stuck behind the top-two players in the 2019 draft pool, averaging 22.1 disposals, four clearances, four tackles and 103 SuperCoach points.
Phillips’ major strength is his ability to win the ball inside but he can also play as an outside midfielder or up forward, where his creativity comes to the fore.
His performance in the under-17 All Stars game last year was a testament to his two-way running, laying a whopping 14 tackles to go with 21 touches and a goal.
The Chargers midfielder also showed his versatility up forward in the NAB League Grand Final with two running goals.
Phillips has strong leadership traits and has the physical make-up to have an impact from the get-go at AFL level. He is viewed as a top-10 selection and is set to be a popular KFC SuperCoach pick in 2021.
Chargers talent manager Jy Bond says: “If he gets an opportunity he’ll definitely play next year. Long-term he can probably hold down one of those key-mid positions once he gets older and his body fills out.”
FINLAY MACRAE – OAKLEIGH CHARGERS
184cm, 75kg
Midfielder/forward
Finlay Macrae, the brother of Jack, shares a number of similar traits to the Western Bulldogs star.
He is a smooth-moving playmaker with clean hands, and was a consistent performer in a stacked Chargers line-up last season – tallying between 20 and 22 disposals in four of his seven games.
Biding his time mostly up forward due to the Chargers’ midfield logjam, Macrae was set to play all over the ground in 2020, with his delivery by foot giving him the ability to play a range of roles.
The reliable midfielder-forward was one of Team Dal Santo’s best players in their loss in the Grand Final curtain raiser last year. A talented cricketer like his brother, he is tipped to improve significantly at the elite level as a full-time dedicated footballer and has a lot of development left in him.
Chargers talent manager Jy Bond says: “He’s just a really good, consistent top-level player. Like his brother, once he gets to that next level he’s going to get better with better players around him.”
REEF MCINNES – OAKLEIGH CHARGERS
192cm, 84kg
Inside midfielder/forward/defender
Reef McInnes is one of the most versatile players in the pool, filling gaps all over the ground for Oakleigh last season. Collingwood have priority access to this exciting talent as a member of its Next Generation Academy, and he is very familiar with the Holden Centre.
Arguably his best form came an inside midfielder in 2019, averaging 26.7 disposals, five clearances and 137.6 SuperCoach points across a three-game stretch late in the season.
McInnes was slated to fulfil this role in 2020 and the Chargers were bullish about what he could have produced.
The Indigenous prospect has a ferocious attack on the ball both on the ground and aerially, showing his worth as a lockdown defender and in the forward arc as well.
One of the youngest 2020 draft eligible players, McInnes finished the season with a stress fracture in his back, related to his growth, meaning he has scope be even taller than his 192 centimetre stature.
Both McInnes and Macrae loom as mid-late first round fancies.
Chargers talent manager Jy Bond says: “I love the way he attacks the contest. I think he might have played with a stress fracture in his back last year – the kid’s tough.”
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ZAVIER MAHER – MURRAY BUSHRANGERS
184cm, 82kg
Inside midfielder
Zavier Maher is a strong bodied inside midfielder with power and explosive speed.
He also has a raking kick and strong leadership skills, selected in the Bushrangers’ leadership group alongside Elijah Hollands.
The Shepparton product played just six games at NAB League level last season after a promising under-16 carnival for Vic Country.
Instead, he caught the eye of recruiters in the talent-laden APS competition for Caulfield Grammar, claiming their best-and-fairest award as a 17-year-old.
Maher showed glimpses in his bottom-age season for the Bushrangers, averaging 10.5 disposals (58.5 per cent of those won in a contest), 3.2 clearances, three tackles and 65 SuperCoach points.
He had the opportunity to play under-18 footy in the Goulburn Valley League this season but came into the clash underdone after undergoing wisdom teeth surgery the week prior.
Maher trained with Richmond during the pre-season and looms as a second or third round chance, and is one who could push up the order with strong results at the draft combine.
Bushrangers talent manager Mick Wilson says: “He’s explosive and powerful. He’s of excellent character and his work rate is exceptional away from footy.”
BEST OUTSIDE OF VICTORIA
BRAEDEN CAMPBELL – SYDNEY ACADEMY
180cm/73kg
Inside midfielder/forward
Braeden Campbell brings genuine x-factor with his elite speed and piercing kick through the middle.
The Swans Academy talent is damaging forward of centre, regularly hitting the scoreboard and can do so from long range – as he did on the big stage in the U17 All Stars clash.
Campbell finished with the best-on-ground medal draped around his neck, logging 14 disposals and three goals. Since then, he has impressed in Sydney’s Academy Series against Greater Western Sydney and at local level in New South Wales.
He appears likely to follow the lead of fellow Swans Academy graduates Nick Blakey, Callum Mills and Isaac Heeney in becoming a first round pick with a bid set to come early.
Swans Academy midfielder/forward Errol Gulden may also attract a bid in the first round after dominating their recent matches with GWS.
ALEX DAVIES – GOLD COAST ACADEMY
191cm/85kg
Inside midfielder
Gold Coast have another promising midfielder on the way in Suns Academy prospect Alex Davies.
The Suns can nab the potential first-round pick outside the open draft due to their draft concessions – the same way they took small defender Connor Budarick in 2019.
Hailing from Cairns, Davies is a 191cm-clearance machine who thrives at stoppages, using his clean hands and distribution in traffic to find his teammates in space.
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An elbow injury sidelined Davies for the second half of the season, missing their Academy Series clash with Brisbane.
Davies played seven NEAFL senior games as a bottom-ager with his best performance coming against Sydney’s reserves side, winning seven clearances and 14 contested possessions.
He averaged a formidable 18 disposals, 9.3 contested possessions and 104 SuperCoach points in four NAB League games in 2019.
Originally published as AFL Draft 2020: Check out the best midfielders in this year’s class
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