AFL Draft 2021: Luke Beveridge on father-son prospect Sam Darcy and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan

Bulldogs father-son prospect Sam Darcy is a No. 1 pick contender in this year’s draft. And Luke Beveridge has issued a pre-emptive strike against rival clubs.

Jon Ralph

4 min read

July 2, 2021 - 11:26AM

News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom

REPLAY: VIC AFL U19's Rep Trials – VIC Metro vs VIC Country (Game 2)

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Luke Beveridge had issued a pre-emptive strike against clubs who might bid on father-son Sam Darcy with the No.1 overall pick, adamant the Crows unfairly denied Riley Thilthorpe a $10,000 investment package last year.

The 203cm key position-forward ruckman, and son of Dogs board member Luke Darcy, is considered a real chance to land in the first two spots after six goals for Vic Metro last weekend.

As revealed by the Herald Sun last year, Adelaide was happy to follow its own draft order to bid on Dogs NGA player Jamarra Ugle-Hagan despite knowing Dogs list manager Sam Power would match that bid.

It meant Ugle-Hagan was handed the mantle as the No.1 overall pick and accepted a $10,000 investment package from AFL sponsor as the first player chosen.

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Sam Darcy is a chance to land in the first two spots of the 2021 draft. Picture: Martin Keep/AFL Photos

No.2 pick Thilthorpe has shown he could easily have been that player, given his exceptional early displays, but Ugle-Hagan was, by consensus, the best kid in the land.

Now history could repeat, with the Dogs sure to match any bid for Darcy, with Beveridge suggesting those kind of tactics were “vindictive” and against the best interests of the player who ultimately went to that club.

North Melbourne is set to have the No.1 overall pick on ladder order and could bid on both Pies father-son Nick Daicos and Darcy before taking the third-best player in SA midfielder Jason Horne.

Beveridge told 3AW Darcy might get bid on with the No.1 overall pick.

“He might and it was interesting last year with “Marra”, ultimately he gets the NAB portfolio, he gets the cash reward, he gets the recognition, with the club in Adelaide which nominated him and Riley Thilthorpe misses out on that,” he said.

“Personally if you know the Dogs are going to take him and you have the No 1 pick, wouldn’t you want your lad who is coming in to get that and let your lad have that even though you want to make us pay. There are not that many vindictive list managers and recruiters in the comp.”

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Riley Thilthorpe, with Tom Doedee and Matt Crouch, after becoming a Crow in last year’s draft. Picture: Matt Turner

The Dogs have their first and fourth-round picks but could easily trade in more points, so they will not have an issue with matching that bid.

Beveridge said he was open to playing Ugle-Hagan in his forward set-up after a month-long delay with concussion and VFL scheduling issues with Covid.

“I think the circumstance that escapes (media) is a month and a half ago we named him as emergency, he was running out games in a healthier fashion and was really productive and we loved the way he was going about it and he got the concussion and missed a month of footy and now he’s coming back into action. He had a tough day at Coburg on the weekend, but he had some valuable contributions.

“So now we are looking for him to play some footy and we are hoping he makes his debut some time in the near future but we will see how he goes. We are not wedded to any particular formation on our forward line. He plays well and he will be considered.”

Pies NGA star, father-sons headline Vic Metro squad

- Chris Cavanagh

Vic Metro has selected a star-studded team for the NAB AFL Under-19 Championships, headlined by the potential top two draft picks this year.

Collingwood father-son prospect Nick Daicos and Western Bulldogs father-son option Sam Darcy will lead what shapes as a strong side for the national championships, which begin with a clash between Vic Metro and the Allies at Metricon Stadium on July 8.

Darcy was a standout in the second of two Vic Metro trial matches last weekend, with the 197cm Oakleigh Chargers key-position player booting six goals in attack.

Daicos had been selected to play in the same match, but was managed after experiencing some minor hamstring tightness at training last week.

Rival clubs believe North Melbourne could bid on both Darcy and Daicos with the No. 1 pick in the draft this year, with the pair both shaping as top-three draft prospects.

The duo join fellow highly-rated stars including Sandringham Dragons trio Josh Sinn, Blake Howes and Finn Callaghan in the final Vic Metro squad.

Sinn, a potential top-10 pick, has been included despite missing the trials with and instead playing for Sandringham as he was eased back from a hamstring injury.

Sinn logged 13 disposals and two clearances in his return match.

Josh Sinn has been included in the Vic Metro squad despite missing trial matches. Picture: Getty Images

The Dragons are the most represented NAB League team, with six players selected in the Vic Metro team as well as two being listed as emergencies.

Northern Knights midfielder Josh Ward – who ranks 12th in the NAB League Super Rankings – is also part of the Vic Metro team.

Cody Raak (Western Bulldogs), Domenic Akuei (Carlton), Marcus Windhager (St Kilda) and Youseph Dib (Collingwood) are Next Generation Academy members who have all been included in the primary team.

Braden Andrews, who is an AFL Academy member, has been named as an emergency.

The championships run from July to late September.