Essendon’s No.1 pick is between three young stars, hear from the men making the call
McCLUGGAGE, McGrath or Setterfield? Essendon has made it’s choice, now we wait for Friday night. Get Adrian Dodoro’s view on the contenders and draft strategy.
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ADRIAN Dodoro quickly swapped his board shorts for binoculars when the tsunami hit Essendon.
Called into club headquarters while on annual leave, a family holiday to Queensland was replaced by a summer hunt for 10 new senior players.
READ ADRIAN DODORO’S VIEW ON THE THREE No.1 PROSPECTS AND ESSENDON’S OVERALL DRAFT STRATEGY BELOW
It was “tools up with no time to get emotional” as the ‘Essendon 34’ was wiped out on January 11.
Sifting through the AFL’s recycling bin was the immediate challenge.
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But the bigger picture was obvious.
Essendon was likely to hold its first ever No.1 pick — and 319 days later it is a race in three, heads bobbing on the line. Even Bill Collins would struggle to call this one correctly.
Will the Bombers plump for explosive and evasive weapon Andy McGrath?
The coolness of goalkicking midfielder Hugh McCluggage?
Or drop a draft bomb and call Will Setterfield from the GWS talent academy, knowing a matched bid would force them to pick again at No.2?
The Bombers met Setterfield on November 10, took McGrath out for lunch last Wednesday and visited McCluggage on Monday.
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By midday Tuesday they had chosen, as Dodoro, coach John Worsfold, football boss Rob Kerr and chief executive Xavier Campbell exited a meeting in the “War Room” wearing grins.
A vault lock is painted on the guarded door of the list management hub, illustrating the sensitivity of what sits behind.
From floor to ceiling there are talent orders, future draft prospects, scouting reports, poaching targets and visions of how Essendon’s team will evolve in its premiership quest.
But the critical question centres on No.1. Will Essendon make the right call?
Time will tell, but Dodoro knows his team is prepared.
It has sifted through background checks, psych and fitness profiles, analysed endless data and poured over hours of vision.
Recruiting officer Rob Forster-Knight scouted 158 games live this year, often locking eyes on a TAC Cup triple-header before zig-zagging across Australia.
Dodoro’s right-hand, Merv Keane, wasn’t far behind.
“And then if you add up all the vision, you’ve seen every single possession the high-end prospects have had all year,” Dodoro said.
The top four? Which order? Or is Setterfield No.1?
— Sam Landsberger (@SamLandsberger) November 22, 2016
Ess McGrath/McCluggage
GWS Taranto/McGrath
BL McCluggage/Ainsworth
GC Ainsworth/Taranto
Bucky reveals 1-25 tonight. Great insight to have a pro rank the pool. Who does he think Essendon should take No.1? https://t.co/9phZfbKJXr
— Sam Landsberger (@SamLandsberger) November 22, 2016
“Everything is edited and you’re watching multiple, multiple times.
“Running patterns, movements, metres gained, how many disposals per minute … recruiting has really evolved.”
With the entire talent pool to assess, how does Essendon balance statistics against its eye for talent?
“Your eye is about impact on the game. What the player does when it is in the balance, what’s his impact around the group,” Dodoro said.
“Statistics tell you raw facts. How many times he wins the ball, where he wins it, contested possession and uncontested possession.”
Raw numbers are fine, but they must fall in line with AFL trends — will a player’s style suit the game in 2022?
Dodoro says all three tick that box. McGrath is “just a brilliant prototype for the modern game”.
With five selections to make, there is also a focus to ensure they are not consumed by the No.1.
Holding the ace became “dangerous for the psych of the recruiting department” and so there are specific times when the pick can and cannot be spoken about.
As luxurious as it is to hold the trump card, Essendon believes there is heightened pressure this year.
“There’s probably seven or eight players who could go No.1 in this draft, truth be told,” Dodoro said.
“It’s such an even group. I envy SOS (Carlton recruiter Stephen Silvagni) last year when he was able to call out the No.1 pick.
“He (Jacob Weitering) stood out so clearly to everyone so early on.”
None of McCluggage, Setterfield or McGrath started the season at the top of Dodoro’s board, with some of the early favourites now in the mix for Essendon’s second pick instead — No.20.
“For what we’re looking at, we narrowed it down to a certain type of player and they were the three,” Dodoro said.
“But we’re talking about blue-chip stock in this draft. I could be saying the same thing about (Ben) Ainsworth, (Will) Brodie, (Sam) Petrevski-Seton.”
The No.1 will join Essendon with 10 other handy recruits — Watson, Heppell, Hurley, Hooker and co.
The Bombers also traded in key forward James Stewart and early Rising Star favourite Aaron Francis can fill a post at either end.
Dodoro wants one more developing tall, but with that influx he would be happy to wait until next year’s draft.
Worsfold has a “strong hand” in the list strategy, but the five players called on Friday night will be decided by Dodoro’s team.
“We’re in a really interesting situation,” he said.
“We’ve got 10 returning players, we don’t know what impact that’s going to have on our team, and we had a pretty good draft last year,” Dodoro said.
“We suspect that at least two of the boys we get will see senior action next year.
“But predominantly this is about 2018, 2019, 2020 — the future of the club.”
The Bombers have interviewed some candidates six times and completed up to 15 reference checks.
“You’re speaking to schools, school teachers, regional managers, state coaches, AIS coach, academy managers,” Dodoro said.
“It just goes on and on and on. Sometimes you can find character flaws, and they’re red flags you need to be aware of.
“Whether they fit into your environment and are able to sustain a 10-year career has a lot to do with what they’re like as people.
“We’re a heavily scrutinised industry and you can’t afford to bring players onto your list that bring the club into disrepute.”
But all roads lead back to the draft dux, and there is nothing in this call. There have been internal jokes about asking the AFL for extra time when the draft begins.
The Bombers are certain they have identified three junior gems who would carry the mantle with aplomb.
Brighton Grammar school captain McGrath’s CV is as decorated as a Christmas tree.
The All-Australian, Vic Metro co-captain and MVP was best-afield in the TAC Cup Grand Final with 28 disposals in the second half.
Infectious run, blistering pace and delivering in big games is his X-Factor.
McCluggage glides through traffic like Scott Pendlebury and can kick multiple goals from the midfield like Robbie Gray.
He won the Morrish Medal from just 10 games, an award also hanging in Heppell’s pool room.
Injuries hurt Setterfield this year, but he laid 16 tackles and won 10 clearances in a TAC Cup final and recruiters say as far as AFL attributes go there is none better in the draft.
“It’s really tight, it really is,” Dodoro said.
“It’s best player in the pool for us. We’re taking the player we think is the best player in Australia, and we think is the best fit for us.
“He just happens to tick both those boxes, and we think he’ll be a very, very good player in the future and have an outstanding career with our football club.”
Who will it be?
DODORO ON THE No.1 CONTENDERS
ANDY McGRATH (179cm, 77kg)
Club: Sandringham Dragons (10 games)
Position: Halfback/midfield
Disposals: 32.3
Efficiency: 83.6 per cent
Tackles: 5.4
SuperCoach: 145.3pts
Plays like: Jason Johannisen (W.Bulldogs)
“He’s an elite athlete with elite movement. He has the constitution to walk in and play AFL football next year, he can play midfield, he’s got a defensive mindset and he’s just a brilliant prototype for the modern game. He speeds the game up, he’s got elite speed and he suits the modern game”
HUGH McCLUGGAGE (186cm, 76kg)
Club: North Ballarat Rebels (12 games)
Position: Midfield/half-forward
Disposals: 27.9
Goals: 25 (total)
Tackles: 5.3
SuperCoach: 142.7pts
Plays like: Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood)
“He’s just got a classic head for footy. He’s got a classic footy brain, he sees the game unfold defence to forward, he falls into the right holes, he’s an elite finisher, he’s got high endurance and he’s just a really cool customer. He’ll play at the tempo and flow along with the game and his running patterns are as good as any junior player I’ve seen”
WILL SETTERFIELD (189cm, 80kg)
Club: Sandringham Dragons/GWS Academy (6 games)
Position: Inside midfielder
Disposals: 19.3
Tackles: 6.8
SuperCoach: 122pts
Plays like: David Mundy (Fremantle)
“The fact he’s in the GWS academy has got no bearing whatsoever. Will’s 190cm, we haven’t seen the best of him due to some injuries, but when he was ready to take off this year he was best-on-ground in the first final. He’s a different type – he’s a taller mid, he can play forward, he plays inside and he’s got a huge engine. I think the scope for him is enormous.”
THE STRATEGY
PICK 1
“We’re taking the player we think is the best in Australia, and we think is the best fit for us. He just happens to tick both those boxes”
PICK 20
“A couple of the kids we’re looking at for pick 20 were names that we thought would be top-five picks at the start of the year. I think we’ll get a very good player”
PICK 29 and 41
“It’s not a draft we’ll go in with an exact order. It’s, ‘Get the first one, get the second one and then see what we’ve got and take a nice balance’. We’d like at some stage to get a tall, but we’ve also discussed it might be next year”
PICK 67
“It’s OK to get the No.1 pick right, but we need to get 67 right as well. We’re going in with the intention of using all our selections”
ROOKIE DRAFT
“We’ve got three selections. We have offered some previously listed players a spot and they have accepted, which we are really pleased with”
Originally published as Essendon’s No.1 pick is between three young stars, hear from the men making the call
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