Top 25 draftees (afl site)

[one-eyed]

On the radar
By Jason Phelan
afl.com.au
Tue 10 Jul, 2012


Victoria

Jonathan O'Rourke, Calder Cannons, 21 April 1994, 183cm, 75kg
O'Rourke is a very balanced midfielder, who makes good decisions and is an excellent kick. He ticks a lot of boxes as far as recruiters are concerned and earned All Australian honours for a very consistent championships.

Lachlan Plowman, Calder Cannons, 11 September 1994, 191cm, 86kg
Plowman is the only player in the top 25 not to appear in the national carnival. He suffered a serious elbow injury in the weeks leading up to the championships, but is widely considered one of the premier key position prospects in this draft. He appeared in the best players in four of his five games for the Cannons and is one to watch on his return to the TAC Cup.

Nathan Hrovat, Northern Knights, 7 June 1994, 174cm, 76kg
There's not much of him, but Hrovat is a prolific ball winner in the mould of Toby Greene, who was a ball magnet at TAC Cup level and has successfully translated that ability to the AFL with GWS. Hrovat is good in traffic and a cleaver user of the ball, who averaged 25 possessions a game at the champs and made the All Australian side.

Nick Vlastuin, Northern Knights, 19 April 1994, 187cm, 83kg
The Vic Metro skipper played predominantly off a half-back flank at the championships and impressed with his hard-nosed approach to the contest. He's not the quickest player on the park, but he reads the play well, which allows him to get into the right spots. Distributes the ball well and was named in the All Australian team.

Jackson Macrae, Oakleigh Chargers, 3 August 1994, 188cm, 75kg
Macrae had a really good championships and can probably consider himself a little stiff not to earn All Australian selection. He's a smooth-moving utility who kicked a bag of six goals against Tasmania. He can find plenty of the ball, but just needs to add a little polish by foot.

Kristian Jaksch, Oakleigh Chargers, 7 October 1994, 194cm, 85kg
Jaksch caught the eye with his six-goal effort against Tasmania and looks a likely type already at 194cm and 85kg. He can look a bit awkward in a marking contest, but often comes down with the ball regardless. In a scratchy draft for big guys he's one to watch with the Chargers.

Jack Viney, Oakleigh Chargers, 13 April 1994, 178cm, 80kg
Viney played the last two games of the carnival after recovering from the broken jaw he suffered in his first game in the VFL and showed why he'll be an asset for Melbourne right off the bat. He has a combative streak and the hardness to match, but he has more than brute force in his bag of tricks and should see AFL action early next year.

Joe Daniher, Calder Cannons, 4 March 1994, 201cm, 89kg
Daniher is uncomfortable with the theory that he'd be duelling with Lachie Whitfield for the No.1 spot if he weren't an Essendon father-son pick, but that's the widely held belief amongst AFL talent spotters. The key forward prospect moves superbly for a guy his size, is strong overhead and has a classic kicking style off his left boot. Securing his services with any pick outside the top five is an absolute steal.

Lachie Whitfield, Dandenong Stingrays, 18 July 1994, 184cm, 74kg
The dual All-Australian was spoken of as a prospective No.1 pick after his MVP performance for Vic Country as a bottom ager last year and the classy midfielder has only enhanced his reputation since then. Polished on both sides of his body with a work ethic and elite endurance to match - Whitfield is the one to beat in this year's race to No.1.

Oliver Wines, Bendigo Pioneers, 7 October 1994, 185cm, 83kg
Wines' inside game is perfectly suited to the direction that AFL footy has taken in recent seasons. He averaged 24 possessions over the carnival, the majority of which were usually contested, and also impressed with his willingness to spread away from the contest.

Tim Membrey, Gippsland Power, 26 May 1994, 188cm, 87kg
Membrey is a powerful forward who excels on the lead and is very difficult to move off the line. He was a late inclusion to the AIS-AFL Academy and was not out of place amongst that elite company. He'll need to polish his work further up the ground to enhance his draft credentials, but there's already a lot to like about his game.

Taylor Garner, Dandenong Stingrays, 8 Jan 94, 186cm, 77kg
Garner nearly provided this carnival's Hayden Crozier moment at Subiaco, but just failed to hang onto what would have been a special mark against WA. In addition to his strength overhead, Garner can win the contested ball, which saw him named in this year's All Australian team.

Jake Stringer, Bendigo Pioneers, 25 April 1994, 191cm, 91kg
Stringer is a forward in a similar mould to Membrey, but he has a few more strings to his bow at this stage. He's very hard to place in terms of his draft ranking as he badly broke his left leg in the first TAC Cup game last year and is still shaking off the effects of that injury. If his work ethic during his rehab is any guide, his draft credentials will only be enhanced in the back half of the Pioneers' season.

South Australia

Jimmy Toumpas, Woodville-West Torrens, 2 January 1994, 183cm, 77kg
The South Australian skipper is one of the blue-chip prospects of this draft who could have at least been a part of the conversation about the No.1 pick if he'd had a free run at the back half of the season. But, the classy midfielder has managed sore hips for the past 18 months and will go in for season-ending surgery after the champs. He can play in multiple positions and has already made his mark for Woodville-West Torrens at senior level in their run to last year's SANFL flag.
 
Brodie Grundy, Sturt, 15 April 1994, 202cm, 100kg
Grundy was an All-Australian as a bottom-aged player last year and has continued to develop to the point where he is clearly the premier ruck prospect in the draft. He was the dominant ruckman at the champs, earning All Australian honours again, and impressed with his mobility and athleticism. He can go forward and kick a goal and doesn't mind throwing around his big frame in a contest.

Ben Kennedy, Glenelg, 3 March 1994, 174cm, 76kg
Kennedy is a quick, busy onballer who is a thumping kick off his left boot. He averaged 26 possessions across the champs and kicked four goals against Tasmania on his way to a second All Australian selection.

Troy Menzel, Central Districts, 22 September 1994, 186cm, 77kg
Menzel, the brother of Geelong's Daniel, is one of the puzzles of this draft. He followed up a nine-goal bag against Tasmania with another six against the Northern Territory, is strong overhead and gets to the right positions inside attacking 50, but he underwent a LARS knee reconstruction as a 16-year-old. He has talent to burn, but will doubts on the synthetic ligament harm his standing in the draft order? He has absolute confidence in the surgery and should prove too tempting for a team to pass up in the first round. 

Sam Colquhoun, Central Districts, 20 December 1994, 179cm, 72kg
Colquhoun is a small defender who gets a stack of the ball coming out of the back half. He averaged 28 possessions for SA and provided plenty of rebound for the Croweaters. Not many of his possessions are contested, but his value in launching forward thrusts with great precision saw him named in the All Australian team.

Sam Mayes, North Adelaide, 20 May 1994, 187cm, 78kg
Mayes is probably one to watch when he gets back with SANFL team North Adelaide. He was the All Australian centre half-forward as a bottom-ager last year, but had a quieter carnival this time around. He showed glimpses of what he's capable of at times - he kicked a brilliant goal from the boundary down in Geelong - and has undoubted class, but will be keen for a big finish with the Roosters.
 
Western Australia

Josh Simpson, East Fremantle, 9 February 1994, 183cm, 72kg
Simpson played for SA as a bottom-ager last year, but moved back to Perth and represented WA in this carnival. The midfielder is lightning quick and has the sort of split-second change of direction that makes him extremely hard to tackle when he gets outside.

Dayle Garlett, Swan Districts, 9 January 1994, 180cm, 75kg
By his own admission, the quietly spoken midfielder had some work to do with some off-field issues late last year, but all the reports coming out of WA and Swan Districts since then have been positive. His game-changing combination of speed, ability to run and carry and goal sense saw him earn All Australian honours.

Jack Martin, Claremont, 29 January 1995, 184cm, 64kg
Martin isn't eligible for this draft, but his birthday falls in the January-April window that allows him to nominate for the GWS mini-draft. He's the early favourite to be taken with the first pick, as Gold Coast did with Jaeger O'Meara last year, because of his speed, foot skills and strength overhead. He earned All Australian honours this year, was named WA's MVP and finished just one vote behind Lachie Whitfield for the Larke Medal.

Jesse Hogan, Claremont, 12 February 1995, 193cm, 91kg
Like his Claremont teammate Martin, Hogan is too young for this draft, but is eligible for the GWS mini-draft. For a kid his age, Hogan already has a large frame and often uses it to his advantage in marking contests. The key position prospect has a huge upside and is a good chance to join Martin in getting to an AFL club a year early.

Tasmania

Jesse Lonergan, Launceston FC, 14 November 1994, 183cm, 86kg
Lonergan, the nephew of Essendon's Sam, is an impressive inside midfielder who is quick as well. He missed the first two games of the championships through injury, but kicked four goals and laid 16 tackles in three games. He's plays regular senior footy with Launceston and was part of their premiership side last year.

Northern Territory

Jed Anderson, Darwin FC, 16 February 1994, 178cm, 75kg
Anderson is zoned to GWS and played some TAC Cup footy with the Giants before he succumbed to the urge to return home to Darwin. He feels he's in a much better position to return to the Giants now, but that decision is yet to be made. The Northern Territory MVP's pace, work rate and disposal skills will be attractive to plenty of teams if the Giants decide to pass.

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