I want to tip a bit of a bucket tonight due to some of the comments about our list.
1. Trading
We are building a list (again). You don't trade your best players with a list like ours. We have very few good players. While he is not perfect, Nathan Foley is one. And a superb example off the field.
We should use our mediocre win/loss record in 2009 to draft good young talent, not the last few players that add something to our current crap list.
I have no problem with re-building and I would rather trade for picks than players.
But reality is this is the final "uncompromised" compromised draft for what the next 4-5 years? And personally all I have ever advocated is for our club to try and trade for another first round pick. The only way we could do this was/is to trade a player on our list that other teams deem to have currency. Foley fits that category because as you say he a good player on a crap list. For me he was the obvious choice for trade as I reckon you would easily get a first rounder for him. Struth if the Saints will give up pick 16 for Lovett and Carlton pick 11 for Sooky McLean it makes sense that Foley would give you a first rounder. However, the RFC has chosen to throw Tuck out there instead and I reckon if we are really lucky we will get a late 2nd rounder. We needed to be daring to try and a get a another 1st round pick, we've chosen not to and so that is that
3. Young players
We have so many young players that look hopeless today but have not been in the system long enough to make that call. Take Dean Putt. 203cm with reasonable athleticism and is just 20 years old. 2 years in the AFL system and I read about his lack of courage as a reason to write him off. A very well known coach (at Collingwood in the 90's) once made the comment you really only see the development in the 4th year and beyond. Anyone 21 yo or younger still may have something to offer the club. It might be point of difference for Hardwick compared to Wallace.
If there is one thing about Wallace, his development program of young players was non existent.
Forget about a former C'wood coach has to said a certain recently departed RFC coach (aka TW) always said the same thing and I don't think you'd find many agreeing with him
Anyway back on Putt. I would normally agree that he should get another season on the senior but I've watched him closely the last 2 years and IMHO he went backwards this season. He really struggled more times than not at VFL senior level. He seems to "star" at VFL ressie level and then go missing in at VFL seniors. That's not a good sign.
Having said all that my suggestion regarding Putt would be to de-list him and then rookie him, keeping him in the system, giving him another year to develop under the coaching regime and seeing what happens from there.