Only Roos likely to use draft compensation pickBy Ben Broad
Thu 04 Nov, 2010NORTH Melbourne looms as the only club likely to use an end-of-first round compensation pick in next month's NAB AFL Draft.
Gold Coast, Geelong, the Brisbane Lions and Richmond are other clubs who could potentially use an extra selection at the end of the first round.
Those clubs either received compensation picks as a result of losing an uncontracted player to the Suns, or gained that pick during trade week.
End-of-first round selections can be used after West Coast's priority pick 26.
The deadline for clubs wishing to use a compensation pick is Friday, by which time those clubs must notify the AFL of their intention to do so at next month's national draft.
And it looks increasingly likely that only the Kangaroos will use an end-of-first round pick - which will most likely become selection 27 - while others will 'bank' their picks for another year.
North gained that pick from Hawthorn, which originally received an end-of-first round pick as compensation for losing Campbell Brown to Gold Coast.
The Brisbane Lions greatly enhanced their draft position during the off-season and trade week, gaining two end-of-first round draft picks.
Michael Voss's side lost experienced pair Michael Rischitelli and Justin Sherman. While the Lions gained a compensation pick for their best and fairest winner, they also received one from the Western Bulldogs for trading Sherman to the Whitten Oval.
But Lions talent manager Rob Kerr said his club was unlikely to use either in 2010.
"It hasn't been that hard a call given that we've got three picks in that area," Kerr told afl.com.au.
"I'm assuming North Melbourne will probably use their compensation pick so that will probably mean we'll have [pick] 25, 28 and 32, so I think we've got enough picks in that area.
"Our next pick after that would be 65, if we wanted to use another pick after that. It's going to be either four or five picks for us."
The Lions, along with other clubs possessing a compensation pick, can activate those selections in any year between 2011 and 2014, but if they want to use that pick in any of those years they must tell the League prior to the start of that particular season starting.
Kerr said clubs in possession of a compensation pick had learned the value of them.
"They turned out to be reasonably valuable commodities during the trade period," he said.
"Especially with what they can deliver for you, [either] if you want to trade, or that added benefit of where it sits down the track."
Geelong, which received two first-round draft picks for losing Gary Ablett to the Suns, traded one of those back to Gold Coast for pick 15 in this year's draft.
However Gold Coast, which used the trade period to advantage to set itself up for future drafts, will bank the compensation picks clubs traded back to it, such as the one the Cats used to bump themselves higher into the first round in a fortnight.
Richmond, which received Adelaide's Nathan Bock compensation pick in exchange for trading Richard Tambling to the Crows, also appears set to keep that selection for another season.
http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/104843/default.aspx
