How did we all rate our 2019 recruiting effort?

[one-eyed]

AFL draft gurus assess every club’s draft haul – and there’s some clear standouts

November 30, 2019
Sarah Olle
FOX SPORTS

And who better to break down your club’s draft haul than AFL Talent Ambassador Kevin Sheehan and WA Talent Pathways Manager Michael Ablett?

Mick’s take:

Obviously the Tigers don’t need to replenish their list, do they? They were outstanding. They’ve got Thompson Dow, who we mentioned got taken a little bit early. Noah Cumberland and Will Martyn, they’re two of the Brisbane Lions’ Academy products. And Hugo Ralphsmith, an absolute bargain. Biggy Nyuon, he’s great for the game and great for the NGA programs. To see a second Sudanese player on Richmond’s list will be exciting for future football at Tigerland.

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-draft-2019-every-pick-of-the-2019-afl-draft-your-afl-clubs-draft-picks-kevin-sheehan-michael-ablett/news-story/e57d06eae432a1c1b3430b9a786a7063

[one-eyed]

Buckenara says: The Tigers obviously spent a lot of the year watching the NEAFL after nabbing Brisbane Academy players Noah Cumberland and Will Martyn.

Thomson Dow is a good pick as an exciting midfielder with a burst of speed and he plays differently to his brother, Carlton’s Paddy Dow. He needs to build up his body (currently only 72kg) but because he’s more of an outside midfielder who can drift forward, he could get a taste of senior footy next year depending on his VFL form.

Hugo Ralphsmith, son of my former teammate Sean Ralphsmith, was a bit of a slider who has the same competitiveness as his dad. He’s a late developer who will need time but I thought he’d be taken earlier. Bigoa Nyuon is a project player who is very athletic as a ruckman with a big leap.

Buckenara’s verdict: Got a bit of everything and given the strength of their list, will invest time in these guys to develop them for the future.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/afl-draft-2019-recruiter-gary-buckenara-analyses-every-clubs-draft-haul/news-story/8297e3537e8e4f72b71185eca7a87bd3

[the claw]

Agree with ramps. We needed to get another pick in the early  twenties or at least tried to improve our first rounder.
Kemp, Stephens, Dekoning  were all there until pick 15 a small upgrade even would have seen one of them at Richmond.

For me Robertson was easily the best mid left and personally would have taken Rivers in front of Dow as well.For me Robertson and Rivers if we managed to trade into the second round would have been great.

[RedanTiger]

For me, before the draft I was looking for a couple of talls (mainly defensive) and more big-bodied mids.

In that sense I'm a little bit disappointed but......

Taking Dow is a decision of the selectors opinion of taking him rather than Robertson. Similar styles and same height.
They have also taken him over Worrell who would have been my only other option as a tall pick.
After the picks since 2014, you've got to trust the recruiters to back their judgement.
I do in their choice of Dow and can also see the idea of some posters that he is a replacement in time of Edwards/Cotchin.

I like Ralphsmith as a hard working, tough midfielder so that fills my needs.
I also like Biggy as an athletic tall defender to replace Grimes in time as the third back. I had hoped Chol would fill this spot but he seems determined to only preform in the forward line.

The two Brisbane boys are in the same type of mould as Dow as midfield replacements in time and again I'll back the recruiters.
Essentially we've taken 3 juniors to fill one or two upcoming holes in the midfield.

We only have Grathwaite, Miller and Balta as back-ups for Astbury and Rance. It's not urgent yet but does need to be looked at in the coming couple of years.
Garthwaite is a competent back but not on the same scale as Astbury or Rance as yet. Miller is nowhere near it yet and Balta seems too flighty to play in defence.
The next year or so will tell the story on these players and our needs.

Given that we got screwed on the Ellis free agency and there seemed a plan for other clubs to not deal with us in case we made them look stupid, I think we did as well as could be expected from the draft.

I would give us a pass mark of around 6 or 7 at this stage but the true value of our effort will only come out in the next 2 or 3 years as they develop.

Edit: I hope we keep in touch with Tom Green. Would be unlikely to get much of a run at GWS in the next couple of years and should be at his rightful home at Richmond.

[georgies31]

Bit to much whinging in the is topic.We were premier's keep that perpective and on top of that as mentioned screwed with compo pick we did very well. Our second pick come at what 41 which is a joke pushed back with all this academy stuff.To say Roberston was better pick then Dow very naive 17 clubs passed up on him and he was suppose to be top 10 to 15 if your going to look at it your way Claw.We have won 2 flags in 3 years back our football department fullstop.

[one-eyed]

M: The Tigers also flew under the radar a bit, but I like their haul. They got players who, again, need some development, but given where their list is at they can afford to do that, and are building with an eye to the future.

J: In terms of standout picks, ... Hugo Ralphsmith to Richmond at pick 46 ... we haven’t talked about elsewhere that I really rated,

M: Dow was another one several clubs were keen on, so again, Richmond had to take him there if they wanted him because he wouldn’t have been there at their next pick 39.

Also, if they wanted a balanced, explosive midfielder, there weren’t too many others around – so it makes sense to take Dow over someone like Dev Robertson.

J: ... Dow I’m a little surprised is the type of player Richmond felt they needed.

We know Philp is someone they had in mind at that pick, and probably someone they were confident would be available.

I’m always intrigued by how clubs make quick decisions when the rug is pulled out from under them like that – looking forward to seeing how he develops over time.

Wouldn’t it be great if he makes a Round 1 debut up against his brother Paddy for the MCG season opener? That would add some spice.

https://www.theroar.com.au/2019/12/02/bolters-sliders-and-everything-in-between-a-conversation-about-the-2019-afl-draft/

[one-eyed]

Callum Twomey and Riley Beveridge's draft review podcast:

https://www.afl.com.au/news/2019-12-03/listen-drafts-biggest-winners-biggest-shock-new-bidding-tactic

Dow: He presents a different mix to the mids Richmond has drafted in recent years (RCD, Ross). More athletic than his brother and can win the ball both on the inside and outside. Paddy is more frenetic - see ball, get ball. The knock on Dow is his inconsistency.

Cumberland, Martyn: The Lions wouldn't have been expecting 3 bids on their Academy kids within 7 picks (Essendon made a bid as well). Brisbane didn't have the room on their list given they had a pretty successful year. Beveridge asked Twomey if Richmond has a spy within Brisbane's Academy as we also got Chol a couple of years ago from up there. Twomey just replied that it's a credit to Queensland football that AFL clubs are now interested in their talent.

Nyuon: St Kilda were hoping for Biggie to fall through to the rookie draft so they could then list him as a Category B rookie and hence gain a player outside of their salary cap. So us bidding stuffed up their plans. The Saints weren't going to match a bid.

[one-eyed]

Why did the Tigers leave WA gun Deven Robertson on the draft shelf?

Cal Twomey and Riley Beveridge analyse the Tigers' draft:

VIDEO: https://www.afl.com.au/video/267067/why-did-the-tigers-leave-wa-gun-on-draft-shelf?videoId=267067&modal=true&type=video&publishFrom=1575608400001&tagNames=ProgramType:Programs&references=AFL_COMPETITION:1