Taj Hotton [merged]

[WilliamPowell]

Stick to the topic without the petty personal snipes

[Knighter]

reckon i did pretty well this draft not that it was hard to do. the draft was loaded with talent and deep.
on the day i went.

Was a big wrap for Lalor and Draper at pick 1.Have always favored bigger bodied mids though but Draper sure was tempting from a list need perspective. Super quick mid both off the mark and top end, and a real ability to just float from inside a contest to outside it. Ideal type to play alongside the slower Hopper and Taranto.But always have been a sucker for the bigger bodied mids over smaller ones.

 Smillie i had us taking well before the draft at pick 1 so did a lot of others. Yep he slid but he was a monty at 7 imo and thats where i had him.
Even went as far to call him a possible generational player at one stage bit over the top but hey even im allowed to get excited now and again.

One i considered here was Travaglia to offset the loss of Rioli. But there was two kids i thought we could take later in the draft that would give us a good h/b wing option in Clarke and Harrison Oliver who i really liked and was filthy GWS nabbed him at 19 just two picks in front of  our pick 21.

Had allen or Reid at 12 and Hotton at 14. Had stated several times that i thought Hotton would be a good Bolton replacement a better mid though. Allen was a big quick sort of hybrid a h/b/mid again meeting list short falls in both roles and Reid another smart mid.
As it was we took Hotton  at 12 so was pleased. We used 14 on Faull and of course Allen and Reid were gone by our next pick. One i liked here from a list point of view having taken three mids already was Lindsay we still need classy outside running players and he was an ideal long term wing solution.he went at 11 one pick before ours.

We actually bid on Kako at 13 so we were obviously prepared to forgo Faull here knowing there would be an abundance of talls from pick 20 onwards.

We took Trainor at 21 i wanted Armstrong here the need was for kpf more than anything. Again i posted wanting Armstrong top 10 in the draft at one stage but i became a strong advocate of waiting until around pick 20 to start grabbing talls because every man and his dog knew that was where they were going to be taken.
Will say i had no problem with us taking Trainor as  i thought he was the best tall defender in the draft i just did not think we had a big need for anymore tall defenders prefering to load up with Forwards from here.He was also touted a top 10 pick and would not be out of place if taken there it shows just how strong and even this draft was.

Clearly i wanted Armstrong at 23 and to round it out i Prefered Shanahan at our last pick at pick 28.
I will also say i was a big advocate of useing more picks in this draft and cutting harder into the list.
As it was we traded back in to the draft when Algar was still there so late and there were kids there i really liked Boxshall Clarke, Davis to name a few who went after we bailed out at 28.

On Trainor the reason i Did not consider him  because i felt we had plenty of kpds although i rated him a better defender than Tarau who was a bit of a bolter. I had Armstrong at 9 at one stage but was certain most of the talls would get to  pick 20. I think everyone knew the talls would last to around this point.

There ya go laugh if ya want its what you expect from petty people around here. i don't give a stuff.

It was a deep draft full of talented players and just about anyone with half a brain was going to get a lot of picks right.

I don't think a lot of people had Hotton going as early as he did but i had him at 14 so stupidly claimed him as one of my picks some people are petty and pathetic in here.

A lot of little idiot syndrome goes on around here.

We butchered the draft not taking Tauru and Reid.

[one-eyed]

Tigers’ burning question: Have the Tigers landed a massive draft steal?

It’s only a one-game sample size, but the Tigers look to have struck gold with Taj Hotton, who was a shining light in the Tigers’ gritty win over Essendon last weekend. Hotton had an eye-catching, explosive start to his draft year to surge into top-five calculations before suffering a season-ending ACL rupture. It saw Hotton slide to Pick 12 in last year’s draft, with the Tigers pouncing on the Sandringham Dragons product ahead of West Coast, which had been heavily linked to him, as well as Port Adelaide and Fremantle. Speaking on Fox Footy’s First Crack on Sunday night, Leigh Montagna cheekily said Hotton was “the only positive thing to come out of this game (against Essendon)”, impressing with his attack on the ball, defensive efforts and clever knock-ons to advantage. Montagna told First Crack: “This kid showed enough that he is going to be a star. He’s got Shai Bolton-like attributes with his ability and creativity … He’s going to be an absolute beauty and Tigers fans are going to love him.”

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2025-the-blowtorch-round-19-preview-every-clubs-burning-questions-analysis-stats-how-to-watch-on-fox-footy-commentators-latest-news/news-story/56538cd114dd65d18caf9db7e96335e3

[Andyy]

He showed glimpses for sure but what a crap article.

He went at pick 12 and has played 1 game. If he turns into a gun player I doubt you can really call him a steal at P12, or he could do a Dean Polo and have his best ever game on debut.

[Damo]

or he could do a Dean Polo and have his best ever game on debut.

Absolute garbage
Will be a gun

[Andyy]

or he could do a Dean Polo and have his best ever game on debut.

Absolute garbage
Will be a gun

Sigh.

I'm not saying he will.

I'm saying the article is nonsense.

Half a dozen touches in a debut and some genius is writing an article about a massive draft steal with a pick 12.

I was at the game, was very happy, but just let the poor kid find his own way without the hyperbole.

[Hard Roar Tiger]

Call me a lovestruck teenager but I agree with both the hyper and the bole on this one

[Damo]

Call me a lovestruck teenager but I agree with both the hyper and the bole on this one

I’ve got no problem with the article on top of that

Half it was quoting Montagna and apart from that saying we have a gem and that he slid in the draft due to the knee injury

Barring further injury it’s all correct

[Andyy]

Time will time.

I was impressed and am optimistic.

Just don't want the weight of the world on a kid's shoulders after 1 game post-ACL.

But it definitely seems he's got it between the ears which is more than half the formula.

[one-eyed]

Taj Hotton
(Pick 12)

Hotton is another youngster who could have gone much earlier in last year’s draft if not for an ACL injury.

After strong VFL form, the Sandringham Dragons and Haileybury College product made his AFL debut against Essendon in Round 18 and has performed impressively since.

He is the son of former Carlton and Collingwood player Trent and brother of ex-St Kilda listed player Olli.

Richmond’s head of development, Sam Lonergan’s lowdown

What stands out? He's a super talent. I'm so excited to see him progress. He's a serious player. There’s some stuff I'm seeing from him that I've not seen from an 18-year-old in my time. I think the roof is unknown with this young man, which is exciting.

What’s he like? He's a fantastic teammate, a really coachable, calming presence. He's got a really strong sense of emotional awareness, empathy, situational awareness around people as well as a really mature mind with strong caring traits. I think he'll add a great diversity to a leadership group over time.

Where will he play? He's in that same boat as a Sam Lalor where he’ll mix midfield and forward minutes. He’ll likely be more of a 50-50, maybe 60-40 mid-forward as time goes on.

https://www.sen.com.au/news/2025/07/27/the-eight-tiger-cubs-leading-richmond-across-a-new-frontier

[one-eyed]

"Can’t decide if it’s a Shane Edwards or Shai Bolton comparison for Taj Hotton"

- Paddy Grindlay (VFL/VAFA commentator)

https://x.com/pad_nauseum/status/1951556798592520522

[Andyy]

"Can’t decide if it’s a Shane Edwards or Shai Bolton comparison for Taj Hotton"

- Paddy Grindlay (VFL/VAFA commentator)

https://x.com/pad_nauseum/status/1951556798592520522

Both would be nice.

Edwards in the mid, Bolton up forward. Deal.

[Simonator]

Will be better than both

[ajGreen]

Hotton and Faull would want to turn out good.

Murphy Reid, 20 goals and 30 goal assists in his debut season.

[Damo]

Hotton and Faull would want to turn out good.

Murphy Reid, 20 goals and 30 goal assists in his debut season.

Wouldn’t swap either of them for Reid in a pink fit