Goes to show get picks like 29 and 53 right and all of a sudden you have an influx of good players when you consider we got Prestia with pick 9?
Nankervis with a pick around 40 and Caddy with a pick in the twenties in the same draft.
Id argue strongly that over the last 10 years our actual nd picks have been ordinary in the main. I would also state as a fact that we have invested in very few key fwds right across all drafts and trades.
We are clearly not taking young key fwds and giving them a try with ND picks or for that matter Rookie picks.
Last 10 years we have traded for or taken in F/A just 4 tall players Two rucks Nankervis, Hampson. 1 KPD Tarrant at 33yrs. 1 KPF Lynch a must get as we only had one up to standard kpf on the list.
The following is our actual ND picks for the last 10 yrs.
2013 Lennon 12 Gordon 50, Lloyd 66 mature. All busts.
2014 Corey Ellis 12, Menadue 33, Drummond 53, Butler 67, McKenzie 77.* One small fwd.
2015 D Rioli 15, Markov 50, Broad 67 mature*, One good get in Rioli and a good mature pick up in Broad.
2016 Bolton 29, Graham 53, Garthwaite 72*. One excellent get in Bolton and a reasonable get in Graham
2017 Higgins 17, CCJ 20*, Balta 25*, Naish 34, Miller 63*. For me Higgins and CC-J especially where they were taken are busts.
2018 RC-D 20, Ross 43, Turner 58, English 62, One average player in Ross.
2019 Dow 21, Cumberland 43, Martyn 44, Ralphsmith 46, Nyuon 54*. Cumberland looks to be a good small fwd jury is out on the rest imo.
2020 Ryan *40, Rioli 51fs, A free shot with the F/S Rioli and Ryan is developing jury out.
2021 Gibcus 9*, Brown 17, Sonsie 28, Banks 29, Clarke 30. Gibcus and Sonsie look to be good gets jury out on the rest
2022 Smith, Green.Jury out obviously
In all that we have invested just 9 ND picks on talls. 5 defenders, just a miserable 2 on fwds and 2 rucks.
Last but not least because imo this is where you should take a few punts on talls the rookie draft.
Soldo 2015,
Chol 2016 and 2019
C Moore 2016 wow an actual fwd.
Colina 2021
Miller was downgraded to the rookie list 2021.
Effectively just 4 talls in 10 yrs thru the rookie draft. 2 rucks 2 fwds if you include Chol as a kpf.