Burgatron VI: PHANTOM DRAFT

[Jeffers1984]

http://afl.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=238126

51 - SYDNEY - Sam Iles
(Clarence), 10 July 1987, 183.3cm, 76.1kg

The 2005 premiers finally enter the draft with their first selection at No.51. Sydney has only three picks and they will be finished by No.59, so it will be an interesting period in the draft. Sydney will be eager to snap up a player that will slip through to the fourth round, so it will be very much a wait and see for the red and the white. But like all clubs, many names have been linked with the Swans, with Iles being one of them. The inside midfielder from Tasmania is yet another player that could be taken from No.30 to the backend of the draft, yet he does have his admires. Iles played for Tasmania in this year's under 18 championships, while he also made his VFL debut for the Tassie Devils, which included two finals. He possesses a good work ethic, while speed and endurance are also qualities in his make-up. Richmond and Port Adelaide will both be keeping an eye on his progress in this draft.

54 - SYDNEY - Dylan Addison
(St George), 7 October 1987, 185.5cm, 73kg

Widely regarded at NSW/ACT's best draft prospect this year, Addison has attracted interest towards the backend of the draft, with the Western Bulldogs also showing positive signs. As Sydney will have three selections, it will no doubt consider Addison in with one of its picks. He possesses a good turn of pace, is a good mark overhead, while he uses his body well in contested situations. He was a member of the NSW/ACT under 18 team this year.

59 - SYDNEY - Steven Armstrong
(Melbourne), 12 January 1984, 180cm, 81kg

After 43 AFL matches from 2002-05, Armstrong was delisted by Melbourne after he was unable to be part of a suitable trade, during the recent exchange period. Although he was linked with Port Adelaide, a deal was unable to be reached. It is not out of the question that Armstrong may land at Port Adelaide in this draft, but it is believed the Brisbane Lions and Sydney are potential options. The Swans are genuinely interested in Armstrong and as they must use their third and final pick at No.59, the former Melbourne midfielder/forward could quite easily fit into the equation.

[Jeffers1984]

Personally i'd love to get 2 talls and draft Armstrong.
However it wouldn't suprise me if we pack our rookies with mature talls again.

[SimonH]

Matt Burgan saying "the Swans are genuinely interested in Armstrong" is presumably based on more than 'my cousin's wife works on reception'. They've obviously been listening to Charlie.

A big upside to him is that he is only 21 (turning 22 in January) with 43 games' experience under his belt. Which means that he is roughly similar in age and level of league experience to what C Bolton and Jolly had before joining (and what T Richards and Chambers have now). And... ahem... Spriggs.

No doubt that he has the talent (had huge wraps in his early days at Melbourne before falling away badly in the last 2 seasons), so if he passes the 'no d***heads test', then we'd happily take another ready-to-play outside midfielder, to put even more pressure on J McVeigh!

Neither of the first 2 picks listed in Sam Iles and Dylan Addison is a surprise, except for the fact that if all 3 were right, we would be taking no-one bigger than 185cm with our 3 picks, which doesn't seem quite right. (The club couldn't be 100% certain that 'Smokey' Davis and Heath Grundy will be 50+ gamers, yet.)

The big surprise is that Burgan has us showing some interest in the 206cm (!) Max Bailey. Why we would want six (count 'em, six) specialist ruckmen on our 38-man list (plus Goodes, LRT and BBBH), is completely beyond me. The poor ACT clubs would feel like they'd wandered into the valley of the giants.

Also no idea why we wouldn't take Nick Lower if he's available in the 50s. The well-regarded Weaver phantom draft has him going at #30. By all accounts, an excellent bet to be a reliably consistent performer (a la CBolt), and Weaver commented he "is deceptively good in the marking contests... and Lower can be plugged in all over the field." At 187cm he'd provide some more flexibility as a 3rd or 4th-tallest defender or marking option rather than us taking yet another 'pure' onballer.

[Charlie]

Originally posted by SimonH
They've obviously been listening to Charlie.

... and so they should, too! You've got to take this one with a grain of salt, though - Burgan's not noted for his accuracy.

I agree though that it's hard to see us going for three midfielders. I wouldn't mind one more mature aged prospect - Armstrong and Beetham would both be good options. But I don't see that its a pressing need when we have Ablett, Buchanan, Schneider, Bevan, McVeigh, Malceski, Moore, Dempster, Willoughby and Schmidt all 23 or under. Addison is most likely going to be around for the rookie draft anyway.

Burgan has a lot of decent sized players - Michael West, Todd Grima, Alan Obst and Alipate Carlile - all going in the 40s and 50s. I'd hope that we pick at least one up. Like Simon, I'd like some insurance for Vogels, Grundy and Davis.

Can't understand why we would think about recruiting another ruckman.

[SimonH]

Originally posted by Charlie
Addison is most likely going to be around for the rookie draft anyway.

If the club is absolutely sure that he will be, it would be a waste of a pick to draft him. This is why Burgan's comment that the Dogs have shown interest is relevant-- if the interest is genuine, it explains why we'd take him in the regular draft at 54 and stop the Dogs from nabbing him at 55 or 57.

Originally posted by Charlie
Burgan has a lot of decent sized players - Michael West, Todd Grima, Alan Obst and Alipate Carlile - all going in the 40s and 50s. I'd hope that we pick at least one up. Like Simon, I'd like some insurance for Vogels, Grundy and Davis.

Add Daniel Dzufer (tall end of the midfield) and Spangher to that list. Would be amazed (and very pleased) if Todd Grima was still available at #51, but yer right, at least one of the taller players above is likely to not go 'til we have a shot. Plus there's players like Jon Cheetham (talented but raw 192cm CHF from North Adelaide-- just call him Smokey Davis #2) who Burgan leaves out of his draft entirely.

Originally posted by Charlie
Burgan's not noted for his accuracy.

Tough, man, very tough. If you look back over the years his guesswork would be as good as anyone's. Compiling these things is a nightmare; there are tens of thousands of possible permutations across the whole thing, and not even the clubs know how it's going to pan out until they're sitting there crossing names off a list.