2014 AFL Draft

[Matt80]

Rose looks like a John Longmire player from the highlight real. He plays with aggressive intent, he had good speed, good endurance and can tackle.

He has the ability to get the team 6 tackles a game and can put on plenty of pressure on the opposition. His marking and ball handling looked excellent.

His kicking and decision making will improve rapidly in the pre-season.

[Auntie.Gerald]

Has anyone had a close look at the top 50 players?

Draft Tracker - AFL.com.au

ie the players in particular from pick 37 thru to 50 as James is the arguably the best pick for the medium to small player me thinks........James has plenty of versatility to play wing, HFF, Fpocket and or HBF in ressies for a few seasons

I think if the Swans Coaching dept believe in Aliir, Xavier, Davis and Reid to be 4 strong KP defensive players of the future then we have picked very well with James Rose

you would expect that recruitment also takes into account time for the list of players

A player like James Rose may need a few years in development to level jump medium to small players like Lloyd, Harry, Towers, Zac Jones, Heeney, Mitchell, Hewett, Brandon, Robinson, Marsh but he has the raw speed we are looking for and will fill out to that 84kg type range you would suspect

I would imagine with the depth we have now...... that a player like Rose who appears a little raw in decision making but plenty of physical and dexterious qualities......well he maybe ready for Snrs in 3 or more years ie 21 to 22 yrs of age and that probably works with our cap and current strong depth

[caj23]

from his video highlights James Rose appears to play quite a bit like a Jed Lamb and in the strangest way he reminded me a little of Jude up at HFF

This

The few detailed bios that are available are almost a carbon copy of Lamb's from a few years ago, medium forward, good overhead and on the lead, not slow but not fast, good kick particularly for goal without being outstanding, capable of the odd flash of brilliance

[YvonneH]

Does anyone know the origin of Abe Davis' Christian name as it is very unusual?

[dimelb]

wasnt goodsey pick 37??? a kid with untapped ability.. so who knows he is only 18 and there to fill a void... we werent looking for a ready made senior list player... as much as year in year out we always go wtf?? kinnear what are you doing... he doesnt have a bad strike rate...

Goodes was taken at pick 43, but his number is 37. I find it hard to imagine ever getting such value again!

[swans]

THE SYDNEY Swans have rounded out their senior list by recruiting South Australian medium forward James Rose at Thursday's NAB AFL Draft.

Rose, from Sturt, is a powerful package with good hands, great leap, penetrating kick and a love for physicality.

He was taken with pick No.37 ? the Swans' only live pick in the draft ? and will fill the void left by delisted free agent Tim Membrey, who is now with St Kilda.

The 2014 runners-up had already successfully bidded on three of their own academy players in the lead-up to the draft, including highly touted midfielder Isaac Heeney.

Heeney was taken with the Swans' first round pick (No.18) after Melbourne had bid its first selection (No.2) on him.

Jack Hiscox (No.38) and Abaina Davis (No.70) were also locked in prior to the draft.

Hiscox is the running machine who set the 3km record (9.18) at the Draft Combine in October.

"We got James with our live pick at 37 and the three academy boys - we've had a really good night," Swans general manager of football Tom Harley said.

Earlier on Thursday, AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan said the League might reconsider the trade ban imposed against the Swans that would threaten the club's right to use the Cost of Living Allowance (COLA).
the Swans' draft haul and watch highlights of every player on the 2014 NAB AFL draft tracker

Selection No.18 ? Isaac Heeney (Cardiff/Swans Academy)
Tom Harley says: "He's your typical midfielder, he's a good size, he's hard at it, he works hard, he uses the ball well in traffic and he's good overhead, so to get Isaac at pick 18, we're very happy about that."

Selection No.37 ? James Rose (Sturt)
Tom Harley says: "He played a lot of footy for Sturt reserves this year. James plays predominantly as a hard-working half-forward. We really like his intensity and scope for improvement. We think we've got a really good, versatile player that can play a number of roles."

Selection No.38 ? Jack Hiscox (Sydney Uni/Swans Academy)
Tom Harley says: "He's an elite runner and we know he'll be able to work all over the ground. He's got a good frame he'll grow into and he can play a variety of positions. When you look at the big grounds ? if we can forecast forward, we'd love to see Jack tearing up and down the wing at the MCG."

Selection No.70 ? Abaina Davis (UNSW-Easts/Swans Academy)
Tom Harley says: "Abe's a key position player who's impressed our coaching staff with his aerobic capacity when the going gets tough. He's a good size and can play either centre-half back or centre-half forward ? that'll be up to John (Longmire) and the coaching staff."

[ernie koala]

I'm certainly have faith in our recruiting team and Rose looks like a player with really good attacking instincts.

But the one thing I read about him that perplexes me, is that he has a "penetrating kick"...

There are no signs of this in the footage I've seen.

He kicks inaccurate, high, slow, floaters. So packs formed nearly every time and the ball inevitably hit the deck.

Hopefully the kicking coaches (ie Mr Davis) can improve this aspect of his game, because the rest of his skill set looks good.

[wolftone57]

Has anyone had a close look at the top 50 players?

Draft Tracker - AFL.com.au

ie the players in particular from pick 37 thru to 50 as James is the arguably the best pick for the medium to small player me thinks........James has plenty of versatility to play wing, HFF, Fpocket and or HBF in ressies for a few seasons

I think if the Swans Coaching dept believe in Aliir, Xavier, Davis and Reid to be 4 strong KP defensive players of the future then we have picked very well with James Rose

you would expect that recruitment also takes into account time for the list of players

A player like James Rose may need a few years in development to level jump medium to small players like Lloyd, Harry, Towers, Zac Jones, Heeney, Mitchell, Hewett, Brandon, Robinson, Marsh but he has the raw speed we are looking for and will fill out to that 84kg type range you would suspect

I would imagine with the depth we have now...... that a player like Rose who appears a little raw in decision making but plenty of physical and dexterious qualities......well he maybe ready for Snrs in 3 or more years ie 21 to 22 yrs of age and that probably works with our cap and current strong depth

AGH I think he looks a lot like Ben Hart, the ex-Crows player, he has a more ectomorph frame so I don't think he will build up hugely. I would suggest he will build strength rather than mass. Hart did exactly that and this lad reminds me a lot of him. A very good HB. But I think the difference from the footage I saw is Hart had elite disposal, this lad's disposal is a little wayward. More so on the long kick than the short pass. But we do tend to like players who just bomb the ball in willy nilly not to the forwards advantage and generally to the opposition.

[lorakf]

Sorry if this has been mentioned before but I was going through the list of draft nominees and there were a few names of interest to many of us,

Firstly, there was a number of former young ex-Swans or academy players not selected by the Swans: Brett Meredith, Dylan McNeil, Eugene Kruger, Byron Sumner, Jack Lynch, Pat Veszpremi, Jordan Lockyer, Stephen Wray, Alex Brown, Dylan Roos, Tyler Roos and Mitch Crawford.

There was three bothers of current Swans: Brett Goodes, Jacob Derickx and Beau Heeney and a brother of a former Swan Meyrick Buchanan.

Two cousins: Brandon Jetta and Leroy Jetta.

A nephew of a former Swan: Jaidan Kappler

There was also a few older Swans: Tony Armstrong (will be selected by Collingwood as a rookie) Adam Schneider (will be on St Kilda?s rookie list) but also Mark Seaby, Paul Bevan, Darren Jolly and Jarred Moore. No Trent Dennis-Lane or Lewis Johnston

Also for fans of Fox 8?s the Recruit there was Bradie Foster, Chris Moreland, Nathan Jackel, Micheal Hutchinson and Tyrone Armitage but not Ryan Semmel, Brendan Goss, Waylon Manson, Ryan Smith, Daniel Johncock, or James Brackin. Nor was the American Max Cisco or Reece Maxwell as they have never been registered for a club at any level before.

[lorakf]

Plus Mitch Morton's brother Cale Morton and both sons of former Swan Merv Neagle, Jydon and Jay Neagle.

[Industrial Fan]

Jydon? WTF is that for a name?

[S.S. Bleeder]

Tom Harley said they see him as more a versatile player prob from HBF through to wing and midfield type role... so maybe they view him as a take the game on approach out of th half back line

I read that. But if that is the case why would they choose a player who "needs to work on the defensive side of his game".

[S.S. Bleeder]

Interesting read on rose from Chris25; 2014 South Australian Draft Prospects | BigFooty AFL Forum.

[S.S. Bleeder]

This comment from Skippos on BF who usually knows his stuff and is from SA.
I'd come in here to comment on Rose and see I've already been mentioned. Thanks for the kind words Membling

You've got a keeper here in Rose. I mightn't have been as complimentary of him as I could have been in my profiles and rankings but this is the perfect club for him. I've followed Rose closely this year and have been privileged to see him do things that we wouldn't have seen in highlights.

He'll buy in to your culture - he's a kid from one of the top schools in Adelaide but not one of the pretentious all boys schools that get a bad wrap here. He's an educated and smart kid, got reasonable leadership and great application. He leaves everything on the field - he'll work for the team and his teammates will know that when they go into battle, Rose is coming with them. Never need to worry about him taking the soft option. As a bloke he'll develop into a good team man. He's perhaps a little young now - maybe more so than most draftees; I still feel he's a kid not a man but it shouldn't take long for him to adjust.

He's not Membrey. Not close. I'd take 10 James Roses before I took a Membrey. Rose is a brilliant pound for pound contested grab. He hits the ball hard, he leads so hard and steamrolls anything in his way. He's a good shot for goal and a smart forward. His leads are incredible really. He doesn't have a burst but he's capable of leading so hard for so long he burns off his opponent. He hits the red zone in a short term burst and just keeps going - a bit like Nick Riewoldt at times with regards to that extreme mental ability to run so hard to take one mark. Up the ground he's a composed and poised natural footballer. He's not an incredible athlete nor are his skills elite but his natural footballing ability allows him to be a capable option off a wing or in defence.

He's a keeper boys.

[stevoswan]

This comment from Skippos on BF who usually knows his stuff and is from SA.
I'd come in here to comment on Rose and see I've already been mentioned. Thanks for the kind words Membling

You've got a keeper here in Rose. I mightn't have been as complimentary of him as I could have been in my profiles and rankings but this is the perfect club for him. I've followed Rose closely this year and have been privileged to see him do things that we wouldn't have seen in highlights.

He'll buy in to your culture - he's a kid from one of the top schools in Adelaide but not one of the pretentious all boys schools that get a bad wrap here. He's an educated and smart kid, got reasonable leadership and great application. He leaves everything on the field - he'll work for the team and his teammates will know that when they go into battle, Rose is coming with them. Never need to worry about him taking the soft option. As a bloke he'll develop into a good team man. He's perhaps a little young now - maybe more so than most draftees; I still feel he's a kid not a man but it shouldn't take long for him to adjust.

He's not Membrey. Not close. I'd take 10 James Roses before I took a Membrey. Rose is a brilliant pound for pound contested grab. He hits the ball hard, he leads so hard and steamrolls anything in his way. He's a good shot for goal and a smart forward. His leads are incredible really. He doesn't have a burst but he's capable of leading so hard for so long he burns off his opponent. He hits the red zone in a short term burst and just keeps going - a bit like Nick Riewoldt at times with regards to that extreme mental ability to run so hard to take one mark. Up the ground he's a composed and poised natural footballer. He's not an incredible athlete nor are his skills elite but his natural footballing ability allows him to be a capable option off a wing or in defence.

He's a keeper boys.

Well that sounds a bit exciting. If that potential transcends into the elite level he should be fantastic. Sounds like a forward, but with our abundance of forwards, he might be developed off the half back line, a la Malceski, to hone his defensive skills? Then let loose on the forward line when Goodesy and others drop off. Just a thought......