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That's a surprisingly (and pleasantly) large contingent from the Swans squad - almost a third of the team. I am especially glad to see Thorne get his chance to shine on the big stage. His MVP performances throughout the NAB League series warrant his inclusion in the side (and he kept getting better, the longer the series went on), but I feared he might fall into the "unsexy" category that has prevented previous tough, relentless and hard-working Swans midfielders from getting an opportunity.
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Agree re Thorne. Must admit I didnt really know of him until this years series. Had heard more about Rayner but he is more key position backman so is more likely to take time and unlikley to be that high up any draft order.
Ellem is an interesting one as he is very raw and I remember seeing him at the start of last year and he was a big lump who quite clearly knew how to play forward but was a bit behind the other boys from a fitness perspective. He looked quite impressive in the NAB series this year and the swans academy training program has clearly made him fitter. But even Parks and Barling have been mentioned in different despatches and the likes of Gnaden (reserve for allies) plus a few others really arent that far behind the guys who were picked for allies.
The 18s are actually a pretty even bunch and it would be hard in my view to separate them . I guess it may just come down to specific needs.
Even the 17s have about half a dozen boys who arent that far behind Gulden and Campbell.
I would really love to see some boys being finally recognised from non sydney clubs and taking a chance on someone rather than whinging about the heeney / mills player that comes through every so often. You start to see it becomes a fine line sometimes between the chosen ones and the "just missed" players. I remember watching the 16 series last year and while Gulden and Campbell were clearly in the best group of players at that level in the academy , they really werent that dominant from an outsider looking in view. Obviously the state series last year bought them to the forefront and they have clearly thrived this year while playing essentially an age group above.
Interstate clubs still seem more attracted to the GWS academy boys (and Lions academy etc) in this respect which is odd considering the Swans over the past number of years have generally had the better of most academy teams at 18s levels (and 16s in respect of Giants) .Comment
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It would be interesting to see some stats on whether the proportion of players drafted from NSW are trending upwards given that the Academy has now been going for a number of years? Historically, it's been a very low percentage who come out of NSW (and QLD) with Victoria generally providing over 50% of all draftees. This is a big factor in the uneveness of the competition given the "go home" factor.
Sent from my SM-G965F using TapatalkComment
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Update for this weekend :
1. u18 Allies play WA on Sunday 10:30am at Alberton Oval - Swans players in Brewer, Campbell, Ellem, Gaden, Gulden, Parks, Thorne
2. u16 Rams play Qld on Sunday 12:50pm at Blacktown - 13 Swans players in squad.Comment
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I wonder how the VFLs review of the academy & NGA systems is going. I'm a little nervous about it knowing how they manage to muck up just about everything they create/touch/meddle with. You can bet they've taken input from fat face!
Wonder if it will be fiddled with to stop us getting Gulden & Campbell next year.Comment
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Those who have the greatest power to hurt us are those we love.Comment
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Just to update from weekend - U16 NSW Rams 10.10.70 beat QLD 9.5.59. - tough, hard fought game with an even contribution across the park from the NSW Team. QLD were a significantly bigger team with a number of 190 cm 100kg big men in key positions, so while QLD seemed to have the better of the contested marking, NSW were harder in the contest and around the ground. The game was only iced when a long olds style torp in the dying seconds fell into the arms of a NSW forward and he converted on the siren to seal the win by 10 points. NSW probably should have put the game away earlier but some inaccurate kicking for goal kept QLD in the game and allowed them to surge in the last few minutes but NSW held on well for the win .
In the game prior to this Tasmania fairly easily accounted for NT.
NSW will now play NT and Tasmania in the week of July 8-14 when all state teams travel to QLD to play the second and third legs of the national championships.Comment
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Huge win today for the Under 18 Allies beating Vic Metro 11.4.70 to 10.8.68 at Geelong . Swans players in the team Gulden , Thorne , Parks , Ellem , Brewer.Comment
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Yes, it was great how they kicked back late, after it looked like Vic Metro were going to run over the top of them. Also a very good game by Gulden, playing as a half forward flanker. Increasingly, it seems like we will have to part with a high pick in the 2020 draft, to bring him to the club. While the other four who played yesterday, are some sort of chance to be selected in this year's draft. Though more likely as late picks or rookie listers. Parks was probably the best defender for the Allies, while Ellem continues to show glimpses of an advanced skill set.Comment
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U18 allies game v SA is live on foxtel this afternoon at 4:30pmComment
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I've only seen him in the Allies v Vic Metro game; in which I thought he was probably best on ground. So, on the strength of that, you'd assume that he would go high in the draft. If our first pick is earlier than GWS's first pick (odds are), then putting in a bid if he's still untaken, has strong appeal. I think that we need more inside midfield depth, and with him coming from Canberra, there would be less chance of the go home factor, exerting its influence.Comment
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