There were bolters and sliders, pick swaps, and fairytale stories – and after all the talk of a shallow AFL draft, 64 players’ football dreams were realised over two nights this week.
Some clubs made only two picks, while North Melbourne, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs picked up five recruits and Geelong a league-high six. Here are each club’s selections and how they fit into your club’s plans.
Daniel Curtin in Adelaide colours.Credit: Justin McManus
Daniel Curtin (pick 8), Charlie Edwards (21), Oscar Ryan (27)
The Crows won the Curtin sweepstakes after trading picks 11, 15 and a future second-rounder to the Giants in return for 8 and 17. They did not expect the 197-centimetre Western Australian defender to be available so late in the top 10 until a few days before the draft, but did their homework across the weekend and pulled the trigger on Monday night. Curtin can also play through the midfield, but Adelaide could do with an upgrade in their tall defensive stocks. Edwards is a tall utility who blossomed in the second half of the season after getting his midfield opportunity. Mid-sized defensive dasher Ryan was the shock first-round bolter, but put together a good year for Murray Bushrangers and represented Victoria Country. - Marc McGowan
Logan Morris (31), Luke Lloyd (42), Zane Zakostelsky (51), Reece Torrent (64)
The Lions have one of the best, most experienced lists in the competition, so they want for little. Morris is one of the best contested markers in this year’s draft and was a regular goalkicker at Talent League level – and even spent time down back in the under-18 championships. However, his height (191 centimetres) and lack of athleticism are two of the biggest queries on him. Lloyd is also a tall forward and roared into contention with a strong finish to the season, but is arguably best known for kicking 19 goals in a game for his school, De La Salle. Key defender Zakostelsky was one of the best athletic performers at the draft combine – finishing top 10 in four of the five tests – but his kicking is a concern. Torrent is a classy midfielder from Peel Thunder. - Marc McGowan
Ashton Moir (29), Billy Wilson (34)
The Blues were strongly linked to talented forward Moir in the last week, and they made him the last pick of the first round. Other recruiters went off him after an indifferent and injury-riddled follow-up season from last year’s breakout campaign, when he impressed so much he was considered a top-five prospect entering 2023. This was a punt on upside, and Carlton could be richly rewarded if he recaptures his best and handles the AFL environment. They used their second-round selection on Dandenong Stingrays speedster Wilson, who played most of the year in defence before earning some midfield time and finishing the season strongly. - Marc McGowan
Your club-by-club guide to all the picks made in the 2023 draft
9
0
21.11.2023
There were bolters and sliders, pick swaps, and fairytale stories – and after all the talk of a shallow AFL draft, 64 players’ football dreams were realised over two nights this week.
Some clubs made only two picks, while North Melbourne, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs picked up five recruits and Geelong a league-high six. Here are each club’s selections and how they fit into your club’s plans.
Daniel Curtin in Adelaide colours.Credit: Justin McManus
Daniel Curtin (pick 8), Charlie Edwards (21), Oscar Ryan (27)
The Crows won the Curtin sweepstakes after trading picks 11, 15 and a future second-rounder to the Giants in return for 8 and 17. They did not expect the 197-centimetre Western........
© The Sydney Morning Herald
visit website
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Rami G Khouri
Mort Laitner
Donald Low
Ali Fathollah-Nejad
Nikkei Editorial
