2013 National draft a disaster?

[cityslick1]

The first round for us anyway...

If I'm not mistaken, shaz and freeman are he only two draftees in the top 30! from that year That are yet to play a game. Shaz is now rumoured to be going back to Adelaide and even if he stays, with the emergence of Langdon, oxley, Maynard and seedsman, he doesn't exactly suit our needs atm.

Likewise with freeman, constant niggles and hamstring problems - as well as question marks over his footballing ability - have cast a shadow over his ability to make it, and with Adams flying, crisp stepping up, treloar due in and JDG showing so much, is there even room for him in our midfield?

Now hindsight is a wonderful thing, but if we hadve ended up with McCarthy and Cripps instead, we would've solved our forward line issue and landed a big bodied utility / mid that can seemingly play anywhere. Now THAT would have put us in serious contention for a flag in a year or two.

Decker has certainly had more hits than misses, especially at the lower end of the draft, but shaz and freeman have a v long way to go for these two picks to not be considered a stain on his reputation.

[mattys123]

Yeah that Tom Langdon kid is just no good.

Jonathan Marsh is a shocker too.

Adam Oxley is terrible too.

[swoop42]

You can hardly blame Hine that Freeman tore his hamstring badly.

You can argue we could have gone another way with type of player drafted but he obviously thought Freeman was the best fit for the list at the time.

If we can get him right physically he might still end up being proven correct with this selection.

Scharenberg had his foot issue but plenty of players have had injury concerns prior to being drafted and gone on to have stellar careers.

Judd and Selwood instantly come to mind.

Scharenberg doing his knee was most unfortunate but I'm sure Melbourne feel the same about Petracca.

It's rotten luck rather than rotten recruiting that we're yet to see these two debut at AFL level nearly two years down the track.

The flip side of course is that come next year that should change, we will be adding two top 10 picks to the mix hopefully alongside Treloar, it'll be like Christmas and even if Scharenberg were to request a trade I'm confident we'll get something good in return.

[Member 7167]

Unfortunately like most things in life it is a gamble. You can spend a fortune of a thoroughbred racehorse that has all the breeding and looks the part and never gets to race whereas you can pickup a cheapy, train him well and see him winning group A races.

You really could not have forecast Shazza doing a knee and Freeman having repetitive soft tissue injuries and no one is to blame.

Hopefully we will retain both and they go on to prove their value and ability going forward.

[SwansWay]

A stain on his reputation is a bit harsh, particularly for two guys who haven't really had a good run at it yet. Even if they turn out to be flops (which I doubt) I'd say his strike rate is still probably among the best in the AFL.

I don't think we'll lose Scharenberg. The only way that I could see that happening is as part of some deal for Dangerfield who we're unlikely to be in the market for. When Mark Williams describes him as "the best schoolboy footballer he's seen since Wayne Carey" that's just too tantalising to pass up.

Buckley's not in any hurry to rush these guys into the side. He's building depth just like Hawthorn. Some of their players don't debut until they're 20-21, like Will Langford for example.

Be patient, as I think Scharenberg may get his chance this season. Hopefully Freeman can get his body right. If you remember Chris Judd had chronic shoulder problems and managed to play a full career and even Joel Selwood had recruiters concerned about his knee issues which is why he slipped to seventh. Don't be alarmed. Let's hope we're saving the best for last

[SwansWay]

[Pies4shaw]

It's good to see this thread started again this week. So much has changed since last week, when picks 6 and 10 didn't debut.

But, really, would any of us be capable of picking this up if it wasn't said every week?

In other revelations, it is possible that Travis will struggle to kick straight in a future game.

[piester]

[jackcass]

Clearly time to throw some Leonard Cohen onto the stereo and crank it to 11, grab the blades and run a nice hot bath...

[perthmagpie]

Wow. Lots of humble pie to be eaten over our 2013 draftees by this time next year. Especially when this kid who hasn't played yet will be considered our best future player behind the centre of the ground. As for the other kid who is the best power, footballer on the list besides maybe Swanny, let's just wait for more humble pie. It's the Nicks way.

[thompsoc]

No comment!

[Dave The Man]

Been 2 Years. Way to Early to call it yet.

Had no Luck with Injuries with Freeman and Scharangberg.

but

Langdon has played just about every AFL Game since he been Drafted

Marsh looks very promising as a Defender in the VFL

[Dave The Man]

[yin-YANG]

If Freeman has genuine pace - he is required in our mid mix as Dave suggested and if Shaza has elite skills (or potential) as some have noted then he would be very handy down back where some polish is required to join the grunters

They have had a shocking run clearly - and have been left behind by their peers and are now overtaken by the guys a year younger so hopefully they are able to break into the team by 2017 or even later this year in Shaza's case for a taste of the big time. If they are quality we should be a little more patient and that quality will come through.

[RudeBoy]