Every Carlton-rising article you read focuses almost solely on the recruitment of Chris Judd and the drafting of the three no. 1's Murphy, Gibbs Kruezer.

But I was thinking about the team in Round 1 and realised that more than a 1/3rd of the team (8 players) running around for us on the night were unwanted players (ie either recruited in the rookie or pre-season draft)

Rookies
Thornton
Jamieson
Joseph
Jacobs
Garlett

Pre-Season Draft
Johnson
Cloke
Betts

Not a half bad effort from our recruiting department to add to the 1st and 2nd round picks (only 6 players)

Wiggins
Russell
Murphy
Bower
Gibbs
Kruezer

And trades (3)
Hadley
Scotland
and some bloke called Judd

And later draft picks (5)
Fevola (pick 38)
Robbo (pick 40)
Simpson (pick 45)
Waite (F/S)
Houlihan (pick 72)

And we still have 3 guns to come back in (Stevens, Walker, Grigg)

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Go Blues

"They can have him."

"Yeah, but they have all those number 1 picks."



Just as we need to get used to hearing those lines, they'll need to get used to us winning again.

Sounds like a fair trade to me.

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I believe a club can seriously improve on the back of how successful they are with their picks between the 2nd and 4th rounds. This is where I think that perhaps we may not have maximised our returns in the last few years. Still we have done OK. I'm just looking at the years since our penalties stopped in this case

2004
Pick 25 (2nd round) – Adam Hartlett – fifth year at the club and to my regret seems to be going nowhere fast. Considering we are screaming out for another KP forward he hasn’t been able to answer the call. If he was to be considered a successful pick he would have already established himself at HF
Pick 41 (3rd round) – Luke Blackwell – undersized and too slow. Fail

2005
Pick 20 (2nd round) – Paul Bower – I’m a massive fan and he is now considered an important part of our defence for years to come. Still got development in him. Tick
Pick 41 (3rd round) – Jake Edwards – refer to Adam Hartlett. Treading water here as well and yet to indicate he has a future at the club. Once again, to be considered a successful pick he would almost be playing semi-regular at this stage. Been in the system long enough.

2006
Pick 17 (priority pick) – Shaun Hampson – Still early but the signs are promising I think. Plenty of upside and considering he is a tall ruck who is new to the game can’t consider a fail by any stretch.
Pick 19 (2nd round) – Shaun Grigg – great selection. Already considered an integral part of our running fleet. Big tick
Pick 35 (3rd round) – Mark Austin – maybe too early to tell. Showed some signs.

Overall, not a bad return but what marks it down is the fact that both Hartlett and Edwards haven’t been able to step up. Countering this is our success with rookies I think

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C'mon Blueboys!

Marci,i still think there is some hope for Hartlett. He`s had a shocking run with injuries. I remember North supporters bagging Drew Petrie early in his career and i think Hartlett could be a similar player. Bigger players take longer to step up and he would be a huge bonus considering his flood breaking kicking.

I heart Steven Browne who is the forgotten man and underrated by everyone bar Carlton supporters.

What about Robbie Warnock? He should be included in the trades section too ...

I still have hope for Adam as well and realise that he has been severely hindered with injury.
My post was pointing more towards the fact that picks like Adam standing up can help move a club up to finals a lot quicker.
Although injured, McGuire at the aints was picked in the same round and his ability to stand up at CHB went a long way to them climbing towards finals in 2004.

You’re right though, hope is not completely lost for Adam, he just better get a move on in 2009 me thinks

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C'mon Blueboys!

We will EXPLODE when Warnock is in... and make no mistake he will be in...
What he will add is a new dimmension to the midfield.....

The team will be flying when he is up and about in the centre bounces.

Mark my words!!!

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I was only referring to the 22 that ran out on Thursday...,.but yes we did trade for him...

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Go Blues

Hartlett needs to pull his socks up. He will be a great addition at CHF if he can pull it together, seems to be lacking all confidence...