Crusader wrote:
So we can agree then, that Mirkov is a project who’s presence, for 2022 at least, isn’t going to impact the AFL team’s prospects?
Can we also agree that supporter expectations for Cuningham, Marchbank, Docherty & Philp to rise like Lazarus from their ailments and play more than 20 games between them are a fair way removed from reality?
Since we’re in an agreeable frame of mind, let’s also exchange nods of acknowledgment towards the realisation that if Setterfield, O’Brien, Cottrell, Parks and Boyd are featuring in the AFL side, then things have gone horribly wrong.
As I stated, a quarter of the list, for one reason or another, is unusable.
I hate to break it to you, but we’ll never have a list of 37 guys who are all ready to impact at AFL level. No club has that. All clubs have 18-19 year olds, category B rookies and players returning from LTIs. You hope that a few might pop up and contribute at AFL level, but generally you’re getting them ready for the following year.
You seem to be bemoaning that we don’t have enough players who can contribute at AFL level in 2022, yet you want us to take half a dozen more picks in the national draft and the rookie draft. Realistically, a bunch of late picks in this year’s drafts will not improve our list. Perhaps we could have cut Setterfield, Cottrell, Parks etc - but you’d be replacing them with this year’s equivalent of O’Shea and Mullett. Next year may be a better year to take a later pick or two because the state and junior leagues should be back to normal.
Our list isn’t perfect but I’m glad we didn’t cut any deeper than we did this time.