- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
AFL clubs and AFL fans were blessed and cursed in the 2009 draft.
If you are a Melbourne or Port Adelaide fan, you are most likely still feeling the curse. But if you don the sash, scream yellow and black or are looking for a three-peat, you can sleep well at night.
If you can guess where the likes of Nat Fyfe and Jack Gunston were drafted without cheating, I will be very impressed. I couldn’t do it.
Like the 2008 draft, it is too early to judge and rate these players according to their entire careers – most of them have only played five seasons. So instead I will be redrafting them based on their first years in the system, combined with their future stardom potential.
2009 draft
Pick 1: Tom Scully (Melbourne)
Pick 2: Jack Trengove (Melbourne)
Pick 3: Dustin Martin (Richmond)
Pick 4: Anthony Morabito (Fremantle)
Pick 5: Ben Cunnington (North Melbourne)
Pick 6: Gary Rohan (Sydney)
Pick 7: Brad Sheppard (West Coast)
Pick 8: John Butcher (Port Adelaide)
Pick 9: Andrew Moore (Port Adelaide)
Pick 10: Jake Melksham (Essendon)
Redrafted
Pick 1 (Melbourne) – Nathan Fyfe
Nat Fyfe is 90 kilograms and 190 centimetres of eliteness. He was astoundingly selected at pick 20 (let that sink in for a few seconds) by the Dockers in 2009. Fyfe has probably just overtaken Gary Ablett as the best player in the competition. He is already a superstar at just 23. He is almost unmatchable and unbeatable on the field.
Fyfe can destroy you in the midfield with his ball winning, ball efficiency and tackling. He can push forward and take a highlight grab and kick a few goals. Or, if that wasn’t good enough, he can be put down back to steady the tide. In just five seasons, he’s won two best and fairest awards at Fremantle, an All-Australian slot in 2014, as well as the ALFPA’s MVP, and came second in the Brownlow last year.
Did I mention he hasn’t even played 100 games yet? He’s averaging ridiculously scary numbers over his career – 25 disposals, five marks, four tackles and almost a goal a game.
Pick 2 (Melbourne) – Dustin Martin
‘Mr Don’t Argue’. Martin was the third overall pick in this draft, taken by the Tigers. Martin, like Fyfe, has been a star since his debut. He’s barley missed a game, playing 110 games and kicking 119 goals. Martin is dynamite. He is a lively midfielder who bulldozes through packs and can finish on the run, or by the snap, or through a snap shot. You get the point.
Martin is what they call a complete midfielder – because he can do it all. He almost left the Tigers for Greater Western Sydney a couple seasons back, but since then he has elevated himself to one of the most exciting, pulsating midfielders in the game. Twenty-three disposals, four marks, three tackles and a goal a game aren’t too bad career averages. Right?
Pick 3 (Richmond) – Daniel Talia
Let it be said, Richmond would be incredibly happy with their original selection and this is just a hypothetical (so don’t come at me Richmond fans). Daniel Talia is the best fullback in the game (Rance is a close second). Adelaide picked up a beauty with their 13th selection in 2009, adding a young, raw defender to their ageing back six.
Talia is level-headed, poised fullback who does his job each week, on the opposition’s best forward, without a fuss. He spoils, he marks and in 2013 he conceded an average of only one goal per game. Adelaide would be thrilled with the seamless transition from Ben Rutten to Talia in defence.
You get the feeling he’s a quiet achiever, so I’ll sing his praises. Rising Star Winner in 2012. Adelaide best and fairest winner in 2014. All-Australian in 2014. And only 78 career games. Wow.
Pick 4 (Fremantle) – Jack Gunston
‘Mr Set Shot’? Adelaide selected Gunston with their 29th pick in the 2009 draft. Or is ‘Mr Bargain’ more suited? After 14 games and some homesickness, Gunston was traded to the Hawks in 2012. And hasn’t he thrived since the move home. In 80 career games, Gunston has kicked 164 goals, 143 coming in the brown and gold.
Gunston is a smart footballer, who reads the play incredibly well and always seems to find space in the forward line. He’s deceivingly quick, but his trademark is his accuracy in front of goal. At Hawthorn, he’s averaged two goals a game, which is pretty impressive considering Hawthorn’s forward line. Gunston would be the ambassador for requesting a trade, life hasn’t been too bad for him – he’s now a double premiership player and will be an All-Australian in no time.
Pick 5 (North Melbourne) – Ben Cunnington
Well done North Melbourne, who absolutely hit the nail on the head with their draft pick in 2009. Cunnington has been a steady performer for the Roos since his debut, but has just only made himself known in the past two seasons. Cunnington isn’t flamboyant by any means, but he is a hard working, inside midfielder who will win the ball for his team. He will do everything he can to win the clearances and will tackle and apply pressure all day long.
Cunnington has now played 100 games and has transformed into one of North’s most important players. He’s numbers aren’t overwhelming, he’s averaged 18 touches and five tackles a game. However, he has only just hit his prime and will be a name we keep hearing for years to come. He reminds me of Luke Ball. Last season was his breakout year, he won North’s best and fairest.
Pick 6 (Sydney) – Jake Carlisle
Essendon drafted Carlisle with their 24th pick in this draft. He’s only played 70 games to date, but Carlisle is fast becoming one of the AFL’s most versatile and dynamic key position players. 2012 and 2013 were great seasons for Carlisle, like Talia, he probably over took Dustin Fletcher as the number one defender in the Bombers line-up. He was consistent and reliable on the last line of defence for Essendon.
However, in 2014, Bomber Thompson flicked the switch, and Carlisle became a permanent forward after small cameos in previous games. It was an up and down season as he adjusted to his new role, but Carlisle showed glimpses of brilliance and dominance in 2014. He kicked a respectable 27 goals for the season, including an eight-goal day out against the Bulldogs.
Carlisle, still very young, needs to assert himself in the forward line like he did in defence. He’s a great mark and I think that if he embraces his role as a forward he could lead Essendon (along with Joe Daniher) deep into the finals action.
Pick 7 (West Coast) – Tom Scully
The buzz around a number one draft pick will always be loud, but Scully hasn’t quite fulfilled the prestigious title. But in saying that, I do truly believe Scully can be a great midfielder. He controversially switched to GWS in 2012, leaving Melbourne fans in a rage. He’s on a $6 million contract but hasn’t played like it… yet.
I think GWS are on the way up and I think Scully will play a pivotal role in their rise. He’s a run and carry player with speed, composure and a pretty potent left foot. He’s been the club’s vice captain for the past few years, and will hit his 100th game milestone later this year. Though adversity and injuries have trumped his career so far, he has still managed to average 20 disposals, four tackles and three marks a game. I think he has a lot of unfulfilled, untapped potential that we are only starting to see glimpses of.
Pick 8 (Port Adeliade) – Sam Reid
Like Carlisle, Sam Reid is another of the up-and-coming versatile key position players in the game. Reid was taken at pick 38, by the Swans in 2009. Before Buddy Franklin and Kurt Tippett arrived, Reid was a promising young forward who was a great contested mark, could lead up to the ball and kick goals. However, in 2014, Reid transformed himself into more of an all-rounder type of player. He moved down back throughout the season to help Heath Grundy and Ted Richards (a position he will probably cement in a few years) as well as having stints in the ruck.
Reid is a physical, athletic player who needs a bit of polish, but in a few seasons time could dominate at either end of the ground. He’s played 78 games for 78 goals. I’m rating him very highly for such an inexperienced player, but that is because I can see how the Swans are trying to develop and use him, and I think he will flourish because of it. Also a member of Sydney’s 2012 premiership team.
Pick 9 (Port Adelaide) – Allen Christensen
Geelong drafted Christensen with their 40th overall selection in 2009. Christensen is young and inexperienced, but let me make my case. Beginning just his fifth AFL season, Christensen is a big-bodied, tough midfielder who loves the contest. He’s becoming a very good stoppage player, who can fish out the ball, tackle and provide run and carry. He is also an exciting small forward at times, and has kicked 59 career goals.
Christensen knows how to find the ball, averaging 19 disposals, four tackles and almost a goal a game over his career. He’s battled a few injury concerns but he is a clever, mature player who knows how to play this great game. He moved up to Brisbane this season, in what I think will be a career best, breakout year at the Lions. He will be a leader there and will blossom. I will also mention he is a premiership player with the Cats in their 2011 flag.
Pick 10 (Essendon) – Lewis Jetta
Sydney selected Jetta with their 14th draft pick in 2009. When Jetta is on, he is on. But when he is off, and it has been an occurrence throughout his career, he is way off. His inconsistency over his 105 games has played a role in him being redrafted Pick 10, and not Pick 5 for example.
Jetta is a live-wire, crowd favourite and provides Sydney with their run and carry, speed and skill when moving the ball forward. When firing, Jetta will break open the game with his electrifying run down the wing and finish with his damaging (at times) right boot, whether it be to hit a teammate on the chest or to kick an inspiring goal with an even better celebration.
Season 2012 was a great year for him, he led Sydney’s goal kicking (45 goals) and won a premiership, but since then he has sort of plateaued. I think he can get back to his 2012 best, but it has to come this season. There was a time when he was as dangerous as Cyril Rioli, Eddie Betts and Dale Thomas all at the same time. Needs to dig deep and bring it back.
My next three redrafted picks
Pick 11: Jake Melksham (originally Pick 10)
Pick 12: Ben Stratton (originally Pick 46)
Pick 13: Jack Trengove (originally Pick 2)
An underwhelming top ten has turned out to be quite an exciting future for the players drafted in 2009.
If you are a Melbourne supporter, you would have to be filthy, knowing that Nat Fyfe and Dustin Martin could be wearing the red and navy this season. Port Adelaide ‘butchered’ their two top ten picks, but the likes of Richmond, Essendon and Geelong are starting to reap the rewards of theirs in 2015.
Trengove and Anthony Morabito, without injury concerns, very well could have featured in the redrafted list.
So, did I get this right? Who would you redraft as the top ten picks in the 2009 draft?
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.