2006 NAB AFL DRAFT |
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2006 NAB AFL Draft Page 5
Delistings and Additions
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Birss finds his feet at the Saints
New Saints player Shane Birss is settling into the Club and looking forward to the 2007 season. "It has been great so far, I am settling in really well and am excited about the approaching season" said Birss. St Kilda claimed the former Western Bulldogs midfielder in a trade that will see the Saints give up their fourth round selection (No.59) in the NAB AFL Draft to the Dogs. Birss is hoping to play a pivitol role in the Saints' midfield and cement himself as a valuable player for the team. "I'm aiming to play in the centre and help Harves and Bally out in the midfield" he said.
The Article Vanessa Gigliotti/saints.com.au/24Nov06
Michael lured to Bombers by O'Donnell
Essendon's new recruit Mal Michael says former Brisbane Lions assistant coach Gary O'Donnell convinced him to come out of retirement. The decision of the Lions' triple-premiership player to sign a two-year contract with the Bombers angered Brisbane officials who have threatened legal action to block the move. The AFL will investigate the shock signing with the Lions lodging an official complaint. Michael told the Brisbane-based club in October he no longer had the time and passion to play AFL football. But a conversation earlier this month with O'Donnell, now Essendon's assistant coach, helped change Michael's mind.
The Article ABCSport/24Nov06
Lions: Mal Michael won't be a Don Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/25Nov06
Lions' fury as Michael joins Dons Michael Gleeson/TheAgeRealFooty/25Nov06
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Only the best for Saints
St Kilda's veteran recruiting manager John Beveridge is not averse to making selections from 'left field' further down the draft, but at the top end he believes firmly in the maxim that you go for the best available. And that's precisely how it will be when Beveridge makes the call on the Saints' first selection - pick nine - at Saturday's 2006 NAB AFL Draft. Beveridge, who has overseen St Kilda's recruiting since 1994 after having started at Moorabbin as a development officer more than a decade earlier, understands that with only two selections inside the top 50 - nine and 27 - in what's being talked about as one of the strongest drafts ever, the Saints must make every post a winner. "It's a bit of an unwritten law that with your first pick you shouldn't pick for type, you should pick the player that you like that you think will go on and play a lot of AFL footy," Beveridge said.
The Article Angus Morgan
saints.com.au/21Nov06
Boys entering man's world
Run your eye over Tom Hawkins and you see a young man ready for the rigours of AFL football. Ready to play King Kong, actually. Much the same with Scott Gumbleton, another strapping youngster who also will be an AFL-listed player later today. Then there's Matthew Leuenberger, 203cm and 89kg. He will be up to 15kg heavier when he reaches his physical peak, yet he is so promising, he will be taken in the top five at today's national draft.
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/25Nov06
Tom Hawkins may have gone top
With the country's brightest talent fighting nerves and apprehension before this morning's national draft, one young man can rest easy. Tom Hawkins, considered good enough to go No. 1 if not for his father-son selection, will be taken by Geelong with the Cats' third round pick (No. 41). The 198cm forward showed his class at this year's under-18 national championships and was named the Division 1 best-and-fairest player before the likes of Bryce Gibbs and Matthew Leuenberger . . . AFL national talent manager Kevin Sheehan rated Hawkins among the top six players in the draft . . . WA prospect Scott Gumbleton met with Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy again yesterday. Gumbleton, who played 15 senior games with WAFL side Peel Thunder, is an attractive prospect for the Bombers after the club signed former Brisbane Lions full-back Mal Michael.
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/25Nov06
Brave new world - Travis Boak
Should the AFL draft take Travis Boak away, he will miss home and he will be missed. Last week, the teenager went to his high school valedictory dinner, with friends he has grown up with on the beach at Jan Juc. "They're all wondering what they'll be doing next year, so I'm a bit lucky in that way," Boak said. "I know what I'll be doing, hopefully. I just don't know where I'll be doing it." Boak can sense how much his 14-year-old sister, Cassie, looks up to him, and will miss being near her and his elder sister, Sarah. Then there is his mother, Chicki, such a devoted kick-to-kick partner that she injured her knee chasing after a loose ball this year, and had to have surgery. "She fell to the ground and Cassie and I were laughing, telling her to get up and stop having a rest," Boak said. "I suddenly thought: 'Uh oh . . . I'd better get over and help, here!'"
The Article Michael Gleeson/TheAgeRealFooty/25Nov06
Hawks my choice: Thorp
Tasmanian Mitchell Thorp has named Hawthorn and then the Brisbane Lions as his preferred AFL options, on the eve of Saturday's NAB AFL Draft. Thorp, a key forward/defender, said he was optimistic about being drafted in the top 10 and was hopeful the Hawks (No.6) or Lions (No.4) could snap him up. "Somewhere in the top 10 would be nice," Thorp said at AFL House on Friday. "Hawthorn would be my number one preference - they play in Tassie, so that'd be a good connection there to get back down there and play a few games."
The Article Sportal/saints.com.au/24Nov06
Draft difficult for Queenslanders: Riewoldt
Champion St Kilda forward Nick Riewoldt has warned of the difficulties confronting young Queenslanders taken in the AFL national draft tomorrow. AFL talent scouts are tipping between six and 13 Queenslanders will be selected in the draft held in Melbourne. Riewoldt is the only young player from this state to be taken as No. 1 draft pick, being snared by St Kilda in 2000 when the Brisbane Lions unsuccessfully tried to have the draft rules altered. The highest Queensland representation in the draft is six, taken last year. Riewoldt said the number of Queenslanders given chances by AFL clubs reflects the effort and resources spent by the code and was "sustainable".
The Article Bart Sinclair/CourierMail/24Nov06
Jarryd Allen
The waiting game has begun for Australian Football League (AFL) hopeful Jarryd Allen. After an outstanding second season in the elite under 18 TAC Cup competition, the 18-year-old Calder Cannon is counting down the days until 25 November - national draft day - when he will find out if his dream to play at the highest level comes true. After playing in the Cannons' losing grand final team at the MCG and finishing second in the club best and fairest, Allen was the sole member of his team to attend the draft camp this month at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. The camp, traditionally a breeding ground for future AFL talent, was a gruelling four-day test of physical skill and mental toughness. As well as competing against more than 70 of the most talented youngsters in the country, Allen also had to contend with fatigue and body soreness after playing in the TAC Cup grand final only nine days before the camp . . . During the evenings, players who were nominated by the clubs attended interviews, with Allen receiving seven requests . . . Allen achieved some outstanding results in testing, including a top-10 finish in the repeated 30 metre sprints.
The Article Adrian Ceddia/RoxburghParkCraigieburnStar/24Nov06
Millar has touch of D. Jarman magic
To be compared with Darren Jarman is one thing. But it takes on an entirely different meaning when it comes from his brother Andrew. That is the scenario for 17-year-old Zac Millar, whose natural flair has forced his Roosters coach to take a trip down memory lane. "There's a lot of D. Jarman in Zac Millar," Andrew Jarman said. "Just the way he moves and the way he uses the ball and that's why I didn't hesitate to play him in our (league) preliminary final. He produced some quality and class which you need in a game of footy" . . . Millar is hoping his current growth spurt is nearing an end. But if genes are anything to go by, he could be forced to change his game. "Dad is about 196cm believe it or not, so I must have got my genes from mum," Millar, 183cm and 84kg, said. "This year I've shot up and I wouldn't mind a couple of extra centimetres - but not too many."
The Article Zac Milbank/AdelaideAdvertiser/23Nov06
SaintBots Phantom Draft 'SaintBot' saintsational.com
J. Riewoldt with #9 ... or not? '2007' saintsational.com
Tippett sure to be snapped up in draft
Only two years ago, Miami young gun Kurt Tippett had never picked up a football and spent most of his time dunking basketballs. Now the former state basketball representative is only one day away from being drafted to an AFL club. The AFL national draft will be held tomorrow in Melbourne, and Tippett is seen by many as the best forward/ruckman combination player in the draft. The 19-year-old's development has been outstanding since turning his back on basketball, and he is only a day away from capping off an amazing transformation in just two short years. A modest Tippett says he is just hoping to be selected but there is nothing surer that the former All Saints student will be snapped up by the end of the second round.
The Article Nick Smart/GoldCoastBulletin/24Nov06
Nervous wait for draft hopefuls
Four Peel Thunder youngsters will hold their breaths this Saturday as they wait to see if their names are called at the AFL National draft. Danny Chartres, Brock O'Brien, James Hawksley and Kyle Reimers are all in the mix to be picked up by an AFL club with plenty of clubs showing interest in the foursome leading up to the draft in recent months. With the highly touted Scott Gumbleton tipped to be drafted in the top five, each said the pressure had been taken off them with all the attention on their 18-year-old teammate. Utility player Chartres enjoyed a strong second half to his second league season playing as a key defender and pinch-hitting ruckman and was a key factor in the Thunder's strong finish to the season . . . Chartres said he had spoken to Adelaide, Essendon and St Kilda but whether he would get drafted by one of these clubs was still up in the air.
The Article Mark Robinson/MandurahNews/22Nov06
Big is better in AFL draft
Saturday's national draft is set to put another nail in the coffin of short players around the country, as AFL clubs ignore talented rovers in preference for more versatile big men. Just a few players shorter than 180cm are likely to be selected, continuing a downward trend since 2002. The arrival of Chris Judd, Luke Hodge, Luke Ball and Nick Dal Santo saw clubs reassessing the type of player they drafted. Judd is 1cm taller than former champion Hawthorn full-forward Jason Dunstall. Fifteen of the 74 players selected in the 2001 national draft were shorter than 180cm, but that figure crashed to seven in 2002 and slipped to just five last year. Just six of the 14 short players drafted in 2003 and 2004 remain in the AFL and three of those now have their heights listed at above 180cm. In an ominous sign, only seven of the 74 players invited to the AFL draft camp were shorter than 180cm and four of them were 179cm. West Coast recruiting manager Trevor Woodhouse, who hasn't drafted a player under 180cm since Ashley Sampi in 2001, said it was difficult to justify picking smaller players.
The Article Craig O'Donoghue/WestAustralian/23Nov06
Wimmera hope for AFL draft
Football development leaders are confident the region will produce one of its highest number of AFL draftees in years at a national draft on Saturday. Football Victoria Wimmera development officer Geoff Burdett named North Ballarat Rebels' Tim Houlihan, Harrow, Justin Hardy, Stawell, and Matthew Tyler, Rupanyup, as the region's best chances. "I'm pretty confident Tim will go and I'm pretty sure Justin will get picked up. Matt is also a good chance," he said. "But there are no certainties with the draft, you never know what can happen on the day."
The Article WimmeraNews/22Nov06
Teen moves into relatively familiar territory
Mitch Thorp could speak for several hours about why he was born to play football. The Tasmanian teenager sometimes drops in on Brent Crosswell, the North Melbourne premiership player and local legend who is a cousin on his mother's side. He thinks. "He's a cousin . . . or a second cousin. Something like that," Thorp said. "He stays to himself, pretty much. He can't get out and about too much these days, but he's a good fella. I catch up with him when I can." Thorp is also related to former Demon and Eagle Andy Lovell, "somewhere on my dad's side", and sees another cousin, Craig Davis, when Nick's dad heads to Tasmania at Christmas. "He's a cousin to me. No, actually to my dad. Or to me. I don't really have any idea, but Craig's a great guy," Thorp said. "Me and Nick are a bit different, but that's OK. He's got a premiership, so he's done all right."
The Article Emma Quayle/TheAge RealFooty/21Nov06
Shaun's adventure
In the two years since he first touched an AFL footy, Brisbane's Shaun Hampson has been on quite a journey. On Saturday that journey will become an adventure. Hampson,18, is freely tipped to be picked up in the AFL national draft. Perhaps even as high as the top 30. It's a daunting time for teenage AFL footballers around Australia. They have no control over which club they will join. The opportunity to play senior AFL footy is incentive enough for these young men at this stage. But the reality is this is also the first step on what can be a financial windfall from football. In the first year the draftees are paid a minimum of $60,000, plus any relocation costs are returned. There is a payment of $3000 for any senior games played.
The Article Bart Sinclair/CourierMail/23Nov06
AFL to consider banning tackles to appease Irish
The AFL will consider the drastic step of removing tackling from the international rules games in a bid to placate the Irish and keep the series alive. AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou yesterday said the league would "explore all options", including reviewing tackling and tougher penalties for players who are reported, in a bid to preserve the series - suggestions backed by Collingwood president Eddie McGuire. Demetriou said that a different attitude to tackling had contributed to the "unacceptable" hostility that saw the second Test in Dublin "degenerate".
The Article Jake Niall and Caroline Wilson/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
AFL waves olive branch over Irish tackle shock Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/23Nov06
No free ride for top pick
Carlton's rising star Marc Murphy has warned Saturday's No. 1 draft pick that the tag of being the best young player in Australia is not a free ticket to automatic respect. Murphy, the first selection in the 2005 national draft, said the order in which a player was taken in the draft carried little weight when he arrived at an AFL club . . . Highly-rated South Australian midfielder Bryce Gibbs is expected to be named first. However West Australians Matthew Leuenberger, Scott Gumbleton and Victorian defender Lachlan Hansen are also highly-rated candidates.
The Article Rebecca Williams/HeraldSun/23Nov06
Murphy happy to handball his No. 1 draft mantle Emma Quayle/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
Sheedy future on ice - for now
Record-breaking Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy has told the Bombers he wants to coach beyond 2007. And the Bombers, under new chairman Ray Horsburgh, have told Sheedy his position won't be discussed until after the split-round next year -- his record 27th season at the helm. Both parties revealed their thoughts at a board meeting just days before Sheedy departed for Ireland with the international rules team.
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/23Nov06
AFL chief warns of player drain
Andrew Demetriou admits to a change of mind on the preferred minimum draft age. In simple terms, the AFL chief executive says the game can't afford the objective view he held while CEO of the players' association. "We are in a war for talented athletes," Demetriou said bluntly yesterday. "We want young athletes around Australia picking AFL football. We don't want them choosing cricket, soccer and rugby league because they can't get into AFL until they are 18. So it's a very, very important part of why we have kept the age the way it is."
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/23Nov06
Voss starts on path to coaching
Brownlow medallist Michael Voss may have retired but he is showing no signs of slowing down after being appointed an AIS-AFL Academy assistant coach yesterday. Voss has taken up a 12-month deal and will link with AIS-AFL Academy coach Alan McConnell and assistants Jason McCartney and Leon Harris "immediately" at their Telstra Dome base. The three-time premiership player recently drew the curtain on his successful 15-season AFL career at Brisbane.
The Article AAP/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
Voss to join AIS Daryl Timms/HeraldSun/23Nov06
Boys entering man's world
Run your eye over Tom Hawkins and you see a young man ready for the rigours of AFL football. Ready to play King Kong, actually. Much the same with Scott Gumbleton, another strapping youngster who also will be an AFL-listed player later today. Then there's Matthew Leuenberger, 203cm and 89kg. He will be up to 15kg heavier when he reaches his physical peak, yet he is so promising, he will be taken in the top five at today's national draft.
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/25Nov06
Tom Hawkins may have gone top
With the country's brightest talent fighting nerves and apprehension before this morning's national draft, one young man can rest easy. Tom Hawkins, considered good enough to go No. 1 if not for his father-son selection, will be taken by Geelong with the Cats' third round pick (No. 41). The 198cm forward showed his class at this year's under-18 national championships and was named the Division 1 best-and-fairest player before the likes of Bryce Gibbs and Matthew Leuenberger . . . AFL national talent manager Kevin Sheehan rated Hawkins among the top six players in the draft . . . WA prospect Scott Gumbleton met with Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy again yesterday. Gumbleton, who played 15 senior games with WAFL side Peel Thunder, is an attractive prospect for the Bombers after the club signed former Brisbane Lions full-back Mal Michael.
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/25Nov06
Brave new world - Travis Boak
Should the AFL draft take Travis Boak away, he will miss home and he will be missed. Last week, the teenager went to his high school valedictory dinner, with friends he has grown up with on the beach at Jan Juc. "They're all wondering what they'll be doing next year, so I'm a bit lucky in that way," Boak said. "I know what I'll be doing, hopefully. I just don't know where I'll be doing it." Boak can sense how much his 14-year-old sister, Cassie, looks up to him, and will miss being near her and his elder sister, Sarah. Then there is his mother, Chicki, such a devoted kick-to-kick partner that she injured her knee chasing after a loose ball this year, and had to have surgery. "She fell to the ground and Cassie and I were laughing, telling her to get up and stop having a rest," Boak said. "I suddenly thought: 'Uh oh . . . I'd better get over and help, here!'"
The Article Michael Gleeson/TheAgeRealFooty/25Nov06
Hawks my choice: Thorp
Tasmanian Mitchell Thorp has named Hawthorn and then the Brisbane Lions as his preferred AFL options, on the eve of Saturday's NAB AFL Draft. Thorp, a key forward/defender, said he was optimistic about being drafted in the top 10 and was hopeful the Hawks (No.6) or Lions (No.4) could snap him up. "Somewhere in the top 10 would be nice," Thorp said at AFL House on Friday. "Hawthorn would be my number one preference - they play in Tassie, so that'd be a good connection there to get back down there and play a few games."
The Article Sportal/saints.com.au/24Nov06
Draft difficult for Queenslanders: Riewoldt
Champion St Kilda forward Nick Riewoldt has warned of the difficulties confronting young Queenslanders taken in the AFL national draft tomorrow. AFL talent scouts are tipping between six and 13 Queenslanders will be selected in the draft held in Melbourne. Riewoldt is the only young player from this state to be taken as No. 1 draft pick, being snared by St Kilda in 2000 when the Brisbane Lions unsuccessfully tried to have the draft rules altered. The highest Queensland representation in the draft is six, taken last year. Riewoldt said the number of Queenslanders given chances by AFL clubs reflects the effort and resources spent by the code and was "sustainable".
The Article Bart Sinclair/CourierMail/24Nov06
Jarryd Allen
The waiting game has begun for Australian Football League (AFL) hopeful Jarryd Allen. After an outstanding second season in the elite under 18 TAC Cup competition, the 18-year-old Calder Cannon is counting down the days until 25 November - national draft day - when he will find out if his dream to play at the highest level comes true. After playing in the Cannons' losing grand final team at the MCG and finishing second in the club best and fairest, Allen was the sole member of his team to attend the draft camp this month at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. The camp, traditionally a breeding ground for future AFL talent, was a gruelling four-day test of physical skill and mental toughness. As well as competing against more than 70 of the most talented youngsters in the country, Allen also had to contend with fatigue and body soreness after playing in the TAC Cup grand final only nine days before the camp . . . During the evenings, players who were nominated by the clubs attended interviews, with Allen receiving seven requests . . . Allen achieved some outstanding results in testing, including a top-10 finish in the repeated 30 metre sprints.
The Article Adrian Ceddia/RoxburghParkCraigieburnStar/24Nov06
Millar has touch of D. Jarman magic
To be compared with Darren Jarman is one thing. But it takes on an entirely different meaning when it comes from his brother Andrew. That is the scenario for 17-year-old Zac Millar, whose natural flair has forced his Roosters coach to take a trip down memory lane. "There's a lot of D. Jarman in Zac Millar," Andrew Jarman said. "Just the way he moves and the way he uses the ball and that's why I didn't hesitate to play him in our (league) preliminary final. He produced some quality and class which you need in a game of footy" . . . Millar is hoping his current growth spurt is nearing an end. But if genes are anything to go by, he could be forced to change his game. "Dad is about 196cm believe it or not, so I must have got my genes from mum," Millar, 183cm and 84kg, said. "This year I've shot up and I wouldn't mind a couple of extra centimetres - but not too many."
The Article Zac Milbank/AdelaideAdvertiser/23Nov06
SaintBots Phantom Draft 'SaintBot' saintsational.com
J. Riewoldt with #9 ... or not? '2007' saintsational.com
Tippett sure to be snapped up in draft
Only two years ago, Miami young gun Kurt Tippett had never picked up a football and spent most of his time dunking basketballs. Now the former state basketball representative is only one day away from being drafted to an AFL club. The AFL national draft will be held tomorrow in Melbourne, and Tippett is seen by many as the best forward/ruckman combination player in the draft. The 19-year-old's development has been outstanding since turning his back on basketball, and he is only a day away from capping off an amazing transformation in just two short years. A modest Tippett says he is just hoping to be selected but there is nothing surer that the former All Saints student will be snapped up by the end of the second round.
The Article Nick Smart/GoldCoastBulletin/24Nov06
Nervous wait for draft hopefuls
Four Peel Thunder youngsters will hold their breaths this Saturday as they wait to see if their names are called at the AFL National draft. Danny Chartres, Brock O'Brien, James Hawksley and Kyle Reimers are all in the mix to be picked up by an AFL club with plenty of clubs showing interest in the foursome leading up to the draft in recent months. With the highly touted Scott Gumbleton tipped to be drafted in the top five, each said the pressure had been taken off them with all the attention on their 18-year-old teammate. Utility player Chartres enjoyed a strong second half to his second league season playing as a key defender and pinch-hitting ruckman and was a key factor in the Thunder's strong finish to the season . . . Chartres said he had spoken to Adelaide, Essendon and St Kilda but whether he would get drafted by one of these clubs was still up in the air.
The Article Mark Robinson/MandurahNews/22Nov06
Big is better in AFL draft
Saturday's national draft is set to put another nail in the coffin of short players around the country, as AFL clubs ignore talented rovers in preference for more versatile big men. Just a few players shorter than 180cm are likely to be selected, continuing a downward trend since 2002. The arrival of Chris Judd, Luke Hodge, Luke Ball and Nick Dal Santo saw clubs reassessing the type of player they drafted. Judd is 1cm taller than former champion Hawthorn full-forward Jason Dunstall. Fifteen of the 74 players selected in the 2001 national draft were shorter than 180cm, but that figure crashed to seven in 2002 and slipped to just five last year. Just six of the 14 short players drafted in 2003 and 2004 remain in the AFL and three of those now have their heights listed at above 180cm. In an ominous sign, only seven of the 74 players invited to the AFL draft camp were shorter than 180cm and four of them were 179cm. West Coast recruiting manager Trevor Woodhouse, who hasn't drafted a player under 180cm since Ashley Sampi in 2001, said it was difficult to justify picking smaller players.
The Article Craig O'Donoghue/WestAustralian/23Nov06
Wimmera hope for AFL draft
Football development leaders are confident the region will produce one of its highest number of AFL draftees in years at a national draft on Saturday. Football Victoria Wimmera development officer Geoff Burdett named North Ballarat Rebels' Tim Houlihan, Harrow, Justin Hardy, Stawell, and Matthew Tyler, Rupanyup, as the region's best chances. "I'm pretty confident Tim will go and I'm pretty sure Justin will get picked up. Matt is also a good chance," he said. "But there are no certainties with the draft, you never know what can happen on the day."
The Article WimmeraNews/22Nov06
Teen moves into relatively familiar territory
Mitch Thorp could speak for several hours about why he was born to play football. The Tasmanian teenager sometimes drops in on Brent Crosswell, the North Melbourne premiership player and local legend who is a cousin on his mother's side. He thinks. "He's a cousin . . . or a second cousin. Something like that," Thorp said. "He stays to himself, pretty much. He can't get out and about too much these days, but he's a good fella. I catch up with him when I can." Thorp is also related to former Demon and Eagle Andy Lovell, "somewhere on my dad's side", and sees another cousin, Craig Davis, when Nick's dad heads to Tasmania at Christmas. "He's a cousin to me. No, actually to my dad. Or to me. I don't really have any idea, but Craig's a great guy," Thorp said. "Me and Nick are a bit different, but that's OK. He's got a premiership, so he's done all right."
The Article Emma Quayle/TheAge RealFooty/21Nov06
Shaun's adventure
In the two years since he first touched an AFL footy, Brisbane's Shaun Hampson has been on quite a journey. On Saturday that journey will become an adventure. Hampson,18, is freely tipped to be picked up in the AFL national draft. Perhaps even as high as the top 30. It's a daunting time for teenage AFL footballers around Australia. They have no control over which club they will join. The opportunity to play senior AFL footy is incentive enough for these young men at this stage. But the reality is this is also the first step on what can be a financial windfall from football. In the first year the draftees are paid a minimum of $60,000, plus any relocation costs are returned. There is a payment of $3000 for any senior games played.
The Article Bart Sinclair/CourierMail/23Nov06
AFL to consider banning tackles to appease Irish
The AFL will consider the drastic step of removing tackling from the international rules games in a bid to placate the Irish and keep the series alive. AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou yesterday said the league would "explore all options", including reviewing tackling and tougher penalties for players who are reported, in a bid to preserve the series - suggestions backed by Collingwood president Eddie McGuire. Demetriou said that a different attitude to tackling had contributed to the "unacceptable" hostility that saw the second Test in Dublin "degenerate".
The Article Jake Niall and Caroline Wilson/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
AFL waves olive branch over Irish tackle shock Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/23Nov06
No free ride for top pick
Carlton's rising star Marc Murphy has warned Saturday's No. 1 draft pick that the tag of being the best young player in Australia is not a free ticket to automatic respect. Murphy, the first selection in the 2005 national draft, said the order in which a player was taken in the draft carried little weight when he arrived at an AFL club . . . Highly-rated South Australian midfielder Bryce Gibbs is expected to be named first. However West Australians Matthew Leuenberger, Scott Gumbleton and Victorian defender Lachlan Hansen are also highly-rated candidates.
The Article Rebecca Williams/HeraldSun/23Nov06
Murphy happy to handball his No. 1 draft mantle Emma Quayle/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
Sheedy future on ice - for now
Record-breaking Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy has told the Bombers he wants to coach beyond 2007. And the Bombers, under new chairman Ray Horsburgh, have told Sheedy his position won't be discussed until after the split-round next year -- his record 27th season at the helm. Both parties revealed their thoughts at a board meeting just days before Sheedy departed for Ireland with the international rules team.
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/23Nov06
AFL chief warns of player drain
Andrew Demetriou admits to a change of mind on the preferred minimum draft age. In simple terms, the AFL chief executive says the game can't afford the objective view he held while CEO of the players' association. "We are in a war for talented athletes," Demetriou said bluntly yesterday. "We want young athletes around Australia picking AFL football. We don't want them choosing cricket, soccer and rugby league because they can't get into AFL until they are 18. So it's a very, very important part of why we have kept the age the way it is."
The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/23Nov06
Voss starts on path to coaching
Brownlow medallist Michael Voss may have retired but he is showing no signs of slowing down after being appointed an AIS-AFL Academy assistant coach yesterday. Voss has taken up a 12-month deal and will link with AIS-AFL Academy coach Alan McConnell and assistants Jason McCartney and Leon Harris "immediately" at their Telstra Dome base. The three-time premiership player recently drew the curtain on his successful 15-season AFL career at Brisbane.
The Article AAP/TheAgeRealFooty/23Nov06
Voss to join AIS Daryl Timms/HeraldSun/23Nov06