Many argue that the job of the recruiting manager is the most important in the AFL. Unless I'm mistaken, all clubs expect, the person in charge of their recruiting has the job of delivering to the club players that will eventually win them a premiership.
Let's turn the spotlight on Simon Dalrymple, Recruiting Manager, of the Western Bulldogs. How well has he performed in his 5 years in this role at the club and whether he has delivered players that will form the nucleus of a premiership winning team. Surely that is enough time to decide whether his selections earn him an appraisal that warrants his retention in this critical role or not.
The following are Simon Dalrymple's selections at each respective draft since his appointment;
Father/Sons
Mitchell Wallis (pick 22, 2010)
Thomas Liberatore (41/2010)
Lachlan Hunter (49/2012)
I have intentionally highlighted & excluded father/sons from the following analysis as they are players we have had first access to. PLayers we have been able to monitor, access exclusively to other clubs (or as some say gifted to us) and form decisions well in advance of their recruitment.
The following focus's on Simon Dalrymple's live selections ;
In total
34 selections - 18 National Draft selections, 1 pre season draft selection & 15 rookie draft selections
2009 National Draft
15. Christian Howard
31. Jason Tutt
63. Lukas Markovic
76. Shane Thorne
Rookies
19. Brodie Moles
35. Andrew Hooper
48. Matthew Panos
59. Eddie Prato
68. Patrick Rose
2010 National Draft
74. Jayden Schofield
88. Zephaniah Skinner
89. Tom Hill
Rookies
22. Luke Dahlhaus
39. Jason Johannisen
55. Ed Barlow
70. Mitch Hahn
2011 National Draft
17. Clay Smith
39. Michael Talia
49. Daniel Pearce
57. Tory Dickson
Pre-Season Draft
11. Fletcher Roberts
Rookies
9. Lin Jong
27. Tom Campbell
45. Alex Greenwood
62. Jack Redpath
76. Mark Austin
2012 National Draft
5. Jake Stringer
6. Jackson Macrae
21. Nathan Hrovat
50. Joshua Prudden
Rookies
4. Brett Goodes
2013 National Draft
4. Marcus Bontempelli
42. Matthew Fuller
60. Mitch Honeychurch
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In the following discussion I would like to ackowledge the following;
Some selections, to my knowledge, may have been influenced by coaches (Eade or Macartney). Possibly including but not limited to;
RD 70. Mitch Hahn
ND 57. Tory Dickson
RD 27. Tom Campbell
RD 62. Jack Redpath
RD 4. Brett Goodes
Whether or not these players were recruited at the request of the coach or someone else in the football dept, the Recruiting Manager has the responsibility to argue the case, for or against, based on the players options he has to chose instead.
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Key Observations
* From the 09/10 drafts only 4 of 16 players remain listed, these are; Howard, Tutt, Dahlhaus & Johannisen.
- Only 1, Dahlhaus has established himself as a regular AFL player
- Only 1 player (Tutt) in the 2 national drafts was chosen from the elite national pathway. And he was from the 2nd tier competition.
- 3 of these are midgets (180cm or below) & 1 suburban footballer (Howard)
- Howard was chosen in the first round, ahead of players who were proven elite players recognised in the elite national pathway, including; Ben Griffiths, Nat Fyfe, Ryan Bastinac, Jake Carlisle, Aaron Black, Mitch Duncan, Jack Gunston, all proven players through the elite national pathway and/or state leagues
- Tutt was chosen ahead of others in the National Draft (ND) OR rookie draft (RD) including; Sam Reid, Allen Christensen, Nat Vardy, Ben Stratton, Jake Fitzpatrick, Taylor Duryea, Ben Howlett, Matthew Wright, Stewart Crameri, Levi Casboult, Matthew Jaensch, James Podsiadly,
Questions - On what basis was Howard chosen as the 15th best player in the country when he was deemed not good enough to play for his state at u/18 level, nor invited to the ND camp. or State camp?
- On what basis was Howard chosen ahead of even Tutt?
- On what basis was Schofield, Skinner and Hill chosen ahead of Dahlhaus when Dahlhaus was an excellent player for Vic country at u/18 level and the others did not play rep football that year.
* An inability to select Small Defenders – 8 have been chosen. These include; Howard, Tutt, Schofield, Johannisen, Pearce, Jong, Goodes, Fuller.
- None have established themselves as an AFL player
- Current mainstay small defenders in the team are Picken, Murphy, Wood, Higgins. All recruited previously
*
Midgets 10 in total - Tutt, Hooper, Schofield, Dahlhaus, Johannisen, Pearce, Greenwood, Fuller, Hrovat, Honeychurch
Here is some interesting information;
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/af...-1226650225771
* State League Recruits – 14 in total; Lukas Markovic, Shane Thorne, Brodie Moles, Eddie Prato, Pat Rose, Zeph Skinner, Ed Barlow, Mitch Hahn, Tory Dickson, Tom Campbell, Jack Redpath, Mark Austin, Brett Goodes, Matthew Fuller
- It is likely that all 14 will not make it as good AFL players
- Between the State League Recruits and the Midgets 23 out of 34 have been recruited almost 75% of Dalrymples recruits yet very few are likely to mske it as an AFL player
* Inability to Select Key Position Players;
- Only 4 Key forwards selected overall; Panos, Hill, Redpath & Roberts.
- Only key forward selected in the ND, Tom Hill at pick 89. Then 1 in the PSD & 2 in the RD.
- Only 2 ruckmen selected overall and both in the rookie draft (Prato & Campbell)
- Prato, a former basketballer, had hardly played any competitive football
- Only 1 key defender chosen (Talia) inside first 3 rounds of ND.
- Ovarall in 5 years only 1 KP player chosen in the first 2 rounds of the ND
- Current KP's Minson, Morris, Roughead all recruited previously with, aside from Talia, Jones and Cordy the next in line option
Other Observations
- No Players with genuine pace have made it
- No players with elite kicking skill have made it
- Since Mcartney became coach emphasis on the 1st round selections on larger midfield capable types (Smith, Stringer, Macrae, Bontempelli)
- Limited use of rookie list in Macartney era
I could add more but it's 3am and I've worried enough about the Dogs for one night. Make up your own mind about whether Simon Dalrymple will recruit the players the Bulldogs need to win a premierhip. I have.