Northern Knights Talent Manager Rhy Gieschen gives his thoughts on the club's upcoming NAB League Boys season.

2018 FINISH: 10th (7-9-1 record)

2018 BEST AND FAIREST: 1. Josh D'Intinosante / 2. Braedyn Gillard / 3. Adam Carafa

2018 TEAM OF THE YEAR SELECTIONS: Tom McKenzie

2018 AFL DRAFTEES: Justin McInerney (Sydney), Tom McKenzie* (North Melbourne)

OTHER FORMER PLAYERS ON AFL LISTS:

  • Selected in 2003: Heath Shaw (Collingwood/GWS) 173/109 games
  • 2007: Matthew Kreuzer (Carlton) 173, Trent Cotchin (Richmond) 220
  • 2008: Michael Hurley (Essendon) 160, David Zaharakis (Essendon) 187
  • 2009: Dylan Grimes (Richmond) 127
  • 2010: Josh Caddy (Gold Coast/Geelong/Richmond) 24/71/44
  • 2011: Billy Longer (Brisbane/St Kilda) 9/56, Jack Newnes (St Kilda) 135, Dylan Buckley (Carlton/GWS) 39/2
  • 2012: Nick Vlastuin (Richmond) 117, Aidan Corr (GWS) 75, Nathan Hrovat (Western Bulldogs/North Melbourne) 30/34
  • 2013: Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs) 104
  • 2014: Kyle Langford (Essendon) 47, Jayden Short* (Richmond) 56, Jason Castagna* (Richmond) 52
  • 2015: Jade Gresham (St Kilda) 62, Brayden Fiorini (Gold Coast) 26, Brayden Sier (Collingwood) 12, Darcy Macpherson* (Gold Coast) 17
  • 2016: Patrick Lipinski (Western Bulldogs) 18
  • 2017: Nick Coffield (St Kilda) 10, Patrick Naish (Richmond) 0, Jack Petruccelle (West Coast) 3

2019 AFL ACADEMY:

  • Level 2 (18yo): Adam Carafa, Ryan Gardner, Lachlan Potter, Ryan Sturgess
  • Level 1 (17yo): Ben Major

2019 HEAD COACH: Justin Wenke (third season)

2019 SEASON START: vs Western Jets @ IKON Park, Sunday March 24 

TOP 2019 AFL DRAFT PROSPECTS

Ryan Gardner (local club – Montmorency): "Ryan basically missed two whole years of football in his under-15 and under-16 seasons with stress fractures in his foot. Last year he had a flawless pre-season and his first half of the season was sensational, which earned him a game in the Vic Metro under-18 side. He's a classy midfielder/half back with good pace and a good sidestep. He also uses the ball really well and makes smart decisions."

Ryan Sturgess (St Mary's): "Ryan played across half back for us for pretty much all of 2018. He was in our leadership group and actually captained the side one day as a bottom-ager, which speaks highly of his leadership ability. He's a modern half back – he's 190cm tall with good speed off the mark and he kicks the ball very well. His intercepting and rebound play are his main attributes."

Adam Carafa (Banyule): "Adam missed his whole under-16 season with a shoulder reconstruction and then came third in our best-and-fairest last year despite playing only 11 games. He showed how classy he is as a strong-bodied midfielder who thrives on contested ball and is really clean in the contests. His point of difference is that he can go forward and be quite a handful as well."

Lachlan Potter (South Morang): "Lachlan might be the quickest player in the competition. He has one of the most electric turns of foot I've ever seen. He's a classic run-and-carry half-back flanker who's not afraid to take the game on, and in every match he seems to do some eye-catching things with his speed. Spectators will have some fun watching him this year."

Josh D'Intinosante (West Preston): "Josh won our best-and-fairest last year as a bottom-ager and just wills himself into every game. He plays with a great mix of determination and courage but also has natural talent. He's 175cm tall and can go through the midfield but will also spend a fair bit of time playing as a small forward. He's strong in the contests and is a classy, one-touch player around goals with elite forward pressure."

POTENTIAL DRAFT SURPRISE PACKETS

Sam Philp (St Mary's): "Sam finished fourth in our best-and-fairest last year. He lost about six weeks in the middle part of the year with a broken hand and then finished the season basically carrying our midfield as a bottom-ager along with Adam Carafa. He's a strong-bodied midfielder with an explosive burst of pace who will always be in and under winning clearances and getting the ball to our outside players."

Nathan Howard (Greensborough): "Nathan is a 200cm ruckman from a basketball background. He played six games in the second half of last season for us and showed great potential. He has improved again over the pre-season and has started well in our practice matches, so we're bullish about his prospects this year".

BOTTOM-AGER TO WATCH

Nikolas Cox (Montmorency): "Nik stands 199cm but he's probably likely to play on the wing or off half back. He came second in our 2km time trial, he kicks the ball really well both feet and has great movement and game awareness for a tall. He also has really high football IQ but is still developing and will need to continue putting on size. We think he's a pretty exciting prospect."

LEADERSHIP MATERIAL

"Ryan Gardner (see above) and Ryan Sturgess (see above) were both in the leadership group last year and they've been showing their leadership on the training track this pre-season, while Lucas Perry (18yo in 2019, Northcote Park) is returning from missing all of last year with a shoulder injury and he's had a quality pre-season. Jackson Davies (18yo, St Mary's) is another who shows his leadership through his determination and effort on the field and in training. We're fairly blessed with a proactive group that can spread the load with leadership this year."

FAMOUS FOOTBALL RELATIONS

Ewan Macpherson (17yo, Diamond Creek): Son of former AFL player Stephen Macpherson – 188 games for Western Bulldogs – and brother of current AFL player Darcy Macpherson – 17 games for Gold Coast.

Mackenzie Hogg (17yo, Research): Son of former AFL player Matthew Hogg – 59 games for Western Bulldogs/114 for Carlton.

Xavier Naish (18yo, Ivanhoe): Son of former AFL player Chris Naish – 143 games for Richmond/18 for Port Adelaide – and brother of 2017 Richmond AFL draftee Patrick Naish.

Aaron Castagna (18yo, Marcellin Old Collegians): Brother of current AFL player Jason Castagna – 52 games for Richmond.

Adam Carafa (see above): Son of former AFL player Tony Carafa – 16 games for Fitzroy.

TEAM STRENGTHS

"I think we'll be pretty exciting with our rebound from defence and our desire to run and carry and take the game on, but I also think we have some good strong-bodied inside midfielders. Hopefully we can match the opposition at stoppages and then get it to our good ball-users on the outside."