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November 27th and 28th looms as a big day for many draft hopefuls and the boys at Gippsland Power are no exception.

The following are draft profiles for those players fancied to be picked up in this year’s draft:

CALEB SERONG

Touted as one of the top prospected behind the obvious Oakleigh Chargers’ duo, Caleb Serong is one of the more well-rounded players in the AFL Draft crop, with very few glaring areas of improvement. The biggest upside for the 178cm midfielder/forward is the areas he could improve on are more easily doable compared to other players. Among his list of strengths in his game is his clean hands, footy IQ, clearance ability and strength, while his consistency and competitiveness is up there with Matt Rowell despite heading into the AFL Draft somewhat underrated – if that is possible from a potential top three pick. The areas that Serong can improve are his kicking under pressure – which has developed over the course of the season – his on-field emotion – which while good at times can also be a hindrance – and his size – which while his height will not change too much, he can still improve his muscle tone. Overall though, Serong is one of the more complete packages in the AFL Draft this year.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

SAM FLANDERS

A player with plenty of upside and some readymade attributes is Sam Flanders, a Gippsland Power talent who can fulfil the role as a dangerous forward or a damaging inside midfielder. In his bottom-age year, Flanders spent the majority of his time as a goalkicking forward, booting 19.19 from 12 games, before moving into a midfield role this year, but resting forward in bursts, booting 13.5 from the same amount of games. His attributes lend themselves to moving into this role at AFL level, with the potential top 10 pick able to explode out of a stoppage, give off a clean handball, or get forward and beat his opponent one-on-one in the air or at ground level. He showed during the finals series – most notably against Oakleigh Chargers in the qualifying final – that he is capable to winning the game off his own boot, slamming home four goals in a quarter to help his side to the lead at the main break, but it also showed an area of improvement – his four-quarter consistency which does come in and out of games with him being dominant at his best, and ineffectual during quiet periods. Overall, Flanders is a player with serious X-factor and strength that he applies both inside and up forward.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

CHARLIE COMBEN

Arguably the second best ruck option in the 2019 AFL Draft crop, Comben has some nice athletic traits which he puts to good use rotating between the ruck and key forward. Standing at almost 200cm, Comben is more mobile than most his size, and more importantly, can have just as big of an impact at ground level as he can in the air. He is strong overhead, good at ruck stoppages and has a nice vertical leap. He still has to work on his endurance and consistency within games to take his development to the next level, but that is not a surprise considering taller players traditionally take longer to develop.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

BROCK SMITH 

Every team needs a reliable defender and leader who will not leave anything out on the park and bleed for the jumper. No player exemplifies that more than Gippsland Power’s Brock Smith. The Power defender has all the traits of playing a lockdown third tall role who can also nullify smaller players, while providing some offensive run out of the back half. In his bottom-age year, Smith was predominantly a lock-down defender who consistently made life difficult for his opposing forward. In 2019, he started in a similar role, but was unleashed mid-season where he picked up more than 20 touches in seven consecutive games between Rounds 5-17 either side of the National Under-18 Championships. While Smith is not the most athletic player in terms of his speed or agility, he makes up for that in his footy smarts one-on-one and his ability to play any role thrown at him.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

RILEY BALDI

One of the smarter stoppage midfielders who will likely be a later draft choice in the 2019 AFL Draft is Riley Baldi, whose stoppage nous, footy IQ and work rate are among his strengths that he can offer to an AFL club at the next level. What Baldi showed this year, is an ability to return from injury and have an impact not only through midfield, but also up forward. He can play inside and outside making him a balanced midfielder, because of his ability to spread from the contest to the wings, and then rest forward for stints to try and impact the scoreboard. While his strengths make him a valuable prospect, his athleticism, endurance, size and kicking consistency still needs improving, which are reasons why he is likely to be a later draft choice this year.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

LEO CONNOLLY

A clever outside ball user, Connolly has the right traits to play that running game in transition with nice skills, speed and a willingness to take the game on. He is set on building more of an inside game which will come with strength and also more resistance to opposition pressure which can sometimes impact his decision making. Averaged 65.7 per cent by foot but just 27 per cent was contested. Connolly has plenty of nice moves on the football field, able to use his speed to advantage when coming off half-back or along the wing which helps his versatility. At just 74kg he is still quite light, but his smarts and creativity in trying to open the game up for his teammates is important. While at times he can make mistakes, he always throws himself a challenge in the game trying to win the ball and gain as many metres as he can, to open up the field for his teammates. In 2019, Connolly almost doubled his disposal average from 11.5 to 20.0, while moving from one tackle to two – though it is still an improvement, but more importantly, averaging 4.6 rebounds per game.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

FRASER PHILLIPS

Photo by George Salpigtidis/AFL Photos/Getty Images)

One of the more underrated players with the highest upside is Phillips, a medium forward from Gippsland Power who can play both deep and high forward roles. While his consistency can be an area of improvement, as well as a number of factors within his game, the upside for the 187cm forward. At 72kg, Phillips has plenty of time to grow into his body and put more size on, as well as build greater endurance, but the X-factor, upside, penetrating kick and scoreboard impact that Phillips can have whenever he goes near the ball or throughout games is very exciting for a club looking at a long-term forward development. He will not be a season one type player, but is the kind that clubs will look at for a few seasons down the track with the right development.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

HARRISON PEPPER

Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos via Getty Images

One of Hawthorn’s Next Generation Academy players, Pepper enjoyed a role change in 2019, moving from attack to defence and representing Vic Country this year. He has great competitiveness and hates to be beaten, with good speed and the versatility to play in multiple positions. His kicking can be a worry at times, and he still needs to build endurance, but Pepper has a hard edge to his game. The fact Pepper takes the game on when coming off half-back is a positive and with a 2.95-second 20m sprint, he has the great combination of speed and power to break through opposition tackles charging down the field. Hawthorn have been closely monitoring his progress and his change in role this season was aimed for him to play a similar game to the Hawks’ young defender Blake Hardwick who like Pepper, transitioned from forward to defence. While he knows his improvements, his strengths are also attractive to an AFL club.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

JOSH SMITH

Photo source: NAB League

A big-bodied forward/ruck, Smith is undersized for a ruck at AFL level so will likely end up predominantly as a forward, who can pinch-hit in the ruck. Smith’s best traits are his contested marking and physicality, regularly booting goals and providing a presence inside 50. When he is not clunking marks, he is bringing the ball to ground, but has a lot of athletic areas to work on going forward. In recent times bigger-bodied athletes who do not have the athleticism have not been in vogue to be drafted unless they are a starting ruck, but Smith has more smarts than a lot and it shows in the way he impacts a contest. It is also worth noting Smith has cut back 5kg since the start of the year to be as fit as possible by years-end. He is never going to run a sub-three second 20m sprint, but he offers a contest and consistently hits the scoreboard with a strong presence in the air and at ground level.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

RYAN SPARKES

Photo by Graham Denholm/AFL Photos via Getty Images

A hard working winger with great competitiveness, Sparkes just keeps running throughout games despite not possessing top-end speed. He takes the game on and generally uses the ball pretty well, finding space around the ground to average 63.5 per cent by foot from 37.3 per cent contested. He has to build his inside game, but really improved this season with his work rate on show. While he is predominantly an outside ball winner, given his body size of 82kg, Sparkes has the capability of going inside, and his competitive nature lends to this. In 2019, Sparkes earned a spot with Vic Country and that helped propel him into draft calculations, not looking out of place and playing all four games for an average of 16.5 touches and 4.3 marks. Overall he is more of a late/rookie prospect, bu someone who provides good run, even if it is not break-neck speed.

For more visit Aussie Rules Draft Central

Aussie Rules Draft Central

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