DEVIL DRAFT ALERT

Tassie young guns need TSL up and running to impress scouts

TASMANIA’S best young players urgently need the TSL to start if they are to have any chance of being picked up in this year’s AFL Draft, says a former AFL recruiter.

With the NAB League cancelled because of the coronavirus shutdown, the draft-age players in the Tasmanian Devils’ under-18 team now have only the State League to showcase their talents to AFL recruiters.

Devils players such as strong-marking forward Jackson Callow, who is a premiership player for North Launceston, Clarence inside midfielder Oliver Davis and dashing North Hobart defender Sam Collins must make their mark in the limited opportunities a proposed 12-game TSL season will offer.

Former Adelaide talent scout Brett Geappen, who lost that job in the AFL industry’s COVID-19 crisis, warned that smaller AFL team lists would make it harder to get drafted.

“Smaller lists means less opportunities,” Geappen said.

Last year, 107 new players joined AFL ranks through the National Draft, Rookie Draft, Category B Rookie Program, Mid-Season Draft and preseason supplemental selection period.

In 2018, 126 new players joined the AFL ranks through the same channels.

“The gun players will always get drafted,” Geappen said.

“It’s certainly going to be tough for guys on the fringe or at the back end of a normal draft.

“No NAB League puts extra focus on the TSL. Recruiters will definitely look more to state leagues for the draft this year. If the TSL gets up and running, the guys who were earmarked for the draft will be watched at TSL level rather than in the NAB League to get their exposure.”

Geappen said it could also advantage older players.

“They might look for more players in the VFL and state league clubs because, at 20, they know what players are like, rather than getting them on a list for a couple of years and seeing how they develop,” he said.

“Whereas by 20 or 21 you’ve got a better idea what they are going to be like.”

The TSL season, which was originally scheduled to start on April 4, is now likely to be a shortened 12-round roster, though no dates have been confirmed.