What most fans will acknowledge as our greatest positive from the early round of games is the encouraging form from a crop of inexperienced players, who most notably played a crucial role in Friday’s triumph.
Tony Armstrong, originally hailing from New South Wales, was one of the best players on ground. The lively character, taken at pick 58 in the 2007 Draft, is yet to make his debut in the big time and has spent the past two years developing in the SANFL with North Adelaide.
He can play on the wing or a half back flank and has recently shared kick in duties with his teammates. He has pace to burn and his agility is one of his best assets. You can count on him to reel in a mark and his disposal has improved during his development years. I’m guessing he won’t have much longer to wait to play his first AFL match.
Another player taken in the 2007 Draft, this time at pick 38, who has stepped up a notch this pre season is Myke Cook. He made an impressive entrance into the AFL for the team he grew up supporting, and now plays for, at the MCG in round 1 last year against Collingwood. He played only two more games for the Crows in 2009 and has battled hamstring injures in the past.
There’s something exciting about ‘Cookie’. Like Armstrong he’s fast and agile but spends most of his playing time in the midfield. He doesn’t shy away from taking the opposition on but his foot skills sometimes let him down. He showed off some flair against the Blues and has put his name into contention for a spot in our opening game against Fremantle.
Third on my list of impressive pre season youngsters is Rory Sloane. The 19 year-old, who will be celebrating his 20th birthday on Wednesday, had a sample of AFL action last year against the Hawks where he failed to record a kick at senior level. His tackling and intensity however was sensational.
Its hard not to love a real nuggetty hard-at-it player and Sloane is exactly that. He seems to thrive at the bottom of a pack on top of the footy and shows no fear diving head first into one. The well-spoken lad will slot into our midfield, sooner or later, and is bound to cause further widespread confusion amongst commentators with golden locks.
Lastly I’d like to mention the pint-sized Jared Petrenko. With a career total of nine AFL games he is the most experienced of the aforementioned few. He has also arguably worked the hardest after bouncing back from a shoulder reconstruction early in his career and earning an elevation off the rookie list in 2008.
The natural defender has found a nous for goal kicking with the Crows and has shown further versatility in the midfield. With a bag of tricks to compliment his evasiveness Petrenko could be the perfect addition to Tippett’s ankles. He’s pencilled in as a round 1 starter in my book.
What has to impress me the most about this emerging four is the fact they were all mid-range draft picks or above. Their development so far has been exceptional and continues to appear encouraging.
We have a lot to anticipate and look forward to as fans of the Adelaide Football Club and this year looks set to be a ripper.
