A number of draft hopefuls had their chance to shine yesterday at the NAB AFL Draft Combine at Wesley College.
The 27 WA athletes were put through their paces via agility, jumping and sprinting tests, with many AFL clubs interested onlookers.
An afternoon at the track saw players partake in a 2km time trial at the WA Athletics Track, with East Fremantle midfielder Corey Warner taking it out with a time of 6.20 minutes.
Son of a gun Taj Woewodin was impressive throughout the 20m sprint with two times under three seconds, while big man Luke Polson recoded the second quickest time of 2.9 seconds.
Swans half-back Bryce Watson moved sharply during the agility test to record 8.00 seconds, while Subiaco utility Matt Johnson and South Fremantle small Jesse Motlop had similar impact.
Warner continued his strong form with top heights in the standing jump (76cm), running right-hand jump (100cm) and running left-hand jump (92cm – second).
WAFC Talent Manager Adam Jones described the group as “fantastic”, with many tipped to find homes at AFL clubs in November.
“We’ve got a fantastic group this year with a great amount of depth and hopefully the draft number is a bit higher than what we’re hearing,” Jones said.
“The number that we’re hearing for the national draft is around 55-60 and I’m hopeful that we’ll have 10-15 (WA players).
“We’re going to have players throughout the entire draft and I think around 3-6 potential first-rounders, depending on what clubs have got.
“We should have a really good contingent from WA this year and I feel like it’s an even group.”
The AFL Draft will take place over November 24 & 25 on Fox Footy and AFL platforms.
RESULTS (TOP 3)
20m sprint:
T. Woewodin - 2.89 sec
L. Polson - 2.9 sec
N. Pegoraro - 2.92 sec
Agility:
B. Watson - 8.00 sec
M. Johnson - 8.061 sec
J. Motlop - 8.063 sec
2km TT:
C.Warner - 6.20 min
A. Jones - 6.30 min
M. Johnson - 6.39 min
B. Watson - 6.39 min
Standing:
C. Warner - 76cm
N. Pegoraro - 75cm
L. Paton - 73cm
Running R:
C. Warner - 100cm
J. Stretch - 88cm
R. Farmer - 84cm
Running L:
J. Stretch - 93cm
C. Warner - 92cm
N. Pegoraro - 92cm