Pagan on AW now

Doesn't regret recruiting recycled players. Alternative was picking kids in the 70's with 5% chance of playing 50 games.

and he's probably sick of being critisised left right and centre

thats strange, i thought they paid him to manage the side in the best way he can...and that involves recruiting....

Is he serious. Maybe one or two of the recycled players will play 50 games. I'm sick of Pagans lame arse post match comments.

and he doing a really good job there too...

obviously he feels we need much work on our list and is thereore throwing the games...seriously...who kicks 7 goals in the first quarter and manages 1 in the second half??? he would have told them to throw it at the half time break...unless it was just the caffine running out...

Pagan did what he had to when the draft picks were taken away.
I think the recruiting has been pretty good in the last few years. The long term view has been taken. We are not getting the benefit of it yet but the groundwork has been done.

Raso was a long term prospect and I like the idea of picking a very young player with heaps of physical development and upside left in him with a late pick.

Russell is a tall, skinny pacy skilled player. He will take longer than shorter stockier types with less improvement in them.

Hartlett is another who will take a few years but I am happy with what I have heard of him. He can play at either end and has real size.

The Irish boys have been a real positive but it is a long term decision to go with them. Aisake may very well play VFL seniors next year and Setanta will be playing AFL next year. Good on the club for doing it.

Walker is going to take longer than the smaller types like Sylvia and McLean. Has the attitude and desire we need. Does not drop his head and is very versatile.

Blackwell I am not so sure about. But he was only a 3rd round pick and has the skills and smarts. Question on his pace but lets wait and see.

Jesse Smith is showing plenty in the VFL and is very hard and a ball winner.

Simpson looked like he was going now where but is coming on now. Has pace and skills and still to light but is getting there. Seeems like a genuine wing man for the future.

Chris Bryan with a late pick and as a mature aged player jhas been a revelation. At worst a handy back up ruckman. Might even make it as a KPP with another pre season and some games and confidence.


Lets stop the trading for recycled guys from other clubs and keep going with the youth and the draft.

Take a look at the VFL where we picked Bryan and Adelaide got Hudson. Both 23 and 24 and ruckman who have shown a lot this year.
Look for another ruckman type in there. Draft a ruckman in the later riunds if the club feels Batson is not up to it and wait 5 years.

I know the drafting was shocking in the last 10 years. I just feel the club has had its hands tied with the penalties and has done pretty well in the regard with what we had to work with.

I wonder if Pagan recruited only kids from the draft, all at the high numbers that they would have been, you know the part of the draft were most club pass on their picks ... anyway, let's assume Denis did take a purely a youth approach in 2002-03 on draft day what would people be saying when half of them were playing in the twos with no sign of an AFL future and the other half were getting pulled apart every week by guys taller, stronger and fitter than them?

I'm not saying the recycled route was the best or only option, but I do think that under circumstances Pagan's philosophy was spot on. Let's face it you never actually know how any recruit is going to perform for the club until they actually get out on the field.

So yeah, if Pagan went solely with youth there is a chance they could have performed consistently at AFL level, but as mentioned I think Pagan's philosophy of a mixture of mature recycled players and kids was the right way to go. Martyn and Harford aside all of our recycled players would have been under 25 at the time of recruiting. We had no right to expect us to be picking up 10 year + players either way with the picks/selections we had. So let's judge Pagan's recruiting from when he has actually been able to embrace the draft to its fullest potential, ie 2004 and onwards.