A QUARTET of Murray Bushrangers headline our Coates Talent League Team of the Week for Round 3, after the country region’s 61-point win over the Giants Academy. Fellow victors GWV, Sandringham, Dandenong, and Eastern all contributed three players apiece after a seven-game Easter weekend extravaganza.

Check out who made the cut in our 24-player squad!

>> SNAPSHOT: Coates Talent League Round 3

DEFENCE

FB: Oscar Ryan (MB) – Connor O’Sullivan (MB) – Angus Hastie (GF)
HB: Archie Roberts (SD) – George Stevens (GWV) – Billy Wilson (DS)

The Murray Bushrangers are well represented overall this week, and make up a third of our hypothetical back line. Tall utility Connor O’Sullivan was swung to defence this week and fared well on the last line, while Oscar Ryan joins him after racking up 35 disposals.

There’s a strong country feel with Geelong Falcons top-ager Angus Hastie returning for another week, slotting in behind fellow rebounding ace Billy Wilson (Dandenong) and big-bodied Greater Western Victoria backman George Stevens. Sandringham gun Archie Roberts rounds out the six, having notched another 30-plus disposal game.

MIDFIELD

C: Joel Freijah (GWV) – Harley Reid (BP) – Jagga Smith (OC)
FOL: Joe Pike (GF) – Colby McKercher (TD) – Ryley Sanders (SD)

The midfield squeeze sees Oakleigh bottom-ager Jagga Smith feature on a wing this week having again starred in a loss, though a genuine outside midfielder in Joel Freijah balances things out on the opposite side.

In the guts, both Harley Reid and Colby McKercher earned starting berths after an entertaining battle at Arden Street Oval on Saturday, which Reid’s Pioneers took out convincingly. Ryley Sanders, another Tasmanian, finally gets into the starting 22 having put in another huge shift for Sandringham. Rucking to the trio is Geelong bigman Joe Pike, who took full advantage of his size advantage this week.

FORWARD

HF: Darcy Wilson (MB) – Clay Tucker (ER) – Will Brown (SD)
FF: Nick Watson (ER, c) – Ziggy Toledo (DS) – Joshua Murphy (MB)

There’s a good amount of goals in this week’s forward line, and a couple of top draft prospects to boot. Player of the Week Nick Watson could have slotted in at either end, but takes his spot in the forward pocket, while fellow National Academy member Darcy Wilson was impressive and joins him up on a flank.

Both have teammates among the attacking six. Murray’s Joshua Murphy booted three goals in a terrific first up performance, while Eastern ruck Clay Tucker‘s two goals qualify him for the centre half-forward slot. The latter has emerged as a strong mid-season draft candidate.

Elsewhere, the side is spearheaded by this week’s leading goalkicker, Ziggy Toledo. The Dandenong Stingrays over-ager was hard to beat inside 50, slotting six goals in his side’s win. Sandringham skipper Will Brown also features having booted three goals rotating from midfield.

INTERCHANGE

Cody Anderson (ER), Archer Day-Wicks (BP), Lachlan Charleson (GWV), Tom Hanily (GP), Nash King (CC), Cooper Simpson (DS)

EMG: Seb Amoroso (GP), Hugh Byrne (BP), Mahmoud Taha (CC)

As always, there’s some quality left on the bench and much of the interchange is made up by midfielders. The likes of Cody Anderson and Nash King represented next year’s crop strongly, as did Archer Day-Wicks for Bendigo.

Lachlan Charleson and Tom Hanily are a couple of nippy on-ballers to have caught the eye, while the quality of Dandenong co-captain Cooper Simpson is well known by now. Narrowly missing out this week were top ball winners like Sebastian Amoroso and Mahmoud Taha, in addition to Pioneers goalkicker Hugh Byrne.