ALL Allies contingents descended on the Gold Coast for Round 6 of the 2023 Coates Talent League season, which featured a trio of one-sided results. We highlight a few of the top performers from each match in the latest edition of Scouting Notes.

GIANTS ACADEMY:

#23 Jackson Savage

A solid operator for the Giants Academy through all five Talent League outings, Savage reprised his usual role in defence on Saturday and ended up with the most kicks of any Giant (15). The left-footer distributed the ball long and shot, with much of GWS’ rebounding play going through him. He notched up five rebound 50s and stood tall on the last line in another heavy loss for the Giants.

#26 Jack Glanvill

Finishing on 19 disposals alongside Savage, Glanvill is another Giant whose consistency of effort made him one of his side’s more competitive players across each Talent League game. The midfielder is a decent size and capably wins his own ball, but set himself apart from other GWS ball winners on Saturday with his ability to get to the outside and drive the ball forward. He often went long by foot and was one of the more productive Giants on the day.

TASMANIA DEVILS:

#1 Liam Ling

There’s not much of Ling, but the 170cm bottom-ager is as gutsy as they come and shows next to no fear on the footy field. Plying his trade up forward and on the wing, he snared three goals from 18 touches and six marks in another hard-working performance. Ling contributed double efforts in the air and on the ground, showcasing good hops for a small and the speed typical of a player his size. He punches well above his weight and often came out on top in Round 6.

#3 Jack Callinan

A prospect who looks most effective when playing on instinct, Callinan did so to good effect on Saturday with three goals from 22 disposals. The National Academy member, fresh off a haul of seven, also got involved in several scoring chains as a creative force inside 50, where he looks most at home. Callinan also got a run through midfield and though his radar was a touch off when searching up the ground, he made few mistakes in open play close to goal.

#4 Geordie Payne

Payne has come into his own off half-back this season and returned another promising performance as his teammates largely did as they pleased up forward. The top-ager aggressively cut off several GWS attacks, swooping on the intercept and carrying his momentum into attacking transitions. He’s another Devil who loves to have a crack and on top of his impressive reading of the play, laid a couple of hard tackles on bigger opponents in his tally of three for the day.

#27 Colby McKercher

McKercher is putting together a fine season, as has been largely expected of the talented National Academy member. He started in midfield but also spent good chunks of time up forward, where he slotted two goals from five scoring shots. Leading all comers with 31 disposals, McKercher ran rampant and backed himself to waltz away from any opponent, though that sometimes invited pressure and got him caught. As players grew weary, his bursts of speed tore the Giants apart.

SUNS ACADEMY:

#7 Nelson Belkoff-Smart

A bottom-ager with serious class, Belkoff-Smart hardly wasted a possession down back en route to racking up 25 disposals and seven marks. His sharp kicking was a joy to watch and as usual, he formed a handy rebounding partnership with fellow under-ager Zeke Uwland. At 176cm, he’s a handy prospect in the small defender category who uses the ball with aplomb and can set up his side from behind the ball.

#12 Jake Rogers

It became very evident, very quickly that Rogers’ speed was in a different category altogether on Saturday. He was near-impossible to tie down at centre bounces and zipped off the mark to shark ground balls, before setting off onto the outside. The National Academy member accumulated a season-high 31 touches and was super clean with ball in hand, capping off a sparkling performance by kicking a goal from close range in term four.

#21 Will Graham

Both with and without the Suns’ National Academy members in the side, Graham has been a consistent figure in midfield and that was no different in Round 6. The big-bodied ball winner collected 22 touches and was typically clean in his distribution by hand, proving balanced in possession and difficult to halt. He also showcased his deceptive speed with a goal in the first quarter, receiving on the overlap and taking a bounce before his steady finish.

#30 Jed Walter

Walter took out Player of the Week honours in Round 6 and was simply unstoppable inside 50, booting 8.3 from 19 disposals and nine marks. He took full toll of a clear size advantage over multiple opponents, flying at the ball with full confidence and owning the space in front of him. He started like a house on fire with four goals in the opening term and six-straight to half time, doing largely as he pleased on the lead and worrying the opposition into conceding free kicks. His haul is now the biggest in season 2023 to date.

#33 Ethan Read

The tallest player afield, Read did his job aerially with a game-high 18 hitouts and eight marks in the ruck. He was arguably most impactful with his ability to clunk the ball around the ground, covering plenty of territory to drop back and intercept, using sheer reach to outdo all comers. Read also won a couple of his own clearances but the only thing which let him down was his kicking, missing a few passes and two opportunities to hit the scoreboard when resting forward.

NORTHERN TERRITORY ACADEMY:

#1 Orlando Turner

There were limited opportunities for Turner to showcase his dancing feet on Saturday, but that was certainly not for a lack of trying. The National Academy member rotated through midfield from his usual forward post and constantly looked to take the game on, even in the face of pressure. Turner’s best moment came in the fourth term, as he rose for a strong mark amid a sea of opponents inside 50 and converted his sole goal of the game.

#20 William Rowlands

Since coming into the side, Rowlands has assumed plenty of responsibility though midfield and was again the Thunder’s top ball winner with 20 touches. He snapped the first goal of the game within 90 seconds and was made to do a bit of grunt work around the ball, where the Suns largely won out. He would often have the second or last kick going forward and notched a goal assist for Turner in the final term.

#29 Waylon Davey

There is no denying Davey’s talent or pedigree and despite results going heavily against his side, the bottom-ager stood up to have a real crack on Saturday. Fearing no one and enjoying a bit of niggle, Davey snared two lovely goals on the run to show his class – both coming in the second quarter. He often looked to put pace on the ball and drive it long, notching five inside 50s from his 11 disposals. Davey was the NT’s lone multiple goalkicker.

LIONS ACADEMY:

#22 Owen Collins

Somewhat of a surprise packet for the Lions on Saturday, Collins slotted straight into the engine room off the back of four VFL outings in the maroon, blue and gold. He racked up 27 disposals – nine more than his next-best teammate – and immediately brought a touch of polish to Brisbane’s midfield. The over-ager was neat by foot but looked particularly adept by hand, able to draw opponents or flick the ball out wide to find teammates in space. His best moment came in term four, with a nice one-two passage on the run and effective kick to the wing.

#34 Patrick Snell

The Lions have a few handy talls in each third of the ground and Snell is one of them. The top-ager was utilised in defence having more often featured as a key forward, and fared well for 16 disposals and six rebound 50s. His marking is usually a strength, but Snell only took one for the day and did much of his intercept work off the deck, meeting the ball and competing hard to win it back for his side. At 194cm, he was also quite comfortable in possession.

SWANS ACADEMY:

#11 Indhi Kirk

Arguably the Swans’ best-performed player across their near-complete Talent League tenure, Kirk was again busy through midfield with 23 disposals and 10 tackles. The tough son of a gun looked lively in the early stages as he found exits in tight spots, before making good use of possession. Kirk’s smarts, evasiveness and spatial awareness were all on show, though he made a few uncharacteristic errors as the game wore on.

#23 Tye Gander

Having shown some promise as a marking forward, the 192cm Gander was trialled on a wing for Sydney to good degrees of success, notching 18 disposals, seven marks and a goal. He often worked his opponent over to accumulate possessions in the back half, helping the Swans set up their transitions. He eventually snuck forward for a goal in the third term though, converting his set shot after marking uncontested.

#27 Caiden Cleary

Cleary was his usual self on Saturday, burrowing in and under for a game-high 30 disposals and working hard to notch eight marks, four inside 50s, and three rebound 50s. The inside bull also laid eight tackles and impacted both ways from contest to contest. While relatively effective by hand, he was a touch less confident in his kicking and tended to favour the former method when disposing of the ball.

#34 Christian Webster

In his best performance for the season to date, Webster exuded plenty of confidence en route to registering 24 disposals, six marks and four rebound 50s. The 193cm over-ager looked dynamic, essentially playing as a rebounder with his ability to step past opponents, carry the ball and provide overlap run through the corridor. He was sometimes caught in two minds with ball in hand, but contributed defensively and provided the presence any good over-ager should.