SOUTH Australian Under 18 MVP Sid Draper continues to go from strength to strength in his bottom-age season, after another promising performance in his second senior SANFL game. The South Adelaide midfielder had 21 disposals and six clearances as his Panthers went down to Sturt on Sunday.

It comes after Draper, the younger brother of Collingwood’s Arlo, was a clear standout in the Croweaters’ disappointing National Championships campaign. He defied his age to lead SA’s disposal charts and became the sole bottom-ager to earn MVP honours in this year’s carnival.

Draper stood alone at the top level in Round 13, though plenty of his state teammates have begun to filter through the Reserves grade. Hawthorn father-son prospect Will McCabe made his debut over the weekend, clunking an equal game-high 10 marks to go with his 13 disposals. Centrals bottom-ager Beau Thomas booted three goals in the same game.

Elsewhere, North Adelaide midfielder Kane McAuliffe compiled 21 touches, 12 tackles and five clearances in a 46-point loss to Glenelg, having been part of his state’s leadership group during the National Championships. He came into the year with some hype as an AFL Academy member.

The game between Norwood and Woodville-West Torrens also featured some state Under 18 stars. Eagles forward Patrick Weckert (11 disposals, six marks, two goals) was solid in the win alongside Callum Fairall (10 disposals, five tackles), and opposite Redlegs defender Logan Evans (14 disposals, four rebound 50s).

Western Australia’s state talent also began to trickle up the grades in Round 14 of the competition. Peel Thunder midfielder Clay Hall (23 disposals, six marks) and Subiaco utility Koltyn Tholstrup (14 disposals, five marks, two goals) returned to the level with decent individual success, but both played in losses.

In the Reserves, Peel’s match against East Fremantle featured a host of state squad members. Among the standouts was Koen Sanchez, who had 21 disposals in the Sharks’ loss. He was on debut, as were Thunder pair Mitchell Edwards (15 hitouts) and Reece Torrent (nine disposals).

Hard-working Swan Districts midfielder Luke Kelly also earned a Reserves berth, claiming 21 disposals and laying a whopping 14 tackles as his side narrowly beat Subiaco on Sunday. His younger brother Blake was prominent in WA’s Under 16 carnival earlier this month.

Over in the VFL, Swans Academy over-ager Indhi Kirk returned to the state league after the Allies’ title-winning championships, registering nine disposals and four marks in a big win over Footscray. The son of Brett remains tied to Sydney despite having been overlooked at last year’s draft.

Allies teammate Harvey Thomas was another Northern Academy product to earn a state league berth over the weekend. In his second game for GWS, the crafty small midfielder/defender booted a goal from 11 disposals while also laying six tackles in the Giants’ one-point win over Frankston.