FREMANTLE nabbed arguably the biggest slider of the first round before making two more selections in the National AFL Draft. A surprise in the rookie intake forced the Dockers’ hand, though overall they picked up players with the capacity to play a variety of roles across the ground.

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DRAFT HAUL

National Draft:

17. Murphy Reid
34. Charlie Nicholls
63. Jaren Carr (father-son)

Rookie Draft

7. Aiden Riddle

One of night one’s biggest sliders, albeit somewhat expected, was Murphy Reid at pick 17. The silky skilled and intelligent midfielder featured much higher on Fremantle’s draft board and despite being flagged by some as a flight risk, was happy to make the move West.

The Dockers see potential in Reid’s ability to play across multiple positions, which was a trait they targeted throughout the crop. With Fremantle boasting a heavy volume of midfielder numbers, he could bring his creative ball use to the half-back line, wing, or the front half.

Fremantle’s first act on night two was calling out Charlie Nicholls with pick 34. The key forward, who again can play down back or pinch-hit in the ruck, has an array of attributes the Dockers like. In particular, his speed off the mark and competitiveness in the air caught the eye.

Having been overlooked in two previous drafts, father-son nominee Jaren Carr did enough to land on Fremantle’s senior list with its final selection (63). The son of Matthew was flagged as a late developer, growing to 191cm and improving with time in South Fremantle’s senior group.

Carr was no guarantee to be taken, either. He justified the call by blitzing Fremantle’s time trials to kick off preseason, and has sharpened up his foot skills to get over the line. Expected to re-list Max Knobel as a rookie, the Dockers were forced to make one more selection on Wednesday.

Gold Coast snapped up the developing tall, leaving Fremantle to target local Claremont ruck Aiden Riddle. The over-ager was Western Australia’s frontline option during the National Championships, impressing with his craft and athletic attributes against some of the draft’s best bigs.

That left Fremantle with a couple more list spots to fill during the supplemental selection period (SSP). Former Geelong and Port Adelaide utility Quinton Narkle has already been signed up, arriving back home in WA to link up with fellow recruit and good mate Shai Bolton.