TEAM Rioli defeated Team McLean 11.13 (79) to 7.17 (59) in Friday night’s Northern Territory (NT) Under 18 All-Stars showcase at TIO Stadium. Draft Central scout, Ed Pascoe had eyes on the exiting spectacle, on hand to deliver notes on the Top End’s brightest prospects.

Team Rioli:

#5 Jack Peris

The talented son of former Olympian Nova Peris started the game in fine fashion, with a nice run and handball to then get the ball back in the chain and finish it with a nice running goal. Jack Peris made the wing his own, using it to run hard both ways. He was not afraid to tackle either, and would attack cleanly and quickly with ball in hand. He had a very good last quarter which was highlighted by an unselfish bit of play, receiving a kick from Joel Jeffrey close to goal, but handpassing over to teammate Nathaniel Cooper for an easy conversion. The exciting St Kilda NGA prospect is not draft eligible until 2021, but looks a great talent to watch for in that draft.

#6 Nathaniel Cooper

Cooper was extremely busy on the half-forward flank as he sent the ball inside 50 numerous times and set up plenty of scoring chains with his composure and skill. Cooper was one of the smallest players out there but perhaps had the biggest impact with his ability to turn on a dime and keep his composure under a lot of pressure. He was rewarded for his numerous goal assists with a goal for himself in the last quarter, which came from an unselfish bit of play by teammate, Jack Peris. The Croker Island prospect certainly lit up the game and made a name for himself as a player to keep an eye on for the future.

#8 Alwyn Davey Jr

One of the youngest players on the ground the talented son of a gun really showed his skill and why he will be a highly sought after prospect in the 2022 draft. Davey played most of his time in the midfield where his clean hands and skills where on display, as he rarely missed a target and often put his teammates in a better position than himself. His most exciting bit of play came with a great chase down tackle in the second quarter which would have certainly given Essendon supporters flashbacks of his old man during his playing days with Essendon. Davey had a few chances to hit the scoreboard in the third quarter and could not quite capitalise, but he still showed plenty of forward craft – not just at ground level but with his marking overhead. He is a right-footer and more of a midfielder compared to his father and twin brother, and he will line up for the Oakleigh Chargers next year.

#9 Brodie Lake

Coming back to the NT after spending some time in South Australia with Central District, it was business as usual for Lake who got to show his trademark burst and running power for all four quarters, as he was firmly in the best players for Team Rioli. The main issue for Lake throughout the game was his kicking, as he did not have many problems finding the ball and looking good on the burst, but a fair few times he did not hit a target via foot. That side of his game did get better later in the contest, but what really impressed was his work-rate to push into defence and not only spoil, but quickly back up, win the ball, and go for his trademark dashes to it away from a dangerous position. Lake has plenty of elite traits and if he can tidy up his disposal he could be a real weapon at AFL level and looks likely to be pre-listed by Gold Coast.

>> Feature: Brodie Lake

#16 Ned Stevens

Forming a great partnership with Joel Jeffrey as a tall forward, Stevens started the game well by taking a nice contested mark, coming from behind his opponent then and slotting his first goal. Stevens also helped out in the ruck, using his leap and obvious basketball traits to win plenty of hit-outs and doing so cleanly. His clean hands both at ground level and above his head really stood out and made him a very difficult matchup. His third and final goal was his best, kicking a miracle goal from a tight angle in the third quarter which really showed off his talent. With great athletic traits, size and game sense, Stevens looks like one of NT’s best young prospects going into the 2021 draft.

#24 Joel Jeffrey

Perhaps NT’s finest young prospect for the 2020 draft, it was evident why he is so highly touted with a brilliant display up forward. Although not perfect, he was easily the most dangerous player on the ground and was near impossible to stop on the lead with his speed off the mark, thus providing a great target coming out of full forward. While he was not nailing every scoring opportunity, he remained dangerous and what really impressed was his ability to bring his teammates into the he game in the second half with some lovely pin point kicks. Jeffrey kicked three goals with two coming from lead up marks and one from a free kick. He had a great battle with another quality youngster in Tyrrell Lui. Jeffrey certainly showed off his talent with clean hands, good agility and vision and if he can nail more of his opportunities he could become a real force up forward at the next level.

>> AFL Draft Watch: Joel Jeffrey

Team McLean:

#10 Jesiah Minor

The talented left-footer from Papunya was Team McLean’s most dangerous forward all day, with his long and dangerous boot his weapon of choice which he used well to hit the scoreboard from all angles. Minor did well to lead and take his marks up the ground, not just close to goal where he was equally damaging. He would kick three goals and a fair few behinds, but his best goal came in the last quarter – marking 60m out and without hesitation, wheeling around onto his left and kicking a lovely long goal. It could have been an even bigger day for Minor if he had kicked straighter, but it was nice to see how quick he could get ball to boot in different situations to find an avenue to goal. He certainly looks like a prospect to keep an eye on.

#20 Tyrrell Lui

Lui had the toughest gig of any player on the ground and that was the task of stopping the highly talented Joel Jeffrey. He did the best he could do but some of the delivery to Jeffrey was hard to stop for even the best defenders and he could hold his head up on the consistent four-quarter effort he provided. Lui had a cool head in defence as he was rarely flustered, often picking the right option and executing well by hand and foot. He had some timely spoils and tackles deep in defence and he was certainly important to his side when the ball was coming in fast. The utility is a talented prospect and could yet find a spot on Gold Coasts list as part of its NT Zone.