POSITION: Inside Midfielder/Forward

SNAPSHOT: "A big-bodied inside midfielder with some terrific athletic traits, Knevitt has the power, endurance and vertical leaping to cause all sorts of headaches both through the midfield and up forward."

Mitch Knevitt is an exciting prospect who the Geelong Falcons touted as one to watch in 2021, and the tall midfielder/forward did not disappoint. Standing at 193cm, Knevitt is a good size, and coupled with his rare mix of athleticism and endurance makes him a damaging prospect. His contested marking is superb, and if his second half of the season is anything to go by, the Falcons tall built his consistency. If he can iron out a few kinks with his work under pressure, he will be a high upside prospect at the next level.

STRENGTHS:

+ Contested marking
+ Versatility
+ Endurance
+ Athleticism
+ Accumulation
+ Upside

IMPROVEMENTS:

- Composure
- Ground level work

Knevitt is a player who came into the season with potential, and after some up-and-down performances, really honed in on his consistency. He started to accumulate with ease and became a prolific inside midfielder who could rest in the goalsquare and take that contested mark. He is strong overhead and can pull down big grabs, as well as spread into space and take the uncontested mark and drive the ball forward. He has a unique blend of traits because of his ability to stand at the stoppage, win the hardball, or run to the outside and join in the transition of play forward.

When watching Knevitt, there is not a great deal he does wrong, but more so the things he does okay, and the things he does incredibly well. A couple of areas that could still be improved from a ball-handling perspective is his ground level work and his composure. Whilst Knevitt is not afraid to dig in at ground level and win the hard or loose ball, at times he can fumble or fire off a handball to an area where he expects a teammate to be, and it is not always the case. Some might regard the ground level work as a clean hands improvement, but Knevitt is consistent in the air, and very clean and strong aerially. It means it is more about his composure when under pressure coupled with this fact, that is the main area of improvement in this situation.

His athleticism between his speed and endurance, as well as his ability to fly and pull down marks, makes him a difficult prospect to match up on. He can get his hands free in the tackle to handball to the outside, or start deep forward and lead out, burning off an opposition defender. Knevitt is one of those players who might be too strong for a smaller opponent, and too quick for a bigger opponent. Whilst his finesse with his execution could be ironed out - again mostly through composure with ball-in-hand - Knevitt has huge upside in the fact that he is that 193cm with rare athleticism and endurance. If he can get into an elite environment and develop further, he could be a highly damaging prospect at the top level.

DRAFT RANGE: 15-30

SUMMARY:

Mitch Knevitt is anticipated to go somewhere in that second round, with a number of clubs viewing him as a Top 25 prospect. He could go as high as late first round, or slide later in the second round, but his end to the year, and his unsurprising testing results at the recent AFL Vic Country Draft Combine where he finished in the top few for both the 20m sprint and 2km time trial, means he will likely be closer to the former than the latter. One way or another, he is one to watch in the coming years with his potential.