OVERVIEW

Brandon Starcevich is the nephew of Collingwood premiership player Craig, and is a lightning fast versatile player who has great agility and reliable by hand or foot. He was unable to test at the National Combine and had injury setbacks early in the year, but once he got going Starcevich showed his wares playing off half-back and stints up forward or through the middle. His speed is his major strength, while his agility and disposal are areas which make him a really strong outside midfield prospect. He does need to work on his accumulation, further develop his inside game and build his consistency, but as a whole Starcevich is a player who impressed this season and is likely to find a home in the second round of this year's AFL National Draft.

STRENGTHS

• Speed
• Agility
• Kicking
• Versatility

Starcevich is one of the quickest prospects in the AFL Draft along with Jack Petruccelle and Jaidyn Stephenson. Starcevich can blow away opponents with his first few steps and is capable of breaking down zones with his pace. He has a nice sidestep as well which speaks of his good agility, and can evade approaching tacklers. These two traits are features of his game and most importantly he has a reliable kick which enables him to be a ball carrier in transition with teammates having faith in him hitting a target going forward.

He is also considered very versatile, having played everywhere on the ground and while he could improve his contested work some more, Starcevich's outside game is very impressive. He has the pace and skill to be a damaging player along a wing and coming off half-back and that is probably where he settles at AFL level early on. Having the versatility to play up forward or through the middle is certainly an asset for the exciting Starcevich.

IMPROVEMENTS

• Accumulation
• Inside game
• Consistency

There are a few areas of Starcevich's game where he can improve to go to the next level. He is not a huge ball winner, averaging just 14.3 disposals in the WAFL Colts and 12.5 disposals at the National Under 18 Championships. These numbers are quite low and he will be looking to boost them by five to 10 disposals per game to be a more effective defender. If he moves into the midfield, finding more of the ball will help develop his inside game which is another area of improvement. He was pretty solid at the contest in the National Under 18 Championships, but most of his contested possessions were in defence, so working on that area through the midfield will be a way for him to improve.

Finally his consistency is another way in which Starcevich can improve. He has shown some eye-catching moments at times with his dash and agility, but he just needs to piece it together more often. His interrupted pre-season due to injury did not help, so most onlookers will be keen to see what he can do at AFL level with a full pre-season behind him.

DRAFT PROJECTION: Second round

SUMMARY

Brandon Starcevich is an exciting half-back who can also play up forward or through the midfield. He is predominantly outside and uses his pace, agility and foot skills to have an influence on the contest, having a high hurt factor when on his game. He does have some areas of improvement such as his inside game, finding the ball more and building consistency, but these are aspects which can be built over time, especially in an elite environment. Expect Starcevich to land at a club somewhere in the second round.