AFL Draft: Behind Adelaide’s “bold play” to secure WA star, the “top-class” bolter and the Crows’ potential fourth recruit

Adelaide’s opening night at the AFL Draft was headlined by a “bold play” to trade their way up the order and secure access to top-rated Western Australian Dan Curtin, who is viewed as a “really, really high class” teenager by the Crows.

A trade with GWS saw the Crows part with multiple first-round picks to secure Pick 8 and, subsequently, Curtin – who had garnered interest from West Coast and Essendon after sliding to the Giants’ opening selection.

Adelaide won the bidding war for the Claremont kid, who is arguably the most ready-made talent in his draft class.

The Crows had met with Curtin early into the year, but their interest was piqued in recent days as list manager Justin Reid and his team began to pull the needed strings to prepare for a move up the draft order for the WA young gun.

Speaking after a busy first night at the draft, Crows list manager Hamish Ogilvie said it was a “bold play” that saw Adelaide secure a player whom the club views as “a great fit”.

“It was a bold play and credit to the Giants for helping us get it done. We saw the opportunity, we probably started to think three or four days ago it was maybe a chance. The guys did a lot of preparation with scenarios to be able to do it,” Ogilvie said.

“It was probably pretty bold and something we didn’t really factor in three or four days ago, but the opportunity was just too good. That’s the great thing about trading on the night and future trading, when these opportunities present you’ve just got to be ready.

“We’re just so pleased to have him at the club. He’s got a lot of what we need. It was a great opportunity, a bold play and it worked for us which was great.

“It wasn’t late interest, we interviewed him in March when he was in Fremantle. He was always a player who we rated highly. Even from last year, we knew he was probably going to be out of our reach, but we were able to manipulate some picks and still stay in the draft which is a really good thing.

“We knew that if it got to us Dan was happy to come to Adelaide. It was a great fit and worked well.”

Curtin’s versatility and senior experience is what sees him separated from the rest of this year’s draft class, with the listed key defender frequently featuring in midfield for WA at the National Championships – going toe-to-toe with some of the best midfielders and tall forwards in the same carnival.

The back end of his draft campaign would see Curtin awarded a call-up to Claremont’s senior side amid a finals push in the WAFL, with the teenager looking at home against bigger bodies in his half-dozen appearances.

A finals meeting with Subiaco wouldn’t go Claremont’s way, but Curtin proved he has what it takes, and did so under the close watch of the Crows.

Adelaide is also excited by Curtin’s ability to play in attack, but Ogilvie is expecting the Pick 8 selection to start his career at the other end of the field where he can display his clean ball use and defensive strengths.

“People forget how good of a forward he was,” Ogilvie said.

“As a young player he was a forward that’s moved back and obviously the midfield stuff is great, that’s that’s a fantastic bonus for his development.