Fremantle young gun Caleb Serong has climbed to the top of the 2019 Redraft heap… for now. Photo: AFL MEDIA.
It is always fraught with danger giving the “Redraft” treatment to a national draft that only took place within the last five years.
It’s akin to picking a bunch of bright green bananas from the fruit shop. Clearly, they haven’t ripened yet.
In this case, our class of 2019 certainly haven’t matured completely into the fullest most potent versions of themselves.
So having said that, before we get stuck into the latest instalment of Footyology’s Redraft series, a very big caveat is placed on it that it certainly is not yet set in stone.
In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising at all to this writer if the 2019 Redraft looks a lot different in five years’ time.
Adding to the difficulty of reorganising the 2019 top 10 is the fact that there is so much top-end talent to choose from.
But for now, after much deliberation, Fremantle young gun Caleb Serong is crowned the retrospective No.1 pick of this draft, which represents a promotion of seven spots for the Dockers’ reigning best-and-fairest after he was originally taken with selection eight.
In four short years, Serong has become the crowning jewel of Fremantle’s midfield, which is saying something considering dual Brownlow Medalist Nat Fyfe and Andrew Brayshaw are also members.
A prolific ball winner who sets up so much of the Dockers’ play, Serong has quickly morphed into a leader of the emerging side, and was recognised for his brilliance this year with his first All-Australian jumper – the only player from the 2019 draft to receive that honour so far.
The 2020 Rising Star winner has averaged 24 disposals (11 contested), six clearances and four tackles in his 80-match career, but he took his game to a new level in 2023 as he helped himself to career-highs in disposals (675), contested possessions (317), tackles (109), clearances (167) and Brownlow Medal votes (24).
Coming in at No.2 is ruck-forward Luke Jackson who makes it a 2019 Redraft quinella for Fremantle.
Originally taken at pick three by Melbourne, Jackson didn’t wait long to make waves in the AFL world, and by the end of his second season, he had already played an enormous role in helping the Demons snap their famous 57-year premiership drought.
Jackson improved so rapidly as the 2021 season unfolded, he was relegating champion captain Max Gawn to second ruck for large portions of their premiership run as he went on to clinch the Rising Star award.
After a bit of a lull by his standards in 2022, and a quiet start to life as a Docker this year, Jackson rediscovered some of his best form after Round 7 to produce a season that rivalled his 2021 campaign.
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When assessing Melbourne’s ill-fated recruitment of Brodie Grundy this year, a strong argument could be made that Jackson’s departure could have cost the Demons another flag.
Completing the revised top three is GWS midfield bull Tom Green who enjoys a seven-position upgrade from No.10.
Green had shown plenty of promise in his first three years with the Giants, and that potential exploded in spectacular fashion this year as he compiled by far the best season to date of his 67-game career.
With the likes of Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper departing at the end of last season, it allowed the 22-year-old to shine brightly.
Green is now one of GWS’s most important midfielders, and he showed why in 2023 by averaging 32 touches (15 contested), six clearances and five tackles while also accruing 16 Brownlow votes – second only to captain Toby Greene (20) at the Giants.
The class of 2019 is an extremely impressive group of players, as evidenced by the fact that Gold Coast gun Noah Anderson dropped a few pegs from two to four, while Sydney prodigy Chad Warner has zoomed up 34 places from No.39 to five.
Coming in at six is flag-winning Melbourne dynamo Kysaiah Pickett, who climbs up from 12, Geelong premiership defender Sam De Koning, who was originally taken at 19, assumes seventh spot, while Gold Coast’s original No.1 pick Matt Rowell drops to eight.
Rounding out the top 10 are Hawthorn best-and-fairest Will Day and electric Western Bulldogs small forward Cody Weightman who jump up from selections 13 and 15 respectively.
This Redraft also displays that the recruiters did a pretty good job with five players retaining their top-10 status, and another four players taken in the teens have made their way into the revised top 10.
Meanwhile, GWS defender Lachie Ash (pick four) and Fremantle backman Hayden Young (seven) were extraordinarily unlucky to miss the cut.
Further emphasising the rich talent that 2019 produced is the fact that Geelong premiership forward Brad Close, Melbourne premiership gun Trent Rivers, Brisbane’s smooth moving Keidean Coleman and promising Port Adelaide backman Miles Bergman also fell short.
Lions grand final player Deven Robertson, new Saint Liam Henry and sharpshooters Jake Riccardi (GWS) and Mitch Georgiades (Port Adelaide) couldn’t break into the top 10 either.
As previously mentioned, with competition for spots so hot, do not be surprised in the slightest if the make-up of this revised top 10 changes dramatically over the next 5-10 years.
*Redrafts only consider the first time a player was drafted.
