Essendon has picked up athletic ruck Nick Bryan with its second selection (No.38 overall) at the NAB AFL Draft on Thursday night.
Bryan was one of the standout ruck prospects this year, performing well in four games for Vic Metro in the 2019 NAB AFL Under-18 Championships, while proving just as important for the Oakleigh Chargers in their successful NAB League campaign.
Club general manager of list and recruiting Adrian Dodoro said he was pleased to pounce on the "quality ruckman" to help bolster the squad's tall stocks.
"Over the last couple of years, it had been an area where we just felt there hadn’t been a lot of ruckmen around," Dodoro said on Thursday.
"This kid’s a quality ruckman; the number-one ruckman for Vic Metro this year, 203cm, he’s got a great tank.
"Long term I can see him and Sammy Draper in about three or four years time just being a great combination for our club.
"We wanted to get the tall area of our list sorted out tonight and I think we did that."
NICK BRYAN
Club – Oakleigh Chargers
Height – 202cm
Weight – 87kg
U18 championship stats
Games – 4
Average disposals – 9.3
Average hitouts – 22
NAB League stats
Games – 11
Average disposals – 11.4
Average hitouts – 23.7
This news is brought to you by Orchard HRO, the club's official recruitment and list management partner.
