Pace was the order of the day as Essendon entered the middle rounds of Tuesday’s National Draft.
With top end talents Darcy Parish and Aaron Francis secured and some mature age prospects (Mitch Brown and Michael Hartley) on the radar, the Dons went in search of leg speed.
At pick 29, the Club selected the fastest man at the Draft Combine.
Alex Morgan recorded a 2.88sec 20-metre sprint to top the pool.
“Speed is his go,” List and Recruiting Manager Adrian Dodoro said.
“He’s very smart, we probably never saw the best of him because of a few injuries he had, but our medical team ticked him off.
“He’ll give us a lot of rebound off half back at speed and play on a wing.
“One of the areas we wanted to rectify was our run between the arcs.
“Run and carry is pretty important, metres gained players and he’s certainly one of those.”
Mason Redman is a similar type with a big engine.
He finished in the top ten at the Draft Combine for the three-kilometre time trial, recording a time of 10 minutes 12 seconds.
“He’s a real tough nut,” Dodoro said.
“A country boy again, from Glenelg.
“He can play forward, he can play back and he can also play midfield.”
Yestin Eades’ journey to the Bombers started on the other side of the country.
After moving to Ballarat from Perth, his football flourished and he shapes as an exciting prospect for Essendon fans to watch develop.
“A great story, very inspirational and a little emotional as well,” Dodoro said.
“He’s a young boy that was desperate to play for the Essendon Football Club, that has been his dream. He grew up barracking for Essendon.
“He’s come from an under privileged background. He’s been through a lot of adversity in his life. Full credit to him, he’s turned his whole life around.
“Full credit to the AFL, North Ballarat and Phil Partington – they’ve done a terrific job with this young man.
“He’s thrived in the environment.
“He’s an elite runner, his GPS numbers are of an AFL player at this point. He’s an indigenous player with a lot of magic. I think we’ll be very good with him.”
