Round one review

Round two review

Round three review

Round four review

 Who won? 

Metro's 23-point win over Western Australia on Friday meant they made it through undefeated, and took out the title. South Australia finished in second spot ahead of the Allies, who beat Vic Country by four points after Brad Scheer topped off an excellent match by snapping the winning goal from the boundary line. Undefeated last year, Country didn't win a game this time around.

And the No. 1 pick?

There's still a bit to play out here. Hugh McCluggage reinforced why he is seen as one of the top few prospects. He's a midfielder who can win the ball at a contest, run hard to receive the ball, use it well, go forward and kick goals. Will Brodie fights for the ball and fought through an injured knee for the last few rounds. Ben Ainsworth has nous, class and is able to take complete control of games for patches. For various reasons (including a few niggles) he was inconsistent and while he doesn't need more midfield time to go very high that may round him out. Sam Petrevski-Seton came back well from a hamstring injury in round three and showed off his willingness to both work hard for the ball in close and run with it. Jack Bowes started slowly but by game three was able to find the time and space to play with his customary composure. Harry Perryman's poise and foot skills will see him end up in the top group. Will Setterfield and Todd Marshall showed glimpses of what they can and will be able to do, without piecing full games together. It's tough to see a club bidding pick one for an academy player when push comes to shove though.

Possible No.1 pick Hugh McCluggage is a hard-running midfielder. Photo: Vicky Hughson

Anyone else?

Andrew McGrath, one of Vic Metro's two captains, should be seen in this company. Here's some of the boxes the rebounding defender has ticked off in the past month (and leading in to the championships, to be fair). He's quick, and he can keep running. He's aggressive, he attacks at the right times, he takes the game on and urges others to come with him. He competes well one on one and can shut others out. He kicks well, he leads the way and was at the heart of the good stuff Metro did. He has the key things it takes to end up a top pick. Another to keep listening out for is Jack Scrimshaw, who came into the championships after injury and from school footy. He got better and better, going after the ball, kicking well, putting teammates into good positions and laying tackles and telling times as well.

How's the depth looking?

It doesn't look too bad, considering there's still a way to go. The top layer is blurry, and clubs would rank that group very differently, but that happens every year anyway. The first round looks reasonable enough and while some players still have plenty of questions left to answer there would have to be 30-40 who have draftable qualities and who have done enough in the past month to make sure most clubs will keep following them through to the end of the year.

My team needs a big, strong forward

There aren't a whole lot around, sorry to say. Marshall's anticipation, leap and nimble feet will appeal to clubs with a high pick. He has some way to go physically and in other ways but the glimpses he has shown have been quite exciting. Patrick Kerr came in and out of a couple of Vic Metro's games but was aggressive on the lead, held onto his marks and stepped up when Metro came from behind to beat South Australia, kicking four last-quarter goals. When he got to work and made room in which to move, Zac Sproule gave his opponents something to get nervous about. Darcy Fogarty held onto some tough marks for South Australia and Josh Battle did the same for Country but looked at his best when he used his strong endurance to drag opponents up through the half forward line, get a few steps away from them and kick the ball back in. Luke Strnadica marked well and kicked three goals for WA in his best match but found it hard at other times to impose himself. Jake Waterman – more about him later – worked hard and played some creative footy. South Australian Callum Coleman-Jones did some exciting things and is one to look out for next year.

A key back would be handy, too

Again, there is not an enormous selection, high up in the order anyway. Some will come through, and plenty showed bits and pieces. Metro's Jack Maibaum knuckled down. So did the Allies' Ryan Garthwaite and WA's Griffen Logue who saw a few positions including the ruck. Harrison Macreadie looked at times like he had lots to do, but went and got the ball. Brennan Cox has some spring, and wasn't afraid to go for a mark. Josh Rotham loves having the ball in his hands and to move with it and keep involved in the play for as long as he can. SA's Thomas Schmusch is another to keep an eye on ahead of the 2017 draft.

Tell me there's more small guys 

There are, absolutely. There's a bunch of midfielders who looked very draftable. Tim Taranto's versatility, playing for Metro, will appeal to clubs. Dylan Clarke, Luke Bunker and Corey Lyons all went after the ball. Daniel Venables' strength helped him play well around the footy and in the forward line; he was very hard to budge and just as hard to avoid being budged by. Jordan Galluci won plenty of the ball and can use it nicely. For Country, Joe Atley, Myles Poholke, James Worpel and Willem Drew helped McCluggage and and Brodie compete around the contest. Jack Graham would have surprised a few; he has a strong body, good instincts around stoppages and after some early season injury issues he also showed he can run. Jonty Scharenberg's work in close won his team the ball a lot, Alex Villis showed some skill on the outside as did Jake Pitman, whose kicking was a pleasure to watch at times. Kobe Mutch and Brad Scheer were solid and consistent for the Allies, while Brandon Parfitt plays with persistence. Zac Fisher ran himself ragged for WA and got his hands to the ball before anyone else with regularity. Matt Guelfi played with a bit of bounce, while Sam Powell Pepper's passion, care for his teammates and hard, fast attack on the footy was hard to miss.

Who else?

Jarrod Berry had his hands full in defence at times for Country and moved around the ground a bit. Tyrone Hayes applied himself well both in defence and up forward. Tyson Stengle, Kym Lebois and Will Hayward played with some creativity in SA's front half, Oliver Florent was able to create something from not much at times playing midfield-forward for Metro; he was another key player in their win over SA with his classy kicking and ability to do the right thing at the right time. Tyson Lane and Jamie Hampton dashed from defence for their sides, Shai Bolton thought a step or two ahead playing for WA and was fun to watch and Quinten Narkle showed off some pace. So did Noah Hura coming out of defence. SA liked the ball in Sam Walker's hands, Mitchell Hinge kicked the ball nicely and Andrew McPherson got some good pieces of play started.

Any rucks?

They haven't. But there's a few who have done enough to deserve to be watched closely in the run home this year. Jordan Sweet and Jeremy Goddard played with some oomph and some of Tim English's field kicking for WA was unusually precise for a big guy. He was probably the pick of them. Mitch McCarthy's energy for Country stood out in the first two rounds – he is now on crutches for six weeks with a navicular stress fracture – and Peter Ladhams is interesting. He's made an up-and-down start to the season but a few moments from his final game for SA – in one, he snatched the ball up and got it quickly to foot to snap a classy goal – will stick in people's minds.

How did the father-sons go?

Well, generally. Jake Waterman (West Coast) isn't your average key forward. He runs hard, covers ground, works opponents over and can win the ball in some quite quirky ways. Ben Jarman was clearly born with a footy brain; that in combination with his short kicking skills helped him work around a bit of a lack in outright pace. At this point, he seems more likely to wind up an Adelaide than a Hawthorn player. Josh Daicos (Collingwood) looks like his dad, with his long torso and short legs. He took a while to pick up the pace but will be better for the experience; when he got the ball he did some clean things with it. Callum Brown (Collingwood) was the pick of them though. He's small, but smart, proactive and gutsy. He chased the ball around like a puppy dog and didn't really ever stop working.