Welcome Tyler Sonsie

[Streak]

Dan Conners anyone?
Let’s hope it’s a misread. We generally don’t draft those types anymore.
Hawthorn bought the character issue up and now every news article seems to be running with it.
Disappointing but perhaps a driver for the Sonz to read it and ask himself why he fell to pick 28. If he’s got the mettle, he’ll work extra hard.

Dan Connors, what a waste. I met him at a junior footy clinic the Tigers held at Subi oval prior to a preseason game. It was the year when we had just recruited Cousins. Connors was a really nice young guy that day, great with the kids, actively involved etc. etc. Given the glimpses of talent I had seen, I marked him down as a future gun. I still find it hard to believe how it went so wrong.

The other thing is that 'poor attitude' can mean a lot of different things and mask other issues that can be addressed simply by getting them in to a professional sports program.

I think you are spot on with this assessment possibly acting as a driver for Sonsie DA. I don't know the kid, but our recent drafting record suggests Richmond has a solid assessment process for understanding attitude issues, if they are actually there, and it seems to stand up well.

In recent times the classic is Stack. Turning up to meet recruiters eating KFC, being late for state training etc. smacks of 'poor attitude'. Gets written off by a lot of clubs and goes undrafted. Yet when you understand where he is coming from and what he has been through, you can see that this 'poor attitude' is driven by external factors that may be relatively easy to address. There was no questioning his attitude towards his football given what he did to try and make it to the AFL. The jury is still out, but he seems to be on the right track.

Does anyone ever wonder why Shai Bolton slipped to 29 in his draft year? A number of clubs apparently had serious concerns about how off field stuff would affect his attitude. This was certainly information circulating at the time. Apparently he did not interview overly well at the draft combine, left school at the end of year 11, and go home factor was considered a major issue. One big Victoria club even considered him the next Chris Yarran and sniggered behind our backs!

This about a kid who

1. came from a supportive stable home environment albeit provided by his Mum and Nan while his Dad had struggled with issues (his Dad played a few games for the Dockers in the late 90s)
2. attended Wesley College on a scholarship and while not being a scholar and despite leaving school early, he was by no means a problem student
3. had no real contact with the law prior to being drafted
4. was diligent and generally professional (for a 16 year old) in terms of his approach to footy
5. was simply reserved and quiet in general

I can clearly remember the storm clouds gathering when he got suspended for striking in a VFL praccy game preseason.

Yet Richmond and Collingwood both saw through the apparent smokescreens and wanted to draft him. He slipped through to pick 29 because no one else wanted him except Collingwood, and thank god their first pick in the draft was right behind ours. Neither club had a first round pick in the draft (we traded ours for Prestia).

And just for the record, Shai actually left school early so that he could focus on his footy, ala Jack Higgins and probably others. So people can read in to poor attitude what they will, but it seems to me that the Tigers have a pretty solid recent record in terms of looking past the noise and understanding what the real attitude of a player is.

If the club rates Sonsie I am totally onboard.

 

[The Mole]

Hadn't heard that.... post draft interview or did they get one of the dopey Toms (Browne or Morris) to blurt it out?

I may be wrong but I did hear that the Hawthorn comment came after Mitchell blasted Sonsie for lack of defensive effort when he played his one and only game for Box HIL, Hawks. Maybe he reacted badly to it? To me it just highlights my perception that Mitchell is a poor man manger. Either way I’m backing the kid to make them eat their words.

 

[bullus_hit]

Dan Connors, what a waste. I met him at a junior footy clinic the Tigers held at Subi oval prior to a preseason game. It was the year when we had just recruited Cousins. Connors was a really nice young guy that day, great with the kids, actively involved etc. etc. Given the glimpses of talent I had seen, I marked him down as a future gun. I still find it hard to believe how it went so wrong.

The other thing is that 'poor attitude' can mean a lot of different things and mask other issues that can be addressed simply by getting them in to a professional sports program.

I think you are spot on with this assessment possibly acting as a driver for Sonsie DA. I don't know the kid, but our recent drafting record suggests Richmond has a solid assessment process for understanding attitude issues, if they are actually there, and it seems to stand up well.

In recent times the classic is Stack. Turning up to meet recruiters eating KFC, being late for state training etc. smacks of 'poor attitude'. Gets written off by a lot of clubs and goes undrafted. Yet when you understand where he is coming from and what he has been through, you can see that this 'poor attitude' is driven by external factors that may be relatively easy to address. There was no questioning his attitude towards his football given what he did to try and make it to the AFL. The jury is still out, but he seems to be on the right track.

Does anyone ever wonder why Shai Bolton slipped to 29 in his draft year? A number of clubs apparently had serious concerns about how off field stuff would affect his attitude. This was certainly information circulating at the time. Apparently he did not interview overly well at the draft combine, left school at the end of year 11, and go home factor was considered a major issue. One big Victoria club even considered him the next Chris Yarran and sniggered behind our backs!

This about a kid who

1. came from a supportive stable home environment albeit provided by his Mum and Nan while his Dad had struggled with issues (his Dad played a few games for the Dockers in the late 90s)
2. attended Wesley College on a scholarship and while not being a scholar and despite leaving school early, he was by no means a problem student
3. had no real contact with the law prior to being drafted
4. was diligent and generally professional (for a 16 year old) in terms of his approach to footy
5. was simply reserved and quiet in general

I can clearly remember the storm clouds gathering when he got suspended for striking in a VFL praccy game preseason.

Yet Richmond and Collingwood both saw through the apparent smokescreens and wanted to draft him. He slipped through to pick 29 because no one else wanted him except Collingwood, and thank god their first pick in the draft was right behind ours. Neither club had a first round pick in the draft (we traded ours for Prestia).

And just for the record, Shai actually left school early so that he could focus on his footy, ala Jack Higgins and probably others. So people can read in to poor attitude what they will, but it seems to me that the Tigers have a pretty solid recent record in terms of looking past the noise and understanding what the real attitude of a player is.

If the club rates Sonsie I am totally onboard.

Dan was the guy who launched on the wrong foot during his sprint at the combine, thought we'd nailed a bargain to be honest, I had him top 20 that year. Well worth a stab for the range we got him, picks in the 50s have such a low strike rate that grabbing a skillful guy like Connors worth the risk.

 

[Cotchin99]

I may be wrong but I did hear that the Hawthorn comment came after Mitchell blasted Sonsie for lack of defensive effort when he played his one and only game for Box HIL, Hawks. Maybe he reacted badly to it? To me it just highlights my perception that Mitchell is a poor man manger. Either way I’m backing the kid to make them eat their words.

Obviously only seen the highlights of that game. But Sonsie layed some big tackles in that VFL game so would be interesting if they were questioning his defensive application

 

[Dont Argue]

Hadn't heard that.... post draft interview or did they get one of the dopey Toms (Browne or Morris) to blurt it out?

Was directly after Day 2 draft.
Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.
It’s actually interesting because Sonsie played a game for their VFL affiliate Box Hill ( 24 disposals and 2 goals ) so they had close proximity to the player. They mentioned future leadership towards McDonald too.

 

[The_General]

Is there a bit of “Sam Mitchell drafting in his own image going on at Hawthorn?” I get the impression that Mitchell is going down the same path as Buckley, Brisbane Voss and Hird. It’s all about him.

one would also think that Tom Mitchell and JOM are not that impressed at the moment. First he tries to trade them, then he drafts their replacements at the first opportunity.

He'll try trade em again next year.

 

[TrialByVideo]

Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.

Thanks @Dont Argue ..... gee, that's really unprofessional IMO. Whilst it may be a great spur on for our bloke, I reckon he's slapped a target on McDonald. ..... he'd wanna be a saint for his entire career!

 

[Spirit of Jack]

Thanks @Dont Argue ..... gee, that's really unprofessional IMO. Whilst it may be a great spur on for our bloke, I reckon he's slapped a target on McDonald. ..... he'd wanna be a saint for his entire career!

If the Hawthorn recruiter actually said that...he's an idiot and clearly in the wrong game. You can't throw crap like that out there. It will come back to bite Hawthorn on the arse I'll bet.

 

[Tiger Rob]

Attitude schmattitude.

Our Sir Dustin will take him under his wing. The lad will learn quickly what his heroes do to be the best they can be.

Fast forward to 2027…..Dustin who?

 

[turk-d-tiger]

Was directly after Day 2 draft.
Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.
It’s actually interesting because Sonsie played a game for their VFL affiliate Box Hill ( 24 disposals and 2 goals ) so they had close proximity to the player. They mentioned future leadership towards McDonald too.

That is really interesting

But whats more interesting is i believe MacDonald & Sonsie are best friends and are adjoined at the hips

2021 AFL Draft: Pick 28 Tyler Sonsie

With Pick 28 in the 2021 AFL Draft, Richmond have selected Tyler Sonsie.

www.richmondfc.com.au

 

[King Kong]

I may be wrong but I did hear that the Hawthorn comment came after Mitchell blasted Sonsie for lack of defensive effort when he played his one and only game for Box HIL, Hawks. Maybe he reacted badly to it? To me it just highlights my perception that Mitchell is a poor man manger. Either way I’m backing the kid to make them eat their words.

Mitchell is a massive campaigner. Was allegedly 'very friendly' with Rayne Embley when in Perth whilst the missus was stuck at home looking after the kids

 

[year of the tiger]

If the Hawthorn recruiter actually said that...he's an idiot and clearly in the wrong game. You can't throw crap like that out there. It will come back to bite Hawthorn on the arse I'll bet.

I agree and what a low ball act.

I back our club these days to pick the right players and make them better.

Reckon the Hawks have just given him the extra bit of motivation to make it big time.

 

[craig]

He'll try trade em again next year.

Well they will both be cheaper

 

[fastin bulbous]

Was directly after Day 2 draft.
Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.
It’s actually interesting because Sonsie played a game for their VFL affiliate Box Hill ( 24 disposals and 2 goals ) so they had close proximity to the player. They mentioned future leadership towards McDonald too.

One of the draft vids has Sonsie with McDonald after the draft and they are good mates. Interesting

 

[toothless]

I agree and what a low ball act.

I back our club these days to pick the right players and make them better.

Reckon the Hawks have just given him the extra bit of motivation to make it big time.

If it was said, a Treloar like footy karma outcome is fairly likely. Dumb.

 

[taztiger4]

If the Hawthorn recruiter actually said that...he's an idiot and clearly in the wrong game. You can't throw crap like that out there. It will come back to bite Hawthorn on the arse I'll bet.

A throw away line & the bloke is an idiot & clearly in the wrong game !!!

Just sayin I dont reckon

 

[Berwick boy]

Was directly after Day 2 draft.
Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.
It’s actually interesting because Sonsie played a game for their VFL affiliate Box Hill ( 24 disposals and 2 goals ) so they had close proximity to the player. They mentioned future leadership towards McDonald too.

Ironically best mates.

 

[Streak]

That is really interesting

But whats more interesting is i believe MacDonald & Sonsie are best friends and are adjoined at the hips

2021 AFL Draft: Pick 28 Tyler Sonsie

With Pick 28 in the 2021 AFL Draft, Richmond have selected Tyler Sonsie.

www.richmondfc.com.au

Yeah, saw that on draft night. I understand we were very keen on McDonald. Shame we didn't get a crack at both of them in the 2nd round.

 

[UKTiger]

Even if Sonsie does have a problem and I bet the club would be fully aware of it before drafting him, the club is the once place in the game where he will be helped to grow and be part of a club unit as we have done with a number of supposed lame ducks all to our benefit

 

[BillyJean17]

Was directly after Day 2 draft.
Hawthorn recruiter, when asked why they chose their player Connor McDonald over Sonsie, said character.
It’s actually interesting because Sonsie played a game for their VFL affiliate Box Hill ( 24 disposals and 2 goals ) so they had close proximity to the player. They mentioned future leadership towards McDonald too.

That’s funny , they’re great mates and, went to school together