Jack Fitzpatrick (Western Jets/Vic Metro) – Draft Profile

Height: 199cm

Weight: 87kg

Preferred foot: Right

Roles: FF/CHF/CHB/2^nd ruck

Potential: 5.5-8/10

Style-like: Shaun McKernan?

Strengths

> Very quick off the mark and especially over distance (elite for his size – breaks away and opens up big gaps on the lead, very good closing speed), decent-good leap and very good lateral movement

> Excellent recovery and mobility at ground level for his height with clean hands

> Decent-good decision maker with the ball – good in traffic with his hands and seems to offer good vision and creativity, solid by foot, but could demonstrate greater vision with his kicking

> Height advantage on large majority of key position players at 199cm

Weaknesses

> Prone to inconsistency both within games and game by game - IMO a combination of a concentration and underdeveloped/below par game sense...

> Very thin build at present – skinny frame - there may be some concerns on how well he’ll fill out (needs 10-15 more kg of lean mass on him)

Other

> Inconsistent but capable of good levels of intensity and defensive pressure

> Inconsistent attack on the football

> Shaky field kick for a his height (maybe just below average for his size) – like most still needs to develop more depth and overall consistency of accuracy and weighting - awkward field kicking and set shot technique at times (although from what I’ve seen he still has decent accuracy and stats over the last 3 years at TAC Cup suggest accuracy so too) – needs to remodel his action - TBF most rucks have somewhat awkward kicking techniques at U18s and need time to adjust to their growing bodies and remodel their actions (so he isn’t alone) and it is probably more improvable than it is for smaller players

> Decent OH mark – does often display clean hands and a one grab ability, but not reliable enough to call a strength and on occasions drops easy mark for unknown reason – capable of showing good attack on the ball well (not consistently though), can take it out in front one grab on the lead and is capable of big contested and pack grabs

> Seems to have decent running capacity for his size, but would seem there is good scope to improve it further given he has struggled with CFS in the past and probably hasn’t got as many P/S in as his peers

> Genuine ruckman height combined with well above average power athleticism, however a poor hit out winner and technician – he has played his best football at FF to date (although has the raw attributes to develop into other KP roles )

> Large handspan (91% at DC) but at a reach disadvantage for his height (arm length equivalent to an approx. 194cm player) – not that it matters too much given his height

> Has suffered from CFS in the past (diagnosed as a 7 year old) which has limited performances and exposure to pre-seasons and weekly training over the years – reports suggest he’s overcome it (mentioned in an interview he hasn’t had a “bad crash” since December 2007)

> 2009 Vic Metro vice-captain

> Very good 2008 as a bottom ager at TAC Cup level and played a few games in the 2008 U18 Championships

Stats

2007, 2008 and 2009 TAC Cup Stats

Overall

Fitzpatrick is largely a ‘potential pick with an appealing combination of genuine ruck height, explosive athleticism, good intensity levels and ability to take a strong grab, which opens up a few potential positions for him. However, he is still very raw as a footballer, his kicking technique is unconventional and has yet to develop close to any form of consistency both in games and game to game. He will take time moreso than any other prospect in this draft and will probably be a challenging player to develop as there are quite a few inconsistencies in his game. At worst he probably won’t fire too many shots, at best he could be a top 100 AFL player in a key position (FF or CHB most likely IMO). He’s worth an early to late 2^nd round pick for a club that doesn’t mind a high risk/reward type selection.