ON ONE of the biggest nights of the year, not only for young AFL draft hopefuls, but also for the whole football industry, Foster’s Zane Duursma, has been taken as pick Number 4 by the North Melbourne Football Club and Leongatha's Wil Dawson joins the same club at pick Number 22..
And if Duursma can have a first season that’s even as quarter as good as the Number 3 draft pick last year, the Kangaroos’ revelation Harry Sheezel, he’ll have made a stellar beginning.
Sheezel burst on the scene in the opening round of the 2023 saeason, straight out of the Sandringham Dragons, breaking the record for the most disposals by a first-year player and claiming both the AFL Rising Star award and incredibly, North Melbourne’s best and fairest.
The third Duursma sibling to ply his trade in the AFL, Zane may well be the best yet.
And in some great news for the Leongatha Parrots' football community, their 201cm ruck, key defender has been taken at pick number 22, also for the North Melbourne Football Club. The two Gippsland Power team mates will now be able to start their AFL journey togerther.
Duursma compiled a decorated junior career since making his Coates Talent League debut in 2021. Playing five games in his first year, he went on to earn consecutive Team of the Year honours and was the competition’s leading goal kicker in 2023, booting 29 majors in 10 home-and-away appearances.
Including finals games, Duursma has kicked over 30 goals in the last two Coates Talent League seasons, more than 40 this year.
On the Fox footy coverage of the night, Duursma was likened to Hawthorn and Port Adelaide super star Shaun Burgoyne by commentator Leigh Montagna.
Again, if he could be half as good as that, it would be quite something.
But the 189cm, 79kg forward, onballer can do it all, from dominating the contested mark count to running and kicking he has a range of elite skills to contribute and it wouldn’t surprise to see him turnout for North at the start of the season as well.
Zane dominated the key game of the Under 18 National Championships, when he was best afield for Vic Country against Vic Metro.
Speaking on the night, Duursma acknowledged he didn’t have a particular AFL team as a youngster but would happily adopt North Melbourne as his first team to support… and hopefully now to play for. The commentator, Ben Dixon, honed in on the names of the Duursma siblings; W, X, Y and Z; Willem, Xavier, Yasmin and Zane.
Wil Dawson is still to turn 18 years of age but has shown rapid improvement for Gippsland Power this year, starting out as a tall forward, then taking his turn in the ruck before finding another part of his game as a tall defender.
Dawson was brought into the premiership Parrots' line-up when they turned the corner against Moe at Sale in the preliminary final, doing his job on another beanpole, the Lions' Nick Prowse, holding him to one goal on the day.
He was disappointed when the improving Gippsland Power bowed out to the Tassie Devils mid-way through the final series as he felt the team had the talent to go all the way. He'll now be able to look for success at a higher level. Congratulations.
The top 20 draft picks are as follows:
1. West Coast - Harley Reid
2. North Melbourne - Colby McKercher
3. Gold Coast - Jed Walter
4. North Melbourne - Zane Duursma
5. Hawthorn - Nick Watson
6. Western Bulldogs - Ryley Sanders
7. Melbourne - Caleb Windsor
8. Adelaide Crows - Dan Curtin
9. Gold Coast - Ethan Read
10. Essendon - Nate Caddy
11. Geelong - Connor O'Sullivan
12. GWS Giants - Phoenix Gothard
13. Melbourne - Koltyn Tholstrup
14. Gold Coast Suns - Jake Rogers
15. Western Bulldogs - Jordan Croft
16. Sydney Swans - Will Green
17. GWS Giants - James Leake
18. St. Kilda - Darcy Wilson
19. Hawthorn - Will McCabe
20. North Melbourne - Taylor Goad
21. Adelaide Crows - Charlie Edwards
22. North Melbourne - Wil Dawson
23. North Melbourne - Riley Hardemanx
24. Sydney Swans - Caden Cleary
25. Collingwood - Harry Demattia
26. Gold Coast Suns - Will Graham
27. Adelaide Crows - Oscar Ryan
28. St. Kilda - Lance Collard
29. Carlton - Ashton Moir
