Coach Sam Mitchell of HAWTHORN would have suspected he might have his own pocket-sized gamebreaker on the way after seeing the diminutive forwards of Collingwood and Brisbane go wild in the Grand Final of the previous year.
The Hawks knew Nick Watson well by that point. As part of his Marsh AFL Academy program, he trained with the team twice and had previously been questioned on several occasions. With pick No. 4, the Hawks had Watson in their sights.
In addition to being aware of Watson’s achievements at Caulfield Grammar, where the Hawks coach has strong ties, Mitchell had watched Watson play for the Eastern Ranges.
Watson put on a huge show in last week’s elimination final victory over the Western Bulldogs, scoring a career-high four goals, less than a year after that flag decider. When it counted, Watson delivered in front of over 97,000 supporters, many of whom were donning wizard hats honoring the first-year firestarter.
It persisted as a symbol of the modestly advanced times.
The flag decider was a contest dominated by little players. Collingwood’s Bobby Hill won the Norm Smith Medal with four goals, but Brisbane’s Charlie Cameron (three goals), Lincoln McCarthy (two), and Zac Bailey (two) all had a greater impact on the outcome than their taller opponents. After the Lachie Schultz trade was completed, Jack Ginnivan, who had been silent for the Pies, asserted his claim and became a Hawthorn player a few days later.
Blake Hardwick stifled the Bulldogs’ small forward dynamo, Cody Weightman, while Watson and Ginnivan ran wild against them last week. Willie Rioli and Jed McEntee each scored one goal for Port Adelaide, but Geelong’s tiny forwards, Tyson Stengle, Shaun Mannagh, and Gryan Miers, combined for ten goals to rip apart the opposition.
After recovering from an ankle injury last week, Tom Papley scored twice for the Swans against Greater Western Sydney. Meanwhile, Brisbane defeated Carlton easily with to five goals from Cameron, Bailey, and hotshot rookie Kai Lohmann.
It is obvious that having a good small forward has always been important for list building tactics, and Hawthorn was aware of this when it made its first-round selection of the 170cm Watson last year (that pick went to No. 5 after bidding).
The club’s golden premiership run earlier this century was largely fueled by Cyril Rioli, Luke Breust, and Paul Puopolo. Other teams that have recently won premierships include Richmond (Daniel Rioli, Jason Castagna), West Coast (Willie Rioli, Jamie Cripps), Geelong (Stengle, Miers, and Brad Close), and Melbourne (Kysaiah Pickett, Charlie Spargo).
Watson proved to the Hawks that he was their man by kicking more than 70 goals during his under-18 campaign. He also displayed his spark at ground level, in the match, and in the air (a move he has not yet used in the AFL). Melbourne attempted to move up the selection board to acquire Watson, hoping to pair him with Pickett, but the Hawks refused to budge in any pick swaps.
The Dees have already demonstrated their readiness to select a small forward early by selecting Pickett with pick 12 in 2019. Before Watson broke the tradition of selecting players early in the draft, the only small forward in the top 10 since then is Josh Rachele (choice No. 6 in 2021).
The only two pure small forwards selected with top-10 choices in the last ten years have been Jarrod Pickett (choose four to Greater Western Sydney in 2014) and Callum Ah Chee (pick eight to Gold Coast in 2015).
What follows are the consequences of Watson’s finals brilliance. The superb left-footer Joe Berry is not far behind Isaac Kako, an Essendon Next Generation Academy prospect who is regarded as the best small forward in this year’s draft crop and a first-round pick. It would be interesting to see how clubs rank the two in November given the influence diminutive forwards have had on the finals thus far.
