WHILE plenty of focus has rightly been placed on key defender Jacob Weitering this year, his Dandenong Stingrays teammate Kieran Collins has been quietly rising up the ranks.
Collins, also a tall defender, started the season ranked a little way back but across the year added an attacking element to his game and lifted his stocks.
Long-time Hawthorn recruiter Gary Buckenara, who scouted this year's crop for most of the season before leaving the club, told AFL.com.au he ranked Collins as the third best player in this year's draft pool.
The Victorian prospect was an important member of Vic Country's unbeaten run at this year's NAB AFL Under-18 Championships and was named an All Australian. He has also been a part of the NAB AFL Academy program over the past two seasons.
Firstly, quality key defenders are hard to find. So when a good one is available he is hard to pass up. Collins has developed into an attacking defender, something that looked unlikely at the start of the season when he preferred to sit back on opponents and lock them down.
He still managed to do that, but added some run and rebound to his game. As the year went on, Collins began to back himself more in the air and give his opponent something to think about – rather than worrying about stopping his man all the time.
In one of the best match-ups of the season, Collins lined up against key forward Sam Weideman earlier in the year in the TAC Cup. Weideman kicked five goals to show his quality, but Collins had 21 disposals, took nine marks and was best afield.
He carried that form and confidence into the championships with a string of rebounding efforts, and maintained his physical and uncompromising defensive approach. At 194cm and 100kg, Collins will be able to shut down key forwards, and did that towards the end of the season when he played against highly touted prospect Josh Schache.
Throughout the season Collins played deep in the backline, generally taking the opposition's full forward. Given he is not especially quick, at times he might have been able to be exposed on the lead and quick turnaround up the ground. That's a pretty minor knock, though, considering he tested well for agility at the NAB AFL Draft Combine (8.62 seconds).
Collins was thrown forward at different stages of Dandenong's season, including its preliminary final defeat. He showed he is a natural defender who probably doesn't have the versatility yet to be a threat near goal. That's not necessarily a problem though, because his defensive work is more than good enough.
Collins could develop into a Cale Hooker-like defender who has a presence in the air but is also committed to stopping his man. Perhaps Collins' best quality is his discipline: he does what his team needs and does it well.
Collins will fill the need for a club looking to beef up its tall defensive stocks and as such should fall in the 12-25 region of the draft.
Collins' form has been a pleasant surprise this season. He now sits as perhaps the draft's second best key defender, only behind his teammate and close friend Weitering. Competitive, dedicated and intense dislike for being beaten, Collins has all the essentials of a powerful defender.
