Just hours out from the outset of the national AFL draft, some trends and tendencies are emerging.
The Saint Kilda Saints have two top-10 picks in their basket and the generally accepted tip is that they will use pick 8 to take Nick Coffield, a player that can play in the midfield or the half.
The Saints might even use their first selection, number 7, to grab Coffield one pic earlier, as though have devoted considerable energy in keeping him in their view and working with the skipper of the Northern Knights, who moved up the order in the 2017 season.
There is a possibility that one of the first six picks could be spent on Coffield, but the Saints brain trust at this time seems to think Coffield is theirs, so the question becomes who will be the best player available when it comes time to pair a pick with Coffield.
The Saints will have to see what the Brisbane Lions do with the top pick, followed by Fremantle, North Melbourne and Collingwood.
St Kilda picked up the seventh selection from Hawthorn. They will have to focus their attention on those first two picks, however, is that subsequent to that, they do not select again until near the bottom of round two.
There are some top-rated prospects that might strike the Saints fancy, provided they are still on the board. Darcy Fogarty, Adam Cerra and Andrew Brayshaw have been linked with the club, along with Hunter Clark and Aiden Bonar. Bonar is a survivor of two knee reconstruction procedures; he may slip the Saints way, but his fitness could be a concern, even though knee surgery is not the death knell it once was.
Health issues also raise an issue for Jaidyn Stephenson, who recently revealed a heart condition that has caused him to slide near the bottom of the first round.
