2019 Pre-Season Draft Review: Solomon’s Soldiers


Grade

C-

Best Pick

Pick 16 – Luke Dunstan

Selections

Pick Player UF G UF AVG
15 Christopher Burgess GC – B,F 0 0
16 Luke Dunstan SK – C 14 84.8
32 Jye Caldwell GWS – C 0 0
40 Braydon Preuss ME – R 0 0
42 Ryan Clarke SY – B 2 42
52 Paul Ahern NM – C 2 71.5
62 Ned McHenry AD – C,F 0 0
82 Brody Mihocek CW – F 16 69.3
85 Mitch McGovern CA – F 0 0
90 Matt Scharenberg CW – B 4 52
112 Shane Mumford GWS – R 4 84.5
122 Jordan Gallucci AD – F 0 0
132 Max King SK – F 0 0
142 Jeremy Finlayson GWS – B 11 75.8
152 James Aish CW – B,C 5 64.2
162 Matthew Kennedy CA – C 0 0
172 Jeremy McGovern WC – B 8 70.9
182 Marcus Adams BL – B 0 0
192 Mason Cox CW – F 0 0

Summary

Ugly reading for the Soldiers.

Their first selection in Burgess was probably the worst selection of the entire draft.

Luckily for them they were able to trade him when his value was the second highest it will ever be (with the highest being the moment the Soldiers selected him at 15), packaging him alongside fourth round selection Jye Caldwell, and defender Darcy Byrne-Jones for coveted forward Jack Lukosius.

The pick immediately following Burgess was a marked improvement, with Dunstan being a competent contributor, and an asset they’ve been able to flip in a package to acquire the number 2 overall selection in the upcoming draft.

It’s pretty well dire as far as the eye can see after that though. Finlayson put in a very solid season and would’ve been an absolute gem of a back half selection – had the Soldiers been the ones to reap those scores.

You can see what they were trying to do. In another dimension Clarke, Ahern, McHenry, Scharenberg, Gallucci and Kennedy all impress, and the Soldiers have an even bigger bevy on young assets.

But that is not the dimension we find ourselves in.