I'm generally on the side of not selecting anyone at the mid-season draft unless we've almost run out of players in a position. We're doing better than previous years on the injury front (knock on wood) and don't have a pressing need for reinforcements anywhere.
The one area that has potential to be a worry is a mature key position tall forward. With Tabs durability almost non-existent and only a couple of teenagers able to help Lobb up forward, we may look at our options. With that in mind, it was interesting to see
two WA key forwards receive exemptions to the mid season draft.
Zac Strom (28yo, 198cm, 103kg) was a player Freo trialed to replace Valente on the list in the pre-season before the AFL ruled he was not allowed to be picked up given he hadn't nominated for the draft. Similarly, Wade Derksen (20yo, 195cm, 90kg) who has been incredibly impressive for Peel, didn't nominated for the last draft but has shot up in recruiters eyes. Each now has an exemption for the upcoming mid-season draft and would be the front runners to join the our list in a few weeks.