Western Bulldogs head coach head coach Luke Beveridge has stated that rival clubs should think twice before attempting to lure potential number one draft pick Sam Darcy away from the kennel.
Darcy, 17, is currently plying his trade for the Oakleigh Chargers, Vic Metro and his school side, Scotch College.
The precocious teenaged talent is the son of former Bulldogs great and media pundit Luke and the grandson of fellow ex-Dog, the late David Darcy.
Fresh off booting six-goals in Metro's clash with Vic Country last week, the ruck-forward talent is seen by recruiters as a near certain chance to be taken with a top five selection in this year's draft.
According toย Fox Footy's Ben Cotton, should Darcy be taken by North Melbourne with the draft's first pick and the Bulldogs used their points to match the bid and make Darcy a third generation 'Son of the West', he would be the beneficiary of a $10,000 portfolio from draft sponsors NAB bank.
The issue Beveridge has is that if this were to be the case, the youngster that eventually ends up at Arden Street would miss out on the lucrative bonus.
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This exact scenario played out late last year, after the Crows denied their prized recruit Riley Thilthorpe the opportunity to beef up his bank balance and earn the right to be called the draft's number one selection following Adelaide's decision to bid on Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.
Whilst speaking on 3AW's radio waves on Friday afternoon, the 2016 premiership coach admitted this could sadly be the case.
โHe might and it was interesting last year with โMarraโ, ultimately he gets the NAB portfolio, he gets the cash reward, he gets the recognition, with the club in Adelaide which nominated him and Riley Thilthorpe misses out on that,โ Beveridge said.
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โPersonally if you know the Dogs are going to take him and you have the No 1 pick, wouldnโt you want your lad who is coming in to get that and let your lad have that even though you want to make us pay. There are not that many vindictive list managers and recruiters in the comp.โ
Interestingly, should the Kangaroos instead bid on Collingwood father-son prospect Nick Daicos, then the aforementioned plot is likely to play out again.
Despite the semantics of the situation, Beveridge toldย SEN Sportsdayย that he was excited about the prospect of Darcy calling his the Whitten Oval home next year.
The 50-year-old told listeners that the teenager had already impressed him during the brief period he spent training with the club across the pre-season.
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โSam came and spent two weeks with us over pre-season and trained in the program, he was involved in some of our match practice and we felt comfortable enough to include him in that,โ Beveridge said.
โWeโve seen some tremendous signs, but heโs jumped out of the pack as everyone is pinpointing. Some of the things he did with us in those two weeks were exciting, but with a young fella like that heโs very proud like his dad (Luke) and very competitive.
โThe prospect of Sam coming into our club is enticing, I havenโt really seen him play but for him to do what he did at that level (last weekend), Iโm not sure we were expecting that to happen so quickly.
โHeโs still slight, Iโm not sure exactly how tall he is yet. Our list isnโt totally endowed with key position players and ruckmen, so thereโs a lot of room for a player like Sam.
โTo have an opportunity to bring him in is great for us.โ
Beveridge's Bulldogs are set to face North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium this Sunday at 4:40pm AEST.
