Sandringham Dragons forward Ollie Griffin is one of the early names stamping his credentials as a Mid-Season Draft contender.
The teenager kicked four goals in Round 2 against Oakleigh, firmly putting his strengths on show as a 186cm aerialist.
“(Marking is) his real standout weapon,” Sandringham Dragons coach Rob Harding said.
“He's similar to Logan Morris who I coached at Vic Metro a couple of years ago, in that he marks the ball at its highest point: he times his leap really well.
“He might be in matchups with players taller than hi,m but gets to the ball at the right time, which is a handy skill to have.”
His form spike comes after a noteworthy pre-season where he split his time between the Dragons and VFL club Sandringham Zebras.
While his marking was effectively shut down on Saturday, he laid nine tackles, highlighting his thirst for the contest and defensive side to his game.
View this post on Instagram
“As that mid-sized marking forward, you need to be able to play both sides of the ball, which he's shown in the last couple of weeks,” Harding said.
“He's played like a man amongst boys, which is what you hope to see from your 19-year-olds.”
Griffin has added considerable size to his frame since last season and taken 40 seconds off his two-kilometre time trial.
“I think he can play higher now as well. I had him pegged as a deeper player, but he's shown his ability to get up and get back - he's got the running patterns you need to play higher at the next level,” Harding said.
“He's added layers to make him more versatile, which is why he's generating so much interest from clubs.”
