From Barwon Heads to the big time: Cats scouts stay sharp, find Wiltshire in bush league
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Key points
- Geelong has a knack of finding good players where other clubs donât look.
- At Tuesdayâs national draft, the Cats selected Oliver Wiltshire from Bellarine league club Barwon Heads and Shaun Mannagh from Werribee in the VFL.
- One of Wiltshireâs mentors at Barwon Heads was Cats great Matthew Scarlett, one of the clubâs greatest ever players and a former assistant coach to Chris Scott.
- Scarlettâs reputation as a talent spotter is growing. After he retired as a player, he coached at South Barwon in the Geelong league, where Tom Stewart was identified as a mature-age AFL recruit.
- Stewart, now a five time All-Australian, was vice-captain at the Cats in 2023 and will be a teammate of Wiltshireâs in 2024.
Oliver Wiltshire had just sat on the couch after a day on the tools, working as a third-year apprentice carpenter when his phone rang.
It was Geelongâs recruiting manager Stephen Wells, letting the 21-year-old Bellarine Football League star know he might want to invite some friends over.
Oliver Wiltshire (centre) flanked by fellow Geelong draftees (left to right) Connor OâSullivan, Shaun Mannagh, George Stevens and Emerson Jeka.Credit: Chris Hopkins
ââWellsyâ called me up and said, âyouâre going to have a good night, maybe get the boys around, get the family aroundâ,â Wiltshire said.
At pick 61, on Tuesday night, the second night of the AFL national draft, Wiltshireâs name was read out, joining VFL product Shaun Mannagh and Warrnamboolâs George Stevens as fairytale additions to Geelongâs list.
Wiltshire, a former St Josephâs College student, spent the past two seasons playing local footy for Barwon Heads, the Bellarine league being the second-best community league in the region after the Geelong Football League.
COVID had impacted his two under-18 seasons at the Geelong Falcons, wiping out all of 2020, and in 2021, a spluttering season was compounded by injuries.
Oliver Wiltshire (right) in action for the Geelong Falcons in the Talent League in 2021.Credit: AFL Photos
Wiltshire thought his AFL dream was over, but credits his eventual recruiting to Geelong to the addition of Cats great Matthew Scarlett as an assistant coach at Barwon Heads.
Despite being quietly spoken at the Cats, Scarlett had a reputation for commanding attention when he spoke. The clubâs former chief executive Brian Cook dubbed Scarlett âThe Senatorâ, noting he didnât attend many meetings, but was the man all decisions needed to go through to succeed.
Also known for identifying talent, the Cats great, who helped Geelong recruit Tom Stewart â now a five-time All-Australian â out of South Barwon when he was coaching in the GFL, saw Wiltshireâs ability pretty early on in his 2023 campaign at the Seagulls.
âHe pulled me aside for a chat earlier in the year and said, âdo you have any aspirations to play AFLâ, and I obviously said, âyeah, itâs every kidâs dreamâ,â Wiltshire said.
Matthew Scarlett was an influential figure at Geelong in his playing days, and remains so to this day.Credit: Paul Rovere
âHere I am today.
âHeâs there every training, every game, and towards finals he didnât take over, but he pumped the chest out, and he got in there. He was unreal to have [at the club], brings all the boys to the side for one-on-one chats.
âHeâs rapt for me, I spoke to him pretty much a couple of weeks up to the draft. Heâs so rapt for me, over the moon.â
A bag of 12 goals against Modewarre in April was the performance that put Wiltshire on the map, and he finished the season winning the clubâs best and fairest after they exited in a preliminary final.
That was after he missed out on getting onto Werribeeâs VFL list, spending a month training with the Tigers during pre-season, only to be cut.
âHeâs made Werribee look a bit silly now,â joked Mannagh, Geelongâs third selection in the draft at pick 36, who remembers Wiltshire training with the Tigers.
âItâs a credit to him, the way heâs gone back to Barwon Heads and put on a great year. Stoked for him, and maybe next time Werribee might sign him.â
Mannaghâs selection was inspired itself. Aged 26, he was best afield in the VFL grand final when he kicked six goals in a losing side.
Shaun Mannagh was best on ground in the VFL grand final, and has now been drafted by Geelong.Credit: AFL Photos
Heâs now daring to dream of following in the footsteps of the likes of Tom Atkins, who spent a number of years plying his trade in the state league, only to eventually become an AFL premiership player.
âI remember playing against Tommy when he was playing as Geelong captain in the VFL,â Mannagh said.
âOne hundred per cent, I hope in 2024 for some success straight away.â
He said even though he was a mature-aged recruit, he was like any player on the Cats list aiming to play in the clubâs season opener.
The Cats begun their draft at pick 11, recruiting 198-centiemetre key defender Connor OâSullivan, then added 206-centimetre ruckman Mitch Edwards (pick 32) from Peel in Western Australia, Mannagh (pick 36), Stevens (pick 58), Wiltshire (pick 61) and Swan Districtsâ 20-year-old Lawson Humphries (pick 63).
On Wednesday, Emerson Jeka found a new home at Geelong after four seasons and seven games at Hawthorn. Heâd spent the year at Box Hill, but had signed to play for Essendonâs VFL team in 2024, only to get a call five minutes before he was rookie drafted on Wednesday.
âI was really committed to Essendon ⊠I didnât actually think Iâd end up here,â he said.
âI was prepared to play at Essendon and hopefully get on their list in February or mid-season, so Iâd definitely not given up, but it was a bit of a shock.
âInjuries this year havenât helped, but Iâm really fortunate Geelong gave me an opportunity.â
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