Carlton has landed the silky smooth Central District midfielder Troy Menzel with its first round selection (11th overall) in the 2012 AFL National Draft.
The younger brother of Daniel Menzel who was taken with Geelong’s first selection (17th overall) in the corresponding draft of 2009, Troy has capably represented SANFL club Central District at senior level for the past two seasons under the watch of the legendary South Australian coach Roy Laird.
Speaking from the Gold Coast not long after his name was called by the club’s National Recruiting Manager Shane Rogers, Troy said he was relieved that the waiting was over and that Carlton would be his club.
“A couple of the recruiters had a quiet word to me today, so I guess I had a small feeling they might have been interested. Right now I’m just relieved that it’s over,” Troy said.
“I went into the draft with no expectations and not really knowing what was going to unfold, but just hearing my name called out as a Carlton player with the rich history that Carlton has is definitely a great feeling.”
Fresh out of his Year 12 exams, Troy also hopes to purse a university course in behavioral psychology, maybe with the support of the club’s noted “shrink” Nick Duigan. Clearly, Troy has a good head on his shoulders, for when asked if he had any apprehension in relocating to Melbourne, he promptly replied: “There are no qualms at all in making the move. Having Daniel down at Geelong means there’s some support, but regardless I’ll be able to handle it quite well”.
Though Menzel underwent radical LARS surgery as a result of a collision injury at 16, his undisputed playing capabilities override any concern. As The Age’s respected draft commentator Emma Quayle noted in predicting Carlton’s drafting of the player on Thursday morning, “Menzel just gets too hard to pass up on at this stage”.
“Some clubs with early picks have been scared off by his history of knee injuries, but the risk is worth it at this point, and Carlton is looking for runners rather than talls,” Quayle wrote.
Rogers said Troy was a unique talent capable of making the cut for the Blues in their opening match of 2013 against Richmond on the MCG.
“We consider that he was lucky to get through to us. I rate him as the second best player in the draft and at pick 11 we’re very happy to get him,” Rogers said.
“If he is up and running and feeling well, I’d expect him to be available for the first round.”
Rogers stressed that Carlton’s selection of Troy was not governed by a need for any short-term fix. As he said: “We’ve gone for a long-term project with Troy and we assume he’ll be with us for ten years”.
“He (Menzel) has some medical issues we need to work through, but we’re extremely confident that in an elite environment we can work through them with him,” Rogers said.
Troy, at 190cms, is capable of fulfilling multiple roles as a creative playmaker, including across half-forward where, as a free-moving left-footer in this year’s Under 18 Championships, he booted nine goals against Tasmania and a lazy six against the Northern Territory.
But how did he rate himself?
“I guess I’m a bit of an opportunist,” came the reply. “If the ball’s in my area I like to do something with it and use my footy smarts to my advantage . . . I’m a very competitive player I would say.”
