Two Reids are better than one.
That’s the opinion of West Coast list boss Rohan O’Brien, who didn’t hesitate in snapping up one of the best key forwards in the draft in Archer Reid with the first pick on the second day.
The tall forward-ruck joined Vic Country teammate and No.1 pick Harley Reid in blue and gold after being selected with pick No.30.
O’Brien revealed rival clubs came with offers for the first pick on Tuesday night, but the Eagles were reluctant to part with the selection with the 203cm Gippsland Power forward still on the table.
“The players we picked tonight, we were pleasantly surprised that they were still available. Archer, in particular, we felt was one of the better talls in the draft and could’ve been picked last night,” O’Brien said.
“We did have some offers to trade that selection today but with him there we felt it was a good one to get in the bank.
“We felt that if we had traded back at all it would have been a big risk that he wouldn’t be there so we made the decision to hold and keep the pick and we’re really pleased.”
The Eagles also drafted Peel Thunder midfielder Clay Hall (pick No.38) and Vic Metro star Harvey Johnston (pick No.49), who both had senior football experience.
“It was a happy coincidence that they’ve had a bit of exposure there,” O’Brien said.
“That’s a nice bonus to it all but it wasn’t something we set out to do.”
The Eagles passed on their last pick of the draft despite still having a list spot available, choosing instead to reassess their options.
“We will leave that open and just have a look at the pool of players from a rookie point of view and then we’ll make a decision whether we fill that spot (on Wednesday) or hold it open through the pre-season period,” O’Brien said.
“We will assess who is available. We won’t set out to have any particular outcome in terms of age or maturity or anything like that.
“If there’s someone there that we feel can add something to the list, we’ll just go in that direction.”
West Coast are set to sign Perth ruck-forward and Jack Clarke medallist Coen Livingstone as a Category B Rookie after nominating him prior to the draft.
Livingstone missed the colts grand final because of a lung injury which also kept him out of the WA draft combine.