It was a dominant best-on-ground display by Tom Sims for Northern Knights against Oakleigh Chargers in round 6 of the Coates Talent League this year that really made the AFL talent scouts sit up and take notice.
The big key forward took 10 marks and booted seven goals that day and subsequently clinched a place in the Vic Metro squad for the 2024 under-18 national championships.
He booted three goals against Western Australia in what was his best performance of the national championships and continued to showcase his impressive skill set for the remainder of the season with Northern Knights and his school team at Parade College, as well as some valuable versatility.
Richmond, with the first pick (No. 28 overall) on the second night of the 2024 AFL national draft, rejected several offers for that prized selection and had no hesitation in calling out Tom Sims’ name.
“Tom played some really good footy as a forward with (Vic) Metro and Northern Knights, but then, in the back half of the year, he spent a little bit more time in the ruck,” Richmond’s General Manager of Football Talent, Blair Hartley, said on the Talking Tigers podcast.”
“He’s around 199-200cm now, he’s still growing as well. He can really jump, and he’s a really strong contested mark.
“So, he’s that point of difference tall.
“We’re trying to build a strong spine for the future, and he’s got a lot of upside given his exposure to the talent pathway and training history and everything else.
“He’s grown (as a player) throughout the course of the year and he’s a pretty special athlete.
“We’re looking forward to what he can do.”
