Richmond’s first pick (No. 12 overall) in the 2014 National Draft, Corey Ellis, has left a marked impression on the coaches and officials, who were involved with him on his journey from the junior football ranks, through to the AFL.  Here are their assessments of the talented, young left-footer . . .

Western Jets coach Torin Baker:  “Corey is one of the smarter and most natural players that I’ve had the pleasure of coaching at the Jets.  He’s a really good inside midfielder . . . hard, tough, courageous, with good endurance.  Corey’s just got great, natural ball-winning ability, and he uses it by hand or foot to find players in better positions.  From day one, when he came into the (Jets) program, the way he used the footy was a real standout in our club and in the competition.  He’s a guy we wanted getting on the end of it because he’s such a good user of the ball.  He’s just a good midfield package.”

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Western Jets Region Manager Shane Sexton:  “Corey is really versatile and an excellent decision-maker.  He’s a pretty quiet kid, but quietly determined that he’s going to get this (an AFL career) done, and in a really successful way.” 

Keilor under-16s coach Rob Stafrace:  “Corey, to me, is an absolute star.  He’s in the top two or three kids I’ve coached.  I just loved the way that he read the ball and never wasted the footy.”

Vic Metro under-18s coach David Flood:  “He just lets his footy do the talking . . . He’s an unbelievably strong one-on-one mark for a kid of his size (184cm, 76kg).”