Stephen Silvagni has commented on Carlton’s decision to delist Liam Stocker.
Silvagni famously traded a future first-round pick to Adelaide to take him in the 2018 National Draft.
Stocker would play 28 games for the Blues, including six in 2022, missing the entire 2020 season for mental health reasons and the majority of this season with ankle and shoulder issues.
Silvagni wonders if Carlton can truly say they gave the 22-year-old enough time to develop into an AFL player.
“He’s basically been there four years, I wouldn’t think it’s been a really stable environment with the change that’s happened – I think he’s had three coaches in four years, so from a development point of view I’d question that,” Silvagni told AFL Trade Radio.
“As a club, when a player is on the way out, you have a checklist about whether you’ve done everything possible for this kid to play AFL footy. I don’t think (Carlton) can do that.
“He’s a tough nut. If I was playing, I would love Liam Stocker next to me because I know he’s going to go hard. There are plenty of footballers out there that don’t go hard but can run and that’s their asset – he’s tough.
“He played on Jamie Elliott and did a really good job on him, he played on Gary Rohan and did a really good job on him. I’ve seen him play on Tom Papley and the guns, so it’s not as if he was being given a free ride and playing on the least dangerous forwards, he’s been given some really big jobs.
“Sure, maybe it’s his run a little bit, but what we’ve got to understand with Liam is he had syndesmosis at the start of the season where he missed 10-14 weeks, so he missed a big batch of footy, then he did his shoulder and then he had a concussion.
“Then he had a COVID year that he completely missed in 2020.
“So really he’s played three years of footy, and this year was really interrupted.
“They’ve obviously got their reasons why, I don’t know, I’m not privy to that information. I’m only answering the question and just watching him play football from week to week.”
Essendon great Matthew Lloyd is expecting Stocker to be picked up by another AFL club.
“I cooached Liam at Haileybury so I’m a big fan of Liam, he’s got AFL attributes,” Lloyd said.
“They signed Ed Curnow and David Cuningham over him, so that’s interesting, so there must be more to it.
“I think if he can get his running right and he does sometimes try to bite off more with his kicks and misses a few targets at times, but he should be on an AFL list next year.”
Stocker has reportedly met with Essendon about continuing his AFL career.
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