Champion Data’s Daniel Hoyne has cautioned St Kilda ahead of trade period discussions surrounding Liam Henry.
The Fremantle wingman has requested a trade to the Saints following what was a breakout season on the wing.
The former top 10 draft pick moved into the role mid-season, picking up 30+ disposals in rounds 15, 16 and 23.
Hoyne believes he is worth a pick around the 30 mark.
“There’s a fair bit of discussion around Liam Henry requesting a trade to the footy club and what that’s going to do for St Kilda, the only thing I’ll say around that is just be wary in terms of what you’re giving up,” Hoyne told SEN’s Sportsday.
“I wouldn’t be giving up anything high-end for Liam Henry. Based off our model this year he’s the 30th rated wingman in the competition, going just below expectation.
“He’s not a horrible footballer by any stretch, but I wouldn’t be giving up a top 20 pick for him. Close to the 30 mark. I wouldn’t be jumping at this just to get him through the door.
“Henry is an okay ball user, but he’s not an absolute pure kick.”
While the Saints clearly need to add depth to their midfield, Hoyne believes they have three high-end youngsters who could break out in the coming years.
“I think the exciting thing for St Kilda is that it was a year of experimentation and for Ross Lyon to have a look at the list and clearly as the year went on, a lot of people are talking about their midfield and the injection they need there and that’s pretty obvious, it got exposed against GWS on the weekend,” he said.
“The key for me is Mitchito Owens and what he’s going to do in there as a midfielder.
“I think Owens has Nathan Fyfe qualities about him. Whether or not he can get to that level only time will tell, but he played a lot of midfield minutes to close the year.
“The other one is Mattaes Phillipou as well. They do have high-end talent they can inject in the midfield.
“Whether or not Nasaiah Wanganeen-Milera gets injected in there as well for that potency … they do have the options there to experiment.
“They’re obviously keen to go to the draft and Liam Henry comes in as well.”