2024 Hostplus Glenelg Pocket Profile

SANFL’s ZAC MILBANK breaks down all you need to know about the Tigers heading into the 2024 Hostplus SANFL League season.

Friday March 8
Sturt 11.10 (76) d Glenelg 7.9 (51) at Thebarton Oval 

Saturday March 16
West Adelaide 10.10 (70) d Glenelg 10.6 (66) at Hisense Stadium

When Glenelg premiership midfielders Luke Partington and Brett Turner decided to depart after the 2023 triumph, internal discussion at Brighton Road centred on whether direct replacements were required.

Ultimately, they weren’t. And Jake Walker was a major reason why coach Darren Reeves was eager to promote from within inside the centre square in 2024.

Viewed as a chance to be selected in the 2022 AFL Draft cycle, Walker battled injury last year before recovering to play a strong role in the Bays winning the Reserves premiership.

Solidly-built, from South Gambier, the 19-year-old is ready to blossom while playing alongside a host of experienced teammates this season.

SA U18 coach Tony Bamford profiles the Tigers’ players in 2024

Ben Camporeale
Ben has come off an impressive season in 2023 that finished with him being announced as “best on ground” in the AFL U17 Futures game on the MCG on Grand Final day. In 2023, Ben was given more midfield time where he was able to show his contested possession skills inside the contest. During the Academy preseason, Ben showed elite level training & performance standards as well as the ability to drive and lead others around him. He is very competitive and driven to maximise his development both on and off the field. We have challenged Ben to maintain his contested craft while improving his ability to hurt the opposition with the ball when going forward in offence. He will have to manage his time well this year with his involvement in multiple football programs over the next six months.

Lucas Camporeale
Lucas had to take a back seat to his brother Ben at times last year and that has now provided Lucas with some real internal motivation for his 2024 season. Like Ben, he is an extremely driven and motivated young man who set high standards for himself and his teammates. Lucas plays primarily as a hard-running winger who has a great understanding on ball movement patterns and often finds the ball at both ends of the oval. Having said that, we feel he also possesses the skill set to play inside and as a high half-forward. During the preseason, Lucas was consistently one of the more vocal leaders and set high performance standards for others to follow. We have challenged Lucas to improve his decision making with the ball in hand. At times, he likes to be very aggressive with his kicking to test the opposition defence when he needs to take the easy option and play off that. He will have to manage his time well this year with his involvement in multiple football programs over the next six months.

Harry Ramm
Big Harry was one of our biggest improvers during our preseason. He can really run for a player his size. Harry has missed a lot of footy over the past 18 months due to injury so it was great to see him moving well and completing most of our training load. Training as a key defender, he was required to compete against some very strong and powerful key forwards in training. He is still learning which starting position is best to use against different types of forwards. We were able to see what he is capable of when he took intercept marks during our match simulation. At full stretch in the air, he can really meet the ball at  the highest point. We have challenged Harry to maintain his investment in building a stronger body to help his compete with bigger bodies in one-on-one situations. Harry will also have college footy expectations at Sacred Heart College.

Angus Clarke
Angus is a first-time player in the SANFL Talent pathway programs, having impressed last year playing both forward and back for Glenelg U18s. When he played back, he was able to interrupt opposition offence well by reading ball movement patterns and intercepting. When playing forward, he found holes in the defence and showcased his marking skills. Unfortunately, Angus missed doing a full preseason due to a foot injury that kept him away from full training. He will be several weeks away from full fitness when he returns to play. We have challenged Gus to win more ball at ground level and focus on building his training load and intensity given his lack of exposure with Glenelg’s program. Angus is completing his final year of school this year so is in for a busy season with lots of travel to and from Adelaide. He still lives at least four hours away in the South-East, in Glenelg’s country zone.

Luke Candy
As a bottom-age U17 player, Luke has impressed all coaches and staff with his commitment and focus considering he had to manage his rehabilitation from a lower leg injury. He did not miss a training session despite never being able to join in full training. His ability to self manage his own training/rehab program was very pleasing. When he gets back to playing, we expect him to showcase his above average skill sets, composure and game IQ playing anywhere from high half-back to midfield to high-forward roles. We have challenged Luke to be patient and diligent with his return to play and football development given his age.  He has plenty of time to develop and impress. Luke will also have college footy expectations at Sacred Heart College.