Local Australian Rules football coaches from the Hunter Central Coast region have lauded teenage sensation Max King as an exceptional talent and a coach's nightmare ahead of the AFL national draft. The Cardiff Hawks product has impressed mentors to the point where one rival coach admitted he was left searching for answers on how to contain the young star.
A Headache for Opposition Coaches
Corey Shackleton, who guided Killarney Vale to a first-grade premiership in 2022, didn't hold back in his assessment of the 18-year-old from Belmont. "You look at it and go 'he's just a kid', but you just can't do anything about him," Shackleton said. "He was a nightmare to coach against, in terms of his athletic ability."
Shackleton recalled a particularly dominant performance from a then 16-year-old King during a 2023 semi-final where Cardiff demolished the defending premiers 83-16. "I remember as a coach thinking, almost to the point of I don't know what to do," he admitted. "Every time it went near him, something happened. He just never got beaten and is so dangerous in the air."
Drawing Comparisons to Isaac Heeney
King, who recently completed his HSC at Warners Bay High School, is poised to become the first Hunter product drafted since fellow Cardiff junior Isaac Heeney in 2014. Heeney has since played 224 AFL games exclusively for the Sydney Swans, setting a high benchmark for local talent.
Shackleton, having played against Heeney during his junior days, sees striking similarities. "Max King is the closest I've seen to that type of talent," he stated, tipping King to be selected within the top 30 picks of the draft.
While other Hunter products like Killarney Vale's Daniel Lloyd (101 games for Greater Western Sydney) and Redhead's Paul Hunter (St Kilda) were drafted via the rookie draft at older ages, King appears destined for the main national draft.
Athletic Prowess and Unmatched Work Ethic
Nathan Harkness, who coached King in under-13s and later faced him as a rival coach, highlighted the youngster's comprehensive skill set. "I coached Max in under 13s and he's a real athletic player, great attitude, left and right-foot [kick]," Harkness said.
He emphasised that teams would deploy their best defender specifically to counter King's influence. "His athletic ability, his high marking and his ability to cover the ground and be dangerous when he gets the ball," Harkness noted as King's primary strengths, adding that the prospect "rated number one in the vertical leap" at the draft combine.
Newcastle City captain-coach Mitch Crawford, who worked with King through the Sydney Swans Academy, offered perhaps the most telling compliment. "The biggest compliment I can give is his work ethic and character supersede his talent," Crawford said. "Max will be a great addition to any club who drafts him."
The AFL national draft unfolds across Wednesday and Thursday nights, with the Sydney Swans holding picks 31, 32, 42, 60 and 71. The club remained tight-lipped about their draft strategy regarding their Academy graduate when contacted.
For the Hunter Central Coast AFL community, King's anticipated selection represents more than just individual success. As Harkness put it, "It would be huge for the up-and-coming young kids to see that someone out of the local area can be drafted."
