Sydney Swans jet Isaac Heeney has been voted the game's most promising recent draftee by his peers, beating out Angus Brayshaw for the honour.
Heeney won widespread respect across the competition in his debut year and had been a hot favourite for the 2015 NAB AFL Rising Star before suffering a mid-season knee injury.
Although he missed out on the Rising Star, players surveyed from every club have now overwhelmingly voted the Swans academy product the most promising draftee from the past two years.
Heeney polled 51 votes after booting 16 goals – including four against cross-town rival Greater Western Sydney in just his third AFL match – from 14 games last year.
He was a clear winner of the most promising player gong ahead of runner-up Melbourne's Angus Brayshaw (16 votes) and Collingwood's Jordan De Goey (seven votes).
Who is the most promising draftee from the past two years?
| Player | Team | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Isaac Heeney | SYD | 51 |
| Angus Brayshaw | MELB | 16 |
| Jordan de Goey | COLL | 7 |
| Christian Petracca | MELB | 6 |
| Darcy Parish | ESS | 4 |
Brayshaw made 21 appearances in his first year and the hard-nosed midfielder has been touted as a future captain of the club.
De Goey, selected two picks after Brayshaw at fifth overall in the 2014 draft, also made an immediate impression at the elite level. The bullocking onballer featured in 16 games for the Pies and averaged nearly 14 disposals and five tackles a match.
Despite neither playing a game yet, Melbourne's Christian Petracca (six votes) and Essendon onballer Darcy Parish (four) rounded out the top five promising players.
