The Geelong Cats have strengthened their playing list with exciting talent, adding five new players across the NAB AFL and Rookie drafts. 

The Cats welcomed Geelong Falcons/Vic Country midfielder Jhye Clark (pick 8) and Norwood/South Australia athletic tall Phoenix Foster (pick 52) through the national draft, before adding a further three players on Wednesday. 

Osca Riccardi, son of 288-game Geelong great Peter and Oscar Murdoch, a defender from the Geelong Falcons, were selected via the NAB Rookie Draft, while Ted Clohesy, who was part of Geelong’s Next Generation Academy (NGA), was added as a Category B Rookie.

The Cats also recently added another Category B Rookie to their list, with talented Gaelic football defender Oisin Mullin making his way from Ireland to GMHBA Stadium. 

Catch up on all the latest Cats' draft news in the Draft Hub

“The players that we’ve selected this week complement our current playing sqaud and we’re optimistic that they’ll all develop into being really good players at AFL level,” Geelong Cats Recruiting Manager Stephen Wells said. 

“The guys that we’ve brought in have all shown the characteristics of competitiveness, desire and coachability that we look for in young players, but on top of that, they are really good footballers too and can play in a variety of positions. 

“Jhye has been a very consistent player over the couple of seasons, he is very competitive, tough and has a brilliant footy brain and we’re exited he is joining Geelong. 

“Phoenix will be a valuable addition to our list, he showed great potential this season with Norwood, and his performances during the National Championships for South Australia was also of a really high quality, we look forward to Phoenix joining our Club and helping him develop his game even further. 

“We’re very excited to see another Riccardi join the Cats, with Osca coming through as a father-son player. He’s a different player to his father Peter, but there are certainly common characteristics between where they were at beginning their AFL journey, and Osca has plenty of development left in him.

“We also drafted Oscar Murdoch, who is a Geelong Falcons player, is a defender who played particularly well in his Vic Country campaign, and is going to be a terrific asset for us. 

“Ted Clohesy, who was an NGA prospect for us, is a player we see plenty of potential in, and we’re glad to be able to add him to our list as a Category B Rookie, alongside Oisin Mullin who is a really exciting prospect from Ireland and we're looking forward to what he can bring to the AFL." 

Clark, who captained the Falcons and Vic Country, is a hard-edged, competitive midfielder with great leadership attributes, and is a consistent performer. 

Standing at 197cm, Foster is a forward/ruck prospect for the Cats, with his athleticism and competitiveness in the air highlights of his game, as well as being a threat in front of goals. 

Versatile defender Murdoch can play tall or small, with a penetrating kick and strong intercept marking features of his game. The 18-year-old also represented Vic Country at the NAB AFL Under 18 National Championships. 

Riccardi is a 177cm midfielder who boasts a good footy brain to go with a solid work rate and endurance. He completed the 2km time trial in the quickest time (6min 17sec) at the State Draft Combine.

Clohesy was vice-captain at the Geelong Falcons this season, represented Vic Country and also featured in a Cats VFL game this year. He is a strong inside midfielder who won plenty of the footy for the Falcons, averaging 23.5 disposals and 7.3 tackles a game in 2022. 

Following the draft period Geelong has one spot remaining on its playing list. 

The Cats’ first to fourth year players begun pre-season training this week, with the full list returning to training on Monday.