The video games could also be within the books within the AFL season with the Brisbane Lions having received this yr’s premiership, however that doesn’t imply the motion stops.
After a frantic finish to this yr’s commerce interval, all 18 golf equipment have one other alternative so as to add to their respective lists within the nationwide draft.
Whereas the draft is an annual occasion within the AFL calendar, it could possibly usually show to be complicated to comply with, so we have you coated with all the most important questions.
When is the AFL draft?
This yr’s nationwide draft will run throughout two separate nights.
The primary spherical might be on Wednesday, November 20.
The rest will happen on Thursday, November 21.
What time is the AFL draft?
Each nights of the draft will begin at 7pm AEDT.
Listed below are the corresponding instances for different areas of Australia.
- 6:30pm ACDT: South Australia
- 6pm AEST: Queensland
- 5:30pm ACST: Northern Territory
- 4pm AWST: Western Australia
How can followers comply with this yr’s draft?
ABC Sport can have reside blogs operating on each nights of the draft.
Followers wanting to observe it could possibly accomplish that on Fox Footy and Kayo Sports activities.
The AFL draft might be held on November 20 and 21. Try our full prime 30 rankings right here, and be part of us for our reside weblog on draft nights.
Who has the primary choose on this yr’s draft?
After ending the 2024 season on the backside of the ladder, Richmond can have the primary choose within the draft.
It’s the first time the Tigers are making the primary general choice within the draft since 2004, once they chosen Brett Deledio.
Who’re the gamers in line for the primary choose?
This yr’s first spherical is regarded as one of many extra even draft crops in recent times, that means quite a few gamers are in line to be taken with the primary choose.
Levi Ashcroft is extensively regarded as one of many prime gamers within the draft, however he’ll head to Brisbane below the father-son rule.
Vic Nation midfielder Sam Lalor has emerged as the opposite main contender to be taken first general, incomes comparisons to lately retired Richmond nice Dustin Martin.
Different gamers within the operating to have their names referred to as on the prime of the draft are South Australian midfielder Sid Draper, and Victorian midfielders Jagga Smith and Finn O’Sullivan.
Sam Lalor is within the operating to be taken first general by Richmond on this yr’s draft. (AAP: Joel Carrett)
What’s the present order of picks on this yr’s first spherical?
- Richmond
- North Melbourne
- Carlton
- Adelaide
- Melbourne
- Richmond
- St Kilda
- St Kilda
- Melbourne
- Richmond
- Richmond
- West Coast
- Port Adelaide
- Fremantle
- GWS Giants
- GWS Giants
- Western Bulldogs
- Richmond
- Sydney
- Richmond
- GWS Giants
- Sydney
- Richmond
Richmond might use as much as eight picks within the first spherical to leap begin its rebuild after the retirement of Dustin Martin this yr. (AAP: Joel Carrett)
How does the AFL decide what number of first-round picks there are?
Sometimes, every spherical of the AFL draft ought to have 18 alternatives, one corresponding to every group.
Nevertheless, typically compensation picks awarded by the AFL can prolong sure rounds out.
That is the explanation for this yr’s draft having 23 picks within the first spherical. That could be a results of 5 alternatives being added to the primary spherical by the AFL.
St Kilda acquired the eighth choose as compensation for dropping defender Josh Battle to free company. The Giants equally acquired choose 16 after dropping Harry Perryman and choose 21 for dropping Isaac Cumming. The primary spherical was additional prolonged this yr attributable to two alternatives the AFL awarded North Melbourne as part of an help package deal, with Sydney and Richmond now proudly owning these picks (numbers 22 and 23).
How does the bidding system work within the AFL draft?
The AFL assigns every draft choose with a factors worth. The primary choose within the draft has essentially the most worth with 3000 factors, and the factors worth of every choose decreases all the best way down to choose 73, which is price 9 factors. Any picks from 74 onwards don’t have any factors worth.
The factors system is in place for 2 causes: to require golf equipment to pay for patching bids on father-son prospects or academy prospects which are tipped to go excessive up in any given draft yr. Groups who match bids for both a father-son or academy prospect get a 20 per cent low cost. Groups are additionally not obligated to match bids from different golf equipment, due to this fact permitting the participant to be drafted by a unique membership.
Essendon might be required to match a bid on academy prospect Isaac Kako within the first spherical of this yr’s draft. (AAP: Joel Carrett)
To elucidate how the bidding system works, let’s assume Richmond locations a bid on Brisbane’s father-son prospect Levi Ashcroft on the prime of the draft.
As a result of low cost system, the Lions must tally up a complete of 2400 factors. The Lions at present personal picks 27 (703 factors), 34 (542), 42 (395), 43 (378), 49 (287) and 58 (170) on this yr’s draft. So they’d use these picks — which have a complete of 2475 factors — to match the worth of 2400 factors and draft Ashcroft with the primary general choose. Brisbane climbing up the draft to match a bid would imply all the opposite picks within the draft get shifted again, beginning with Richmond shifting from choose one to choose two.
Can groups do trades through the draft?
They certain can!
Since being launched in 2018, the power for groups to commerce through the draft has added an additional wrinkle to the entire course of.
Groups can commerce with one another utilizing their very own picks within the present draft in addition to utilizing picks within the 2025 draft.
There have been a number of choose swaps throughout final yr’s draft, with maybe essentially the most notable transfer being Essendon’s commerce with Geelong which allowed the Bombers to pick out younger ahead Nate Caddy with the tenth choose within the draft.
What’s the father-son rule?
The daddy-son rule is one that’s distinctive to the AFL that permits household traditions to be carried by means of generations.
Merely put, if a participant makes 100 or extra appearances for a single membership, then that very same membership has the best to draft the participant’s son.
There have been some well-known father-son mixtures to have performed in VFL/AFL historical past, maybe none extra well-known than Gary Ablett and Gary Ablett Jr, who each performed for Geelong.
Gary Ablett Jr was drafted to Geelong below the father-son rule after his father Gary Sr had performed 242 video games for the Cats between 1984 and 1997. (AAP: Julian Smith)
The Silvagni household has been taking part in at Carlton for 3 generations. Sergio Silvagni performed 239 video games for the Blues between 1958 and 1971, earlier than his son, Stephen, performed 312 video games between 1985 and 2001. Present Carlton participant Jack Silvagni was drafted by the Blues below the father-son rule in 2015.
Groups aren’t obligated to pick out a participant below the father-son rule both. A well-known instance of this occurred within the 2015 draft when the Sydney Swans opted in opposition to drafting Josh Dunkley, whose father Andrew performed 217 video games for the membership.
Which gamers have been taken with the primary choose within the draft?
A number of of the sport’s stars have been chosen with the primary general choose, however extremely just one, 2003’s primary choose Adam Cooney, has received the distinguished Brownlow Medal. Here is a listing of who has gone primary within the final 10 drafts.
West Coast chosen Harley Reid first general in final yr’s AFL draft. (Getty Photographs: AFL Pictures/Michael Willson)
- 2023: Harley Reid (West Coast)
- 2022: Aaron Cadman (GWS Giants)
- 2021: Jason Horne-Francis (North Melbourne)
- 2020: Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (Western Bulldogs)
- 2019: Matthew Rowell (Gold Coast)
- 2018: Sam Walsh (Carlton)
- 2017: Cam Rayner (Brisbane Lions)
- 2016: Andrew McGrath (Essendon)
- 2015: Jacob Weitering (Carlton)
- 2014: Paddy McCartin (St Kilda)
- 2013: Tom Boyd (GWS Giants)
