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AT LAST, CLUBS \u2018PUT THEIR MONEY WHERE THEIR MOUTH IS\u2019<\/p>\n
Clubs are finally being made to pay a considerable price to match bids on club-tied talent. <\/p>\n
Rivals have been vocal about the northern academies and father-sons, and they finally \u201cput their money where their mouth is\u201d in what\u2019s been widely recognised as the most compromised draft in history. <\/p>\n
In Wednesday night\u2019s first round, West Coast bid four times on rival club-tied talent \u2014 Gold Coast\u2019s Zeke Uwland at no.2, Carlton\u2019s father-son gun Harry Dean at no.3, the Suns\u2019 Jai Murray at no.17 and Beau Addinsall at no.18. <\/p>\n
Gold Coast made four pre-draft pick trades to get itself in a spot to match contending bids in order to accumulate the matching power to also snag Addinsall in addition to Uwland, Dylan Patterson and Jai Murray, with a tough call on Koby Coulson later in proceedings. <\/p>\n
The bidding system has long been lambasted, after Collingwood father-son superstar Nick Daicos cost the Pies chips after going at no.4, and Levi Ashcroft slipping to no.5 last year despite being seen as the best overall prospect. <\/p>\n
But the changes made by the AFL in the past year \u2014 stripping back the number of picks with a points value to the first 54, and decreasing the bid-matching discount from 20 per cent to 10 per cent \u2014 are helping ensure it\u2019s simply not anywhere near as easy as it once was. <\/p>\n
Tonight\u2019s events might\u2019ve proven this is the best example of the bidding system working \u2014 to a degree. And it helps that clubs like the Eagles and Tigers were eager to make rivals pay. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been a lot of talk in the past 12, 18 months about the academy picks, and West Coast have just gone by what they had ranked in their order,\u201d Fox Footy\u2019s Leigh Montagna said when probed on clubs being made to pay full price. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey haven\u2019t shied away from it, they\u2019ve taken the bids, they\u2019ve made Carlton and Gold Coast pay full price. So, good on them,\u201d the dual All-Australian said. <\/p>\n
Fox Footy draft expert Mick Ablett said: \u201cWe\u2019ve heard so much noise, haven\u2019t we, around the northern academies and the clubs saying \u2018jeez, they\u2019re getting too much of a leg-up now\u2019, but this is what\u2019s important. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey now get the opportunity to put their money where their mouth is, bid on these players, force the clubs to pay full value for them, and we\u2019re getting \u2014 for the first time \u2014 an indicative draft order.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pick No.1! Duursma becomes an Eagle | 04:17<\/p>\n
The Giants, who traded up to the no.14 slot, also forced arch-rivals Sydney to pay up for academy talent Harry Kyle. Later, the Eagles bid on Murray and Addinsall back-to-back, prompting Ablett to remark: \u201cThey are really putting some of these clubs to the sword.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the Western Bulldogs bid on Swans-linked youngster Lachie Carmichael, he added: \u201cIt\u2019s been a remarkable night. I don\u2019t think we\u2019ve seen a draft like this in recent times. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I know we\u2019re seeing a lot of them matched, but what it is doing is it\u2019s starting to open up the draft through the middle stages as well, because clubs will eventually run out of points. <\/p>\n
\u201cI love seeing these (teams) be aggressive … this is really interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the Swans, who matched for Kyle at 14th overall, elected to pass on Carmichael in what was the first of just two non-matched bids in nine instances in the first round. <\/p>\n
At no.25, Essendon intriguingly chose not to match Fremantle\u2019s bid on Next Generation Academy prospect Adam Sweid. <\/p>\n
Asked after the conclusion of the first round whether the Eagles had gone to an effort to make rivals pay fair value, Matthew Clarke said: \u201cNot necessarily fair value, we\u2019re just putting them in an order, to be fair. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe do a ranking system, like most other clubs will, and if we feel that they deserve to be picked there in the draft, we will bid on them. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, we\u2019re always mindful of deciding \u2018well, if they\u2019re not going to come to us, we don\u2019t bid\u2019, but it\u2019ll also affect your later picks. So, we\u2019re very mindful of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
No. 2 pick ticks off childhood goals | 02:01<\/p>\n
But while teams were notably aggressive on Wednesday night, the bidding system changes are far from finished. <\/p>\n
There is a growing expectation that from next year, clubs will only be able to match father-son or academy bids using two selections. <\/p>\n
Such a move would go a further way to ensuring clubs are spending premium selections \u2014 not just a combination of run-of-the-mill picks \u2014 to rebuff rivals. <\/p>\n
Further, while it was confirmed there\u2019d be no bidding lockout in the early stages of in this year\u2019s draft, from 2026 onwards, clubs are set to have varying degrees of bid-matching access depending on their ladder position. <\/p>\n
\u2018HUGE DRAFT\u2019 TO \u2018DEFINE\u2019 REBUILDER FOR NEXT DECADE<\/p>\n
\u201cLindsay calmly chips it to Duursma. Duursma glides through the middle and gives it to Reid, who fends off a tackle and spears it into the high-flying Duff-Tytler.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what West Coast fans have to look forward to in the future.<\/p>\n
The additions of Willem Duursma and Cooper Duff-Tytler with top four picks and Josh Lindsay also in the first round bolsters the young nucleus of the Eagles.<\/p>\n
And they certainly need it.<\/p>\n
It goes without saying. But the 2025 draft shapes as a defining one for the Eagles.<\/p>\n
Any time you have the first two selections on the night, it\u2019s big. But West Coast is desperate to add more high-end talent to a list devoid of emerging star-power.<\/p>\n
Yes, there\u2019s Harley Reid, who presented Duursma his jumper in great scenes. But there\u2019s not many other young guns on the list the club can absolutely hang its hat on long term.<\/p>\n
These are the names that will play leading roles in trying to turn around a powerhouse club that\u2019s bottomed out badly, including four-straight bottom three finishes and a wooden spoon in 2025.<\/p>\n
It\u2019ll give West Coast fans plenty more reasons to attend and tune into games in 2026 after those tough few years.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a huge draft for them. This could really be defining for the next 10 years,\u201d draft expert Mick Ablett said on Fox Footy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve started the rebuild in earnest now, we\u2019ve seen the picks they\u2019ve been able to bring in early.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know they just need to get the best talent on the board.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd play them early \u2013 let them play \u2013 we saw what the Tigers did this year, five wins in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive them that experience.\u201d <\/p>\n
While there might still be some pain to come, it continues a promising-season for West Coast after also bringing in Brandon Starcevich<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve been able to get some mature players in as well to support the youngsters, they\u2019ve got Brandon Starcevich and a few more rookie types that can really help them,\u201d Saints great leigh Montagna added.<\/p>\n
\u201cAndrew McQualter is doing a good job.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘You’re still crying!’: Grlj breaks down | 02:04<\/p>\n
TIGERS \u2018SURPRISE\u2019 IN DOMINO EFFECT AS DONS GO \u2018BANG, BANG, BANG\u2019<\/p>\n
What the Tigers did with their first two picks had been a point of contention going into proceedings, given the range of possibilities after the early bidding frenzy. <\/p>\n
The order was effectively set through the opening six picks, with Richmond\u2019s decision-making to dictate which open-pool names slid through to the end of the top 10 and early teens. <\/p>\n
And the Tigers made a \u201csurprise\u201d call at no.8 overall that meant a best-case scenario for Essendon in the subsequent picks, with the Bombers a big winner on opening night. <\/p>\n
Richmond had been strongly linked to all-time bolter Sullivan Robey with one of its two picks, Richmond snagged Oakleigh Chargers line-breaker Sam Grlj in the night\u2019s first eyebrow-raiser. <\/p>\n
It\u2019d been said that Grlj could slide past the top 10, but the elite-running half-backer heads to Tigerland after making a couple of appearances for the club\u2019s VFL side this year. <\/p>\n
\u201cWas surprised, we thought maybe Sullivan Robey might get taken, but they have gone for maybe more of the need,\u201d Montagna said on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey have loaded up through the midfield and forward half of the ground, now they get the explosive half back that can set the game off on counter-attack.\u201d<\/p>\n
Predictably, Essendon took Robey with the very next selection, with the club certainly pleased with that result given Robey was seen as arguably the best open-pool prospect after the top two. <\/p>\n
And as if swooping on Robey wasn\u2019t a windfall in itself, the Bombers took precise-kicking West Australian hybrid Jacob Farrow with the 10th pick. <\/p>\n
The rebounding half-backer will start his AFL journey in defence but has the capacity to be a full-time midfielder in time, in the Jordan Dawson mould. <\/p>\n
But for now, the Dons will be glad to have added quality to their half-backline, with Farrow to link up with fellow young gun Archie Roberts. <\/p>\n
Richmond\u2019s Grlj selection also meant mid-sized interceptor Xavier Taylor fell to Melbourne \u2014 which also took bolter Latrelle Pickett \u2014 meaning hard-headed South Australian midfielder Dyson Sharp slipped to the Dons\u2019 third pick at no.13; a selection they gained in a pre-draft deal with Carlton. <\/p>\n
Overall, the night should be looked on as a success for Essendon, which needs all the quality talent it can get its hands on. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bombers have been screaming for a big-bodied midfielder for a number of years, now … they\u2019ve got their man \u2014 huge night tonight for the Bombers,\u201d Ablett said on the Fox Footy broadcast. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe spoke about that. Rob Forster-Knight (Bombers recruiting manager) has just gone bang, bang, bang and got some absolute class in a number of different roles for the Bombers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Montagna added: \u201cThey look pretty chuffed, the Bombers crew, and so they (should be). I think they\u2019ve done an excellent job. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve just got three players that can all play through the midfield, but are all different types, with some poise and some power, and then the reliability of Sharp and the leadership (capability), so I think they\u2019ve done a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Young guns set for AFL draft night | 06:09<\/p>\n
\u2018WHAT\u2019S BETTER THAN ONE PICKETT? TWO\u2019: DRAFT\u2019S MOST \u2018SPECIAL MOMENT\u2019<\/p>\n
Melbourne, at Pick 12, provided arguably the most heartwarming moment of the night.<\/p>\n
After swooping on mini slider Xavier Taylor with the pick before, the Demons united the Pickett\u2019s, selecting mature-age Glenelg bolter Latrelle Pickett with the 12th selection.<\/p>\n
And, of course, the Demons had organised Pickett\u2019s cousin \u2013 superstar All-Australian Kysaiah Pickett \u2013 to present Melbourne\u2019s newest player with his first red and blue jumper, six years after Kysaiah Pickett was taken by the same club at the same selection.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s better than one Pickett in the forward line for the Dees? It\u2019s going to be two Pickett\u2019s,\u201d dual All-Australian Leigh Montagna told Fox Footy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is going to be so exciting. That\u2019s such a special moment for both these young men.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat a story for Latrelle Pickett to end up being taken in the top 12 in the national draft, considering he was playing local footy 12 months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Demons, for months, had been linked to Pickett, particularly due to his strong connection with Kysaiah, who this year signed a long-term contract extension to stay at Melbourne.<\/p>\n
But rival clubs were circling. He was also linked to Hawthorn and Western Bulldogs, while many sources were adamant the GWS Giants to pounce on Pickett after putting a mountain of work into him. He also met with Essendon on Monday and North Melbourne was also keen, so the fact he received a late call-up to Marvel Stadium for night one was no surprise.<\/p>\n
As it emerged the Demons were possibly leaning towards taking fellow South Australian Cameron Nairn with one of their first two picks, expectations grew that Pickett would be overlooked by Melbourne.<\/p>\n
But Pickett was the Demons\u2019 man all along.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s crazy \u2026 Pick 12 is unreal, I still can\u2019t believe it,\u201d Pickett told Fox Footy moments after being drafted.<\/p>\n
\u201cI (thought I) was around the (Pick) 60 mark, hoping for the 60-70 mark, so to be Pick 12 is pretty crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was some talk around Pickett, who turns 20 in late December, being in the mid-season draft mix earlier this year, but ultimately didn\u2019t play in enough games to be eligible.<\/p>\n
After a strong SANFL reserves campaign with Glenelg \u2014 which saw him kick 32 goals from 18 games, including four in the grand final \u2014 Pickett was unleashed at league level for three matches. And the 20-year-old\u2019s four-goal, 16-disposal debut against Central District gave scouts a glimpse of his high-end talent and further incentive to put more work into him.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s never afraid to use his explosive pace to take the game on, while his forward craft and smarts around the goal have been on display all year.<\/p>\n
Now Pickett gets to run out alongside his cousin Kysaiah, who\u2019s more \u201clike a big brother to me\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cStill trying to get my head around it, but I can\u2019t,\u201d Pickett told reporters on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just a dream come true, so really happy at the moment \u2026 that\u2019s I think a reason why they want to pick me up, Melbourne, just to be around Kozzie.\u201d<\/p>\n
SWANS HOPE 10-YEAR CAUTIONARY TALE DOESN\u2019T \u2018BITE THEM\u2019 AGAIN<\/p>\n
After a series of bids dominated the first round of the 2025 draft, there were eyebrows raised when the first non-bid of the night went down. <\/p>\n
And Sydney will be hoping history doesn\u2019t repeat itself and the Western Bulldogs don\u2019t pinch another one of the Swans\u2019 products. <\/p>\n
With the 21st pick of the first round, the Dogs bid on Sydney Academy prospect Lachlan Carmichael. <\/p>\n
But the Swans, who matched GWS\u2019 bid on Harry Kyle six picks earlier at No. 15, opted not to match on Carmichael, making him a Bulldog.<\/p>\n
It comes after the Swans 10 years ago infamously decided against matching the Dogs\u2019 bid on Josh Dunkley, who nominated Sydney under the father-son rule.<\/p>\n
Fair to say three flags later Sydney might be regretting that one!<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Swans famously did not match the bid for Josh Dunkley,\u201d draft guru Kevin Sheehan said on Fox Footy.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook at the player he\u2019s become, I rate him the best No. 25 pick in 40 years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sydney navigating its tricky bidding situation with Academy quartet – Harry Kyle, Lachlan Carmichael, Max King and Noah Chamberlain \u2013 namely the former trio, was always going to be a delicate balancing act. <\/p>\n
Particularly given they didn\u2019t have the strongest of daft hands going in after acquiring Charlie Curnow in the trade period.<\/p>\n
There was always potential Sydney would need to make a hard call on one of those Academy prospects and let them slip through to another club.<\/p>\n
King remains on the board still going into night two but should get a bid early in the second round, while Chamberlain could be attained with a late pick or they could even get him as a rookie.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat could be the next Josh Dunkley right there,\u201d Saints great Leigh Montagna added of Carmichael. <\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully it doesn\u2019t bite the Swans on the backside.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut they had to consider the points and some other players, they might have guys on their draft board they\u2019re still keen on, like Max King.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Clubs finally \u201cput their money where their mouth is\u201d and made rivals pay true value for matching bids…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294930,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[169264,121084,123877,33319,168459,121522,3484,638,8406,69039,64,63,689,55,169274,161652,639,684,3423,169290,169285,166582,169287,169292,169272,20781,6856,1129,169284,15669,169262,11238,169270,3451,11231,169289,169273,6172,169291,169282,2485,11288,1139,2536,169269,169265,3231,3417,3470,3514,12098,3459,134316,36270,159660,3465,33441,60465,3502,7804,169275,93791,169271,15700,163387,169267,3436,677,169288,169263,166607,9198,169277,169286,169266,169280,701,169279,18003,672,169281,169283,19278,57266,85,79471,169268,1133,169276,7067,698,15691,85398,169278],"class_list":["post-294929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-absolute-class","tag-academy-bids","tag-academy-picks","tag-academy-prospects","tag-academy-quartet","tag-academy-talent","tag-adam-sweid","tag-afl","tag-andrew-mcqualter","tag-archie-roberts","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australian-hybrid","tag-australian-midfielder","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-ben-cotton","tag-ben-waterworth","tag-bidding-frenzy","tag-bidding-lockout","tag-bidding-system","tag-bidding-system-changes","tag-blues-father-son-draftee","tag-bombers-recruiting-manager","tag-brandon-starcevich","tag-carlton","tag-charlie-curnow","tag-childhood-goals-list","tag-club-tied-talent","tag-delicate-balancing","tag-draft-pick","tag-draft-shapes","tag-dylan-patterson","tag-essendon-bombers","tag-father-son-draftee","tag-father-son-gun","tag-father-son-rule","tag-father-son-superstar","tag-fellow-young-gun","tag-gold-coast","tag-grand-final","tag-greater-western-sydney-giants","tag-harry-dean","tag-high-end-talent","tag-indicative-draft-order","tag-jack-jovanovski","tag-jacob-farrow","tag-jai-murray","tag-jordan-dawson","tag-josh-dunkley","tag-josh-lindsay","tag-kevin-sheehan","tag-ladder-position","tag-latrelle-pickett","tag-leigh-montagna","tag-long-term-contract-extension","tag-matthew-clarke","tag-max-king","tag-melbourne-demons","tag-mick-ablett","tag-mid-season-draft-mix","tag-mini-slider","tag-next-generation-academy","tag-noah-chamberlain","tag-northern-academies","tag-oakleigh-chargers","tag-oceania","tag-open-pool-names","tag-pick-ticks","tag-points-value","tag-powerhouse-club","tag-pre-draft-deal","tag-pre-draft-pick","tag-premium-selections","tag-quality-talent","tag-queensland","tag-rebounding-half-backer","tag-rebuilding-club","tag-richmond-tigers","tag-rivals-pay","tag-rookie-types","tag-sam-grlj","tag-special-moment","tag-sports","tag-sullivan-robey","tag-sydney-academy","tag-trade-period","tag-tricky-bidding-situation","tag-west-coast-eagles","tag-western-bulldogs","tag-xavier-taylor","tag-young-men","tag-young-nucleus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294929"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294929\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}