![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/f701b48fd41935de64586507f5de09ea2ccef8be.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nWho they picked: Daniel Annable (6), Koby Evans (38), Cody Curtin (43), Tai Hayes (44)<\/p>\n
The Lions matched Richmond\u2019s bid on star academy midfield graduate Annable, who could make an instant impact in the AFL, even if he has to start across half-forward. Annable is an excellent stoppage player and particularly good by hand. They traded with Carlton to climb from 50 to 38 \u2013 handing over a future third-rounder \u2013 to place a bid on speedy West Coast academy midfielder Evans, and the Eagles did not match. That came after Brisbane passed on their own academy product, new Magpie Tyan Prindable. They also added 200-centimetre key defender Cody Curtin (brother of Adelaide\u2019s Daniel) and 21-year-old midfielder Hayes out of Southport.<\/p>\n
National recruiting manager Steve Conole: \u201cWe\u2019re very excited about who we managed to pick up in the draft. Four players in our talent order we all had very high, and to get Dan, initially, as an academy player, just with his resume and what he can offer the footy club, we are ecstatic about that. Then, we got three developing players who all play different roles and add a bit of depth in all areas, and we\u2019re desperate to add that depth.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
New Lion Daniel Annable.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n
Carlton<\/p>\n
Who they picked: Harry Dean (3), Talor Byrne (45), Jack Ison (47)<\/p>\n
West Coast made the Blues pay a premium for father-son defender Harry Dean<\/a>, but he is a perfect longer-term sidekick for All-Australian Jacob Weitering. Dean, whose dad Peter played in two flags for Carlton, is courageous in the air, aggressive, competitive, skilful and an excellent interceptor. The Blues traded their No.9 and 11 picks on Wednesday night to gather more draft points to match bids on Dean and Ison, and gained North Melbourne\u2019s second-rounder next year to help match a future bid on star father-son midfielder Cody Walker<\/a>. Carlton also swapped their No.28 selection for Gold Coast\u2019s 2026 second-rounder when an Ison bid still had not come. They managed to pick Byrne, who projects as a small forward at AFL level, before finally matching North Melbourne\u2019s bid on Ison, a 191-centimetre midfielder-forward who turned heads with an impressive end to the season.<\/p>\n General manager of football Chris Davies: \u201cWe are really happy. We got the players we prioritised, and added some picks into the future. Harry, Jack and Talor are players we rated highly, and to accumulate some future picks was what we wanted to achieve.\u201d<\/p>\n Collingwood<\/p>\n Who they picked: Tyan Prindable (32), Sam Swadling (37), Zac McCarthy (55), Angus Anderson (57)<\/p>\n The Pies started the draft with two contrasting midfield types. The Lions did not match Collingwood\u2019s bid on academy midfielder Prindable, who thrives at stoppages, while Swadling became the second West Australian off the board and does his best work on the outside. McCarthy is a Magpies next-generation academy graduate, and it was a slight surprise he tumbled so deep in the draft \u2013 but he stands 199 centimetres, is a good athlete and could develop into a weapon in attack. Collingwood\u2019s last pick was used on 193-centimetre midfielder Anderson, a 22-year-old late bloomer who enjoyed a strong SANFL season.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Shane O\u2019Bree: \u201cWe have four new guys into our footy club, and a nice combination of players, then Zac McCarthy at the end \u2013 our NGA boy who\u2019s been in our program for a long time. We had three midfielders who all have different attributes, which I think complement our list.\u201d<\/p>\n Essendon\u2019s first-round selections, Jacob Farrow, Sullivan Robey, and Dyson Sharp.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n Essendon<\/p>\n Who they picked: Sullivan Robey (9), Jacob Farrow (10), Dyson Sharp (13), Max Kondogiannis (36), Hussien El Achkar (53)<\/p>\n The Bombers picked three times in the first round for the first time since 2020<\/a>, doing so by trading for Carlton\u2019s No.9 selection, which pushed out to 13 with bids. They tried to snare West Coast\u2019s pick two. Robey, a 192-centimetre midfielder-forward<\/a>, went from not even playing in the Talent League or at the championships to being a top-10 pick \u2013 and excited recruiters with his blistering finish to the season. Farrow also burst onto the scene this year and has excellent kicking and intercepting skills, while Sharp won the Larke Medal this year and is a midfield brute who thrives at stoppages. Essendon chose not to match Fremantle\u2019s bid on next-generation academy prospect Adam Sweid at the end of the first round before picking medium-sized defender Kondogiannis. The Bombers matched Richmond\u2019s bid on Sweid\u2019s great mate El Achkar<\/a>, a talented small forward.<\/p>\n List manager Matt Rosa: \u201cWe really believed in the top end of this draft, so we wanted as much access to the high end of the draft as we could, and we wanted to pick as high as we could. We worked on that right up until the last couple of days … so we feel like we\u2019ve walked out with a really good balance.\u201d<\/p>\n Hussien El Achkar and Adam Sweid were Calder Cannons teammates and in Essendon\u2019s next-generation academy.Credit: Paul Jeffers<\/p>\n Fremantle<\/p>\n Who they picked: Adam Sweid (25), Tobyn Murray (40)<\/p>\n The Dockers picked late in the first round for the second straight year, and will hope diminutive midfielder-forward Sweid is every bit the success Murphy Reid was in 2025. Sweid, who spent last year recovering from an ACL rupture, was tied to Essendon as a next-generation academy prospect, but the Bombers chose not to match the bid. He is tough, competitive, professional, and has a nose for the goals. Murray is a 20-year-old small forward out of Geelong\u2019s VFL side who brings a combination of speed, power and toughness.<\/p>\n List manager David Walls: \u201cWe got two guys who are probably pretty similar in their role as mid-forwards \u2026 and they\u2019re both pretty strong guys who are good runners. Hopefully, they can be pushing for selection. It was good in the trade period to bring Judd [McVee] in, to give us that running half-back, so to add to that, and a couple of guys forward, we\u2019re reasonably happy.\u201d<\/p>\n Geelong<\/p>\n Who they picked: Harley Barker (24), Hunter Holmes (33)<\/p>\n Barker is a classic savvy pick from the Cats. South Australia\u2019s All-Australian winger would have been snapped up far earlier if not for the ACL rupture that ended his season shortly after the championships. Barker brings an enticing combination of size, speed, endurance and skill, and Geelong can afford to be patient with his recovery. The Cats also recruited a second Holmes, selecting star midfielder Max\u2019s younger brother Hunter, who boasts similar athletic traits to his sibling and had a promising year for Oakleigh Chargers and Victoria Metro.<\/p>\n Hunter Holmes is the brother of Geelong star Max (pictured).Credit: Eddie Jim<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Stephen Wells: \u201cWe really rated this draft and thought there would be a lot of good players in it, and we\u2019ve been able to add to our stocks of young, developing talent \u2026 We think they have a long way to go with their footy, whether it be Harley\u2019s recovery from injury, or Hunter, who has been in the system for only a year.\u201d<\/p>\n Gold Coast<\/p>\n Who they picked: Zeke Uwland (2), Dylan Patterson (5), Jai Murray (17), Beau Addinsall (18), Avery Thomas (28), Koby Coulson (46)<\/p>\n What a haul for the Suns, who matched four first-round bids and brought in their five academy targets. They scored arguably the best prospect in the class in silky winger Uwland \u2013 considered Errol Gulden 2.0 \u2013 before adding defensive speedster Patterson, athletic midfielder Murray and ball magnet Addinsall. Addinsall was viewed as the gettable one for rival clubs, but Gold Coast matched West Coast\u2019s bid on him, too. The Suns then traded their 2026 second-rounder to Carlton to draft high-leaping Tasmanian defender Thomas before matching North Melbourne\u2019s bid on prolific midfielder Coulson, whose father Bruce is the club\u2019s No.1 ticket holder.<\/p>\n List manager Kall Burns: \u201cIt feels great [to get the five academy players], and we\u2019re really excited for the local footy on the Gold Coast \u2026 We\u2019ve invested heavily in our academy players in 2023, 2024 and last year. The way we were able to achieve that was by making tough decisions and trading out significant top-end players who were playing roles for us, that gave us currency to invest in these drafts.\u201d<\/p>\n Zeke Uwland was one of a number of academy players selected high in the draft.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n GWS<\/p>\n Who they picked: Oskar Taylor (15), Finn Davis (51), Jake Stringer (59)<\/p>\n The Giants decided not to take the risk of Hawthorn selecting Taylor before them, sending a 2026 second-rounder to the Hawks to move up two spots and grab Taylor. But that move was as much about making a bid on Swans academy prospect Harry Kyle, in the hope Sydney would not match, which they did. Eastern Ranges defender Taylor surged on draft boards in the second half of the season, and burns opponents with his acceleration and attacking style. Davis is also a defender blessed with speed, and has shown he can play on taller and smaller rivals. GWS redrafted veteran forward Stringer, as was the plan.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Adrian Caruso: \u201cWe draft on traits, and those guys have got the traits. So while right now, you look at Finn Davis as a hybrid back, and Oscar Taylor as a running back; their traits indicate to us that there\u2019s scope for them to play other roles. Whether that\u2019s Oscar in the midfield or on the wing, or Finn in the midfield, or on the wing, or as a running back, rather than that more hybrid back.\u201d<\/p>\n Hawthorn<\/p>\n Who they picked: Cameron Nairn (20), Aidan Schubert (23), Jack Dalton (34), Matt LeRay (56)<\/p>\n The Hawks twice traded down the order before picking South Australia\u2019s Nairn, a skilful, run-all-day winger who also kicked seven goals in an under-18 championships game as a forward. He was visibly and audibly thrilled when Hawthorn selected his Central District teammate Schubert \u2013 a 196-centimetre forward-ruck who enjoyed an outstanding national championships \u2013 three picks later. Schubert has a funky ball drop, but is competitive and boasts an enormous tank for a big guy. The Hawks traded in to draft hard-running midfielder-forward Dalton, who won Sandringham\u2019s best-and-fairest and has been a consistently strong performer across several years. They went on to draft a third Central District player, winger LeRay, who earned All-Australian honours.<\/p>\n List manager Mark McKenzie: \u201c[It was a] fantastic result for the footy club. We had some flexibility with our list spots over the two nights \u2026 so to nab the two boys tonight, and have four picks overall for the draft was fantastic. To add some second-round picks for next year, obviously, with those trades from [Wednesday] night, it was very positive for the footy club to put us in good stead next year, but also bringing in some talented boys.\u201d<\/p>\n Melbourne first-rounders, Xavier Taylor (pick No.11) and Latrelle Pickett (12).Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n Melbourne<\/p>\n Who they picked: Xavier Taylor (11), Latrelle Pickett (12), Tom Matthews (30)<\/p>\n The Demons were delighted that Eastern Ranges defender Taylor, who was best afield in the Talent League grand final, made it through to their first pick. Taylor takes the game on with his athleticism and agility, is an intercepting force, and has improved as a decision-maker. Pickett, a mercurial small forward, is the cousin of club star Kysaiah, but earned his own reputation with a breakout SANFL season after Melbourne tracked him for almost three years. They grabbed another small forward in the second round, selecting Gippsland Power\u2019s Matthews despite a PCL injury wiping out the second half of his season.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Jason Taylor: \u201cIt was a waiting game [to see who would get through to us]. We weren\u2019t entirely sure. We had a strategy in place to take the best available player, and then there was an element of need [Pickett] that was going to come into play for us as well with those selections, at a certain point. We were able to achieve both of those, which is a very good result for us.\u201d<\/p>\n North Melbourne<\/p>\n Loading<\/p>\n Who they picked: Lachy Dovaston (16), Blake Thredgold (26), Hugo Mikunda (48)<\/p>\n Dovaston gives the Kangaroos another valuable small forward, or even a high half-forward, who can work alongside breakout star Paul Curtis, and at spearhead Nick Larkey\u2019s feet, after they secured that pick from Carlton. He works hard up and down the ground, is strong defensively, and kicked loads of goals this year for Eastern Ranges. North then added to their growing key-position stocks, selecting strong-marking Thredgold with the first pick of the second round as they seek a solution down back. Mikunda is raw but has the speed and power to be a high half-forward or wing option for the Kangaroos.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Will Thursfield: \u201cIt was pleasing to get that pick 11 late last week. That came out of nowhere, really. We had a handful of blokes we were really happy to take, and Lachy was at the top of it, so we were fortunate that he fell to us. We were pretty keen to improve the running power of the group, so all three blokes can cover the ground. I think that\u2019s so important in this day and age.\u201d<\/p>\n Port Adelaide<\/p>\n Who they picked: Nil<\/p>\n The Power became the first club ever not to make a single draft selection. They satisfied league rules by upgrading Tom Cochrane \u2013 brother of next year\u2019s potential No.1 pick Dougie, who is in Port\u2019s next-generation academy \u2013 Harrison Ramm and Josh Lai. Port Adelaide did make a trade, handing over pick 46 to Gold Coast to score an extra third-rounder in 2026. There is a chance they will leave a spot open, instead of filling it in the rookie draft, to trial potential recruits during the summer.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Geoff Parker: \u201cWe definitely came into this draft with a list of players to pick. It was never [a situation] that we weren\u2019t going to pick. When you come in where we did, pick 58, you need a long list. By the time we got to our pick, the list had disappeared, basically. We had the three mid-season picks, so we brought in some talent there, so we\u2019ve already got three new players on our list, really.\u201d<\/p>\n Richmond<\/p>\n Who they picked: Sam Cumming (7), Sam Grlj (8), Zane Peucker (31), Noah Roberts-Thomson (54)<\/p>\n The rebuilding Tigers\u2019 Mildura mission last week to visit Cumming led to them selecting the powerful and tough midfielder-forward, who has earned some Mark Ricciuto comparisons. Richmond then prioritised Grlj\u2019s speed-endurance combination at their second pick, after being impressed with his two performances at half-back for the Tigers\u2019 VFL team late in the year. The speed theme continued on night two with the selections of South Australian forward-midfielders Peucker and Roberts-Thomson, cousin of Sydney\u2019s dual premiership-winning former player Lewis.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Rhy Gieschen: \u201cWe\u2019d expect them [Cumming and Grlj] to be pushing next year, but we\u2019re picking them as long-term prospects, so there\u2019s no real expectation, but I know they\u2019ll be wanting to play because they\u2019re both pretty competitive kids.\u201d<\/p>\n The Tigers opted for Sam Cumming with pick No.7.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n St Kilda<\/p>\n Who they picked: Charlie Banfield (41), Kye Fincher (52), Ryan Byrnes (58)<\/p>\n The Saints pinched utility Banfield off West Coast, where he was a father-son candidate after his dad Drew \u2013 the No.1 pick in the 1992 draft \u2013 played 265 games and in two flags for the club. They believe there are shades of Mason Wood in his playing style. Banfield is a former Scotch College schoolmate of current St Kilda midfielder Hugh Boxshall. Hong Kong-born Fincher was in St Kilda\u2019s next-generation academy, and is versatile enough to play in defence or in the midfield. The Saints redrafted 80-gamer Byrnes to complete their involvement.<\/p>\n Player movement manager Simon Dalrymple: \u201cIt was a pretty positive draft. We entered with a couple of picks post-pick 40, and picked up Charlie Banfield and Kye Fincher. Kye is a graduate of our academy, so it\u2019s a great reward for our academy staff … both boys have great character, which is an important attribute to have.\u201d<\/p>\n Sydney<\/p>\n Who they picked: Harry Kyle (14), Jevan Phillipou (35), Billy Cootee (42), Max King (49)<\/p>\n The Swans\u2019 cross-town rivals GWS placed an early bid on Sydney academy player Kyle, perhaps seeing some similarities to their own star, Finn Callaghan. Kyle, a 188-centimetre midfielder-defender, joined the academy midway through last year, but is an excellent athlete already showing great promise and has significant upside. But the Swans opted not to match the Bulldogs\u2019 first-round bid on another academy player, defender Lachy Carmichael. Phillipou \u2013 the younger brother of Saint Mattaes \u2013 polarised among recruiters, so always had a wide draft range, but Sydney invested in his athleticism and upside. The Swans then plucked 22-year-old midfielder-forward Cootee out of SANFL club Norwood, continuing their love of mature-age recruits. Sydney matched Adelaide\u2019s bid on academy graduate King, who is one of the best athletes in the class, but still developing as a footballer.<\/p>\n List manager Chris Keane: \u201cWe\u2019re really happy with the four boys across the two nights; obviously two academy boys and a couple of boys from SA, so we\u2019re happy with the different types of players. We had to go into this process with an order, and we knew after what we did in the trade period [trading for Charlie Curnow] that those sorts of scenarios could happen, in terms of having to let Lachy go.\u201d<\/p>\n Those are some strong genes\u2026 Willem Duursma (second from right) has become the fourth member of his family to be on an AFL\/W list, behind siblings Xavier, Yasmin and Zane.Credit: Justin McManus<\/p>\n West Coast<\/p>\n Who they picked: Willem Duursma (1), Cooper Duff-Tytler (4), Josh Lindsay (19), Sam Allen (29), Tylah Williams (39)<\/p>\n The Eagles placed five unsuccessful bids in the first round, but should be thrilled with who they did bring in. Duursma projects as a big-time star with his 193-centimetre size, elite and aggressive kicking skills, marking strength, and positional versatility. As a bonus, he is friends with Harley Reid. Duff-Tytler is likened to Docker Luke Jackson as a fellow ex-basketballer who is a great athlete and excels at ground level. Left-footed defender Lindsay is arguably the best kick in the draft. A fourth Victorian followed when West Coast picked Oakleigh Chargers captain Allen, an athletic winger who suffered a season-ending ACL rupture. They matched Fremantle\u2019s bid on academy goalsneak Williams, who demonstrated his speed and agility at the combine, but lost Koby Evans (Brisbane) and Charlie Banfield (St Kilda) to rival clubs.<\/p>\n National recruiting manager Duane Massey: \u201cOverall, it was an outstanding result for the club. To have access to some high talent at the sharp end of the draft really sets the club up to launch into 2026 and beyond. Securing Willem, Cooper and Josh adds to the young talent we\u2019ve selected in the past few years, and we believe they can really add value to our list for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n Western Bulldogs<\/p>\n Who they picked: Lachy Carmichael (21), Louis Emmett (27), Will Darcy (60)<\/p>\n The Dogs were tipped to use their first pick on someone who could fit in at half-back \u2013 and Sydney academy product Carmichael is exactly that. He was an All-Australian at under-16 and under-18 level, works extremely hard, has no trouble finding the Sherrin and is defensively sound. Ruck-forward Emmett adds to the glut of talls on the Bulldogs\u2019 list, but brings rare endurance at 199 centimetres, has shown progress playing in attack and is also set to be exposed in defence next year. The Darcy legacy continues, too, with Will joining brother Sam at the club his father Luke enjoyed a stellar career. Will is a 196-centimetre project defender who will take time to develop but has exciting athletic traits.<\/p>\n Player acquisition and strategy manager Michael Regan: \u201cI couldn\u2019t be more excited to give Will the opportunity, and it\u2019s great that it\u2019s in the national draft, too. We\u2019ve seen him grow and develop. He has some special attributes as a player as well \u2013 left foot, right foot, ground ball, can mark it. He\u2019s going to take a while, so Dogs fans need to be a little bit patient, but we think if Will can get it right \u2026 there\u2019s a pretty special set of attributes under there that we think we can turn into a player.\u201d<\/p>\n With Roy Ward<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Who they picked: Daniel Annable (6), Koby Evans (38), Cody Curtin (43), Tai Hayes (44) The Lions matched…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":297643,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-297642","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-afl","8":"tag-afl","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-australian-football-league","12":"tag-australianfootballleague","13":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/297642","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=297642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/297642\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/297643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=297642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=297642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=297642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Essendon\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1763664910_118_163aee84bed063caf4b42a46ce780d533146b5cc.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Hussien](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/39346acc3a06a030417df0956f3f6f2920f6d3f7.jpeg\")
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<\/p>\n![\"Melbourne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/e69b8eb244f3bb516c6c6b1b7e83e1605418a177.jpeg\")
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