The AFL is pleased to announce that the 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine will be a national event.
The three-day Draft Combine will be held in Melbourne from Friday, October 4 to Sunday, October 6. It will be held over the same weekend as the 2024 Telstra AFL Draft Combine for boys.
The Draft Combine for girls has previously been held as state-based events, with the evolution to a national Combine following the announcement that the 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft will move to a fully national model.
As part of the ongoing Competitive Balance Review, clubs provided feedback that the NAB AFLW competition should move towards a fully national Telstra AFLW Draft to achieve a fairer and more equitable player access mechanism.
Selection to attend the 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine will be based on nominations provided by AFLW clubs. A list of players invited to attend the national Draft Combine will be confirmed later this month.
Smaller state-based Draft Combines will also be held for players who are not nominated for the national Draft Combine.
AFLW General Manager Emma Moore said the evolution of the Telstra AFLW Draft Combine to a national event was another major step forward.
“With the 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft moving to a fully national model it was also the right time to move to a national event for the 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine,” Ms Moore said.
“As the NAB AFLW continues to evolve we have seen more draftees looking to pursue their football dreams by moving interstate.
“This was outlined last year where almost 70 per cent of draft nominees elected to enter the national draft pool, meaning they could be drafted by any club and not just their home-state clubs.
“Having a national Draft Combine will see the best draft-eligible players from across Australia come together to showcase their abilities in front of all AFLW clubs both in testing and interviews.”
The 2024 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine will involve club interviews at the MCG on Friday and Saturday before players take part in physical testing at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (MSAC) on Sunday.
Physical testing will be facilitated by Rookie Me and will feature vertical and running jumps, the 20-metre sprint, agility test and the 2km time trial.
