SEVERAL crunch calls loom for clubs ahead of Wednesday night's Telstra AFL Draft as the top end of the order takes shape.

Richmond's bounty of seven picks on the opening night, and eight in the first 24 selections, makes the Tigers the central point for all of the proceedings.

They are set to make Greater Western Victoria Rebels talent Sam Lalor the first Tigers' No.1 pick since 2004, with the powerful prospect to edge out Finn O'Sullivan for the top choice. 

At No.2 the Kangaroos have considered trade options and are continuing to look at different deals but any trade is now considered highly unlikely, leaving them set to choose O'Sullivan to add to their midfield group.

It leaves Carlton likely to choose between midfield jets Jagga Smith and Sid Draper with their prized pick No.3, with Oakleigh Chargers ball magnet Smith considered the favourite to be a Blue. That would leave the Crows with a top-10-shaping decision between Draper and Victorian prospect Harvey Langford. 

They have done work with both recently and have been favoured to land on Draper, which would see Langford get to the Demons' next pick. If the Crows went with Langford, then Gippsland swingman Alix Tauru would be in the Dees' sights, with Draper a chance to get through to St Kilda.

The Tigers have been weighing up their call with their second selection, having been strongly linked to Josh Smillie by rivals in recent weeks. Richmond has also looked hard at picking athletic West Australian gun Bo Allan for the choice, and travelled to interview him in Perth last week, and he is considered the other main contender at that point. 

There is a possibility the Tigers could land both, with Allan a chance to get through to their next two selections if some 50-50 calls go their way.

The Saints have been linked to Tauru and Tobie Travaglia in this scenario, having also looked closely at Xavier Lindsay and Smillie, which could see the Demons having to choose between Allan and Lindsay. Rival clubs believe that decision is extremely line-ball and could go either way, but whichever way, the remaining player would be in the Tigers' sights. 

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Richmond is expected to grab a tall with one of its third or fourth selections but the make-up of the talls in the next 10 selections adds intrigue to the second half of the first round of picks.

Jobe Shanahan is firmly in the Tigers' mix and have considered 200cm prospect Jack Whitlock, while Harry Armstrong is viewed as a chance to get through to West Coast or Port Adelaide. The Eagles have been mulling whether a midfielder or tall is their approach, having been linked to Victorian midfield pair Murphy Reid and Taj Hotton as well as Armstrong, Shanahan and Jack Whitlock. Many rival clubs believe Hotton could be snapped up by the Eagles.

The Dockers will wait at their pick to see which of the top group is available, having been linked to small forward Joe Berry, Reid and Hotton, although Berry may not last that far either, with many clubs rating him as a top-12 pick. 

Greater Western Sydney will again prove draft shapers with three of the next seven picks.

Clubs expect the Giants to take a tall with one of their picks, while the possibility of grabbing both Whitlock twins – Matt and Jack – also looms to shore up their long-term backline and forward line bookends. Hotton has also had interest from the Giants, while they could grab robust and versatile forward Ollie Hannaford ahead of him being picked with later selections. 

Sydney has been linked as a possible home for Luke Trainor, whose aerial talents will appeal, while Reid and Berry loom as priorities for the Bulldogs if either is available. 

A bid on Brisbane father-son gun Levi Ashcroft is now considered likely to come not until the Demons' pick, while St Kilda could also place bids on both of Isaac Kako (Essendon's Next Generation Academy prospect) and Leo Lombard (Gold Coast's Academy product) with their back-to-back top-10 picks. If either gets through to Richmond then the Tigers would place a bid. 

Fremantle may consider a bid on the Lions' Academy midfielder Sam Marshall, but it is viewed as more likely that the Swans place a bid on him with one of their two picks. 

North Melbourne, St Kilda, Essendon, Gold Coast and Geelong are all looking to use their future first-round selections to buy back into the early stages of this year's first round, which is set to be 27 selections. Another 40 or so picks are expected on Thursday as the draft resumes for round two and beyond. 

LATE MAIL PHANTOM DRAFT

1) Richmond – Sam Lalor
2) North Melbourne – Finn O'Sullivan
3) Carlton – Jagga Smith
4) Adelaide – Sid Draper
5) Brisbane – Levi Ashcroft (matching Melbourne's bid)
6) Melbourne – Harvey Langford
7) Richmond – Josh Smillie
8) St Kilda – Tobie Travaglia
9) Gold Coast – Leo Lombard (matching St Kilda's bid)
10) Essendon – Isaac Kako (matching St Kilda's bid)
11) St Kilda – Alix Tauru
12) Melbourne – Xavier Lindsay
13) Richmond – Bo Allan
14) Richmond – Jobe Shanahan
15) West Coast – Murphy Reid
16) Port Adelaide – Harry Armstrong
17) Fremantle – Joe Berry
18) Greater Western Sydney – Jack Whitlock
19) Greater Western Sydney – Taj Hotton
20) Western Bulldogs – Cooper Hynes
21) Richmond – Jesse Dattoli
22) Brisbane – Sam Marshall (matching Sydney's bid)
23) Sydney – Jonty Faull
24) Richmond – Matt Whitlock
25) Greater Western Sydney – Harry Oliver
27) Richmond – Jasper Alger
28) Richmond – Luke Trainor
29) Western Bulldogs – Christian Moraes
30) West Coast – Ned Bowman