THREE previously listed AFL footballers have withdrawn their draft nominations and are set to take advantage of new rookie rules to reignite their careers.
Maverick Weller, Corey Wagner and Keegan Brooksby were going to test their luck in the draft, but the AFL's announcement last Thursday about the pre-season supplemental selection period (SPP) changed their situation.
Former Giant Shane Mumford and ex-Docker Zac Clarke are also set to join Greater Western Sydney and Essendon, respectively, under the new rule.
The deadline to nominate for the draft was Friday, but players were given until 5pm on Monday to formally withdraw because of the new arrangement.
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Weller, who played 32 games for Gold Coast and most recently 89 for St Kilda, is set to sign with Richmond after touring the club's facilities in recent days, while Brooksby will sign with West Coast.
The 26-year-old Weller will provide more depth for the Tigers, who traded fringe players Corey Ellis, Anthony Miles, Tyson Stengle and Sam Lloyd and lost Reece Conca in free agency.
Wagner, who played eight matches for North Melbourne, won Casey Demons' best and fairest this year and his brother Josh is on Melbourne's list.
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Brooksby, 28, co-captained South Adelaide in 2018 and was the captain and ruckman in the SANFL Team of the Year after leading the competition in total and average hit-outs.
The 197cm big man is a former Sun.
Players who were previously listed and then cut or who have spent a year out of the AFL since retirement or delisting themselves no longer have to enter the draft to find their way to a new club.
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A team cannot re-sign a player in the SPP the same year it delisted him unless he is overlooked in the drafts, such as in the case of Jacob Townsend at Richmond.
The SPP runs from December 1 through to March 15 and players can't sign or train with a club until then.
Both Sydney and Hawthorn could also benefit from the rule.
Kurt Tippett (Swans) and Will Langford (Hawks) have both retired but remain on their respective club's list for 2019, but can be placed on an inactive list to allow their team to pick a replacement.
That replacement could come via the SPP or the introduction of the mid-season draft next year.
