AFL CLUBS are making list management decisions every day of the week.

The analysis of a team's list is ongoing, as form, opportunity and injury can impact an individual's chances of maintaining a list position or being promoted from the rookie list.

The top clubs in the competition have established senior team structures but need to work on ways to develop and expose the next generation of senior footballers while still having their eyes firmly on the chances of winning the flag.

The top two teams in 2011, Collingwood and Geelong, have rotated their senior sides beautifully, preventing players from playing hurt while opening the door for some hungry youngsters to taste senior football and deepening the clubs' lists come September.

At club level, each listed position is incredibly valuable and through list management meetings football divisions will continue to update the number of spots they may require for the next season.

If a club wants to trade in two players from opposition clubs for draft selections and requires four selections at the NAB AFL Draft, they need to delist six players from the senior playing list.

This is stating the obvious, but what some people forget is that at times there are rookies who also need upgrading, so if a club has two of these as well you are now looking at eight delistings, which is 20 per cent of the list. 

When you consider that they have established senior players plus developing youngsters they don't want to touch, this is not always an easy task. 

At the end of round 18 we have five teams who mathematically cannot make finals action, and realistically within the next fortnight another couple of clubs will join this list.

These clubs will already have their sights firmly set on 2012 and many of their back room decisions could impact at the selection table from now on.

The senior coach will sit in on all list management meetings, as all aspects of the senior list will be scrutinised. Discussions on players, their futures and how best to manage the team over the next six weeks would all be thrown into the mix.

Getting games into the kids

At some clubs, the second half of the year is about exposing to senior footy young players who they believe will be a part of the team's future. 

An extra six to 10 matches at senior level can certainly help a young player in his preparation for the following season.

The Western Bulldogs' season looked over six weeks ago and they decided to play Luke Dalhaus, whose performances have surprised many even inside the club. The confidence he has gained will make him a better player in 2012 providing he takes the correct attitude into summer training.

Moving on from the senior players

In list management discussions, clubs may decide to put their faith and games into the next generation, which often means they will discard some senior players who are not in their long-term plans.

At times it won't matter how well these senior players are playing at the next level - a club decision has been made on them.

Recent examples have been Chad Cornes at Port Adelaide and Shane Tuck at Richmond.

Both players were in solid form in the SANFL and VFL respectively, but were passed over as they were not a part of 2012 plans for their clubs.

In both cases kids were gifted games that they perhaps had not earned, and the teams became non-competitive, so in the end they finally went back to these veteran players. In both cases, the players did not let them down.

Showcasing potential trade bait

At times football clubs become impatient with certain players.

They may feel that he doesn't work hard enough to get the best out of himself or plays as an individual and does not adhere to team rules.

Usually a player in this category will have been omitted throughout the season but may bob up again later in the year.

In this case, he is being used as currency for the trade period. He needs to be exposed, so it is a waste of time and opportunity playing him at the next level down.

Quite often he will play well, as he is desperate and hungry for opportunity, while others who are more comfortable are dropping off.

The same showcasing will apply when a team has an overabundance of one type of player. For example, a team may play three rucks late in the year to expose one to senior football and to opposition suitors.

So when you are looking at your team's selections over the next few weeks, watch for the signs of list management overriding the week-by-week selection process.

Some players will be put in for early operations, and selection will reflect the interests of the trade period and the 2012 season.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs