Expanded rookie lists ahead of the new Gold Coast expansion offer more second chances than ever before.
With each club granted two extra rookie spots in compensation for the draft picks earmarked for the Gold Coast next year, there could be more than 80 vacancies on AFL lists ahead of the NAB AFL Pre-Season and Rookie Draft on December 16.
By way of comparison, 79 players were drafted in Saturday’s national draft.
Six senior spots currently remain available across all lists. More could be freed with the third list lodgment and total player payment estimates on Wednesday, but no more than three further changes are likely, league-wide.
An additional 70 to 80 players are expected to be selected in the rookie draft – although it remains unclear whether all clubs will utilise their rookie vacancies.
And with the likes of Dean Cox, Brett Kirk and Aaron Davey having come through the rookie list in recent years, the rookie draft is no longer the poor man's draft.
Melbourne has the first selection in this year’s NAB AFL Pre-Season and Rookie Draft and young talent will again be the theme for both.
Port Adelaide has confirmed it will take Josh Carr and Carlton will take Chris Johnson via the pre-season meeting.
The Lions also have a selection in the pre-season draft and could take 2005 Sydney Swans premiership player Nick Davis, who has been training with the club.
West Coast great Ben Cousins is now out of the mix for the Lions after they publicly stated they would not draft him in December.
Cousins is still eligible and remains in the draft pool, but the only clubs that could conceivably draft him are Essendon and Richmond – who have the remaining two picks in the pre-season draft. Neither appears likely to select him.
The rookie draft will revolve around the players unlucky to miss out in Saturday's NAB AFL Draft.
Those included Matthew DeBoer (Claremont), Casey Sibasado (Northern Territory Thunder), Kade Klemke (Murray Bushrangers), Clancee Pearce (Swan Districts), Adam Varcoe (Central District), Tom Rockliff (Murray Bushrangers), Steven Gaertner (Dandenong Stingrays), Michael Gugliotta (Nightcliff) and Jamie Sheahan (Murray Bushrangers).
All were 50/50 prospects in the draft, and will be highly fancied to work their way onto rookie lists on December 16.
With more than 730 players on AFL lists next year – up from 713 in 2008 – the second chance saloon has never been so accommodating.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
