NORTH Melbourne asked for full access to Tasmanian draft prospects as part of its pitch for AFL assistance, which has included priority picks and extra list spots.
However the Roos will not get the increased priority access to Tasmanian draft hopefuls, with a decision on what the League gives to North Melbourne expected soon.
The Roos were in talks with the AFL over a number of months about a possible concession package after back-to-back wooden spoons, and the club used Gold Coast's 2019 assistance package – which was the last the AFL gave out – as a model for what they could receive.
DRAFT HUB Click here for the latest draft news
Whilst they have also applied for early draft picks and two extra list spots, which AFL.com.au revealed in August, another option discussed was the potential of broadening the club's Tasmanian Academy hold.
The Kangaroos already get access to Tasmania's Next Generation Academy talents under the same rules as other clubs in different regions around the country, including drafting Tarryn Thomas in 2018, but no broadened access will be provided and the Roos didn't put it in their final submission.
In the Suns' assistance package from three years ago, the club secured pick No.1 and 20 in the 2019 NAB AFL Draft, then pick 11 in the 2020 draft and pick 19 in the 2021 draft. Gold Coast also gained access to a widened Academy zone by including prospects from Darwin in their region, as well as an increased rookie list over a three-year timeframe.
The Kangaroos' bid for priority picks and an assistance package has focused on the club's poor recent results as well as their long-term absence from the Grand Final, having not reached the premiership decider since 1999.
North has won nine of their 61 games over the past three seasons and put forward the cases of the Suns in 2019 and Carlton and Brisbane in 2018 (who also received AFL assistance) to show its three-year performance was worse than those clubs.
A decision is expected as soon as next week, with the AFL Commission's meeting in Grand Final week traditionally when the League has made previous calls on AFL assistance given the start of the upcoming trade period.