CLUBS will not be able to replace a retired player at the AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft without a completed deed of release form, as the AFL tightens its inactive player rules.
The mid-season draft will be held on Wednesday, May 31, between rounds 11 and 12, with clubs again to make their selections via an online format and the draft to be conducted out of the AFL's Review Centre.
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As reported in Inside Trading last week, currently there are seven clubs that will have open spots available to use mid-season draft selections, with more to arise in coming weeks through either long-term injuries or retirements.
The AFL sent a memo to clubs on Monday with details on the upcoming mid-season draft, which is the fourth since it was reintroduced to the player movement landscape in 2019.
Included in that was the explanation of registering of inactive players, with clubs to have to show evidence that a player has retired, including a form 40 lodged online and a signed deed of released lodged with the AFL by Tuesday, May 30.
Clubs will not be able to replace a retired player with a mid-season pick without the completed form being lodged.
For example, Richmond triple-premiership player Jason Castagna, who made a shock retirement in February ahead of the season, couldn't be replaced by the Tigers with a mid-season selection until the process is tightened.
Retirements before the mid-season draft have become a semi-regular part of the event, with Shaun Grigg retiring in 2019 and allowing the Tigers to use a pick that saw them select Marlion Pickett, who debuted in that year's Grand Final win.
In 2021, Hawthorn opened up a position when Jon Patton retired, with the Hawks using that selection to nab midfielder Jai Newcombe, while Bomber Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti retired mid-season last year before he returned later in the year.
As per the rule change last year, only previously listed AFL players will be able to nominate for the draft with financial terms.
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Players are eligible for the mid-season draft if they nominated for last year's national draft and were not selected or a player who was delisted last year, or a retired player who delisted himself and has not been on an AFL list for one year or more.
Last year the AFL gave 11 players exemptions to be eligible for the mid-season draft despite them not nominating for the 2021 draft, however the appetite to grant exemptions this year is expected to be far lower.