AFL U16 championships 2025: Essendon and Port Adelaide tied talents among top prospects to watch
A host of under-16 talents will be under the watchful eye of recruiters — including several father-sons. We assess the top prospects from the 2027 draft crop as the next round of the U16 champs loom.
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There are several club linked talents among the 2027 AFL Draft crop who will be closely tracked by recruiters as the under-16 national championships continue on the Gold Coast next week.
The most highly touted of those is Essendon father-son gun Koby Bewick, while Port Adelaide also has three prospects linked to them who have impressed.
The 2027 AFL Draft could be the most compromised yet with Tasmania set to dominate the early part of the draft if its bid to enter the competition is fulfilled.
South Australian midfielder Dyson Sharp looms as the Larke Medal favourite after a stunning U18 national championships campaign, and his rise began at the under-16 championships in 2023 when he took out the Kevin Sheehan Medal.
These are the prospects to keep tabs on across the week, and be sure to follow all the scouting notes, stats and ranking points from the under-16 champs on News Corp sites next week.
PLAYERS TO WATCH AT U16 CHAMPS
Koby Bewick
Essendon father-son
Midfielder, 177cm, Vic Metro/Calder Cannons
Essendon fans, you’ve got a good one coming. Bewick, the son of dual premiership Bomber Darren, turned heads in his Coates Talent League debut as a double bottom-ager earlier this year with 28 disposals and long-range goal on the run from beyond the arc. The smooth-moving midfielder then produced an all-round masterclass in his first game of the championships with three goals, 23 disposals, 10 inside 50s, seven score involvements, seven clearances and 167 SuperCoach points. And this will be one top talent Tasmania won’t have first dibs on.
Axel Walsh
Ruck, 201cm, Western Australia/East Perth
Walsh is one of the early contenders to be the first prospect drafted by Tasmania in 2027. Already standing 201 centimetres, the ruckman had an absolute day out in Western Australia’s win over South Australia to start the championships. In wet conditions, the ruckman clunked seven intercept marks – five of those contested – to go with 29 hit-outs, 23 disposals, 17 contested possessions, six tackles and 206 SuperCoach points. He already featured in three U16 carnival matches last year as a ruckman and made a promising two-goal debut in the WAFL Colts for East Perth in round four.
Louis Salopek
Port Adelaide father-son
Midfielder, 184cm, Vic Metro/Dandenong Stingrays
The son of former Port Adelaide player Steven Salopek made a strong start to the under-16 championships for Vic Country. Salopek stood tall in the clinches with 32 disposals, 14 contested possessions, five tackles and 118 SuperCoach points against Vic Metro, regularly ducking and weaving through heavy traffic. The Power father-son prospect has also played two Coates Talent League games for the Dandenong Stingrays, slotting two goals in his second appearance.
Max Thompson
Forward, 175cm, Vic Country/Bendigo Pioneers
Thompson bent them through from all angles in his opening game of the championships as he booted a bag of five goals – four of them coming from snaps. The opportunistic goalsneak also finished with 19 disposals, 11 score involvements and 182 SuperCoach points in a damaging forward-half display. Thompson has shown promising signs in his two games at Coates Talent League, where he averaged 13.5 disposals, a goal and 94 SuperCoach points.
Harvey Chapman
Defender, 194cm, South Australia/Sturt
Chapman had an incredible defensive performance to kick off the championships where he proved to be impassable. The key defender collected 16 intercept possessions – eight of those marks as he cut off Western Australia’s forward forays time and time again. He also had a staggering 18 rebound 50s along with 33 disposals, 31 kicks to finish with 206 SuperCoach points. Many of those touches were from kick-ins, but it said plenty about Chapman’s skills that a player of his size was entrusted with those duties.
Zemes Pilot
Port Adelaide NGA
Forward/Midfielder, 190cm, South Australia/South Adelaide
Another promising talent tied to Port Adelaide, Pilot has plenty of tricks and one of the better names in this crop. The Power Next Generation Academy prospect shone in the wet against Western Australia with his defensive pressure and athleticism standing out. Pilot tallied 21 disposals, 14 contested possessions, nine tackles, six marks and 177 SuperCoach points. A tall who plays like a small, Pilot kicked two majors in each of his under-18 appearances for South Adelaide this year.
Charles McClennan
Midfielder, 178cm, Swans Academy/Manly Bombers
McClennan was best afield in Swans Academy’s U16 champs opener against the Giants Academy a fortnight ago. The Swans tied talent underlined his well-rounded game by registering 30 disposals, 21 kicks, 16 contested possessions, 11 tackles, eight clearances, eight intercepts, seven marks two goals and 203 SuperCoach points. He shapes as another high-quality midfielder from the Swans Academy.
Max Gulliver
Midfielder, 178cm, Tasmania/Glenorchy
The first Tasmanian draftee to the Devils? Gulliver certainly put his name up in lights in Tasmania’s big win over Northern Territory to kick off their division two campaign as he produced an astonishing statline: 27 disposals, 17 contested possessions, 10 inside 50s, nine clearances, four goals and 202 SuperCoach points. The Glenorchy midfielder is strong at the contest and is a serious threat forward of centre.
Taj Garrett
Midfielder, 182cm, South Australia/Sturt
Garrett was everywhere in South Australia’s first clash of the carnival, highlighting his ability to win the ball on the inside and outside. The Sturt prospect racked up 30 disposals, 25 kicks, 16 contested possessions, 10 marks and 165 SuperCoach points, and showed off his soccer skills with a toe poke off the deck that skidded through for a goal. Garrett also showed encouraging signs as a bottom-ager at last year’s carnival, including one goal and three assists against Vic Metro.
Tevita Rodan
Port Adelaide father-son
Defender, 179cm, Vic Metro/Calder Cannons
You guessed it, another 2027 draft prospect tied to Port Adelaide. Rodan is the son of former Richmond, Port Adelaide and Melbourne player and current goal umpire David, but is only tied to the Power where he played 111 of his 185 matches AFL games. Tevita provided run off halfback in their first match of the carnival against Vic Country and channelled his father with a dribble goal from the boundary in his Coates Talent League debut for the Calder Cannons back in round seven.
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Originally published as AFL U16 championships 2025: Essendon and Port Adelaide tied talents among top prospects to watch
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