AFLW Draft Late Mail: Go-home concerns set to shape first round on Monday night
Armed with picks two and three, the Giants will have a big say on the first round of the AFLW Draft – but there is some late intel that could sway their decision. Get the latest whispers here.
Go-home concerns are poised to shape the first round of the AFLW Draft as clubs monitor intently for an indication of how GWS will use its No. 2 and No. 3 picks.
The Giants are weighing whether to back themselves to retain top Victorian prospect Chloe Bown or look elsewhere after speaking to the gun midfielder and her camp.
Touted during the season as a potential No.1 selection, the Giants are firmly in the frame for Bown as Richmond leans towards athletic utility Scarlett Johnson or West Australia forward Olivia Wolmarans with its plans for the top pick.
But it is understood concerns have grown over Bown’s willingness to remain at GWS long-term, in a similar development to 12 months ago when India Rasheed’s camp signalled to clubs her strong preference was to remain in Adelaide.
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Rasheed was touted as a top-five prospect during the year but slid through to the Crows at pick 13.
Adelaide has also met with Bown and could consider taking the 173cm midfielder at pick four.
The Giants have been linked strongly to Wolmarans with their second pick and are weighing a double-bid on two Sydney academy players to ensure a high-level local talent is added to their list.
It comes as Swans academy midfielder Kiera Yerbury – not in the initial list of 11 invitees to the draft – received a late call-up to Monday night’s event at Marvel Stadium.
Sydney will only be able to match a bid on one player if the Giants bid on both tall forward Alex Neyland and Yerbury with their second or third picks.
Gold Coast has prepared a draft hand which would allow it to match five academy bids with the first five picks but might not need to act until pick four – rival clubs do not expect the Giants to bid on the Suns’ academy prospects.
With a more lenient system than the men’s draft where clubs only need to use one selection within 18 picks of the bid to match it, clubs have less capacity to complicate their rivals’ draft plans by making early bids.
This is only the second fully national draft with players required to be available to play at all 18 clubs.
Kristie-Lee Weston-Turner’s manager Michael Oakes was counselled by the AFLPA this week after he joked he had made a “beer deal” with Hawthorn list boss Keegan Brooksby not to select the former Western Bulldogs forward before North Melbourne’s pick 37.
Oakes is understood to have told the AFLPA his comments on the league’s official trade broadcast were made in jest.
The Hawks do not have a pick before the Kangaroos on Monday, but there are other clubs considering whether to swoop on Weston-Turner as early as the end of the first round.
Originally published as AFLW Draft Late Mail: Go-home concerns set to shape first round on Monday night
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