AFL Draft system is slowly changing for the better, but bids still dominate night two
The AFL keeps talking tough on reforming the draft — and while 2025 showed its working slowly, there’s still a long way to go for the system to pass the pub test among fans, writes Josh Barnes.
The AFL’s slow moving reform to the draft points and bidding process is working but just not fast enough.
If night one of the draft was all about the bid-aggeddon, night two proved it isn’t all a cakewalk for clubs scooping up their own talent.
Rule changes brought in to make it harder may have slowed down matching, yet the AFL still has work to do to pass the pub test.
Some proof the changes may be paying off came on night two, when West Coast was hit with three bids within four picks and only walked away with one match – on exciting forward Tylah Williams.
Famously starved for father-sons, St Kilda snuck Charlie Banfield through from the Eagles one spot later, the son of former No.1 West Coast pick Drew.
Last draft, four bids were matched inside the first 40 picks and this year that doubled to eight.
But after the first six bids placed were all matched, only one of the next six were.
Whether clubs were more emboldened by the AFL going harder on draft points and the discount for club prospects or rivals just ran aground in points, matching isn’t as easy as a swipe on a dating app anymore.
By the time the clubs had shuffled out of Marvel Stadium, 18 bids had been made out of 60 picks and 13 of those bids were matched.
It still won’t pass the pub test though, given Gold Coast were able to match four bids in the top 18 picks on night one, then on night two draft a Tasmanian of their own liking (Avery Thomas) and match another bid at pick 46 on Koby Coulson.
Obviously it is well played by the Suns to amass the right amount of points and position themselves.
Craig Cameron and Kall Burns’ list squad tallied up more pick swaps since the season ended then there will be sunburnt Poms in Perth over the next weeks.
Again on Thursday, the AFL talked tough on reducing the ability of clubs to match bids with new rule tweaks going forward.
As one club president noted recently, getting rule changes through are tough simply because of the changing nature of teams keen to get academy or father-son benefits.
Carlton had the top father-son choice (Harry Dean) and was the first Victorian club to match a bid on an academy player (Jack Ison) across the two nights of the draft.
The Blues haven’t been awash with father-sons in the past but have one of the best prospects next year in Cody Walker.
Another club that has rarely troubled the father-son draft numbers, Port Adelaide was silent on both draft nights and went pickless but have already voiced concerns about potential rule changes with a number of prospects, led by academy jet Dougie Cochrane, on the way.
When those clubs get their teens and move on, new clubs will pop up to oppose change.
Given the draft is supposed to be the ultimate equalisation measure, the interruptions at the top of the board are just too great right now.
Richmond just completed its worst two-year stretch in terms of wins since 1960-61 but their leanest 24-month stretch since before The Beatles released their first album didn’t get them a 2025 draft pick earlier than No.7.
Nobody can say that is right, when finalists Gold Coast and Brisbane were able to match bids before them and still have strong presence throughout the draft.
As talent doyen Kevin ‘Shifter’ Sheehan noted on the Fox Footy telecast, “you could only dream” two decades ago of Queensland producing this much talent seemingly year after year.
The problem isn’t the academies, it is the system of getting players in through the draft.
AFL footy boss Greg Swann’s list of fixes at league HQ has felt never-ending and, unlike Zeke Uwland’s famous to-do list now full of ticks, the draft bidding process remains a task on Swann’s list for now.
Originally published as AFL Draft system is slowly changing for the better, but bids still dominate night two
Every pick: Big names left waiting on draft’s emotional second night
