If the experts are right, we’ll look back on the first round of the 2024 Draft as one of the most star-studded in years.
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And already it has produced plenty of drama, with a few live trades including a blockbuster involving the final pick of the night, which will leave fans watching the ladder all through 2025.
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Foxfooty.com.au runs through the big Talking Points from night one of the draft.
FIRST ROUND WRAP: Premiers get a bargain, Eagles thrilled as Tigers load up
DRAFT TRACKER: Every pick, trade and bid as they happen
‘WILL POLARISE OPINION’: LATE ROOS TRADE GAMBLE STUNS
Despite its well-documented infatuation with Gippsland intercept defender Alix Tauru, North Melbourne — after late whispers — scooped up gun ball-winner Finn O’Sullivan at No. 2 to supplement a burgeoning Arden Street midfield brigade that already boasts Luke Davies-Uniacke, Harry Sheezel, George Wardlaw and Colby McKercher.
However, it was a late-first-round trade that stole the headlines.
North entered Wednesday night without a selection in between Picks 2 and 62; a weakness highlighted by list manager Brady Rawlings in the lead-in to proceedings.
The Kangaroos took O’Sullivan at 2 — overlooking positional need — and patiently waited to trade back into the late-first-round order; still eyeing a long-term answer in key defence.
And they found that answer in key-position swingman Matt Whitlock — but it took an eye-widening trade decision, with the Roos choosing to deal their future-first-round selection to Richmond in exchange for Pick 27 and the Tigers’ future second-rounder.
It is anticipated to be a top-10 selection at minimum this time next year.
North explored the possibility of a trade down from 2 that would have netted them an additional selection, but one didn’t come to fruition. Their future first was reportedly on the trade table from as early as St Kilda’s Pick 8, according to AFL Media’s Riley Beveridge.
Nabbing Whitlock at No. 27 is good value for the Roos — and there is little doubt he fills a significant positional need — but the price paid to make a second first-round selection is what will dominate debate.
“A big talking point in the aftermath of this (first night) will be that trade that was struck between North Melbourne and Richmond.
“I get the sense that trade will polarise a lot of opinion tomorrow in the fallout.”
Just moments prior to North Melbourne and Richmond striking a deal, Fox Footy draft expert Mick Ablett expressed his shock at the mere prospect of the Roos offloading their future first.
“Surely the Kangas don’t give up a future first, do they?” Ablett asked on Fox Footy as vision showed the Tigers and Roos deep in negotiations.
“You can imagine them giving up a future second, it’s almost a like for like … (but) I’d be absolutely astounded if the Kangas are going to give up a first-round pick.”
Granted, Richmond’s future second-rounder should fall high in next year’s order, and the 2025 Draft is believed to be reasonably compromised. But the Roos will be banking on serious improvement for the gap to close between those two picks.
Meanwhile, Oakleigh Chargers standout O’Sullivan, despite his injury troubles this year, has drawn comparisons to Marcus Bontempelli after showcasing his explosive ball-winning skills and ability to heavily influence a match without accumulating mass possessions.
The 18-year-old managed six score involvements and two goals in a sole VFL appearance for Richmond this season.
Against the GWV Rebels in a losing preliminary final, O’Sullivan booted 2.1 from 20 disposals, eight marks, eight inside 50s and five tackles.
Roos pay BIG price for last pick | 06:03
‘SENSATIONAL’: LEGACY TIGERS DRAFT HAUL COMES TO LIFE
The Tigers’ once-in-a-blue-moon draft arsenal was the biggest point of discourse heading into the first night — and the way it unfolded is one of the biggest talking points in the aftermath.
With imminent draft value index changes and the arrival of the AFL’s 19th club on the horizon, Richmond had to strike while the iron was hot — and it did so, and then some.
The Tigers made Greater Western Victoria Rebels game-breaker Sam Lalor the first overall pick, with three-time Richmond premiership skipper Trent Cotchin meeting the Vic Country star on stage at Marvel Stadium.
A physically-imposing ball-winner whose forward-half capability was on show this year, the addition of Lalor automatically makes the Tigers a far more threatening proposition for years to come.
Then, the rebuilding Tigers added two more promising midfielder types to a barren list in need of an identity — big-bodied Eastern Ranges standout Josh Smillie at No. 7 and forward-of-centre hybrid Taj Hotton with Pick 12.
The size and ball-winning ability of Smillie has drawn comparisons to the likes of Patrick Cripps and Tom Green, while Hotton — who will miss the opening portion of next season after suffering an ACL injury in May — has been likened to departed livewire Shai Bolton.
The Tigers opted to hold fire on picking a key-position player until their fourth selection at No. 14, snapping up bolter Jonty Faull.
The 195-centimetre Rebels teammate of Lalor booted 27 goals in 11 matches for GWV, including five against the Oakleigh Chargers in the Talent League preliminary final. He would later be selected to the Talent League Team of the Year.
While the selection of Faull may have come as a surprise in itself, Richmond turned heads by snapping up another key-position goalkicker less than 10 picks later — and a slider this time as opposed to a bolter — in Sandy Dragons spearhead Harry Armstrong at No. 23.
The Victoria Metro force was once considered a top-10 chance but slid down the order on Wednesday night — to the unadulterated delight of Blair Hartley and co.
The Tigers also shored up their key-defensive depth, calling the name of Armstrong’s Dragons teammate Luke Trainor — who was considered a slider candidate — two picks earlier at No. 21.
It was a secret to nobody that Richmond came away the big winner of the evening, more than capitalising on its gargantuan haul.
“No doubt, Richmond coming into it were always going to be the winners,” St Kilda great Leigh Montagna told Fox Footy on Wednesday evening.
“They got the two powerful midfielders, Lalor — who can play mid-forward — and Smillie, who can play anywhere (in the) early days but is going to settle as a big, powerful midfielder in time.
“They got their key forward they wanted in Jonty Faull; he was their first pick. Then fortune had it that at Pick 23 Harry Armstrong (slid), so they were able to get their twin towers and now can really set up their forward line for the future.”
Hartley and Victorian recruiting manager Rhy Gieschen masterminded their way through the evening — paying homage to the man who played an instrumental role in setting up Wednesday night’s great success; late recruiting boss Chris Toce.
“They built their list exactly as we expected, didn’t they? They’ve gone to either end of the ground, stocked up through the midfield, and I just marvel at it,” draft expert Mick Ablett told Fox Footy’s coverage.
“I think Blair Hartley’s a genius. He’s done an exceptional job of building a list purely on the back of one draft, and the timing couldn’t have been better.”
But inconceivably, the night got even better for the Tigers just prior to the final selection of the first round.
In the lead-up to the count, one of the questions was whether the Tigers would use all seven of their first-round selections, and when they got on the clock at No. 27 it seemed like they would — right up until they struck a deal with North Melbourne that saw them pry the Roos’ prized future first-rounder from their grasp.
It is a selection that could wind up in the top five or six next year, and it capped a remarkable result for Richmond — and it still has the first pick of the second round to play with.
One of the most valuable picks of the draft, the Tigers could have their pick of the sliders or attain even more future capital as they fast-track a rise back to the top of the competition.
Tigers confirm their Pick One! | 04:57
DID SAINTS IGNORE THEIR BIGGEST NEED?
St Kilda has drafted pretty well over the last few seasons, but we have to wonder about their calls with their two top-10 picks.
At 8, the Saints opted for 187cm defender Tobie Travaglia, who some have compared to Will Day – he’s not gonna be a midfielder soon, but could potentially move in there down the road after he adds some bulk.
After bidding on Suns Academy midfielder Leo Lombard with the next pick, the Saints took another defender at 10, this time the 193cm Alix Tauru who was a bolter over the last few months and has been compared to Tom Stewart.
These players might be very good. Great, even. But with two tasty picks in a midfielder-packed draft, the Saints took half a midfielder, at best.
And if you haven’t watched the Saints over the past 12 months, they sure as hell need help in the midfield. Just ask the best one they’ve got.
“We’ve obviously got some early picks, so getting a midfielder with one of those two picks would be nice to help out our midfield,” Jack Steele told Seven this week.
“It probably hasn’t been our best line in terms of our output over the last few years. It’d be nice to get a young, ready-made player to play alongside with next year.”
To be fair to the Saints this wasn’t completely in their control. Midfielders went with the first seven selections, and perhaps they thought there was a big drop-off from Josh Smillie (who went at No.7 to Richmond) to the next-best (one of Xavier Lindsay who went No.11 to Melbourne, Taj Hotton who went No.12 to Richmond, or Bo Allan who went No.16 to West Coast).
But midfield was such a clear need coming into the night that Steele was happy to talk about it publicly. And even if Travaglia moves into the midfield eventually, he’s surely not the answer next season, a year the Saints should still be targeting finals footy.
They will find it hard to return to September if their midfield is as bad in 2025 as it was in 2024.
Goal kicking legend’s grandson drafted | 04:00
WEST COAST THE BIG WINNERS?
Quite a few West Coast fans weren’t happy when their club gave up Pick 3 as part of their wheeling and dealing in the trade period, which saw Tom Barrass head east and Liam Baker return to WA.
The Eagles’ list certainly still needs plenty more young talent before becoming competitive again, but they couldn’t complain at all with how the first round played out.
Bo Allan, the highest-rated WA prospect on the board, slid all the way down to West Coast’s pick (which turned into 15 after a couple of bids before them) which was a real surprise. Allan was linked to clubs well above the Eagles and it was a live chance he would go inside the top 10.
But not only did the Eagles get the hometown option, they got an extra pick thrown in, after Port Adelaide traded up one slot.
The Power threw in pick 45 in order to move up from 16 to 15 – which West Coast was happy to do, clearly in the knowledge they’d still get the player they wanted at 16.
The Power must have felt there was a chance someone else would trade with the Eagles and pinch the player they wanted, with Victorian small forward Joe Berry known to have interest from Fremantle (who were waiting to pick at 17).
Instead Port got Berry, the Eagles got Allan and a bonus pick, and ensured Freo didn’t get the guy they wanted. Big ticks all around.
Top ten drafts picks revealed! | 01:06
BRISBANE BARGAINS GALORE
The Lions had one priority in the trade period – getting enough points to match bids for Levi Ashcroft, arguably the best player in the draft, and Sam Marshall, another highly-rated Academy prospect.
They did that and more, ending up with plenty of picks left over after both Ashcroft and Marshall received bids later than expected.
Ashcroft only received a bid from Melbourne at Pick 5, allowing the Lions to match using picks 40, 42, 43 and 46 (getting 68 back).
Marshall had to wait until a bid from Sydney at Pick 25, with the Lions matching using picks 43 and 44 (even gaining 57 back).
Six picks in the 40s for two first-round prospects, including the younger brother of midfield gun Will Ashcroft who just won the Norm Smith Medal, is pretty remarkable and another sign of just how badly the draft’s bid matching system is failing the competition.
Nobody is arguing the Lions shouldn’t have access to the two players; the father-son rule which got Levi to the Lions is a special part of Australian football, and the Academy system has clear benefits for football in the northern states, rewarding teams for the effort they put into local products.
It’s the price that’s the problem. Much like when Nick Daicos slid all the way to Pick 4 before Collingwood had to match a bid in his draft year, Ashcroft could have very fairly landed a bid at Pick 1.
Instead sliding all the way to Pick 5 meant Brisbane paid just over half what they would’ve paid in draft points, ensuring they had enough for Marshall even if he went higher than he ended up going.
It’s possible none of Richmond, North Melbourne, Carlton or Adelaide rated Ashcroft, if you’re generous.
It’s also very possible they didn’t want to go through the trouble of bidding on him, and having to tell the player they picked ‘oh no we still like you more even though we wanted to pick this other dude’. There is also a financial and commercial benefit with Pick 1 in particular, so in the Tigers’ case, they would have been taking money out of Sam Lalor’s pocket if they had bid on Ashcroft first.
The system relies on teams enforcing competitive balance by bidding on players at the right spot in the draft. The problem, as we’ve seen year after year, is that you can’t rely on the teams to do that.
After all teams know they might have to trade with each other in the years to come, and they don’t want to upset each other – especially if they’ve got Academy or father-son prospects on the horizon. You don’t want to make a rival club angry and cop a revenge bid down the road.
The draft points system is being adjusted next year to make teams pay a bit more than they currently do, which is a good and needed change. But the very structure of the system is the real problem and it will allow situations like this to remain.