Clubs will be able to trade draft picks two years in advance under proposed AFL changes that could come as soon as this year.
Clubs are also expected to be able to trade salary cap space for draft picks, but that is almost certain to come next year.
Western Bulldogs star Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and father-son international Sam Darcy.Credit: AFL photos
Changes to the national draft points system are also unlikely to change in time for this year's draft, meaning Carlton's ability to secure father-son twins Camporeale or the Brisbane Lions selecting Levi Ashcrof will not will be affected.
Changes to the draft point system (the Draft Value Index, or DVI) are likely next year. Picks with points attached will continue until pick 54 (or three rounds of draft picks) before dropping to the fourth round, which currently carries points.
Two club sources who were at the briefings and spoke on condition of anonymity said the league was not final about any changes but gave strong hints about some changes. It was noted that it was likely that the bidding rules around indigenous and next-generation academy players who are club-bound would change again, unlikely for this year but still a possibility, and they would again the previous agreement, where clubs had unlimited ability to match the offers of their academy players.
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The AFL changed the rules after the Western Bulldogs landed academy prospect Jamarra Ugle-Hagan at pick 1 in 2020, giving clubs free access to offers for their academy players if the offer came after pick 40. This rule change meant Melbourne could not match an offer for Mac Andrew, who Gold Coast secured with pick five in the 2021 national draft.
Clubs were hoping that forty of the under-40 deals would be scrapped entirely.
The briefing, which split the AFL's 18 clubs into three groups of six over three successive meetings, was largely an update session, giving clubs one last chance to offer feedback before the decisions are finalised. and the executive to make recommendations to the AFL Commission at its meeting in early August.
