List Mgmt. Draft thread - 2025 (remaining picks: 29, 34)

[Keys]

Live draft hand
R1: 1 (Duursma), 4 (CDT), 19 (Lindsay)
R2: 29, 34
RD: 1

Draft picks pre-draft
R1: 1, 2, 13
R2: 34, 41
RD: 1

List spots available
Main list: 2 (includes Duursma, CDT, Lindsay)
Cat A Rookie list: 1 (expecting Robertson, Macrae and Schoenberg to join as SSP signings)
Cat B Rookie list: 1

Draft order

Spoiler

Draft prospect video highlights (thanks to noobermensch)

Rookie Me Central 2025 Draft Guide

2025 AFL Draft Guide

online.fliphtml5.com

Matthew Clarke on Gettable 17/11

Spoiler

Cal Twomey’s Phantom Draft

Spoiler

 

[twce13]

CDT ranking is truly bizare all year to me.
constantly raised as a top 2 talent, but it doesnt show up on tape and no one can actually explain why he should be top 2, outside of buzz words like unicorn.

 

[Ilkka Sinisalo]

Interesting how most of that top 20 finished up playing several years ago, some over a decade, yet Sidebottom keeps on going! Rich probably top 5 in that list!

Melbourne had three top 20 picks including #1 overall and came away with Jack Watts, Sam Blease and James Strauss.

Woof.

 

[Yeahnahmate]

Often those that are more workmanlike but can really football get overlooked early. Look at gulp Murphy Reid from last draft. Widely known to just find it and have lovely clean hands and vision but not thought of as a top 10 talent. I know ceiling is another thing but his looks pretty alright.

I say best talent (Duursma) at 1 and best proper footy player with consistent junior runs on the board in Sharp at 2. CDT might be great and nothing against him whatsoever, but on needs I say that’s the direction.

Obviously I know far less than some, but have seen a fair few of the ‘vanilla’ guys in the past end up adding some pretty delicious toppings when they bring that confidence, work ethic and footy smarts into the league

 

[Eastern Rangers]

Difference is Axel is actually a ruckman. CDT is a tall 'something' that cant ruck. Not convinced we need another Bailey Williams but as you please.

Axel is a ruck, forward, back.

You love those Claremont Colts players

Benji looked great throughout that whole finals series, how tall is he? If he hits the magical 203+ mark combined with his agility, WC need to get him.

Charlie grew throughout that series and I think he'll be a great get for WC as a late pick/rookie selection - still a litlle worried about his ball use/decision making.

I'll double down on Harper, think he will be a seriously good AFL player and comfortably better than his brother. In that first final loss, Claremont looked better when he was in the midfield.

Inequality in the WAFL is a big issue, but give me Axel over Benji any day.

Charlie is no loner with ball use issues, see Farrow and Duursma. He's technically strong but needs to kick less under pressure.

I also rate Kelly highly and think his clean hands should see him at least level with Rodriguez.

 

[Aarick13]

I know direct comparisons can never be drawn but is Sharp the Daniel Rich of this draft class? An underage dominator due to being a manchild and being able to bully opponents in close?

Could do worse than plucking Rich earlier in his draft and I remember there was some rating him much higher in the weeks leading up to it before he went at 7.

Side note: the streets will never forget Tom Swift

View attachment 2459567

I think Josh Lindsay would be comparable to Rich or at least Rich when he started to play HBF.

 

[Happy Mastenator]

I know direct comparisons can never be drawn but is Sharp the Daniel Rich of this draft class? An underage dominator due to being a manchild and being able to bully opponents in close?

Could do worse than plucking Rich earlier in his draft and I remember there was some rating him much higher in the weeks leading up to it before he went at 7.

Side note: the streets will never forget Tom Swift

View attachment 2459567

When I look at at Sharp I don't think he's a physical anomaly, he is tall and lean for his role, so it was skill more than pure strength that drove his performance. Rich was much more physically developed.

 

[TOA.]

When I look at at Sharp I don't think he's a physical anomaly, he is tall and lean for his role, so it was skill more than pure strength that drove his performance. Rich was much more physically developed.

Rich was also just too short and stumpy for AFL midfield role. Sharp is a good size.

 

[woosha24]

CDT ranking is truly bizare all year to me.
constantly raised as a top 2 talent, but it doesnt show up on tape and no one can actually explain why he should be top 2, outside of buzz words like unicorn.

I will genuinely spew if we take CDT in the Top 2.

He's a tall ~something~ that might be good in whatever position he ends up in, but he doesnt seem to excel in any particular role at the junior level.

Stinks of a "has potential" or "high ceiling" pick to me. Do Not Want.

 

[txbyhull]

Axel is a ruck, forward, back.



Inequality in the WAFL is a big issue, but give me Axel over Benji any day.

Charlie is no loner with ball use issues, see Farrow and Duursma. He's technically strong but needs to kick less under pressure.

I also rate Kelly highly and think his clean hands should see him at least level with Rodriguez.

Kelly one that I've failed to see raised too much in draft calculations all year, yet I feel like he's put as much of a good foot forward as most other WA talent. Bizarre

 

[squashface]

I will genuinely spew if we take CDT in the Top 2.

He's a tall ~something~ that might be good in whatever position he ends up in, but he doesnt seem to excel in any particular role at the junior level.

Stinks of a "has potential" or "high ceiling" pick to me. Do Not Want.

Maybe he can play the gimp wing role

 

[woosha24]

Maybe he can play the gimp wing role

I think we've earmarked it for Duursma.

 

[Happy Mastenator]

I will genuinely spew if we take CDT in the Top 2.

He's a tall ~something~ that might be good in whatever position he ends up in, but he doesnt seem to excel in any particular role at the junior level.

Stinks of a "has potential" or "high ceiling" pick to me. Do Not Want.

The concern is that his "elite" attributes, mainly running. Isn't something that necessarily makes use of his height. If you put someone on him at 192cm who can run, is he able to take advantage and out jump and out mark them? If not, then he's actually not unique.

If his contested marking is weak (which by all reports it is), he won't be able to take shorter players forward and punish them. Then what does he bring?

 

[Happy Mastenator]

Rich was also just too short and stumpy for AFL midfield role. Sharp is a good size.

Rich was the original

 

[Yeahnahmate]

When I look at at Sharp I don't think he's a physical anomaly, he is tall and lean for his role, so it was skill more than pure strength that drove his performance. Rich was much more physically developed.

Nah but he’s been quoted numerous times as one of, if not the strongest guy around the contest even in his underage years. Can bully now but will it stack up when those with perhaps more tricks and agility put that on in the gym is the question some might ask.

My point was actually countering that very line of thinking though - I think there’s plenty of examples of these types just getting better and thriving in a more professional environment due to their consistency of application and just being pure footballers early

 

[Happy Mastenator]

Nah but he’s been quoted numerous times as one of, if not the strongest guy around the contest even in his underage years. Can bully now but will it stack up when those with perhaps more tricks and agility put that on in the gym is the question some might ask.

My point was actually countering that very line of thinking though - I think there’s plenty of examples of these types just getting better and thriving in a more professional environment due to their consistency of application and just being pure footballers early

Ok. I think we are agreed generally.

He has much more capacity for adding strength. He's not closed to topped out when looking at his build.

Even when went up to SANFL he was still able to hold his own with craft against the stronger bodies of men.

 

[Yeahnahmate]

Rich was also just too short and stumpy for AFL midfield role. Sharp is a good size.

Familiar with Lachie Neale’s game? The thing about Rich was his left peg was just so lethal off the half back he had to wind up there. As well as being even slower than most other shortass ball winning mids

 

[Yeahnahmate]

Ok. I think we are agreed generally.

He has much more capacity for adding strength. He's not closed to topped out when looking at his build.

Even when went up to SANFL he was still able to hold his own with craft against the stronger bodies of men.

Definitely bodes well. I’m absolutely on board for using our 2 pick on him

 

[Coasters7]

Sometimes the boring answer is the right answer. Give me 250+ games of a Libba clone and I’m good.

I’m of the opinion that it should be highest ceiling with top 3 picks, not drafting for needs. If we want Sharp we should be trading down. Dont overthink it with the first 2 picks and just take the two best talents.

 

[maxrm]

Our recruitment team will be simultaneously breaking the draft down into rankings and tiers to guide our selections and willingness to package picks to move up the draft order, or to potentially split one of our top selections. With that in mind, this is where I see the consensus tiers (although our tiers may well deviate):

Tier 1: Duursma (Uwland)
Tier 2: CDT (Patterson, Annable)
Tier 3: Sharp, Robey, Taylor, Schubert, Grlj (Dean)
Tier 4: Lindsay, Cumming, Farrow, Dovaston
Tier 5: Marsh, Greeves, Phillipou, O.Taylor, NHH

I’ll stop there, as this covers the predicted top 16 in the open draft. However, it’s worth nothing that moving up from our Hawthorn selection was a great move as it has ensured we can draft from Tier 5 at worse for our third selection.

Now, based on the above tiers it’s clear that we should hold onto Pick #1 and draft Duursma. Would love a double bid on the GC boys in case we could shake Patterson loose but that appears unlikely, which means that the consensus next best available is CDT. However, most here agree that “reaching” for a midfielder would be a far better decision from a broader list management perspective, with Sharp and Cumming the board favourites and Robey unsurprisingly a divisive prospect with his immense ceiling yet limited exposed form. Grlj, Dovaston, Farrow, and Lindsay have their fans too, and Schubert if we overlook CDT but are insistent on going tall with one of our top picks.

With pick #13 however, unless when the aforementioned players slide we’ll be choosing from Tier 5. I’m not a particularly big fan of any of them, although my personal preference would probably be Phillipou. But I would much rather we find a way to move up into Tier 3 and/or 4. In particular, I see a huge difference between the options available in Tier 4 compared to 5 based on our list needs and who I can see us targeting.

With that in mind, we have two options: trade up, or split.

As other posters have explored, both options have merit. Carlton’s pick #9 is probably the highest we can expect to trade up to, which would land us a tier 4 prospect. I’d love to see this eventuate.

But even better IMO would be splitting pick 2.

2+13 for Essendon’s 5+6 makes too much sense. We get two players from Tier 3 or our favourite(s) from Tier 4, while Essendon can snap up CDT or Robey, and most likely still get Greeves. Could see them loving the Robey/Greeves combo.

Or in other words, we go from CDT + Phillipou/NHH/Marsh, to instead landing two of Sharp, Cumming, Grlj, Dovaston, or Schubert if we want a tall.

If Melbourne become enamoured with CDT or Robey I’d split 2 directly for 7 and 8 too, although we may need to thrown in Saints F2 or our 2R this year as I don’t think the gap between CDT/Robey and Dovaston/Farrow/Lindsay is big enough.

Very intrigued to see how it all plays out.

 

[Eastern Rangers]

Maybe he can play the gimp wing role

Don't ask a man how much he makes, don't ask a women how old she is and don't ask CDT what role he plays at AFL level.

 

[mitchzz]

If we did take CDT at 2, would people be okay with Greeves at 13?

Similar mould to Sharp. Possibly even less athletic but more physically developed. Can't argue with his production though.

I wouldn't hate it.

 

[Yeahnahmate]

I’m of the opinion that it should be highest ceiling with top 3 picks, not drafting for needs. If we want Sharp we should be trading down. Dont overthink it with the first 2 picks and just take the two best talents.

16 players taken before Murphy Reid on ‘talent’, just saying. I think best talent is clear with Duursma at 1, but after that it gets a little greyer and I’m not against picking the best footy player if they are in and around the mix for pick 2. It’s like ceiling and safety with less risk of a double flop

 

[Keys]

What's the timeline with signing Dev and some of the other state-level players (Blamries, Berry, Schoenberg) who we were considering dumpster diving for?

Seems like we have 4 rookie spots to fill assuming we use all 5 main list spots in the draft and pending other list moves (keeping or delisting Livingstone/shifting a senior player like Cripps onto the rookie list)

For convenience, I’ll run with 4 places to fill and anticipate we delist Livingstone to create a Cat B opening:

1) Robertson will be added as a SSP signing post draft. If we’re really keen on another delisted player (like Clohessy, Berry, Schoenberg, Macrae etc) we could do the same thing with one of them but I think it’s more likely we go through a train on process
2) Champion is moved to the Cat A list so we can prelist both Evans and Walley to the Cat B list. If a bid comes in the main draft for Evans that we can’t match because we don’t have an open list spot then this option becomes unnecessary
3) Pick 1 in the rookie draft - there’s always a group of players unlucky to be overlooked in the main draft so not utilising this pick to nab the best of that group would be a waste. This would be our best opportunity to grab someone like Blamires if he doesn’t get drafted. If not him, someone like Blake Kelly who others have mentioned earlier would also seem a good choice. There’ll obviously be others that we’ve never heard of that the club have been tracking (see Rawlinson or Newton as examples)
4) Roll up, roll up for a train on spot - this is where we add another delisted player like the ones I mentioned earlier or a mature aged state league player (I wouldn’t mind us revisiting Milan Murdoch who we came very close to selecting in the MSD before settling on Newton)
4a) If we do miss out on Evans then we probably look at adding another train on option or potentially relist Livingstone

 

[Lyyynnnchy]

Does anybody know who if Gold Coast Suns have any gun academy kids in 2026 that will potentially make the grade? Just thinking of GCS points available and deficit. They can't select them all if they have to pay fair market value?

Lol. Not sure if serious? Has been discussed ad nauseum

 

[Ilkka Sinisalo]

CDT ranking is truly bizare all year to me.
constantly raised as a top 2 talent, but it doesnt show up on tape and no one can actually explain why he should be top 2, outside of buzz words like unicorn.

Cooper Duff-Tytler Draft Profile

Calder Cannons prospect Cooper Duff-Tytler projects as a high-upside tall with rare athleticism and skill for a player his size.

central.rookieme.com

This talks about him without using the word unicorn.

STRENGTHS:

• Athleticism
• Cleanliness
• Follow-up work
• Mobility
• Upside
• Versatility

IMPROVEMENTS:

• Physicality
• Ruck craft

Duff-Tytler’s versatility is one thing that will be at the forefront of the recruiters’ minds. When it came to his VFL debut for Essendon, he was positioned up forward as the second tall and was able to demonstrate his ability to play as an effective key forward, positioning well one-on-one to win free kicks and present well on a lead.

In the postseason campaign for the Calder Cannons, when he was positioned forward he caused plenty of problems for his opponents, spreading and breaking away on numerous occasions inside 50 to provide an option He was named at centre half-forward in the All-Australian team for the Under 18 Championships, despite being the number one ruckman for Vic Metro. When it comes to the club that takes him, this will give the coaching staff something to strongly consider as to how he can break into the side as soon as possible.

Duff-Tytler’s athleticism and mobility are attributes that stands out to many, especially considering his size. Effectively a fourth midfielder, his ability below the knees at ground level is a sight to behold. This was also shown on his VFL debut, and in the final game for Vic Metro in the Under 18 Championships, where on both occasions he showed his ability to help the team by moving around the ground quickly and helping out defensively. That attribute for a player of his athletic profile is quite rare, and that will be one that undoubtedly will hold him in good stead.

His follow-up work is also another attribute that has been a feature. On numerous occasions throughout 2025, he would start to play that role as the fourth midfielder while in the ruck and would get involved in numerous running passages of play having spread from the contest, showcasing his determination to work hard as soon as the ball is in play. This has been complimented with his skills and cleanliness with the ball in hand, as the big man refined his disposal throughout the year.

Areas of improvement for Duff-Tytler include his size, physicality and ruck craft. If he is to become a number one ruckman, then there is a considerable amount of development that’s needed to fast track him, especially as he will be coming up against older, stronger and more experienced opponents.

This was seen in his VFL debut against Sandringham, where despite going into the ruck in the last quarter he came up against Isaac Keeler, an opponent with reasonable experience who put him to the test - especially when it came to his body work at the stoppages. While Duff-Tytler did win numerous ruck battles throughout the season against his opponents at Under 18 level, he also was beaten on a few occasions despite often getting the chocolates for his work around the ground.

Reads to me like he's kind of in the Luke Jackson or Tim English mould where the actual ruck work is not a main feature but they are able to outplay their direct opponent through being faster and more agile around the ground.