2026 Draft Thread

[imuninformedtwo]

McGroder won the 20m sprint and vertical jump, and came second in the running vertical jump, at the combine today, according to the Hun.

One other thing on his interview where he said he was leaning towards footy. He effectively said the one thing making him nervous was the risk he might not be guaranteed to stay in Sydney. Hopefully he’s making that clear in his interviews with other clubs.

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

A report today suggests that, while not confirmed, clubs believe McGroder will choose footy.



And in addition to that, I had a chat with Eastern Ranges rebounder Sam Devers about his season. He's an interesting prospect with plenty of upside.

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/2026/10/02/draft-chats-8-sam-devers/

[imuninformedtwo]

I get it, and you’re right, but Kyle hadn’t played much footy till three years ago. As accessing Academy talent gets harder, we will need to take the occasional punt.

[Dow]

Good that he's there. I don't know if it means that he's chosen AFL over athletics, but I guess it does mean that he hasn't ruled AFL out.

Has a lot of Athletic ability obviously but from what I have seen and its limited it, he would be a long shot to make at AFL level

[dejavoodoo44]

McGroder ran a 6.39 2km time trial. Placed 25th at the National Combine.

Good that he's there. I don't know if it means that he's chosen AFL over athletics, but I guess it does mean that he hasn't ruled AFL out.

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

has any body heard what mcgrogor's deciionis between afl and atthletics. will he attend draft combine?

McGroder ran a 6.39 2km time trial. Placed 25th at the National Combine.

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

Latest draft chat with Jackson Phillips is live. It's a really good insight into a driven and resilient young man. He's a ripper and it's well worth a read.

[lwjoyner]

has any body heard what mcgrogor's deciionis between afl and atthletics. will he attend draft combine?

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

Well done Devils!

Key fwd duo: Miller & Jenkins
Powerful Mids: Sruk & Barker
Class: Stratford & McCallum
Unicorn Ruck: Walsh
X Factor Small Fwd: Brown

That's 7 of my prospective top 15 from next year's draft. Plus McCallum from this year's pool. And maybe one more elite talent before year's end (Max Thompson, a creative utility has been linked).

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

There's a draft chat at the link above from SANFL U18 Grand Final BOG Jacob McNicol. Really driven kid that will leave no stone unturned to become a better footballer.

On Wednesday there'll be another one with Jackson Phillips (considered at 15-30 draft prospect) and the Sam Devers and George Dimer will be later in the week. Hopefully a few more post that as well.

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

I'm mindful of spamming the draft thread so don't want to keep posting my own links. I've just posted an interview with Harry Chapman, and have another three scheduled for release over the next week (and hopefully more between then and the draft). The next three are Jacob McNicol, Jackson Phillips and George Dimer.

Instead of continually sharing the links, I'll post the 'Draft Chats' page here, and then let the forum know when new interviews drop.

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/draft-chats/

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

Interview with Gippsland Power forward/midfielder and Grand Final BOG Cody Templeton is up now.

Cody was really open in this one, giving some great insight into his game, his development, the areas he’s working on and how he sees himself translating to the next level. If you're interested, link is below:

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/2026/09/24/draft-chats-4-cody-templeton/

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

Interview with Glenelg premiership hero Gabe Patterson is up now.

This was a particularly enjoyable one to put together. Gabe was really great to talk footy with and gave some great insight into his game and year of development. Well worth a read for anyone keeping an eye on the 2026 draft crop:

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/2026/09/22/draft-chats-3-gabe-patterson/

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

My second Mock Draft is live, but this one is deliberately different. No trades, no pick movement and no compensation picks. Just a look at what the 2026 Draft could look like if the current order stays as it is.

The idea is to show the starting point before the trade period changes everything, and provide a measuring stick for what becomes possible afterwards.

First two round have been mocked here:

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/2026/09/21/2026-afl-mock-draft-v2-0/

[Tommy_Wolfe7]

Xavier Ladbrook had a pretty handy day in Gippsland's Talent League Grand Final win yesterday, finishing with 17 disposals and 8 marks, including a number of strong intercept possessions.

The timing was pretty good given Ladbrook generously gave up some of his time during the week to have a chat with Reading the Play as part of our new Draft Chats series.

You can read his player profile and our Q&A covering his development, versatility and how he sees his game translating to the next level:

https://readingtheplay.wordpress.com/2026/09/19/draft-chats-2-xavier-ladbrook/