My view is that the AFL should do the following :
1. Reduce squads as they have stated to 32-35 players to lower costs in the short term
2. Cancel any draft at the end of the year.
3. Change the under 18s NAB league to an under 19s NAB league
4. Change the under 18s nationals to an under 19s nationals and the under 16s to an under 17s
5. Reinstate the draft for end of 2021 and increase the draft age to 19
6. Increase squad sizes end 2021 to allow for new draftees in what will then be a more bouyant competition
This will in my view provide many benefits :
1. The draft will now be at 19s level so it takes it out of HSC year for potential draftees
2. Draftees will have a proper season to show their potential and with a year of further development and growth under their belts.
3. Clubs will be able to refocus on just culling their current list and rebuilding their support staff (such as recruiters which may have been put off during all this ) without then working out who to draft from what will be at best a very short under 18s carnival.
This is a very simple fix that solves a lot of problems for the AFL .
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