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Four former AFL players will get a second chance at new clubs in the second half of 2019 after being picked up in the 2019 mid-season rookie draft, while some state league stars have also been given a big opportunity.
Former Fremantle player Josh Deluca was the first pick of the night, joining the Carlton Blues after playing four games for the Dockers in 2017.
Another former Docker Cam Sutcliffe was the most experienced player to be handed a lifeline, arriving at Port Adelaide via their SANFL side after playing 104 games for Fremantle.
Will Snelling at Essendon (having played 1 game for Port Adelaide) and Ryan Gardner at the Western Bulldogs (previously listed at Geelong without making his AFL debut) were the other recycled players to gain new homes.
Other notable selections included Melbourne drafting Kyle Dunkley, brother of Western Bulldog Josh and son of former Sydney Swans player Andrew, with pick No.3.
Fremantle also offered a chance to Dillon O’Reilly, whose father played 98 games for the club.
Most clubs emphasised when making their selections that – regardless of the mid-season nature of this event – they have no expectation on the players they’ve selected to make their AFL debuts any time soon.
Richmond, notably, selected Marlion Pickett, despite the highly-rated WAFL midfielder having just this week suffered a broken finger which could put him on the sidelines for as long as ten weeks.
The Tigers will presumably be using the remainder of the season to give Pickett the chance to experience an AFL environment, and have the first option on signing him for the longer term if they’re impressed by his work in recovery and at training.
Coburg’s Sam Lowson was not so lucky – touted far in advance as a likely early selection in this mid-season draft, the mature small forward suffered an ankle injury this week and was overlooked entirely.
He’ll have to hope for the best come the national and rookie drafts in November.
Brisbane, GWS, Geelong and West Coast did not take part in the draft due to a lack of available list spots, while Hawthorn and Adelaide both passed on their first available selections.
| 2019 AFL mid-season rookie draft | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pick | Club | Player |
| 1 | Carlton Blues | Josh Deluca |
| 2 | Gold Coast Suns | Mitchell Riordan |
| 3 | Melbourne Demons | Kyle Dunkley |
| 4 | Sydney Swans | Michael Knoll |
| 5 | North Melbourne Kangaroos | Lachie Hosie |
| 6 | Western Bulldogs | Ryan Gardner |
| 7 | Essendon Bombers | Will Snelling |
| 8 | St Kilda Saints | Jack Mayo |
| 9 | Port Adelaide Power | Cam Sutcliffe |
| 10 | Hawthorn Hawks | pass |
| 11 | Fremantle Dockers | Dillon O’Reilly |
| 12 | Adelaide Crows | pass |
| 13 | Richmond Tigers | Marlion Pickett |
| 14 | Collingwood Magpies | John Noble |
| 15 | Gold Coast Suns | pass |
| 16 | Sydney Swans | Cody Hirst |
| 17 | Western Bulldogs | pass |
| 18 | Essendon Bombers | pass |