THE AFL is continuing to investigate if it should change the draft age, after commissioning a study into the issue from a leading university.
Last year's talent forum, undertaken by the League with assistance from state and club personnel, heard that clubs were split on whether to lift the draft age to 19.
The AFL chose to stick with the status quo, with a player eligible for the NAB AFL Draft in the year he turns 18, but it did promise to further explore the concept, leading to a paper to be written by research staff at the Australian Catholic University.
The project began about two months ago, and the AFL hopes to receive the final report by the end of the year. It addressed the topic when meeting recruitment and list management staff at a briefing on Wednesday.
It expects the study to provide clear evidence of the ideal drafting age by comparing the on- and off-field performance and well-being of players drafted via the traditional under-18 pathway against those who have come into the AFL system through alternative means.
The research group will also investigate if there is any relationship between a player's career duration and earnings, and at what age he was drafted.
The formal study into the social, economic and education benefits of changing the draft age come after it was hotly debated in 2014.
Some club officials believe by lifting the draft age to 19, potential draftees would be able to focus on finishing their year 12 studies without also concentrating on the final season of their under-age career.
Early picks Christian Petracca, Angus Brayshaw, Jarrod Pickett and Darcy Moore were among the 2014 draftees who benefited from already finishing their schooling before entering their draft year.
But others are of the view it would hold back players who are ready to taste the top level – 27 of the first 30 players picked in the 2013 national draft played at AFL level in their debut season last year.
A lifting of the draft age would also require a substantial change to talent structures around the country, seen as a likely high cost.
The ACU plans to get a full range of first-hand opinions from players about the ideal draft age by surveying players currently in year 12, players in their first and second seasons at AFL clubs, players who were drafted outside of the general under-18 pathway, and players who were part of the under-18 system but did not go on to be drafted.
Past AFL players will be interviewed as part of the research, which may also provide recommendations into how to manage young players' workloads and balance sport with education.
