GREATER Western Sydney could need to trade one of its stars to have an active presence at the start of this year's NAB AFL Draft, with two of its academy prospects emerging as genuine first-round options.
Eighteen-year-old Jacob Hopper has been viewed as a likely early pick for some time but the early season form of fellow Riverina product Matthew Kennedy has created an interesting equation for the Giants, with the new bidding system expected to be soon confirmed.
Kennedy, a classy midfielder from Wagga Wagga, continued his impressive run in round five of the TAC Cup, collecting 25 disposals and kicking three goals for New South Wales in its win over the Dandenong Stingrays.
Adam Treloar, Dylan Shiel, Stephen Coniglio and Will Hoskin-Elliott are among the Giants to fall out of contract at the end of the season and would command first-round picks from rivals if they pursued any offers.
Under the proposed bidding system for academy and father-son prospects, acquiring two academy players rated as first-rounders will come at a heftier cost than previous seasons.
In the case the Giants want both – Hopper is a rough-and-tumble ball-winner and Kennedy a steady finisher who finds plenty of disposals – they have a few options under the likely new system that puts a points value on every draft selection.
If Hopper attracts a bid in the top five, and the Giants finish around eighth position on the ladder, they may be able to secure the North Ballarat Rebels midfielder with just one pick due to the discount afforded to clubs with northern academy players.
But if a rival club also bids a top-15 pick on Kennedy, which is where some recruiters believe he will be judged by the end of the season, the Giants' second and third round selections would be impacted.
However, if they traded one of their presently listed players and secured another selection inside the first 15, it could see their second round selection unaffected by the complex bidding process for the under-18 pair.
Lions wait on academy changes as they eye talented pair
The AFL Commission was presented the proposed bidding system for father-son and academy players at the end of April and it is considered likely to be implemented for this year.
The Giants have shown a preference in their short history to be active only in the early stages of the draft. In the past three years, all of their 15 live draft selections have been inside the first 30 picks.
Later picks Zac Williams, Jake Barrett (2013) and Jeremy Finlayson (2014) were already tied to the club before draft night through academy zone rules.
GWS' rights over Hopper and Kennedy appears likely to kick-start the next phase of the debate about the fairness of the northern academies, with many clubs raising concerns around the Giants' recruiting zone.
The club's aim for the academy is to retain and attract talent in a competitive non-AFL sports market, but rivals have questioned its hold of football-rich parts of the Riverina, including Albury, Deniliquin and Wagga Wagga.
AFL football operations manager Mark Evans recently told AFL.com.au that the League's list management working party would discuss possible realignment, saying "boundaries are always up for discussion".
