GREATER Western Sydney is "disappointed" it won't be allowed priority access to pick academy prospect Todd Marshall at this year's NAB AFL Draft after the tall forward was excluded due to a registration issue.

The Giants last-ditch bid to retain access to Marshall failed on Wednesday after the AFL ruled the Giants will not get first call on the tall forward in November.

Clubs were notified on Wednesday that the Giants had lost access to the 198cm Murray Bushrangers forward, who has burst onto the scene this year after pursuing cricket during his youth.

GWS football manager Wayne Campbell told AFL.com.au the decision was due to a process error rather than a lack of involvement with the club's academy since he signed up.

"We're disappointed. The AFL has explained to us that it's a registration issue. It's not anything that we've done or done wrong or how long the player's spent with us," Campbell said.

"He's a unique circumstance in that he was asked a couple of times when he was 14 or 15 to come to the academy, but he was concentrating on cricket so he didn't.

"He decided to have a crack at it this year so registered with us, had a crack at it, played a game in the NEAFL and we developed a development plan for him and did all the things the AFL advised us to do. But there was an issue with the way he was registered, and that's what they've ruled on."

Campbell declined to go into details on the registration problem, saying "it's probably not up to us to explain that in trying to protect Todd and his family".

The AFL's decision is a win for rival clubs who have been frustrated by the Giants' large Riverina recruiting region, and the number of quality prospects available to the Giants at this year's draft.

In a note to club officials circulated on Wednesday, the AFL said "the decision by the AFL for Marshall to enter the draft was made in consultation with his family, and taking into consideration the individual circumstances surrounding his process of registration".

The Deniliquin prospect kicked four goals for NSW-ACT on Sunday in the Rams' win over Queensland in the NAB AFL Under-18 Championships. His athleticism, marking ability and competitive instincts make him one of the leading talls in the draft pool.

Campbell and academy coach Jason Saddington met with the League on Monday to put forward their case to retain first call on Marshall at this year's draft, but the Giants believed a decision had already been reached by that stage.

He said he didn't know whether the decision was a reaction to the recent anger directed at the Giants' academy zone, but that the club had asked whether each academy registration form had been probed as thoroughly as Marshall's.

"It's a point we made. There seems to have been some investigation into this one but we asked the question whether there had been as equal investigation into the other ones," he said.

"I think the response was that they hadn't.

"This is absolutely a unique case, but the thing that we're interested in is where this leads to. The Giants have complied with everything. You just hope this doesn't open up avenues for other players to do the same."

The Giants' expansive academy region in the Riverina has come under criticism from a number of clubs who feel they have been gifted a strong talent area.

Last year the Giants' four national draft picks were all academy prospects, and although they will not have access to Marshall this year, the likes of Will Setterfield, Harrison Macreadie, Harry Perryman and Kobe Mutch are all aligned to the club.

"In a short period of time to have 650 kids in a program, three full-time coaches and 50 part-time coaches and staff, it's a big program that Jason Saddington runs brilliantly," Campbell said.

"We feel the academy gets unfairly maligned due to some top-end talent that pops out at the end."