HAWTHORN project ruckman Jaime Uhr-Henry is the latest Category B rookie to be allowed to develop at local level while on an AFL list.
The 209cm former basketballer was officially signed by the Hawks last October after playing for the Bulleen Boomers and Dandenong Ranges in NBL One.
Uhr-Henry, 22, is playing for East Ringwood in the Eastern Football Netball League after the AFL released him to play in the suburban league.
Kyah Farris-White was also permitted to do the same thing last year while on Melbourne's rookie list, where he played 15 games for St Bede's Mentone in the VAFA around four appearances for Casey in the VFL.
Former Perth Wildcats basketballer Oliver Hayes-Brown spent the first half of last year playing for Old Ivanhoe in Premier B of the Victorian amateurs, before playing nine games for Richmond in the VFL in the second half of 2024.
The AFL grants releases for up to six weeks at a time and have been more inclined to permit them since the VFL development league was abolished at the end of 2017.
Fremantle is the only side with a 'twos twos' given its alignment with Peel Thunder, which provided players like Lloyd Meek with the opportunity to develop as a young ruckman in the WAFL reserves when he was behind Aaron Sandilands and Sean Darcy at the Dockers.
Hawthorn currently has a backlog of rucks, with Ned Reeves the carryover emergency on the weekend but yet to play in the AFL in 2025, while Max Ramsden is attracting interest from rival clubs due to his lack of senior opportunities.
Uhr-Henry played the first three games of the season for East Ringwood and is expected to spend most of the year playing local footy in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
Former Demon and Eagle Jamie Bennell is also playing for East Ringwood around his work as Hawthorn's Indigenous player development manager.
The Eastern Football League is always stacked with ex-AFL talent, including recently signed players Sam Weideman (Vermont), Liam Shiels (South Croydon), Josh Schache (Doncaster East), Tim O'Brien (Doncaster East) Dan McKenzie (Blackburn), Lachie Young (Balwyn) and Jarrod Lienert (Balwyn).
Port Adelaide also signed a former basketballer Jacob Moss as a category B rookie last year, after being scouted while playing during the Australian under 20 basketball championships in 2023.
