GET EVERYTHING you need to know, including how to watch and more on the players who could be snapped up, ahead of the 2025 AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft on Wednesday.
What is the AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft?
The Mid-Season Rookie Draft (MSD) is the only chance clubs have during the season to add players to their list. Outside the Trade Period and Telstra AFL Draft at the end of each season, the only opportunities clubs have to sign new players is during the Pre-Season Supplemental Selection Period – which runs over summer – and the MSD.
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The MSD was reintroduced in 2019, having been scrapped way back in 1993. It's designed to limit the impact long-term injuries and premature retirements can have on a club and allow teams to replenish their list for the second half of the season.
When is it?
The 2025 AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft will be held on Wednesday, May 28, between rounds 11 and 12, from 6.30pm AEST.
How can I watch?
The only place to watch the 2025 AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft is on AFL.com.au and the AFL Live Official App. Gettable co-hosts and draft experts Cal Twomey and Riley Beveridge will lead the coverage along with host Nat Edwards from 6.30pm AEST on Wednesday, May 28. See every pick as it happens and get instant analysis of what the new signings can mean for the second half of the season.
Who is expected to be drafted?
Richmond VFL player Tom McCarthy is certain to go to West Coast at pick 1, but AFL.com.au's Cal Twomey says there's plenty of mystery around who will go later in the night.
The big watch will be Essendon, which has four picks after an injury-ravaged start to the season.
Twomey says the Bombers have interest in ready-made talls like their VFL key defender Will Hoare, Carlton VFL forward Liam McMahon and former North Melbourne forward Tyler Sellars, while they also like Glenelg key defender Harrison Ramm, who also has interest from Port Adelaide.
North Melbourne has pick No.2 and has interest in both key forward Archie May from Subiaco and Werribee small forward Zac Banch.
The Power have three picks and have interest in two ex-Swans, James Bell and Zac Foot, while they've also been linked to Ramm and Norwood's Jacob Newton.
Collingwood has interest in Ramm as well, while Carlton - which has pick 4 - has put work into Newton.
Former Saints defender Oscar Adams is expected to join Casey forward Caleb Lewis in heading to Gold Coast, while the Bulldogs have eyes on half-back Michael Sellwood from Peel Thunder and North Adelaide's Ewan Mackinlay with their two picks.
Former Suns small forward Jacob Heron had gained interest from a handful of clubs, but Twomey reported on Wednesday evening he had withdrawn his nomination.
Any familiar names in contention?
Geelong premiership player Brandan Parfitt, former first-round pick Riley Collier-Dawkins and ex-AFL players Liam McMahon, Nathan Kreuger and Charlie Lazzaro are among the host of delisted players who have nominated for the mid-season rookie draft.
AFL.com.au has reported former St Kilda defender Oscar Adams is a chance to join Gold Coast, while ex Giants and Demons defender Adam Tomlinson has attracted interest.
In total, 338 hopefuls have nominated. You can see the full list here.
To be eligible, players must have nominated for and been overlooked in the National Draft last year, been previously listed by an AFL club, or played a minimum of three games in the WAFL, SANFL, TSL or VFL.
How many clubs have a pick? Why doesn't my club have one?
Clubs must have a vacant list spot in order to take part and only eight clubs will be involved on Wednesday night.
List vacancies can occur through a retirement or if a player suffers a long-term injury and is moved to the inactive list.
Given they do not have a list vacancy, 10 clubs - Adelaide, Brisbane, Fremantle, Geelong, Greater Western Sydney, Hawthorn, Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda and Sydney - will not take part.
This year, Essendon will have the most picks with four after season-ending injuries to Sam Draper, Nick Bryan, Tom Edwards and Lewis Hayes.
Port Adelaide will have three picks while North Melbourne, the Western Bulldogs, Gold Coast, West Coast and Collingwood will have two picks each. Carlton will have one pick.
How is the draft order decided?
Like the National Draft, the Mid-Season Draft order is determined by reverse ladder position. The team at the bottom of the ladder after round 11 (assuming it has a list vacancy) gets the No.1 pick, with the second-last team to have the No.2 pick, and so on.
The complication this season is the fact Essendon and Gold Coast have played one game less than the rest of the competition due to their Opening Round game being postponed.
As revealed by AFL.com.au last month, a winning percentage ladder will therefore determine the draft order, with clubs on the same winning percentage to be separated by their regular for and against percentage.
2025 AFL MID-SEASON ROOKIE DRAFT ORDER
First round
1 - West Coast
2 - North Melbourne
3 - Port Adelaide
4 - Carlton
5 - Western Bulldogs
6 - Essendon
7 - Gold Coast
8 - Collingwood
Second round
9 - West Coast
10 - North Melbourne
11 - Port Adelaide
12 - Western Bulldogs
13 - Essendon
14 - Gold Coast
15 - Collingwood
Third round
16 - Port Adelaide
17 - Essendon
Fourth round
18 - Essendon
Who are the MSD successes from past years?
You only have to look back 12 months to see how quickly mid-season draftees can make an impact at AFL level.
Pick No.19 in 2024 was Ned Long, who has established himself as a starting midfielder at Collingwood, while No.12 pick Logan Evans made an immediate impact off half-back for Port Adelaide last season.
Of the 19 players picked up last year, 11 have gone on to play at AFL level, with the likes of Cooper Lord (Carlton) and Saad El-Hawli (Essendon) the other standouts.
In previous years, John Noble, Sam Durham and Jai Newcombe have all become stars of the competition after being picked up mid-season, while the MSD's most famous success story is Marlion Pickett, who famously debuted in a Grand Final at the age of 27 after being drafted in the middle of that season.
