The 2026 Marsh AFL National Academy Boys squad will represent Australia for the second time on Saturday when they take on Richmond’s VFL side.

The Academy, which features a host of his year’s most talented Draft prospects, will again play as the Australia U18 team when they meet the Tigers at IKON Park from 12:30pm.

The match follows last week’s clash against North Melbourne’s VFL team, which saw the Academy fall to a 20.6 (126) to 7.13 (55) defeat at Arden Street Oval.

The Academy squad has remained in Melbourne throughout this week, where they have taken part in a high-performance camp. The camp program has been designed to educate players on what a match-week would look like at the elite level of the game.

Players have had access to AFL club facilities throughout the week, with training, recovery and education sessions held at Arden Street Oval (North Melbourne), Kennedy Community Centre (Hawthorn) and KGM Centre (Collingwood).

The Academy will take part in a captain’s run at the NEC Hangar, home of the Essendon Football Club, on Friday.

MATCH DETAILS

Australia U18 vs Richmond VFL
Saturday, April 18
12:30pm AEST
IKON Park
Free entry

AUSTRALIA U18 TEAM LIST

#

PLAYER

STATE

STATE LEAGUE CLUB

COMMUNITY CLUB

4

Arki Butler

VIC M

Sandringham Dragons

Beaumaris

5

Garrison Kenh

WA

East Perth

Ellenbrook

6

Gabriel Patterson

SA

Glenelg

Plympton

7

Noah Williams

VIC C

Geelong Falcons

St Joseph's

8

Harrison Chapman

VIC M

Eastern Ranges

Boronia

9

Heath Mellody

WA

Claremont

Wembley Downs

10

Archie Hill

QLD

Gold Coast Suns Academy

Broadbeach

11

Caylen Murray

QLD

Brisbane Lions Academy

Maroochydore

12

Tanner Armstrong

VIC C

Murray Bushrangers

Shepparton United

16

Marlon Neocleous^

VIC C

Gippsland Power

Traralgon

18

Cody Walker

VIC C

Bendigo Pioneers

Echuca

20

Darcy Szerszyn*

VIC C

Dandenong Stingrays

Seaford

21

Jack Gordon

SA

Central District

Port District

22

Jack Pickett*

VIC C

Geelong Falcons

Torquay

23

Ethan Matthews

NSW/ACT

GWS GIANTS Academy

Ingleburn

24

Kodah Edwards

SA

South Adelaide

Willunga

25

Aidan McCartney*

NSW/ACT

Sydney Swans Academy

Willoughby

26

Wil Malady

VIC C

Gippsland Power

Bairnsdale

27

Koby LeCras

WA

West Perth

Manning

28

Kale Matthews-Hampton^

SA

Sturt

Strathalbyn

29

Tate Hodgson

VIC M

Northern Knights

Park Orchards NRP

33

Xavier Ladbrook

VIC C

Gippsland Power

Nar Nar Goon

34

Ethan Herbert

SA

North Adelaide

Walkerville

35

Lewis Houndsome

VIC M

Northern Knights

Yarrambat

38

Benji van Rooyen

WA

Claremont

Wembley Downs

39

Dougie Cochrane*

SA

Central District

Port District

40

Harry Van Hattum

VIC M

Northern Knights

St Mary's

* Injured and won’t play in match against Richmond
^ Addition to squad to play in match against Richmond as injury replacement

Western Australia’s Heath Mellody will return for Saturday’s match against Richmond after missing the game against North Melbourne. Sonny Smiller won’t play this week after featuring as an injury replacement against the Kangaroos.

HOW TO WATCH

The match between Australia U18 and Richmond VFL will be available to stream live and free on the AFL website and AFL Live Official App.

ABOUT THE MARSH AFL NATIONAL ACADEMY

The Marsh AFL National Academy features 25 of this year’s most talented Draft prospects, provides the next generation of stars with valuable experiences, insights and education to best prepare them for the next steps in their football journey.

The holistic program combines football performance and personal growth in a high-performance environment by providing unique opportunities and learnings that differ from other football programs they are involved in.

The 2026 Marsh AFL National Academy marks the 29th annual intake for boys and 10th intake for girls.