The 2023 AFL National Draft is less than a month away and with it fast approaching we've finalised our first edition Mock Draft - looking at how the opening round of the count might unfold.
The first round of November's draft has extended to 22 selections following the establishment of free agency compensation selections and one additional pick via the AFL's assistance package for North Melbourne.
With Academy and father-son bids predicted to come on the opening night of the draft, the first round could be extended past the mid-20s in what shapes as an intriguing queue.
Below we've worked through the first round of the draft order to present our opening Mock Draft of the season.
For the purpose of this exercise, we have decided not to predict prior or live trades for the draft, with the order remaining as it currently reads with the addition of matched Academy and father-son bids.Â
VIEW: FULL 2023 AFL DRAFT ORDER
22. Pick 22 - North Melbourne: Archer Reid
Position: Key Forward
Height: 203cm
Weight: 94kg
State: Victoria
Club: Inverloch-Kongwak
A key area of focus for North Melbourne at this year's draft will be adding to their key forward depth, with Reid likely the leading tall attacker on offer at the back-end of the opening round.
The aforementioned Caddy is perhaps the only available key forward ahead of Reid, with Walter and Croft tied to the Suns and Dogs respectively.
Reid, the younger brother of Essendon defender Zach, came into the season as a potential top 10 prospect and was still able to piece together a good year, booting 16 goals for Gippsland in a forward line shared with Zane Duursma and West Coast mid-season recruit Ryan Maric.
Another to consider:Â Logan Morris
