South Australia convincingly took out the U18s National Championships with a 34-point win over Vic Country at Marvel Stadium on Sunday, going through the four-game carnival undefeated.
It's the Croweaters' first triumph at the U18s Championships since 2018, with their team success propelling several prospects into first-round discussions, while other unheralded names put themselves on the map.
Below, we take a look at the major talking points out of their campaign.
Schubert a bona fide prospect
Dyson Sharp won South Australia's MVP, but his Central Districts teammate Aidan Schubert must have run a close second.
He showcased all elements recruiters would want to see of a young key forward across his four games, adding significant credence to the argument that he could be close to the best tall forwards in the crop.
He set a high benchmark for himself in the first quarter of the first game with three shots on goal, with his four goals and eight marks (three contested) in that game stamping him as a player of quality for the Croweaters.
Most impressive, though, was that as the carnival endured he began to show different parts of his skillset.
He was brilliant as a relieving ruck for Sam Ainsworth, giving clubs confidence that, in time, he could fill that role at AFL level.
His ability to get up the ground and provide an option down the line, hit targets by foot and use his athleticism when the ball hit the deck were all on show.
He averaged 17 disposals, a team-high seven marks, seven hitouts and kicked 10 goals throughout the carnival.
Nairn's stellar game
Medium Central Districts forward Cam Nairn went from draft hopeful to draft probable with one unbelievable match of footy in South Australia's big win over Western Australia.
The 189cm player kicked seven goals in that performance, showcasing his brilliant marking ability and ability to move well.
Given his size, there's a view from some that he might be a more likely halfback to start his career at the next level โ if indeed, he is selected.
It was an important performance for Nairn, which franked strong SANFL U18s form to start the year.
He kicked nine goals for the Championships and averaged five marks.
Marsh makes the step up
West Adelaide forward Mitch Marsh started the SANFL U18s season in sterling form, kicking 15 goals across seven games, with his marking and forward presence putting him on the radar as a name to watch
By seamlessly transferring that form onto the biggest stage, he has positioned himself to be a likely first-round pick.
At 191cm, he falls into the in-between size of being a third tall forward, of which there are often a plethora of options for clubs to select from, but he plays taller and also demonstrated his potency at ground level and athletic power.
He kicked a team-high 12 goals for South Australia, bookending his carnival with bags of four and five goals, standing up tallest in the two most closely contested games for South Australia.
Another small forward in the mix
As has been regularly referenced by Craft of the Draft in 2025, there is a lack of openly available small forwards in the 2025 draft crop.
Eastern Ranges Lachy Dovaston looks every bit a top-20 selection, but the other highly regarded goalsneaks alongside him are Hussien El Achkar (Essendon), Wes Walley (West Coast Eagles), and to a lesser degree Jai Saxena (Collingwood) and Ty Gresham (Carlton), all tied to clubs.
There was therefore great satisfaction in seeing another small forward announce himself on the biggest stage.
Zane Peucker's numbers don't jump off the page โ five goals, averaging 11 disposals, two marks and one tackle, but he has several traits that clubs look for in small forwards.
The 180cm prospect's championships was highlighted by a two-goal game against Vic Metro where his clean crumbing, pace, athleticism and power were all highlights of his game.
Also capable of running through the midfield, the Woodville West-Torrens product has averaged 25 disposals and a goal at SANFL U18s level in 2025.
What to make of Dyson Sharp's campaign?
There is division among industry insiders as to how to view the hyped Central Districts prospect.
Entering the season viewed by some as a potential top selection, he's fallen back from that, but just where he now fits is a point of contention.
Some see him as a fringe top 10 selection, others have him positioned later in the first round.
What is undoubted is his talismanic leadership, with the skipper winning South Australia's MVP and putting forward standout performances in games two and three for South Australia.
His clearance-winning, clean hands, pressure, strength and ball-winning all catch the eye and are what his admirers point to when noting that he should be taken with a high selection.
The big question around Sharp is whether he relies too heavily on his inside game, with his kicking, in particular, a question mark.
His carnival for South Australia further emphasised his strengths, averaging 27 disposals and five tackles, but what he did when he won the footy didn't entirely prove his doubters wrong, so his form will be a big watch in the back half of 2025.
Isaac Heeney comparisons are real for this prospect
Early in 2025, North Adelaide coach Mitch Clisby compared his AFL Academy player Sam Cumming to Isaac Heeney.
โHe's become really explosive and has put himself on a good platform to launch,โ Clisby said of Cumming in April.
โHe's got this penetrating kick which forward of centre is quite damaging, his contest work is excellent and he's a hard matchup one-on-one because of his ability to mark overhead.
โI think he's ready to compete and have an impact at the next level.โ
While clearly an explosive ball-winner in the midfield, he had yet to piece together a consistent block of form as a forward.
It was somewhat of a surprise to see him spend as much time forward as he did, given he's one of South Australia's best playmakers, but his time in attack proved he's multidimensional and more than capable of impacting there early in his career.
He averaged a goal per game across the Championships to go with 17 disposals.
That championships form followed Cumming kicking multiple goals in three of five SANFL U18s games in 2025, with a four-goal best afield performance in his most recent outing for the Roosters the highlight of his forward craft and presence.
Richmond fans, get excited
Richmond father-son prospect Louis Kellaway didn't have the stats-sheet stuffing game to highlight his campaign, but his sheer consistency should have Tigers fans salivating.
He averaged 19 disposals โ second behind Sharp โ and three tackles, contributing in each game, with his clean hands and the ability to buy time and find space impressing.
โHe's always had the ability to use the ball well, he's got good clean hands so his ability to get from in to out is really good,โ Sturt coach Paul Scott told Craft of the Draft earlier in the year.
โHis speed and acceleration out of stoppage has improved a fair bit as well as his stoppage craft and contest work.
โBeing able to get into good positions and be able to get clearances and his skills have always been his weapon so to be able to use them more have taken his game to the next level.โ
With Richmond attaining big-bodied midfield pair Sam Lalor and Josh Smillie, and x-factor Taj Hotton as part of their bevy of 2024 selections, Kellaway's silkiness would be the perfect complement for the club's next midfield frontier after some time in the system honing his craft.
AFL Academy wingers to prove intriguing watch
โFro bros Harley Barker and Matt Leray both look like prospects whose traits will transfer seamlessly to the next level.
They're the modern-day athletic wingers whose ball use is exquisite and marking stacks up, while both can get forward and help out in defence, highlighting their running capacity.
Their skillsets are similar โ if anything, Barker's finishing polish is better in front of goal โ and both averaged 16 disposals, six marks and two tackles.
The watch will be how highly they go, given they are both viewed as specialist exponents of the outside role.
On talent, there is an argument that both could be selected in the top 20, but draft trends suggest midfielders and key-position talent, and to a lesser degree small forwards, are preferred with the prized early selections.
Across the past two drafts, the only winger selected in the top 20 was Caleb Windsor at Pick 7 in 2023.
But in a shallow draft where clubs may prefer to target role players, will their sheer quality prove impossible to overlook?
We shall see.
Unheralded mid could prove a bargain
Craft of the Draft has long viewed North Adelaide skipper Blake Oudshoorn-Bennier highly and his last two National Championships performances won him several more admirers.
While overshadowed by AFL Academy midfielders Cumming and Sharp, Oudshoorn-Bennier got some centre bounce attendances with his incisive kicking, acceleration and clearance-winning
He is also one of the highest-regarded characters from South Australia, skippering the Roosters in 2024 and 2025.
His 20-disposal, one-goal performance capped off a National Championships where he showed great improvement and upside.
That he did it coming off a shoulder injury and limited pre-season makes what he did all the more impressive.
โBlake is just the ultimate leader and ultimate professional as our captain,โ North Adelaide coach Mitch Clisby told Craft of the Draft earlier in the year.
โYou talk about preparation and professionalism, he is A+ in all areas.
โHis kicking is outstanding and we're starting to see glimpses of it in games.
โHe thrives on the contest, likes it in and under and is good at distributing by hand and foot.
โHe spent time at halfback last year and I like what he offers there too, especially with his kicking.โ
BOB excited draft watchers with his dash and damaging foot skills in this game. After a slow start to the year returning from injury, he's reminded everyone of his significant talent over the final two Champs games for SAhttps://t.co/oFMPG3jBgV
โ Footy Stuff (@FootyStuffYT) June 30, 2025
Other potential South Australian prospects
Rebound defenders Luke Candy and Jett Dahlitz both had some promising moments setting up the game off halfback, averaging 15 disposals each.
Jim Kelly was a brilliant third wing option, linking up well and getting involved in plenty of transition play, while Jack Cook made the most of his midfield minutes to average 17 disposals and four tackles.
In a draft class bereft of quality, openly available tall defenders, Elliott Duffield and Noah Daw both showed some promise with their intercepting and lockdown roles in defensive 50.
Ruck Sam Ainsworth could also come under consideration, having taken it up to highly regarded direct opponents Cooper Duff-Tytler and Taj Murray, helping his team get clearance ascendancy in each game.
