What a junior career Arki Butler has had. He entered 2026 as arguably the face of this year's crop of open pool players, and, despite an injury that wiped out close to half his season, he has never fallen out of top-three contention.
A beautifully skilled and wonderfully balanced medium forward who can speed away on a lead or use his agile dynamism and nous to beat opponents on the ground, he got midfield exposure throughout the year at Talent League and school footy levels.
That highlighted his improved aerobic base, which he worked hard on in pre-season, as well as his goalkicking and burst.
A high-impact player who knows how to find the footy, he is a dangerous forward half threat and was one of the most entertaining players to watch in the 2026 crop.
An eight-goal, 20-score involvement game for Brighton Grammar was a game that will long stick in the memory bank; even as the standard he played at improved, he never wavered.
He was proficient against senior bodies for the AFL Academy, sparking confidence that he could impact early in his career at AFL level, and he had some big games for Sandringham as well as being a barometer for Brighton Grammar.
A collarbone injury midway through the Under-18s Championships just about wiped out the rest of his season.
The Brighton Grammar captain bravely played through injury in the APS decider and, despite being clearly hampered, still kicked two game-turning goals. It would be another month before he returned to the Talent League level, and he would get just one game in where he was below his best, but it did not matter: by that stage his junior footy CV was so compelling he was already ensconced in Pick 1 discussions.
Strengths
Goalkicking
Athleticism
Forward Craft
Likely Landing Spot(s)
Richmond
Essendon
Draft Range
Picks 2-5
Key Quote
"Projecting forward to AFL level, he'll be primarily a forward to start (and) a pinch-hitting centre bounce player, a Jordan de Goey type player I think he'll end up being. He's got a great footy brain, so he'll pick up the concepts at AFL level quickly." - Rob Harding
