The business end of footy season has arrived, and the AFL Draft Power Rankings are starting to stabilise.
With school footy wrapping up after the Under-18s Championships in recent weeks and players slowly filtering back to talent pathway programs, only a handful of new players have emerged on the scene and commanded attention, but there has been plenty of shuffling as clubs gain an increasing understanding of the sorts of selections they are likely to have access to.
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Has had a strong fortnight for Gippsland Power, showing his ability to move the ball dangerously, which is a point of difference for a player of his height. Sits somewhere behind the big three key defenders in this crop, but exactly where he is remains a point of conjecture. Will take some time to develop but competes well for a player who still has some filling out to do and puts himself in positions to use his intercept marking.
Exactly where McCallum falls will be an intriguing watch given his ACL rupture came at a time when he was bolting into first-round consideration. A hard-working winger who generates transition and runs goalpost to goalpost, he is Tassie's clear top prospect this year.
This masthead has consistently maintained that Templeton has some pure footballing traits which will transfer well to the next level despite mixed opinions about Templeton as the season has progressed. A contested ball-winning player who applies pressure and has dynamism inside 50, his form has been solid rather than outstanding this year. When he goes into the midfield, he can win clearances at will, but the next step is impacting more on the spread, which he is slowly showing he can do, and he has innate forward craft, having spent much of the season in attack.
Flying under the radar because he probably does not possess the star power of the top echelon of midfielders, which puts him in that mid-range glut of ball-winners that typically exists in a draft class. But it is impossible to overlook the high baseline of performances he has set himself at every level he's played. Was probably South Australia's best on-baller at the Under-18s Championships and has continued on his hot form since returning to Talent League level as a powerful, stoppage-dominant, contested ball-winning midfielder capable of getting great purchase on his kicks. Has a high endurance base and thrives late in games.
Took some time to get going in 2026, but since he has, his form has been excellent. Takes the game on and backs himself to accelerate through contests and stand up in tackles as an energetic rebounder. His kicking has become more consistent and precise as the year has gone on, and he has carried strong Under-18s Championships form into the second half of the Talent League season, where he can intercept and go.
