With the 2026 AFL Draft now just over a week away, the shape of this year's intake is beginning to unfold as more whispers and intel surface, and it's time to deliver our third of four Mock Drafts for the year.
This Mock Draft is an evolution of our most recent exercise, which also included a total of 43 selections across the first two rounds of the count.
VIEW: FIRST EDITION MOCK DRAFT - PICKS 1-18
VIEW: SECOND EDITION MOCK DRAFT - PICKS 1-43
PLAY: AFL MOCK DRAFT SIMULATOR
Pick 1 - Port Adelaide (Matched Bid): Dougie Cochrane
While we look to mix up the selections across our Mock Drafts, perhaps the one pick we can't move away from is Essendon's expected bid for Dougie Cochrane - and Port Adelaide's easy call to match it at the top of the board.
While the Power may consider trading back one of their two early picks, their current position allows them to match a bid for Cochrane at Pick 1 and not impact their 2027 draft hand - requiring only 17 deficit points on top of Picks 7 and 12.
The Power's 18 months of work to best position themselves for an early Cochrane bid will pay off next week when they land the Central Districts product, who looks to model his game off Marcus Bontempelli when in midfield and Charlie Curnow when playing in attack.
MATCHED BID: Port Adelaide use Picks 7 and 12, as well as 17 DVI deficit points.
