The Western Bulldogs believe raw father-son prospect Will Darcy has a host of “special attributes” that will be developable in the AFL system.
The Dogs matched a bid for Darcy at Pick 60, with Will following Sam, Luke and grandfather David to Whitten Oval.
The Scotch College graduate was most impressive in the APS competition in 2025, playing only five games for Oakleigh due to a back injury.
He also had a big growth spurt this year, starting the season as a medium player and finishing it as a bona fide key position prospect.
“He can kick left and right foot, his groundballs (are good), he can mark it," Western Bulldogs recruiter Michael Regan said.
“He's going to take a while, so Dogs fans need to be a little bit patient, but we think if Will can get it right, this environment's the best for him.
“There's a pretty special set of attributes under there that we think we can turn into a player.
“Will's his own man and he plays quite differently to Sam.
“We see him as a defender and in some areas of his game, he's probably more advanced than Sam.”
Darcy ❤️ pic.twitter.com/sXFp7t4s0C
— Western Bulldogs (@westernbulldogs) November 20, 2025
The Dogs also picked up Lachy Carmichael and Louis Emmett, having been linked to a running defender and tall in the lead-up to the draft.
A Sydney Academy graduate, Carmichael won the Allies MVP and put together a consistent campaign playing mostly across halfback, but the Dogs were also attracted to what he showed further up the ground.
“Some of the best vision we saw this year was Lachy coming through traffic with super clean hands below his knees and his ground ball and intercept numbers were some of the highest this year,” Regan said.
“We could see him potentially playing through the midfield.”
The Dogs were heavily linked to Eastern Ranges ruck Marcus Krasnadamskis in the lead-up to the draft, but ultimately used their second selection on Louis Emmett, a similar type of tall who is more established in the talent pathway.
Emmett ran the two kilometre time trial at the AFL Draft National Combine in 6:07 minutes, putting him on the podium, highlighting his running power to complement his skill.
He starred as a bottom-ager for Oakleigh in the ruck and was given more forward exposure this year, with the Dogs open minded about where on the field his future lies.
At 199cm, traditional thought process would indicate it is unlikely to be in the ruck, while the club has the best one-two tall forward punch in the competition with Sam Darcy and Aaron Naughton.
Emmett was not exposed to the backline in 2025, but several industry insiders highlighted that he likely has the ability to develop in that role in time.
“It's a little bit of a misnomer (that you can't play ruck at 199cm),” Regan noted.
“There are a few rucks getting around that are still really effective at 199cm and with the change in rules, the athleticism is going to be really important.
“The role of a recruiter is to find attributes that allow a player to play AFL football and Louis' got them in abundance.
“We're really excited to see what he is…where he starts, I think it will be at either end of the ground and he'll get exposed to both ends in our VFL and I think he'll also get exposed in the ruck.
“The great thing Louis has got going for him is that he's got all the attributes and we've got the right people there to bring them out.”
