The 2025 season is nearly underway, and a suite of youngsters are set to make their case for the AFL Rising Star award after what is regarded as one of the deepest draft pools in AFL history.
Meanwhile, a few overage talents are predicted to blossom in their second seasons at AFL level, making this year's Rising Star contest as competitive as ever.
Quickly, a refresher on the criteria to be eligible for the award.
- Players must be under the age of 21 as of January 1, 2025.
- Players can only have played 10 AFL games or less in previous seasons.
- Players must not be suspended at AFL or state-league level during the season.
Last year, second-year Cat Ollie Dempsey took home the award, albeit thanks to in-season suspensions to Harley Reid and Sam Darcy, who were tipped to claim the award over the Geelong forward.
But in a stacked crop of talent, this year's race is anyone's for the taking. Here is Zero Hanger's verdict on the top contenders for this year's Rising Star award.
8. Tobie Travaglia
The Saints' first pick in last year's draft provided a lot of excitement in his pre-season trial against Carlton, with a 50 meter bomb on the run the highlight of Travaglia's potential.
Travaglia can play across all three lines, as, alongside his quality ball-reading in defence and endurance tank on the wing, the 18-year-old has a knack of hitting the scoreboard too.
Travaglia has mainly trained as a winger and in defence in his first pre-season, but should his ability at AFL level skyrocket, we could see the versatile Saint at centre bounces or even inside 50, indicating Travaglia's strong chances at winning the Rising Star.
