Less than a month away from the opening game of the 2024 AFL season, clubs are beginning to get a strong idea of how they'll line-up to start the new premiership race.
With the early stages of the season comes plenty of debuts, with top draftees, second-year talents and long-serving sidemen eager to get their first taste of AFL action.
Every club is likely to blood new names this year, with some expected and others to come from the clouds for what will be a memorable occasion in their careers.
We've looked at the first-year rookies and those still waiting for a debut at each club to identify which players have the best chance of playing their maiden AFL match in 2024.
St Kilda
Rookies:Â Liam O'Connell, Hugo Garcia, Arie Schoenmaker, Angus Hastie, Darcy Wilson, Lance Collard
Still waiting:Â Isaac Keeler, Matthew Allison, James Van Es, Olli Hotton, Angus McLennan, Max Heath
Most likely to debut in 2024:Â The aerobically-gifted Darcy Wilson will be one who is sure to find his name on the selection sheet early into this season, likely slotting onto a flank to offer Ross Lyon some more run and grunt. Small forward Lance Collard is another draftee who could earn an early promotion, while tall forward Matt Allison came close to a debut last year before suffering a foot injury. A pre-season setback also hampered Ollie Hotton in 2023, with the wing-forward one could land a debut after getting some more VFL minutes.
