Powerful AFL player agency CDG Sports Management lead the way among 2026 AFL Draft prospects
Possessing three of the most respected player agents in the caper, Paul Connors, Nick Gieschen and Julian Petracca, CDG Sports Management, formerly Connors Sports, looks set to add at least another dozen players onto AFL lists at next month's AFL National Draft.
The agency has 16 players in the top 50 of Craft of the Draft's top 50 October Power Rankings, including top pick favourite Dougie Cochrane and top-five prospects Arki Butler and Gus Teixeira.
Others from their stable likely to go in the first round include South Australian defender Mitch Harris, midfielder Kodah Edwards, Gippsland forward Wil Malady and Northern Knights winger Toby Krasna.
TGI Sports Talent is also all but certain to add more than 10 players onto AFL lists and could have more players taken on night one than CDG.
Long-time agent Tom Petroro manages Carlton father-son prospect Cody Walker, rising agent Max Hayes takes care of top-five prospect Harry Van Hattum, with GWS Academy's Ethan Matthews, Brisbane Academy's Caylen Murray, Sandringham defender Tyson Bradley, South Australia speedster Jake Eime and Geelong's Jack Pickett.
Hemisphere Management Group's Dan Meddings is responsible for open-pool Pick 1 contender Ethan Drever, with George Gale, George Dimer and Clancy Snell as others from the company who could be celebrating on night one of the AFL National Draft.
Corporate Sports Australia manages Pick 1 open pool contender Heath Mellody, but Hemisphere Management Group are the most represented agency among Western Australian prospects with three of the six.
TGI Sports Talent and CDG Sports Management were the only agencies with multiple players pre-signed by Tasmania last month: Angus Brown and Nate Jenkins and Riley Stratford and Jake Miller respectively.
Who manages the best 2026 draft talent?
CDG Sports
Dougie Cochrane, Arki Butler, Gus Teixeira, Mitch Harris, Wil Malady, Toby Krasna, Kodah Edwards, Marlon Neocleous, Ethan Herbert, Marcus Prasad, Memphis Webb, Blake Justice, Darcy Szerszyn, Zac Antonellos
TGI Sports Talent
Cody Walker, Harry Van Hattum, Ethan Matthews, Caylen Murray, Tyson Bradley, Jake Eime, Jack Pickett, Khaled El Souki, Noah Williams, Jordan Knapp, Harvie Cooke
Hemisphere Management Group
Ethan Drever, George Gale, Harvey Spawton-Guy, George Dimer, Clancy Snell, Albert MacGowan, Gus Kennedy, Archie Elliott, Koby Lecras
Mac Sports
Lochie Burrows, Harry Chapman, Billy Wigmore, Cody Templeton
Phoenix Sports Management
Xavier Ladbrook, Jackson Phillips, Brady Wright
Kapital Sports Group
Sam Gayfer, Wil Antrobus
Corporate Sports Australia
Odyssey Sports Management
Keenan Boi
Strategy One Sports
Sam Tassone
Players Ink AFL
Gabriel Patterson
Young Guns Talent
Jake Soutar
