It’s the most exciting part of the AFL off-season as the clubs get the opportunity to draft the top young AFL talent in the country. The 2019 AFL Draft is split across two days with the first round selections occurring today Wednesday 27th November while the rest of the draft will be completed the following day.
As was expected, Oakleigh Chargers pair and mates Matthew Rowell and Noah Anderson both go to the Gold Coast Suns with pick one and two, while Melbourne used their first pick to select ruckman Luke Jackson from East Fremantle.
The Dockers manage to get three selections inside the top ten, picking up Hayden Young and Caleb Serong with picks seven and eight, before matching Carlton’s bid for academy selection Liam Henry at pick nine.
The players selected in the first round of the 2019 AFL Draft are as follows:
| Pick | Player | Club | Recruited From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew Rowell | Gold Coast | Oakleigh Chargers |
| 2 | Noah Anderson | Gold Coast | Oakleigh Chargers |
| 3 | Luke Jackson | Melbourne | East Fremantle |
| 4 | Lachlan Ash | GWS Giants | Murray Bushrangers |
| 5 | Dylan Stephens | Sydney | Norwood |
| 6 | Fischer McAsey | Adelaide | Sandringham Dragons |
| 7 | Hayden Young | Fremantle | Dandenong Stingrays |
| 8 | Caleb Serong | Fremantle | Gippsland Power |
| 9 | Liam Henry | Fremantle (matched bid) | Claremont |
| 10 | Tom Green | GWS Giants (matched bid) | GWS Acadamy |
| 11 | Sam Flanders | Gold Coast | Gippsland Power |
| 12 | Kysaiah Pickett | Melbourne | Woodville West Torrens |
| 13 | Will Day | Hawthorn | West Adelaide |
| 14 | Miles Bergman | Port Adelaide | Sandringham Dragons |
| 15 | Cody Weightman | Western Bulldogs | Dandenong Stingrays |
| 16 | Cooper Stephens | Geelong | Geelong Falcons |
| 17 | Brodie Kemp | Carlton | Bendigo Pioneers |
| 18 | Mitch Georgiades | Port Adelaide | Subiaco |
| 19 | Sam De Koning | Geelong | Dandenong Stingrays |
| 20 | Sam Philp | Carlton | Northern Knights |
| 21 | Thomson Dow | Richmond | Bendigo Pioneers |
The 2019 runners-up GWS Giants used their first selection at pick four to secure speedy defender Lachlan Ash, while after a cross-town rivals Sydney have taken midfielder Dylan Stephens after a disappointing season.
New Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks will be happy with the selection of tall defender Fischer McAsey from the Sandringham Dragons. Nicks replaces Dom Pyke who chose to part ways with the Crows at the end of 2019.
Carlton managed to shake up the draft, bidding for a number of academy players, including big-bodied midfielder Tom Green, forcing the GWS Giants to draft him with pick number ten.
