Australian Football League Draft - Rookie Draft

Rookie Draft

Held at the same time as the pre-season draft, the rookie draft is a chance for clubs to recruit players under 23 for their Rookie list. Rookies are usually picked as young, developing players and can be elevated from the rookie list during the year, if there is a long term injury or retirement to a senior player in the team. Once the rookie is elevated, he remains that way until the end of the year, where they can be officially upgraded to the senior list, or kept on as a second year rookie, or delisted/not offered a new contract. Most teams have six rookies, but Brisbane and Sydney have more, and other teams may have more or less depending on the number of veterans on their list.