00Father-son selections are often a key area of discussion as the draft calendar rolls on, and 2023 looms to be no different.
Recent seasons have seen arguably the two best prospects from their respective classes land at AFL clubs as father-son picks, with Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos and Brisbane young gun Will Ashcroft following in their dads' footsteps to join the Magpies and Lions respectively as top-five selections in 2021 and 2022.
A total of seven father-son picks were taken last year, with Ashcroft joined by fellow first-round selection Jaspa Fletcher in heading to Springfield. Adelaide got their hands on Max Michalanney in the opening rounds as well, while Essendon came away with both Davey twins Alwyn Jr. and Jayden last November.
Daicos' draft saw a total of five father-son picks taken, with the 2023 Brownlow favourite the second to be recruited among the top four selections - coming two spots after Western Bulldogs tall Sam Darcy.
The Dogs could find themselves adding another familiar name to their key forward stocks this year as likely first-round prospect Jordan Croft continues to build his case as one of the leading attacking targets in this year's class.
Croft is one of four standout father-son prospects in 2023, withย Rookie Me Centralย draft analyst Michael Alvaro diving into potential selections for the Western Bulldogs, Hawthorn, Melbourne and Sydney on the latest episode of Zero Hanger TV.
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Here's a breakdown of some of the leading father-son names for 2023.
2. Will McCabe (Hawthorn)
Son of: Luke McCabe (138 games for Hawthorn)
Height: 197cm
Position: Key Defender
Club: Central Districts
Sam Mitchell will be licking his lips at the thought of having direct access to one of South Australia's leading prospects, with 197cm defender Will McCabe tied to Waverley thanks to his father, Luke.
McCabe rose into contention as a potential first-round selection following a strong start to 2023 with Central Districts' under-18s side, even featuring for the Bulldogs' reserves team where he recorded 13 disposals and 10 marks last weekend.
While also capable of playing as a forward target, McCabe is best suited as an intercepting backman and showed glimpses of his best defensive traits for South Australia over the recent carnival.
Due to the croweaters' undermanned backline, McCabe was tasked with locking down some of this year's best key forwards and at times battled with the bigger bodies of the competition.
"He probably had to play a different role to what he would like. He's most effective when he's sort of coming in third up, intercepting, peeling off, things like that. Whereas he was really one of two key defenders for South Australia with (Will) Patton," Alvaro said.ย
"He had to lock down a bit more on opponents, he played on Jed Walter in the first game and that's a hard matchup for him because he's a bit of a leaner body, a more athletic type. So he had to adjust a little bit and probably didn't get to show his flair and his on-the-ball potential.
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"So a difficult Champs. He wasn't the worst player, he's a steady performer, and still for mine will be within that sort of top 20 around the 15 mark.
"Definitely a guy who is going to be an interesting one for Hawks fans and recruiters to consider."
