Some of the best talent in today's competition came from the 2014 AFL Draft, many of which were selected outside of the first round.
In this re-draft of the first round of picks, 11 of the 20 players find themselves premiership players, including one premiership captain, whilst many others have earned individual success such as All-Australian blazers and first place finishes in club best and fairest counts.
11 players from the original top 20 selected didn't earn a spot in our re-draft in what was a hit-and-miss opening round of selections.
Here is the original first round of picks:
- Paddy McCartin (St Kilda)
- Christian Petracca (Melbourne)
- Angus Brayshaw (Melbourne)
- Jarrod Pickett (GWS)
- Jordan De Goey (Collingwood)
- Caleb Marchbank (GWS)
- Paul Ahern (GWS)
- Peter Wright (Gold Coast)
- Darcy Moore (Collingwood)ย f/s
- Nakia Cockatoo (Geelong)
- Liam Duggan (West Coast)
- Corey Ellis (Richmond)
- Lachie Weller (Fremantle)
- Jake Lever (Adelaide)
- Jarrod Garlett (Gold Coast)
- Sam Durdin (North Melbourne)
- Kyle Langford (Essendon)
- Isaac Heeney (Sydney)
- Blaine Boekhorst (Carlton)
- Jayden Laverde (Essendon)
Note: All matched bids for Academy and Next Generation Academy prospects and Father-Son prospects in this re-draft are based on what we know about how those players' careers have panned out, to date. Those picks won't be permitted in this re-draft, however clubs that acquired Academy or father-son selections will hold their place in the order.ย
17. Peter Wright - Essendon (Originally: Pick 8, Gold Coast)
Still a first-round pick but Wright falls down the order after what has been an interrupted career due to injury and form issues. Had Wright been taken at Pick 17, he would've ended up at Essendon where he is now, having sought a trade from the Gold Coast at the end of 2020 after he failed to play a senior game for the year.
2022 saw Wright's best form to date, kicking 53 goals and playing every game in the season for just the second time in his career to claim Essendon's leading goalkicker and best and fairest award.
Whilst this season was interrupted due to a shoulder injury on the eve of the season, Wright's first game in Round 13 saw him kick a bag of five goals. Wright still possesses all the potential to be the player that he was taken for at Pick 8.