The AFL mid-season draft kicks off tonight, which will see state league players realise their AFL dream by being drafted to an AFL club half-way through the season.
AFL clubs need to have an open list spot in order to draft a player, meaning clubs need to move long-term injured or recently retired players to the inactive list in order to free up list spots for the mid-season draft.
Initially introduced in 1990, the mid-season draft has been a thing of the past for the AFL, who scrapped the draft in 1993.
It wasn't until 2019 where the AFL reintroduced the draft, before going into hiatus again in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic and coming back in 2021.
There have been some great players to come out of the two mid-season drafts so far, with players showing great promise at the top level.
Before the third edition of the AFL mid-season draft kicks off tonight, check out the 10 best players who have come through the draft since 2019 down below.
10. Connor West (West Coast Eagles)
West was picked up by the West Coast Eagles from WAFL side West Perth with pick 23 in the 2021 AFL mid-season draft and has made a great impact in a struggling Eagles outfit to date.
The hard nosed midfielder made his debut in round 18, 2021 against the Adelaide Crows and had 19 disposals (13 contested) and four tackles in a big win and proved he could match it with the best in the top flight.
Midfielder
Disposals
Tackles
Clearances
In 2022, West has averaged 17 disposals and 4.3 tackles in eight games for the Eagles and has been a big positive for Adam Simpson in a season that has been disastrous for the Eagles.
The 23-year old has played 13 games in total for the Eagles and continues to improve, and will be exciting to watch as he gains more experience at the top level.
