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.
4. Will Snelling (Essendon)
The Bombers small forward is an exciting talent when healthy and has been able to produce some quality football since being taken with pick seven in the 2019 mid-season draft out of West Adelaide.
The 25-year old has only played one game so far this season, in a win against the Adelaide Crows, as he deals with issues with his calf, but when he is healthy, Snelling is a dynamic player in the forward line for the Bombers.
Forward
Disposals
Marks
Games Played
In 2021, Snelling played 20 games, averaged 17.7 disposals and five tackles per game, and kicked 12 goals, showing his ability to hit the scoreboard and ability to apply forward 50 pressure for the Bombers.
In his solid sample size of 43 games in the AFL, Snelling has proven that he is a quality small forward when up and running.
