For fans of struggling sides, the AFL Draft is as close to Christmas as possible.
Fresh faces act as shiny, new toys, with goodwill and cheer also available in abundance.
While every club has hit the track for their pre-Christmas training period and each of the new boys have filled their lockers with brand new gear, sights have turned to which of this year's draft class has the ability to make an early impact in 2022.
Although plenty of players plucked will need big summers in the gym, there are a handful of precocious talents that already have expectations on their shoulders.
Here are the names that look the most likely to hit the ground running in their debut years.
Geelong - Mitchell Knevitt
There is no doubt Geelong will be moving forward with a youth-first focus in mind, but despite this, it would still appear that Rhys Stanley and Esava Ratugolea are shaping to be the starting ruck duo for the Cats; therefore Toby Conway may need to wait a little bit.
As a result, Knevitt is the most likely early impact-maker for Geelong.
Taking into account the Cats' ageing midfield and the departure of Charlie Constable to the Gold Coast Suns, Chris Scott may feel inclined to blood the young Cat early on.
