We've scattered back through each National Draft of the past decade to uncover every club's bargain pickup.
This list looks at each club's ability to recruit young prospects in the National Draft, whether it be top-end talents or diamonds in the rough.
Each player was selected primarily by their value for pick, with many players being taken outside the first round. Some players have demanded a spot despite an early draft night selection, however these picks have been reserved for the absolute cream of the crop.
This list only includes National Draft selections - excluding Rookie and/or Mini Draft picks, while father-son and Academy selections have also not been considered.ย
7. Geelong
Tom Stewart (pick 40, 2016)
Taken as a mature-aged recruit by the Cats in 2016, Stewart quickly entered the discussion of the AFL's best defenders, earning one of his four All-Australian selections in his second year.
He earned the AFL Coaches Association award for best young player in 2018 and has since been among the mix of the most valuable players in the competition.
He has seemingly added a major achievement to his resume with every season, earning a premiership medallion, another grand final appearance and a best & fairest in a loaded Geelong side all in the last three seasons.
As a player, he symbolises the reliability, respectability and consistent ruthless dominance of Geelong as a club; a reputation that could see him replace the illustrious Joel Selwood as captain in 2023.
Honourable mention/s: Sam De Koning, pick 19 (2019), Sam Menegola, pick 66 (2015)
