READY for a busy few days.
When Carlton’s list management team gets to Marvel Stadium on Wednesday night, it’s safe to say it’ll be a different kind of draft to what the Blues have been used to in recent years.
While they have previously been a team focused on the ‘live’ players on draft night, there are some key considerations for the Blues when the 2025 Telstra AFL Draft gets underway.
On night one, the key priority for the Blues will be father-son prospect Harry Dean, who is touted as the standout key defender in the draft and is tied to Carlton through his dad Peter, who played in two premierships in his 248 games.
There’s also the potential for the Blues to call out a second name from the Carlton Academy, with the smooth-moving Jack Ison likely to factor into calculations.
For National Recruiting Manager Michael Agresta, there’s a bit to play out over the course of the two-night national draft - especially with talks over potential pick swaps for the Blues in the lead-up.
“We’ll be pretty active tonight,” Agresta told Draft Night Countdown.
“We’re in a different situation, where the points are of more value than the picks at the moment. We’ve also got flexibility of what we do, hopefully with another live pick and where we can position ourselves to be best suited for that.”
While Agresta wouldn’t draw on the details of what deals may be done tonight, he did highlight that the Blues aren’t just focussed on their 2025 haul, but also on 2026 - with father-son prospect Cody Walker another who could earn an early bid in 12 month’s time.
With the potential for further changes to the bidding process, Agresta said the Blues were prepared for every scenario and keeping all bases covered, given they also possess first-round picks (their own, plus Sydney’s) in 2026 and 2027.
“Some people are looking at moving Nos.9 and 11, what does it looks like, where do they go - we’ve got to be prepared on the night for the best possible outcome.
“We’ve got another consideration next year as well, I would’ve thought! We’ve got to look after next year’s draft hand [as well].
“We’re really comfortable and well prepared. There’s still a bit of uncertainty about what it looks like next year, but coming out of the trade period and this period, we’re really comfortable that we’re set up to be able to match.”
