Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick has fired back at St Kilda counterpart Ross Lyon's recent criticism of the AFL draft system, while expressing disappointment that the league is reducing access to northern academy talent. The AFL is pushing ahead with changes that will affect father-son prospects and all academy selections, including northern and next generation academies, despite strong objections from several clubs.
Lyon's Stance on Draft Overhaul
Lyon argued this week that the AFL has not gone far enough in overhauling the draft, which saw the first round expand to 25 picks last year instead of the standard 18. The Saints, led by president Andrew Bassat, have been vocal about wanting change, specifically targeting Queensland teams for their access to academy talent.
Hardwick's Defence of Northern Academies
Hardwick launched another passionate defence of the northern academies on Friday, continuing the Suns' public dispute with St Kilda over the matter. "Our greatest asset to growing the game, getting more kids playing the game and getting more money into the game, is by getting more talent playing the game," Hardwick said. "And if you want to sit there and say it's a compromise, I'm looking at it more from a growth perspective. It is a progressive thing the AFL has done (introducing northern academies). Now all of a sudden we're starting to wheel that back."
AFL Confirms Immediate Changes
The AFL confirmed on Wednesday that the contentious changes will be brought in immediately ahead of the 2026 draft. AFL football performance boss Greg Swann defended the move, noting that clubs had some warning that changes were coming. Carlton and Port Adelaide lobbied hard for the changes to be delayed until at least 2027 because they both have elite father-son talent available in this year's draft.
Carlton's Response
Blues coach Michael Voss echoed club president Rob Priestley's disappointment that clubs had been denied a "runway" into the changes. "We felt like the immediacy of that was just a little bit too tight," Voss said. "But I guess with the estimation of something happening, we tried to future-proof ourselves last year. The decisions we made going into last year's trade period were all for this part. So we are well positioned for it - we're very well positioned for it - but at the same time I think with an element of fairness maybe in another 12 months we could've implemented this."
Father-Son Prospect Cody Walker
Carlton have their sights set on drafting father-son prospect Cody Walker, who will make his VFL debut for the Blues this weekend. Walker, 18, is the son of former Carlton star Andrew Walker, who played 202 games for the club between 2004 and 2016. "It's just fantastic for us and, as I said, we've put ourselves in a great position to be able to get him when we need to," Voss said. "But it's particularly pleasing to see he's playing some VFL football with us. He'll have a few games with us this year, which is just going to be a huge advantage for us."
