Priority pick crackdownBy Jason Phelan
afl.com.au
Tue 14 Aug, 2012THE AFL has warned clubs that new rules will make it very difficult for a team to receive a priority pick at the start of the first round in future drafts.
The warning comes amid an investigation into tanking following comments by Brock McLean that he left Melbourne because he felt the club wasn't focussed on winning games in 2009.
The previous special assistance rules that saw clubs like Melbourne, Collingwood, Carlton and West Coast claim priority picks in the past decade were scrapped in February this year.
In the future, priority picks will be awarded at the discretion of the AFL Commission based on the recommendations of football operations manager Adrian Anderson.
In making those recommendations, Anderson will take into account such things as a club's premiership points in recent seasons, percentage, recent finals appearances and injuries to key personnel.
"Special assistance is now ultimately a matter for the Commission's discretion and will be awarded only in exceptional circumstances," Anderson said.
"The decision of the Commission to award special assistance will be based on a club's on-field performance in recent years and any other matter the Commission regards as relevant.
"A confidential formula will be used to help assess recent on-field performance, but this will be only be one relevant consideration."
The Demons finished last with just four wins in 2009 and, under previous rules, were awarded a priority pick before the start of the first round, which they used to select Tom Scully.
Anderson said the awarding of such picks will be "extremely rare indeed" in the future with priority selections after the first round likely to be the preferred means of helping out struggling clubs.
"The biggest problem with the priority pick rule was that, in our view, it over-compensated clubs for poor performance, but there's also the factor … that it does invite speculation around performance," Anderson said.
"Our view is that it's simply not necessary in its previous form, in this day and age, with the evenness of the competition and the fact that the draft itself provides natural rewards, draft picks, based on where you finish on the ladder.
"Our view is that receiving pick No.1 and No.2 at the start of the draft is a massive benefit to a club, well in excess of what is actually required, and a disadvantage to those teams that get pushed back [in the draft order] as a result."
The awarding of such picks will be rare in the future according to the new guidelines, with priority selections after the first round likely to be the preferred means of helping out struggling clubs.
A decision on the awarding of priority picks will be made by the Commission at the end of the home-and-away season to allow clubs to prepare for that year's national draft.
The AFL has also modified aspects of the rookie list, specifically as it relates to Irish rookies and father-son nominations.
Under the new amendments, clubs can now list one Irish player under the rule that allows for three extra rookies as development players, where previously an Irish player took up a spot on the main rookie list.
Clubs can also now claim a father-son nomination with a selection at the rookie draft if no other club bids for that player. Previously clubs have had to use their last pick at the national draft to pick up a nominated father-son prospect.
The same applies for players from club academies run by the Brisbane Lions, Gold Coast, the Sydney Swans and Greater Western Sydney.
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