Talking PtsBen Waterworth, Catherine Healey, Will Faulkner and Tyler Lewis
Fox Sports
April 21st, 2025 But there’s a ... 2024 trade involving a future pick to track closely this year.
And, as it stands, Richmond is in Position A … after a bonkers draft haul late last year.
Just over 24 hours after North Melbourne’s horror 82-point Good Friday loss to Carlton, Richmond pulled off a massive boilover, hanging on to hand Gold Coast its first loss of the season in a thrilling 11-point win.
Five months earlier, the two clubs completed a blockbuster live trade on night one of the 2024 national draft. The Kangaroos secured the final selection of the first round of the draft (Pick 27), along with a future second-round pick from the Tigers, who received North’s 2025 first-round selection in return.
After Round 6, the Kangaroos sit 16th on the ladder with a 1-5 record – a spot ahead of Richmond
(sic - they're a spot behind us).
It means the Tigers, currently, hold Picks 3 and 4.
That Roos future first-rounder had been on the table for some time prior to the Tigers trade, with the Roos asking several rivals whether they would be willing to trade out of the 2024 draft.
When Richmond agreed to a trade, Murray Bushrangers key-position player Matt Whitlock was the player North Melbourne eventually landed at Pick 27. And the versatile and talented Whitlock, no doubt, has all the makings of an exciting AFL player in the future.
But after the weekend’s results – which saw the Kangaroos drop their fourth straight game by at least six goals – the short-term optics on the trade aren’t ideal, considering how patient North Melbourne fans have had to be.
Meanwhile, the Tigers are six games in to one of the most ruthless and aggressive rebuilds we’ve seen in recent times – and they’ve already notched two shock wins over Carlton and the Suns.
“There’s no timeline. No one says ‘you can’t win at this stage of their journey’. But I marvel at what this club has been able to do,” King said of Richmond.
“We’ve seen clubs stuck in rebuilds for eight to 10 years and not have opportunities to perform like this.”
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