Why two-time AFL premiership captain is an advocate for raising the draft age

Two-time Adelaide premiership captain Mark Bickley is an advocate for raising the draft age by a year.

As things stand, players become AFL draft-eligible in the year they turn 18.

Bickley thinks that should be changed to the year they turn 19 instead, and his main reason behind that is the workload both in footy and studies that most draftees deal with in their 18th years.

“I’m an advocate for raising the draft age by one year,” Bickley told SEN SA Breakfast.

“There’s a reason I say one year, and I'll give you an example of a young player who might be included in the South Australian State Academy. 

“He would have started pre-season training for the national championships. They got the group of 30 or 35 players together in around October or November last year. 

“They train all the way through the season, then they start training at their clubs in October or November and go all the way through.

“They're playing school footy, they're playing club footy, they're playing state footy and some play league footy and SANFL reserves footy. Then at the same time you're doing year 12, then if you're in the AFL Academy, you're playing other games.

“Then you've got the draft camp and then you're doing all that stuff. Then you're finishing off year 12 and then you have a month off.

“Then guess what happens if you get drafted? You then go into an AFL pre-season, which is the hardest thing you've ever done. 

“You've been going constantly for 12 months, including all the pressures of your study and then you get thrown into an AFL system.

“You wonder by the time you get to March, April or May, the young fellas are just cooked because they've been going at it for 18 months non-stop.”

Bickley thinks that raising the draft age would allow hopefuls to complete their studies and underage football without as much pressure, adding that he thinks state leagues would be boosted with a crop of 19-year-olds playing in their competition during what would be their draft campaigns.

While some players appear clearly ready for AFL footy in their first year out of high school like Brisbane father-son prospect Levi Ashcroft, Bickley doesn’t think his development would be affected much if he were forced to wait another year until joining the top level.

“My theory is, take the pressure off them in their 18th year,” Bickley said.

“Let them do year 12, let them concentrate on that. You can still play footy, a state program etc.

“But the next year, you’ve got a year to get yourself sorted out whether you’re going to study, work, play SANFL or whatever.

“The SANFL will get a boost because they get this influx of probably 30 really good 18 and 19-year-olds and half of them will probably play league footy straight away.

“I had examples (working at the Crows) where players were arriving from Melbourne and still hadn't had their driver's license.

“It enables you to get your life a bit organised and then you can attack it. 

“One year I don't think makes a huge difference in the development of a Levi Ashcroft. If he had to play another year, is he that far disadvantaged?”

The 2024 AFL Draft begins on November 20 at Marvel Stadium.