Potential first-round pick names the two clubs he may land at amid wish to play for Blues

Sandringham Dragons prospect Taj Hotton looms as a likely first-round selection in next week’s 2024 AFL Draft.

The midfielder/forward was on track to be a top 10 pick before tearing his ACL early in the season but is still ranked at No. 16 in Cal Twomey’s Phantom Form Guide on AFL.com.au.

A raft of Dragons are tipped to be taken early in the draft and Hotton was who he’d take at the No. 1 pick if he were Richmond.

While he’d like to take himself if he were the Tigers, Hotton says he’d otherwise go with his Dragons teammate Harry Armstrong who is rated as perhaps the best key position prospect available.

“I can't pick myself, can I?” Hotton asked SEN's The Run Home.

“Well, I'll take myself. But other than that, I would have said Harry Armstrong.

“He’s my mate, but he’s a good player. I’ve played with him for so long and watched him throughout the years and I've always thought that he's an absolute jet.

“I reckon he's going to be good in the future.”

As he looms as a first-round pick, Hotton thinks that the most likely destinations for him to land at are Richmond – who hold eight picks inside the first 24 selections, and GWS – who hold pick 15, 16 and 21.

“Exams just finished, so I think this is the time clubs will come to their last meetings,” Hotton said.

“I'll probably get a better idea of it now, but naturally, GWS and Richmond have multiple picks in the first round, so those are the sort of the two that I'm feeling is most likely.

“But you just never know what can happen especially with trades that can happen on the night.

“It's just all up in the air, which is exciting.”

But the club that he’d most like to head to is Carlton given his father Trent played 61 games in navy blue and 17 games for Collingwood in his six-year AFL career.

“That would be ideal, I'd love that as well (to head to Carlton),” Hotton said.

“If that could get done somehow, I'd be stoked. I'm a Carlton man.”

The first round of the 2024 AFL Draft will be read out on November 20 at Marvel Stadium.