HIGHY rated pair Zemes Pilot and Louis Salopek have nominated Port Adelaide for the 2027 draft, with the duo committing to the club and choosing not to pursue Tasmania’s interest under the Devils’ under-17 signings access.
Pilot and Salopek are eligible for next year’s draft and are tied to the Power – Pilot as a Next Generation Academy player and Salopek under father-son rules as the son of former player Steven – but both were among the 22 prospects Tasmania listed last month as ‘players of interest’ they were considering to sign this year as 17-year-old talents.
That meant that the Devils could sign them this year if the players agreed, which would take them out of next year’s draft pool – and out of Port’s grasp.
However, AFL.com.au can reveal that Pilot and Salopek will be withdrawing themselves from the players of interest pool and have committed to heading to Port Adelaide at the end of next year, subject to the bidding process.
Pilot and Salopek are considered likely early picks in next year’s draft class and have opted to nominate for Port rather than consider the Devils’ interest under their access to a group of players under their start-up rules.
Tasmania can sign up to 12 under-17 players across the 2026-27 seasons, with a maximum of eight players in a single year. The Devils are expecting to lock in around six this year, with the official signing period to commence at the end of the season but the scouting already underway.
Given Pilot and Salopek are tied to another club they have sat in a different cohort in terms of their decision-making for the Devils’ under-17 access, with players without ties to clubs having strong interest in taking up the offers from Tasmania to be their first-ever additions.
Pilot, 193cm, is a versatile tall who kicked nine goals in an under-16s game for South Adelaide last year while Salopek starred for Vic Country at the under-16s carnival last year and is a midfielder.
Steven Salopek played 121 games for the Power between 2003-2011 and last year, as the AFL threatened to bring in a draft lockout at the top of the draft for any bids, told AFL.com.au of his hopes for Louis to follow him to Alberton Oval.
“It’s a legacy, that’s how I look at it. It’s my greatest achievement to be able to provide my boys a pathway to get assistance or generate getting to an AFL program,” he said.
“[Louis has] always grown up following Port. His first footy jumper was Port Adelaide, he ran out with me for a 100th game so that photo is in his bedroom.”
Tasmania would still be able to lodge bids on either or both of the players at next year’s draft, particularly given the suite of early selections the Devils will hold, and Port would need to find enough points to be able to match bids on them to secure both, but the duo will go into next year rather than take Tasmania’s early interest.
The new bidding system will make it very difficult for clubs to match one early selection, let alone two, within the same year without trading out established players under rules to be formalised in coming weeks and introduced in the 2026 draft.
The Devils will remain interested in the wider draft pool beyond the group of under-17s that sign with the club, having told player agents last month in Hobart that the new bidding rules meant they would remain keen and keep a close watch on draftees even if they don’t sign with the club this year.
AFL.com.au revealed last month the full list of 22 prospects on Tassie’s under-17 watchlist, which included Essendon father-son talent Koby Bewick, West Australian tall Axel Walsh and tough nut Baxter Sruk.
Axel Walsh during the Marsh AFL National Development Championships U16 Boys match between Western Australia and South Australia at HIF Health Insurance Oval on June 21, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos
The Devils wrote letters to the players ahead of interviews and testing in coming months, with the selected group also able to sign player agents earlier than usually permitted to assist with their decision-making process.
Tasmania’s pitch to the 17-year-olds will be to sign on and lock in an AFL contract that will be four years (three years as a first-round pick as well as 2027), with the prospects to be able to play for the Devils’ VFL side next year and get a head start on AFL conditioning and coaching with the fledgling club.
The same list build rules delivered huge wins for the Giants when they were able to select 17-year-olds and pre-list them before their draft, with Jeremy Cameron, Adam Treloar and Dylan Shiel joining them under the same rules.
