GREATER Western Sydney has called on the AFL to treat the four northern Academies differently as the League’s impending new set of bidding rules get closer to being locked in.
The League is closing in on its new set of bidding changes to be applied this year, which AFL.com.au revealed last year would see clubs be able to match bids with their next two picks, the removal of the 10 per cent points discount and a likely points loading depending on ladder position.
Clubs have been stepped through the bidding changes in recent weeks by the AFL, with free agency changes also expected to be formalised.
The AFL Commission will be briefed on the potential changes on Wednesday ahead of the season being launched in Sydney on Thursday night, with club chief executives also meeting on Wednesday and expected to get an update on the bidding system.
Giants chief executive Dave Matthews said he had called on the AFL to help raise Academy numbers in his club’s region and that Greater Western Sydney should be treated differently to reigning back-to-back premiers Brisbane.
“We’ve reached a point where the four northern Academies should be considered differently under the next set of rules. Our circumstances are very different to Brisbane for example in terms of both father-son access and local market maturity,” Matthews told AFL.com.au.
“We’ve previously put in a proposal that the bidding system shouldn’t apply to western Sydney and we have again said that to the AFL this week. We need to turn the tap on.”
Brisbane last year drafted Academy talent Dan Annable at pick No.6 at the draft, after the year before selecting Levi Ashcroft as a father-son at No.5 in the draft – both after Grand Final wins.
Daniel Annable poses for a photo after being picked by Brisbane at the Telstra AFL Draft on November 19, 2025. Picture: Getty Images
Gold Coast last year drafted five players in the top 20 of the draft, with Essendon coach Brad Scott last month saying the draft had lost its effectiveness as an equalisation plank.
“It should be by definition that the clubs that finished down the bottom get access to the best talent, but that hasn’t happened over the last period of time,” Scott told AFL.com.au.
“You’ve got premiers and top-four teams acquiring top two, three, four talent in multiple years. When you stack really early high-end draftees into really good teams, it makes the really good teams better.”
Harry Rowston (pick No.16 in 2022) is the Giants’ only Academy player to attract a top-20 bid over the past six years, leading to Matthews’ renewed call to not group the northern Academy clubs together in the updated rules.
The Giants lost access to their Albury region in 2017 after lobbying from clubs. They retain access to Canberra, where Tom Green was an Academy product in the 2019 draft.
AFL.com.au revealed last month that the AFL was set to propose a protected zone at the top of the draft that meant free agency compensation picks didn’t start until after pick No.8, with clubs expecting that to likely to be after pick No.10 after further discussions.
