The opening night of the twenty twenty five AFL Draft has wrapped.

Were here lurking in the corridors at Marvel Stadium the Code Sports team.

I've got our draft experts, Chris Kavanaugh and Dan Batton with us.

Pick one went as expected.

William Dursmart made his way to West Coast Richmond was probably the biggest variable on the night when we're looking at the phantom drafts that these two were putting together.

It was what the Tigers would do with those early picks and cav going for Sam Cumming and Sam Grill.

How did you see that playing out?

Yeah, well we had Sam coming and then Sullivan Roby is out too, and our last phantom draft yesterday, we thought that was the way the Tigers were going to guard.

They sprung a surprise early and ended up going with Sam Coming and Sam Grill.

As you said, so Sam Coming, they think is the prototypical midfielder.

He can also go forward and have an impact, but he's just strong, combative, powerful player.

And yeah, as I said, he's pretty exciting for the Tigers.

And then you've got Sam Greuel, who really impressed him during his VFL performance later in the year, and just brings a lot of speed to that mix as well.

So that's nine top thirty picks in two years for Richmond, which just turbo charges of rebuild under Adam Use and gets the Tigers right ahead of the pack.

As Tasmania prepares to come in, it.

Looks like a Geen Sen coming.

Is very emotional when he was picked up.

There's some really nice scenes there.

I had a look at Essendon afterwards.

They went for Sullivan Robi, the biggest boulter in the draft with pick nine, and then at ten a bit of a surprise Jacob Farrow.

I think we thought that Xavier Taylor might be the option there, but instead they've gone for a different rebounding defenders that had a bit of a ripple effect.

Melbourne went next, took Xavier Taylor and then the biggest surprise.

Of the night then, yes, that was Latrelle Pickett being handed his jumper by Cosey Pickett.

He snuck in the back door here at Marvel Stadium with a late invite to the draft.

I flew in to Melbourne on Wednesday.

He had already been here from Friday to Monday, meeting with clubs including Essendon.

He was in the mix there for Estam's picked that ended up being picked thirteen, But yeah, Melbourne ended up striking first, and yeah, it was just he spoke afterwards and he was really just lost for words.

And he followed a pretty similar path to one of his good mates, as I Dudley from freemant Or, who had been highly touted in his draft year and didn't quite make it a couple of years later, had a crack at freeman Or was an SSP, and I had a real breakout year this year.

So obviously Latroll saw that and just thought, you know, why can't that be me?

And Jason Taylor said that the D's had been tracking for a good two and a half years, you know, just watching him and knew that he always had the talent, but which is a matter of him growing up and maturing, and Latreil admitted that himself that you know, he hadn't quite had that growth within himself, but now I was absolutely ready to attack it.

And I guess probably the one thing that was surprising about the D's was not going a midfielder but me.

The others had been been selected.

Just before I asked Jason Taylor whether he saw Zavi Taylor as a midfielder as some might, but he actually doesn't.

He distinct He's a quality player and he'll slough across halfback, could even potentially push forward as well later into his career.

But has that spunk that you know, that confidence that he really loved and obviously really smooth mover as well.

So a nice combination there for the Ds to add to Zavier Lindsay and Harvey langerat who they had it who they got last year.

That could be really something watching two pickets run around in the forward line for Melbourne next year at times, I imagine.

So Melbourne not taking Dyson Sharp might have surprised a few teams and that caused a bit of interesting Pick thirteen.

Essendon held it.

I think we were hoping that Dyson Sharp will get through to that selection, but there were a couple of other clubs snicking around.

Adelaide made several offers to the Bombers.

Matt Roser confirms us earlier there were two clubs snicking around with know Adelaide was one of them, But Bombers got their man Dison Sharp and midfielder Can played straight away.

Cav Yeah, I really like him he had a massive underrated national championships as a captain of South Australia.

He's ready to play around one next year.

As you say, he's been playing senior football for a couple of years over there in South Australia already.

But yeah, I think he can impact in the midfield and he's also quite good when he goes forward to write it as well.

So he's a great pick up for them and a.

Super coach lock I reckon in Pacific you pretty much sloped him into your round one team right now.

Shout out to our super coaches out there.

Pick fourteen excited me.

That was GWS trading up, executing a little pick swat with Hawthorne going two picks up only to bid on Harry Carle from Sydney and suck some extra draft points out of the swamps.

Very cheeky, and I recall, you know, just a couple of years ago Harry Rouson WS Academy product being bided on by Sydney and you know you could hear the laughter from all of the club recruiters here at Marble Stadium that night.

I'm sure they were doing the same and there were some smirks on the face of recruiting manager Adrian Caruso, the Giants recruiters in there, but they did seriously rate him.

It wasn't just a you know, a cheeky little dig at their crosstown roles.

They seriously did raid him.

And then they went for the I guess the next half back on their talent board, which was Oscar Taylor, and they've been strongly linked to him, strongly linked to La troll Picket as well.

But obviously he was off the board at the Demons.

So it's almost a prototype Giants pick, isn't it.

Oscar Taylor just another sort of running half back, a little bit under developed.

They love those types.

But Oscar Talers certainly has the speed and the ball news and the building just stopped stop forwards that can make him a pretty cordy player in time.

Perfect for the Orange Tsunami, isn't he Absolutely?

We'll get to the Gold Coast bids in a second, but just on the bid for Harry Kyle did seeey effectively then have to choose between him and Lockie Carmichael, who we saw go to the Bulldogs.

Well they have in the end because they've let come on, will go so the Bulldogs bid on him at pick twenty one in the end and Sydney chose not to match it.

Of course, Sydney still got Max King to get through the door as another Academy prospect, which will happen tomorrow night.

He didn't get a bid tonight, so yeah, they had had to let one of them go, and Carmichael was one that they let and I.

Think the other fascinating there for the Dogs, they've been really strongly linked to Josh Lindsay and he went out to pick before also did some late work on Oscar Taylor, who went obviously to the Giants a few picks earlier.

So I guess the next half back on their board, and you know, some thought that maybe Luckie Carmichael was probably a bit too early for them first round, but obviously with those two off the board, and then brought him up into the equation and there.

Were nine bids tonight in the end there was just the two that weren't matched, and that was Carmichael was one.

And then the last pick of the night was Adam Swade to Freemantle, so essenmon n Ga prospect.

The Bombers chose not to match a bit on him, which we thought was going to be hard for him after they've traded up to get pick nine in the end.

And we were kicking themselves and I could probably put my hand up here, were tossing and turning where to include Adam Swade the Fremantle when we were doing a fantom draft, and I did opt to play safe, and yeah, regretting that now.

So you know, one point to ca there.

He's a nice fit for them at the dock is they probably needed some extra talent in that half forward area when Sam Switzkowski got injured at the end of last season.

They looked like, probably just need another quality option in there that can go between the midfield and the forward line.

They're at conjuit, so that's a good move.

Some William dealing from Hawthorne again afterwards with West Coast to let the Eagles go in and have a crack at their Gold Coast Academy players that they wanted, and Gold Coast were able to match both those.

Bids, so they have Yeah, so West Coast went back to back bid bid A picked seventeen and eighteen Joy Murray bo Adam saw.

We thought that Jim Murray they would match and then and then Adams saw they might let go through because it's hard for him to get all these Academy boys in.

In the end, they've done a lot of pick swaps tonight which have helped them get a few extra points.

They might do some more pick swops tomorrow which might save them going into deficit for next year, which would be a great results to we end up getting getting the four that they got in tonight in Zekiel and Dan, Annibal and as we said, Joe Murray and bow Adamson, and then if they get Kobe Colson through the door tomorrow night, they get all five in.

It's a remarkable effort from the Suns.

Yeah, I think it's also a fascinating watch in the coming years as well.

With all the.

Midfield talent they've had from the Academy.

You look at Leo Lombard, Jake Rodgers, the Kobe Coulson even inside midfielder and Bo Adams or with Matt Raul Anderson already there, then it's something's going to have to give.

And I think, you know, although in the short term a lot of people are shaking their fists that you know, the Sons are able to do this I think overall in time that clubs across the competition are going to benefit from, you know, the time that the signs are put into these players because they can't have normal they can't keep them all because they're all sort of in that sort of midfield forward roll.

I think they're still your relationship between West Coast and Gold Coast after tonight, I think the Eagles they've really wanted to hurt the SAMs.

They could have put a bit on for Dylan Patterson after they went to Zeke Hewl and so then they must have had as much interest in Patterson because that would have helped them get Adam slawa Murray if they'd had a proper crack.

Just in terms of tomorrow night, whose names are still on the board that are jumping out at you as North Melbourne prepares to take that first pick tomorrow night.

Yeah, So a player that had been linked to a few clubs in the in the later in the first round, his Blake thread gold Key defender has drawn comparisons to Harris Andrews with his leap and inacceptibility.

He's one that has been pretty strongly linked to North Melbourne and you know he'd certainly be in their mix for that first selection.

Archie Luderwick another one if they're after that key Forward.

They went Lockie Doveston up the top after training up for Carlin's pick eleven's, so you think at all would be in the mix for them, and thread Gold and Ludowick are certainly a couple of the top ones left.

Louis Emmett as well.

Ruck Forward from the Oakley Chargers could be a contender for them or potentially the Bulldogs at the selection after them.

Anyone else Cavy you expected to be taken tonight, maybe that there will still be there.

Yeah, well, Jack Iisen didn't get a bit in the end.

The cart and next generation Academy prospect, we're not sure.

I'm sure where Oli Greaves ends up.

He got past Hawthorne's picks obviously been linked to them and Geelong as well.

So yeah, there's a couple of a couple of names that didn't get picked up tonight.

Ludwick was another one that could have easily gone tonight in the end, but didn't, So yeah, be interesting.

Even's high grades as well.

I reckons another one could provide some serious value.

Is that X factor forward really high upside type Max King as well.

I mean, like at the start of the year, we're thinking, like you how where could he land?

Like it could have been a potential top ten and you know, it would have been another top top ten prospect of the Swan's a trying to match.

But I just didn't quite have the year that he would have hoped in Jevin Philippo, where does he land?

That's going to be a very fascinating one because on talent he's probably in and around that that top twenty top twenty five.

So going to be a fascinating watch tomorrow night.

We know Ross Lyon has an interest in the younger Philippe.

He actually wandered in earlier earlier tonight, he surprised me that he was here.

I thought, oh, hang on, maybe the Saints have got something planned.

Watch and wait and see what they do tomorrow night.

So that's one to watch.

We've spoken a little bit in previous drafts about this first pick on the second night, how it's become a little bit of a commodity almost we talk about potential pick swaps.

Do you think there'll be anyone who knocks on the Kangaroo's door tomorrow to try and get a hold of that pip.

I'm sure they might be, but whether or not they traded it out.

As you said, they've got a few good prospects here that and they need to bring in some more talent, and especially probably the tall talent as we said.

So yeah, I'm sure they get they might get an offer or two, but whether or not they take that up, I'm not sure.

That's all from us tonight.

We'll be back tomorrow night for the other picks, probably another twenty five or thirty players to be selected on Thursday night at Marvel Stadium, and you can fole along with all our coverage and analysis on the Code Sports and Heralds SAMENT websites.

CAD then see you again tonight to see you in the corral