NSW/ACT draft hopefuls arrive in Melbourne for Draft Combine

The 2026 Telstra AFL Draft Combine and 2026 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine will be hosted in Melbourne this week, bringing together the top prospects in this year’s Draft pools.

Players attending the national Draft Combine events will complete club interviews, medical screenings and physical testing in preparation for the Telstra AFL Draft in November and Telstra AFLW Draft in December.

Selection to attend the Draft Combines was based on nominations supplied by every AFL and AFLW club.

The 2026 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine for girls will be held from Wednesday, September 30 to Friday, October 2 and will feature 47 players from across Australia.

The Combine will begin with a time trial at Lakeside Stadium on Wednesday morning, ahead of club interviews at the MCG throughout Wednesday afternoon and Thursday. It will conclude with testing at the State Netball and Hockey Centre on Friday, October 2.

The distance for the AFLW Draft Combine time trial will this year change to 1.6km to more accurately reflect running patterns in an AFLW match.

The 2026 Telstra AFL Draft Combine for boys will be held from Thursday, October 1 to Saturday, October 3. The event will feature 63 players.

The Combine will begin with a 2km time trial at Clifton Hill’s George Knott Reserve on Thursday morning.

Players will then engage in club interviews at the MCG across Thursday and Friday, before completing the remainder of physical testing at the State Netball and Hockey Centre on Saturday, October 3.

Testing will again include vertical jumps, 20m sprint, and the agility test, in addition to the time trial which will kick off both Combine events.

All physical testing will be conducted by Rookie Me, the official athletic testing partner of AFL Talent Pathways.

State Draft Combines

Three state Draft Combines will be held in Melbourne (Girls: October 2 and Boys: October 3), Adelaide (October 10) and Perth (October 11). Each state Draft Combine will be held across a single day, with participants to take part in physical testing.

The state Draft Combine events will feature players who did not feature in the national Draft Combine, with 43 boys players and 44 girls players to participate across the three state events.

Below are the details for the State Draft Combines featuring NSW/ACT talent. 

Melbourne (girls)
Date: Friday, October 2
Time: Testing from 12:15pm; 1.6km time trial from 3:00pm
Where: State Netball and Hockey Centre, followed by Melbourne University Athletics Track for 1.6km time trial
Who: Featuring players from ACT, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria

Melbourne (boys)
Date: Saturday, October 3
Time: Testing from 12:15pm; 2km time trial from 3:00pm
Where: State Netball and Hockey Centre, followed by Melbourne University for 2km time trial
Who: Featuring players from ACT, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria

NSW/ACT talent in 2026 Telstra AFLW Draft Combine

NSW/ACT talent in 2026 Telstra AFLW State Draft Combine

NSW/ACT talent in 2026 Telstra AFL Draft Combine

NSW/ACT talent in 2026 Telstra AFL State Draft Combine