Richmond have pounced on gun midfielder Ellie McKenzie with the prized No.1 pick in Tuesday night’s AFLW Draft.
McKenzie, a creative, attacking midfielder from the Northern Knights, is set to add instant class to a Richmond side that went winless in their inaugural AFLW season.
Beyond young gun Monique Conti, the Tigers’ midfield struggled to go with the AFLW’s best in their first season and the classy McKenzie is set to significantly bolster their on-ball division, while at 176cm, she can also swing forward.
The Western Bulldogs had three picks in the first round and opted for pacy midfielder Jess Fitzgerald, who was McKenzie’s teammate at Northern Knights, with pick No.2.
Players nominate for the state they wish to be drafted to.
With pick No.3, West Coast had first choice of the WA talent pool and snared explosive midfielder Isabella Lewis – who has a background in trampolining.
Adelaide had the entire South Australian group to choose from and selected tough on-baller Teah Charlton with pick No.4.
Melbourne then selected a third Northern Knights product – powerful key forward Alyssa Bannan – with pick No.5.
Tyanna Smith (St Kilda), Annise Bradfield (Gold Coast), Zimmorlei Farquharson (Brisbane), Tarni Evans (GWS) and Darcy Moloney (Geelong) rounded out the top 10.
Father-daughter selections Tarni Brown, Alice Burke and Amy Smith went to Collingwood (pick No.19), St Kilda (pick No.24) and North Melbourne (pick No.55) respectively, while former Adelaide premiership player Sarah Perkins, who also spent time at Melbourne last season, landed at Gold Coast with pick No.23.
Richmond sprung a surprise at pick No.43, selecting Tessa Lavey – who has previously played basketball for Australia.
The draft was held in a virtual format for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with clubs dialling in to AFL House to make their selections.
AFLW DRAFT FIRST ROUND
1. Richmond – Ellie McKenzie
2. Western Bulldogs – Jess Fitzgerald
3. West Coast – Isabella Lewis
4. Adelaide – Teah Charlton
5. Melbourne – Alyssa Bannan
6. St Kilda – Tyanna Smith
7. Gold Coast – Annise Bradfield
8. Brisbane – Zimmorlei Farquharson
9. GWS – Tarni Evans
10. Geelong – Darcy Moloney
11. Western Bulldogs – Sarah Hartwig
12. Carlton – Mimi Hill
13. North Melbourne – Isabella Eddey
14. Fremantle – Sarah Verrier
15. Melbourne – Eliza McNamara
16. Western Bulldogs – Isabelle Pritchard
