AFL draft combine medicals begin Monday at Marvel Stadium with six Victorian prospects completing scans on soft-tissue injuries before clubs lock November bidding lists for the national draft.
The league confirmed Sunday that hamstring and shoulder management plans submitted by player managers would limit—but not cancel—testing for the affected group, which includes two midfielders projected inside the first round. Clubs received anonymised injury summaries Friday under equal-information rules so no single recruiter could claim private MRI access.
Medical gate matters more each year
Clubs increasingly withhold bids when combine imaging disagrees with earlier club doctor reviews. Last year’s first-round slide for a touted forward began with a late MRI on the final combine day, and list managers said they would not repeat surprise calls. Recruiters told agents that “managed availability” flags on draft boards now trigger automatic board-room reviews even for talented runners.
League medical staff will run repeat ultrasounds Tuesday for the Victorian sextet, with results shared to all eighteen clubs under equal-information rules. Prospects cleared to sprint will wear GPS units so clubs can compare combine data with earlier NAB League seasons without guessing about hidden limps.
Sports physicians on the combine floor said hamstring protocols this year require two clean scans twenty-four hours apart before full throttle testing, a stricter bar than the single ultrasound used in 2024.
Testing schedule
Vertical jump, agility and three-kilometre runs proceed for healthy invitees Monday and Tuesday. Psych testing and club interviews continue through Wednesday, while agents negotiate scope-of-practice clauses for prospects returning from anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions. Clubs may request redo jumps if timing gates glitch, but only once per station to keep the schedule tight.
Interstate players arrived Saturday under biosecurity protocols that still require isolation after influenza symptoms, a hangover from winter lists that emptied several VFL sides. Victorian locals checked in Sunday afternoon for weigh-ins and photo sessions, with medicals starting before dawn Monday to fit imaging slots.
Broadcast partners will stream testing stations with a delay so clubs cannot glean real-time results before official releases, a compromise recruiters accepted after last year’s social clips leaked jump scores early.
Draft board impact
Recruiters said a clean bill for the injured Victorians could reshuffle top-ten picks, because two clubs holding multiple first-round selections prioritise running midfielders who can cover ground at the MCG. Any downgrade to managed availability will push those names toward matching bids in the teens, where risk tolerance rises.
Agent circles said at least one Victorian midfielder planned a limited repeat test Thursday if Tuesday imaging clears, giving clubs a second data point without risking a full combine re-run. If that prospect slides, matching rules could activate late in round one, affecting clubs that traded out of early picks expecting stability at the top of the board.