Bring back the 17-year-olds

There has been plenty of talk this year about whether the draft age should be raised to 19. It didn't happen, and shouldn't, and there's an argument to be made that clubs should in fact have access to a 17-year-old each year. Whether or not they can play them in the senior side until after they've turned 18 is another question (the wait worked for Jaeger O'Meara), but for all the draftees who finish school at 17 and spend the next year productively, there are more who tread water while waiting for their time to come. Clem Smith this year is a good example: he was an All-Australian last year, one of the yet made it to pick 60 in the draft after drifting through the second half of the season. He, his new club and we as football watchers would have been so much better off had he been able to get to a club after he finished school last year, and there are many more in the same boat.

How Darcy Moore could have made it to the second round

It is time for father-son and academy player bidding to be moved to later in the year, probably to draft night itself. This would create some complications for the trade period, given clubs that have players on the way might hold back from moving picks. On the flipside, clubs would have more time to evaluate the players they are being asked to bid on (there were 12 this year, with bidding conducted just a few days after the draft combine). It might also mean clubs don't hold back from bidding because of trade deals they have in the works, which happened this year. Carlton wasn't in a position to bid for Darcy Moore because the Kristian Jaksch trade was underway, and the Western Bulldogs wouldn't have risked it had Ryan Griffen already quit and Tom Boyd been within reach. The Suns say they most likely wouldn't have either, meaning Moore, a clear top 10 talent, would have made it through to Collingwood's second round pick.

Sons get chances - at other clubs