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Updated phantom draft: The first three rounds

Throughout 2019, ESPN.com.au AFL draft expert Chris Doerre has cast his eye over the country's best junior footballers to give readers an early insight into the next generation of AFL stars.

As well as attending live games, Doerre pores through match vision, analyses the stats and talks to industry sources to ensure he can offer the most insightful draft analysis.

This is his third phantom draft of 2019, looking at the first three rounds.

As we get closer to the draft itself -- on November 27-28 -- Doerre will expand his predictions into the fourth round as well as a full phantom draft.


1. Gold Coast: Matthew Rowell (VIC)
Height, Weight:
180cm/78kg
Profile: A big game player, Rowell is the first winner of two successive Grand Final best-on-ground medals in TAC Cup/NAB League history. He is this year's premier midfielder as a hardworking, ball-winning midfielder with explosive pace.

2. Gold Coast: Noah Anderson (VIC)
Height, Weight:
191cm/87kg
Profile: A match winner who breaks games open in the matter of minutes whether he is winning his own ball or hitting the scoreboard. The most influential in the pool whether he's used as a midfielder or forward.

3. Melbourne: Luke Jackson (WA)
Height, Weight:
199cm/94kg
Profile: A raw, athletic, high leaping ruckman who made the decision to pursue football instead of basketball. Jackson is an aggressive tackler who follows up powerfully from ruck contests, often winning first possession.

4. Greater Western Sydney (matching Adelaide's bid): Thomas Green (NSW/ACT - GWS Academy)
Height, Weight:
190cm/89kg
Profile: The most prolific stoppage player and contested ball winner to come through the junior ranks in recent years. Able to rotate forward as required and provide a leadup target.

5. Adelaide: Sam Flanders (VIC)
Height, Weight:
183cm/82kg
Profile: Arguably this year's most damaging forward of centre who has become just as valuable as a midfielder. Flanders is ready to go, plays a high-impact-per-possession game and possesses explosive power.

6. Sydney: Hayden Young (VIC)
Height, Weight:
188cm/83kg
Profile: One of, if not this year's premier ball user from defence. A reliable stopper and has the capability to push through the midfield and win his own ball.

7. Fremantle: Deven Robertson (WA)
Height, Weight:
184cm/81kg
Profile: A worthy winner of the Larke Medal for the best performer during the Under-18 Championships. Robertson is one of this year's premier midfielders, winning the ball and moving it on aggressively.

8. Melbourne: Lachlan Ash (VIC)
Height, Weight:
187cm/83kg
Profile: Line-breaking defender who breaks games open with his speed, agility and kicking. Does his best work generating drive from defence but has the versatility to push up through the midfield.

9. Carlton: Caleb Serong (VIC)
Height, Weight:
178cm/83kg
Profile: Strong ball winner and tackler through the midfield. Serong is just as good up forward with his ground ball-winning and aerial marking causing problems for opposition sides.

10. Fremantle: Dylan Stephens (SA)
Height, Weight:
183cm/74kg
Profile: Consistent performer at SANFL League level, playing 13 games in Norwood's midfield. Stephens is a ready-to-go, hard running left-footer who can play outside or inside.

11. Fremantle: (matching Hawthorn's bid): Liam Henry (WA - Fremantle Academy)
Height, Weight:
180cm/68kg
Profile: Speedy forward who is dangerous at ground level and on the lead inside 50m. Henry is a composed ball user and applies heavy forward pressure.

12. Hawthorn: Fischer McAsey (VIC)
Height, Weight:
197cm/93kg
Profile: This year's most promising key defender. A high-level intercept mark and stopper with athleticism.

13. Port Adelaide: Brodie Kemp (VIC)
Height, Weight:
192cm/89kg
Profile: Explosive ball winning utility who impacts games through the midfield, up forward or in defence. Torn ACL likely keeps Kemp out until mid-2020.

14. Western Bulldogs: Cody Weightman (VIC)
Height, Weight:
178cm/75kg
Profile: Speedy small forward who makes something out of nothing. Weightman is dangerous at ground level, flies for marks, applies heavy forward pressure and hits the scoreboard.

15. Geelong: Miles Bergman (VIC)
Height, Weight:
189cm/83kg
Profile: High leaping, strong marking medium forward. Arguably possesses the most penetrating kick in the draft pool.

16. Gold Coast: Will Day (SA)
Height, Weight:
188cm/76kg
Profile: Lightly built outside midfielder with good skills and speed. Viewed by recruiters as one of the prospects with the greatest upside in this draft.

17. Brisbane: Jay Rantall (VIC)
Height, Weight:
185cm/83kg
Profile: Endurance running machine who set a new draft combine record in the 2km time trial. Rantall is a basketball convert who is excellent at stoppages as a ball winner and distributor.

18. Geelong: Josh Worrell (VIC)
Height, Weight:
195cm/83kg
Profile: Athletic utility with the scope to play key defence, key forward or on a wing. Worrell is an excellent reader of the ball in flight, displays a high work rate and was Vic Metro's leading goalkicker during the Under-18 Championships.

19. Port Adelaide: Kysaiah Pickett (SA)
Height, Weight:
171cm/71kg
Profile: Lively forward with speed who applies forward pressure as well as any in the pool. Kysaiah is the nephew of dual premiership player Byron.

20. Hawthorn (matching Richmond's bid): Finn Maginness (VIC - Hawthorn Father-Son)
Height, Weight:
189cm/82kg
Profile: Ball-winning midfielder with athleticism who is a hard to stop mark one-on-one inside 50m. Finn is the son of Hawthorn defender Scott Maginness.

21. Richmond: Cooper Stephens (VIC)
Height, Weight:
188cm/83kg
Profile: Strong ball-winning midfielder who distributes effectively by hand and bursts out of stoppages at speed. Has not played since Round 3 due to a fractured fibula.

22. Gold Coast: Trent Bianco (VIC)
Height, Weight:
178cm/73kg
Profile: Precise and consistent ball user who displays the versatility to play on a wing or in defence. Captained the talented Oakleigh Chargers to this year's NAB League premiership.

23. Brisbane: Trent Rivers (WA)
Height, Weight:
188cm/83kg
Profile: Possesses the versatility to play either as a ball-winning midfielder or in defence. A strong contested ball-winner, Rivers combines this with class and composure.

24. Adelaide: Will Gould (SA)
Height, Weight:
192cm/106kg
Profile: Strong-bodied defender with the performances on the board at SANFL League level including a premiership for Glenelg. Gould throws his weight around, plays an aggressive style of game and is a penetrating kick.

25. Geelong: Jeremy Sharp (WA)
Height, Weight:
189cm/81kg
Profile: Speedy line-breaker who is also damaging by foot. Has performed strongly in his six WAFL League performances where he has averaged 16 disposals per game.

26. Sydney: Hugo Ralphsmith (VIC)
Height, Weight:
188cm/75kg
Profile: Ralphsmith is a damaging forward and midfielder who enjoys breaking the lines and taking on the game with his speed. He reads the ball in flight effectively and is a difficult mark to stop either aerially, on the lead or one-on-one.

27. North Melbourne: Sam De Koning (VIC)
Height, Weight:
201cm/86kg
Profile: Athletic, versatile but raw key position player who may transition to play more through the ruck over coming years if he keeps growing. Sam is the younger brother of Carlton's Tom.

28. North Melbourne: Dylan Williams (VIC)
Height, Weight:
186cm/81kg
Profile: Talented forward and midfielder who hurts opponents aerially and at ground level. Projecting as a top-five selection this time last year, Williams has battled injury and form in 2019 which has limited his output.

29. Port Adelaide (matching Adelaide's bid): Jackson Mead (SA - Port Adelaide Father-Son)
Height, Weight:
183cm/83kg
Profile: Ball-winning midfielder with class and reliable skills. Jackson is the son of former Power defender Darren.

30. Adelaide: Thomson Dow (VIC)
Height, Weight:
184cm/76kg
Profile: Dow is a speedy midfielder with growing ball-winning capabilities. Thomson is the younger brother of Carlton's Paddy but is comparatively lighter bodied and less advanced than Paddy was at the same age.

31. Essendon: Harrison Jones (VIC)
Height, Weight:
196cm/78kg
Profile: Lightly built key forward who is at his best taking marks at full stretch. Jones is athletic, capable at ground level, hits the scoreboard heavily and possesses a high ceiling.

32. Sydney: Elijah Taylor (WA)
Height, Weight:
188cm/77kg
Profile: Instinctive forward with speed and tricks around goal. Possesses good skills and is composed, evasive and dangerous aerially.

33. Essendon: Harry Schoenberg (SA)
Height, Weight:
182cm/83kg
Profile: Won South Australia's state MVP award during the Under-18 Championships. Schoenberg is a prolific ball-winning midfielder with a high work rate.

34. Brisbane: Jack Mahony (VIC)
Height, Weight:
176cm/70kg
Profile: Mahony is a crumbing forward who can push up through the midfield. He's a polished ball user and applies forward pressure.

35. Collingwood: Mitch Georgiades (WA)
Height, Weight:
192cm/87kg
Profile: The son of former Footscray forward John, Mitch is an athletic key forward who missed the season with a quad injury. Georgiades possesses a good leap, speed and is a strong mark aerially and on the lead.

36. Geelong: Cameron Taheny (SA)
Height, Weight:
185cm/80kg
Profile: A strong marking forward who does his best work close to goal. Taheny doesn't need much of the ball to hit the scoreboard heavily.

37. Adelaide: Sam Philp (VIC)
Height, Weight:
186cm/79kg
Profile: Ball-winning midfielder and distributor with explosiveness. Philp won the 20m sprint at this year's AFL Draft Combine.

38. Richmond: Mitch O'Neill (TAS)
Height, Weight:
176cm/72kg
Profile: Touted a potential first round selection at the beginning of the season, O'Neill has struggled with injury for much of the year. O'Neill is an outside midfielder who is a polished ball user and moves well.

39. Richmond: Darcy Cassar (VIC)
Height, Weight:
184cm/82kg
Profile: Midfielder with the versatility to play forward or back. Cassar does his best work on the outside and possesses good skills.

40. Greater Western Sydney: Brock Smith (VIC)
Height, Weight:
189cm/82kg
Profile: A brick wall in defence with the way he reads the ball in flight and takes intercept marks. Smith competes well one-on-one and aerially.

41. Richmond: Cooper Sharman (VIC)
Height, Weight:
192cm/79kg
Profile: Goalkicking forward who doesn't need much of the ball to hit the scoreboard heavily. One of the best readers of the ball in flight in the draft, strong overhead and clean at ground level.

42. Carlton: Ned Cahill (VIC)
Height, Weight:
179cm/78kg
Profile: Classy small forward and midfielder with speed, agility, evasion and the capacity to turn opponents inside out. Cahill is a composed ball user who can hit the scoreboard and win his own ball.

43. Sydney: Darcy Chirgwin (VIC)
Height, Weight:
191cm/80kg
Profile: Ball-winning midfielder who does his best work at stoppages. Wins a high proportion of his ball contested and is a strong tackler.

44. Adelaide: Nick Bryan (VIC)
Height, Weight:
202cm/87kg
Profile: Bryan is a mobile ruckman with a good leap. He is clean at ground level, reads the ball well in flight and will often get a kick behind the ball to take intercept marks.

45. West Coast: Callum Jamieson (WA)
Height, Weight:
200cm/80kg
Profile: Mobile ruckman who finds plenty of the ball around the ground. A project ruckman who will take time to develop physically.

46. North Melbourne: Jake Riccardi (VIC)
Height, Weight:
195cm/96kg
Profile: Turning 20 in November, Riccardi showed positive signs in the TAC Cup last year as an overager and has made meaningful progress this year in the VFL. Riccardi is a strong marking, athletic key forward and won the Fothergill-Round-Mitchell Medal as the VFL's Rising Star.

47. Brisbane: Flynn Perez (VIC)
Height, Weight:
188cm/81kg
Profile: Missing the season due to a ruptured ACL, Perez remains an in-demand prospect. Perez does his best work off half-back, generating drive with his run from defence and clean ball use on either side of his body.

48. Adelaide: Charlie Comben (VIC)
Height, Weight:
199cm/84kg
Profile: Key forward and ruckman with athleticism and a strong overhead mark. A raw, project player with scope to develop.

49. North Melbourne: Sam Lowson (VIC)
Height, Weight:
182cm/84kg
Profile: Lowson is an impressive forward who injects speed, pressure and scoreboard impact. Unfortunately Lowson sustained an ankle injury just before the mid-season draft which saw him miss out on making his way onto an AFL list earlier in the season.

50. St Kilda: Ben Sokol (WA)
Height, Weight:
184cm/88kg
Profile: The goalkicking medium forward won the Simpson Medal for best on ground in the WAFL Grand Final, kicking six goals. Sokol was the WAFL's leading goalkicker, kicking 60 goals from 20 games while also taking a competition-high 166 marks.

51. Hawthorn: Karl Finlay (SA)
Height, Weight:
192cm/88kg
Profile: One of the elite readers of the ball in flight and intercept marks in the draft. Finlay is a very strong overhead mark and a reliable one-on-one defender.

52. Brisbane: Noah Cumberland (QLD - Brisbane Academy)
Height, Weight:
183cm/79kg
Profile: Explosive utility who plays a high-impact-per-possession game. Cumberland breaks lines, tackles aggressively and is a powerful contested and aerial mark.

53. Western Bulldogs: Dyson Hilder (SA)
Height, Weight:
195cm/93kg
Profile: Key defender who performed strongly during the Under-18 Championships and earned three SANFL League matches for North Adelaide. Hilder is difficult to beat one-on-one, reads the ball effectively in flight and takes intercept marks.

54. Hawthorn: Emerson Jeka (VIC)
Height, Weight:
198cm/91kg
Profile: Athletic project key position player who some viewed as a potential first round selection coming into the season. Jeka looks most threatening leading up as a forward.

55. Brisbane: Joshua Shute (SA)
Height, Weight:
187cm/74kg
Profile: A smooth moving, classy ball user with evasion. Shute showed strong improvement throughout the year as a midfielder placing in Sturt's SANFL Reserves bests in four of his last five matches.

56. Richmond: Ryan Byrnes (VIC)
Height, Weight:
182cm/84kg
Profile: Consistent ball winner through the midfield. Not only wins the contested ball but combined that with pace and damaging ball use.

57. Carlton: Brady Rowles (VIC)
Height, Weight:
186cm/75kg
Profile: One of this year's most explosive line-breakers. Rowles breaks games open with his run, with his speed with ball in hand as good as any in the pool.

*Players Gold Coast have pre-listed under the AFL's assistance package:

Connor Budarick (QLD - Gold Coast Academy)
Height, Weight:
177cm/74kg
Profile: One of this year's premier pressure players whether used up forward or through the midfield. Budarick is not only a great tackler but also possesses good speed, endurance and makes winning plays that don't show up on the stat sheet. Budarick likely would have attracted a second-round bid otherwise.

Malcolm Rosas Jr (NT - Gold Coast Zone)
Height, Weight:
178cm/69kg
Profile: Rosas is a talented crumbing forward who plays a rare, instinctive style of game. Possessing genius football IQ, Rosas demonstrates goal sense around goal, is a one-touch ground ball-winner, has the speed and agility to break the lines and provides second and third efforts. Rosas likely would have featured in the second half of the draft if not zoned to Gold Coast as part of the AFL's assistance package.

Matthew Conroy (QLD - Gold Coast Academy)
Height, Weight:
201cm/97kg
Profile: A mobile overager who can play through the ruck or as a key forward. Conroy is a strong tackler who plays an aggressive style of game and has bulked up over the past 12-months.