AFL Number 1 Draft Picks: Every Top Pick Since 1981

Who were the AFL number 1 draft picks? From Alan Johnson in 1981 to Willem Duursma in 2025, 42 players have been taken first overall, and Essendon hold the top pick in the 2026 draft. Here is every No.1 pick, the best of them ranked, and the clubs that have picked first the most.

The 2026 Telstra AFL Draft will be held on Thursday 19 November (round one) and Friday 20 November, with the rookie draft on Monday 23 November, according to the AFL’s key dates. The trade period closed on 14 October, and the draft order has taken shape.

Essendon hold pick 1, but the first name read out may not be a Bomber. AFL.com.au reported that Essendon are “seemingly likely to bid on Port Adelaide Academy prospect Dougie Cochrane at No.1”. If Port Adelaide match the bid, Cochrane joins the Power as the official No.1 pick, while Essendon, Richmond and West Coast would each slide back one spot and become eligible for a second-round compensation pick under the AFL’s new rules.

That would be a first for Port Adelaide, who have never had a player taken at No.1, and a repeat of 2020, when the Western Bulldogs matched Adelaide’s bid on Jamarra Ugle-Hagan to make him the top pick. For every trade and pick swap that shaped this year’s order, see our AFL Deadline Day wrap and the TSB AFL news hub.

AFL number 1 draft picks: the quick facts

The first draft was held by the VFL in 1981, when each club picked two interstate players. It ran again in 1982, no draft was held from 1983 to 1985, and the modern national draft began in 1986.
Brownlow Medallists: Adam Cooney (2008) and Matt Rowell (2025) are the only No.1 picks to win the Brownlow.
Norm Smith Medallist: Luke Hodge is the only No.1 pick to win the Norm Smith Medal, and he won it twice (2008 and 2014).
Premiership players: Drew Banfield, Des Headland, Luke Hodge, Tom Boyd and Cam Rayner have all won flags.
Most games: Luke Hodge, 346 for Hawthorn and Brisbane.
Since 2023, the No.1 pick receives the Allen Aylett Medal, first awarded to Harley Reid.

Every AFL number 1 draft pick since 1981

Here is the full list, with the club that made the pick and where each player was recruited from. The selections line up with the honour rolls kept by DraftGuru and Footyinfo.

The VFL drafts and the 1980s

1981: Alan Johnson (Melbourne, from Perth)
1982: Andrew Purser (Footscray, from East Fremantle)
1986: Martin Leslie (Brisbane Bears, from Port Adelaide Magpies)
1987: Richard Lounder (Richmond, from Central District)
1988: Alex McDonald (Hawthorn, from Ballarat YCW)
1989: Anthony Banik (Richmond, from Won Wron Woodside)

The 1990s

1990: Stephen Hooper (Geelong, from East Perth)
1991: John Hutton (Brisbane Bears, from Claremont)
1992: Drew Banfield (West Coast, from Subiaco)
1993: Darren Gaspar (Sydney, from South Fremantle)
1994: Jeff White (Fremantle, from Dandenong Stingrays)
1995: Clive Waterhouse (Fremantle, from Port Adelaide Magpies)
1996: Michael Gardiner (West Coast, from Claremont)
1997: Travis Johnstone (Melbourne, from Dandenong Stingrays)
1998: Des Headland (Brisbane Lions, from Subiaco)
1999: Josh Fraser (Collingwood, from Murray Bushrangers)

The 2000s

2000: Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda, from Southport)
2001: Luke Hodge (Hawthorn, from Geelong Falcons)
2002: Brendon Goddard (St Kilda, from Gippsland Power)
2003: Adam Cooney (Western Bulldogs, from West Adelaide)
2004: Brett Deledio (Richmond, from Murray Bushrangers)
2005: Marc Murphy (Carlton, from Oakleigh Chargers)
2006: Bryce Gibbs (Carlton, from Glenelg)
2007: Matthew Kreuzer (Carlton, from Northern Knights)
2008: Jack Watts (Melbourne, from Sandringham Dragons)
2009: Tom Scully (Melbourne, from Dandenong Stingrays)

The 2010s

2010: David Swallow (Gold Coast, from East Fremantle)
2011: Jonathon Patton (GWS, from Eastern Ranges)
2012: Lachie Whitfield (GWS, from Dandenong Stingrays)
2013: Tom Boyd (GWS, from Eastern Ranges)
2014: Paddy McCartin (St Kilda, from Geelong Falcons)
2015: Jacob Weitering (Carlton, from Dandenong Stingrays)
2016: Andrew McGrath (Essendon, from Sandringham Dragons)
2017: Cam Rayner (Brisbane Lions, from Western Jets)
2018: Sam Walsh (Carlton, from Geelong Falcons)
2019: Matt Rowell (Gold Coast, from Oakleigh Chargers)

The 2020s

2020: Jamarra Ugle-Hagan (Western Bulldogs, from Oakleigh Chargers)
2021: Jason Horne-Francis (North Melbourne, from South Adelaide)
2022: Aaron Cadman (GWS, from GWV Rebels)
2023: Harley Reid (West Coast, from Bendigo Pioneers)
2024: Sam Lalor (Richmond, from GWV Rebels)
2025: Willem Duursma (West Coast, from Gippsland Power)
2026: To be decided on Thursday 19 November

The 10 best AFL number 1 draft picks, ranked

Being the first name called comes with huge expectations, and not every No.1 pick has lived up to them. These are the 10 who did it best, in our view. Games and honours are career totals to the end of the 2026 season, from AFL Tables and the DraftGuru honour roll.

1. Luke Hodge (2001, Hawthorn)

Games: 346
Premierships: 4 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2015)
Honours: Norm Smith Medal 2008 and 2014, three-time All-Australian, two Hawthorn best and fairests

The benchmark for every No.1 pick. Hodge played more games than any other top selection, won four flags with Hawthorn and is still the only No.1 pick to win a Norm Smith Medal, let alone two.

2. Nick Riewoldt (2000, St Kilda)

Games: 336
Goals: 718
Honours: Six St Kilda best and fairests, five-time All-Australian, 2002 Rising Star

Riewoldt was the face of St Kilda for 17 seasons, a tireless centre half-forward who led from the front and kicked more goals than any other No.1 pick.

3. Matt Rowell (2019, Gold Coast)

Games: 128
Honours: 2025 Brownlow Medal (39 votes), 2025 All-Australian, 2025 Gold Coast best and fairest

Injuries slowed his early years, but Rowell’s 2025 season was one for the ages. AFL.com.au noted he became the first player to poll three votes in each of his first four games of a Brownlow count, on his way to the second-highest tally in history at the time.

4. Brett Deledio (2004, Richmond)

Games: 275
Honours: 2005 Rising Star, two-time All-Australian (2012, 2015), two Richmond best and fairests

Silky and versatile, Deledio was Richmond’s most reliable player through some lean years before finishing his career at GWS.

5. Marc Murphy (2005, Carlton)

Games: 300
Honours: 2011 All-Australian, two Carlton best and fairests (2011, 2017)

The first of Carlton’s three straight No.1 picks, Murphy played all 300 of his games for the Blues.

6. Brendon Goddard (2002, St Kilda)

Games: 334
Honours: Two-time All-Australian (2009, 2010), 2013 Essendon best and fairest

A powerful, attacking defender and midfielder who starred in St Kilda’s back-to-back Grand Final years, then gave Essendon long service.

7. Adam Cooney (2003, Western Bulldogs)

Games: 250
Honours: 2008 Brownlow Medal, 2008 All-Australian

Cooney polled 24 votes to beat Brisbane’s Simon Black by one, becoming the first No.1 pick to win the Brownlow, as the Western Bulldogs recall.

8. Lachie Whitfield (2012, GWS)

Games: 278
Honours: Two-time All-Australian (2018, 2024), two GWS best and fairests

A Giants great who has just started a new chapter, with the 32-year-old traded to Carlton during the 2026 trade period.

9. Sam Walsh (2018, Carlton)

Games: 158
Honours: 2019 Rising Star, 2021 All-Australian, John Nicholls Medal 2021 and 2026

Walsh won his second John Nicholls Medal this year and is already one of the most consistent midfielders of his era.

10. Cam Rayner (2017, Brisbane Lions)

Games: 194
Premierships: 3 (2024, 2025, 2026)

Rayner has played in all three of Brisbane’s recent flags, including the seven-point Grand Final comeback against Fremantle in September, making him the No.1 pick with the most premierships after Hodge.

Just missing out: Drew Banfield (two flags with West Coast), Darren Gaspar (two-time All-Australian), Jeff White (2004 All-Australian) and Jacob Weitering (2024 All-Australian). Watch this space for Harley Reid and Jason Horne-Francis, who both won their club’s best and fairest in 2026.

Which clubs have had the most No.1 picks?

Carlton: 5 (2005, 2006, 2007, 2015, 2018)
Melbourne: 4 (1981, 1997, 2008, 2009)
Richmond: 4 (1987, 1989, 2004, 2024)
GWS: 4 (2011, 2012, 2013, 2022)
West Coast: 4 (1992, 1996, 2023, 2025)
Western Bulldogs/Footscray: 3 (1982, 2003, 2020)
St Kilda: 3 (2000, 2002, 2014)
Brisbane: 4, split between the Bears (1986, 1991) and the Lions (1998, 2017)

Port Adelaide and Adelaide are the only current clubs never to have taken a player at No.1, which is why a matched bid on Cochrane would make history for the Power.

How the No.1 pick is decided

The No.1 pick normally goes to the club that finished last, or to a new expansion club in its first draft. There have been notable exceptions. Fremantle traded the 2001 pick to Hawthorn for Trent Croad, which is how the Hawks landed Hodge. In 2002 Carlton finished last but lost its early picks for salary cap breaches, so St Kilda took Goddard. In 2007 Carlton held the top pick despite finishing 15th, thanks to the priority pick rules of the time.

Bidding has added another twist. Clubs can bid on another club’s academy or father-son prospects, and if the home club matches, that player becomes the pick. That is what happened with Ugle-Hagan in 2020, and it is what AFL.com.au expects with Cochrane in November.

Who will be the 2026 No.1 pick?

Cochrane is the name to watch, but nothing is locked in until Essendon’s bid is lodged and Port responds on draft night. Richmond hold picks 2 and 5 after landing pick 5 from Port Adelaide, West Coast pick 3 and Melbourne pick 4. Whoever is called first will join Hodge, Riewoldt and Rowell on one of the most scrutinised honour rolls in Australian sport.

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