The 2001 AFL Draft consisted of a national draft, a rookie draft, a pre-season draft and a trade period. The AFL Draft is the annual draft of players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League (AFL).
In 2001 there were 83 picks to be drafted between 16 teams in the national draft. The Fremantle Dockers originally received the first pick in the national draft after finishing on the bottom of the ladder in the 2001 AFL season but they traded it to Hawthorn for Trent Croad. The No.1 draft pick was Luke Hodge, who became the first draft pick in many seasons to play in a premiership side.
The draft is known widely as the "superdraft" due to both the recruitment of modern star players such as Hodge, Ball, Judd, Bartel, Dal Santo, Steve Johnson, Mitchell, Montagna, Ablett, Waite and Swan, as well as the depth of talent throughout all 83 picks. The 2006 AFL Draft was considered to have comparable talent. All but Waite in the aforementioned players have played in at least one Grand Final, all but Dal Santo and Montagna have played in a premiership team and Judd and Mitchell have captained their respective teams to victories in the 2006 and 2008 Grand Finals.
Read more about 2001 AFL Draft: Honours, Trades, 2001 National Draft, 2002 Rookie Draft, 2002 Pre-season Draft
Famous quotes containing the word draft:
“Why not draft executive and management brains to prepare and produce the equipment the $21-a-month draftee must use and forget this dollar-a-year tommyrot? Would we send an army into the field under a dollar-a-year General who had to be home Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays?”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)