How Essendon’s plan for pick No.1 is going to help bitter rivals Carlton

Carlton’s path to secure gun father-son Cody Walker has become clearer, with bitter rivals Essendon set to bid on Dougie Cochrane with the first pick in this year’s national draft.

The bid on Port Adelaide next-generation academy star Cochrane will be matched by the Power, triggering Essendon the compensation pick that the bottom sides are eligible for and therefore meaning the Bombers don’t need to bid on Walker.

The Blues, who won a wildcard final after Josh Fraser lifted them to 10th on the ladder, would then be able to more easily compile enough “draft value index” points to match a lower bid on Walker.

Power list boss Jason Cripps explained the situation on AFL Trade Radio on Thursday.

“We’re certainly planning for Dougie to be bid on at [number] one,” Cripps said.

“Clubs do lie, believe it or not, but apparently they’re not lying on this one – Dougie’s a clear [number] one [in the draft order], and, yes, I’m happy to share that Essendon have told us that, as well.”

New draft rules announced in April made it harder for clubs to land priority talent – such as Walker or Cochrane, who are widely considered among the best few prospects in this draft class.

The rules were designed to make clubs pay a fairer price and meant they could only spend two picks in the draft to match a bid placed on a priority-access player, up to and including pick No.36.

In recent national drafts, clubs have been able to use a collection of lower picks to match bids, even if those bids came in the first 10 selections.

As this masthead explained in June, the club that finishes on the bottom has an incentive under the rules to bid on a priority-access player, such as Cochrane or Walker, as it will push them down the draft order and trigger their compensation pick at the start of the second round.

The bottom five clubs will all receive a second-round compensation pick if a bid causes their first natural selection to slide backwards.

The Bombers – who finished last – are set to make the bid to trigger that compensation, ensuring they have pick No.2, and either 20 and 21, or 21 and 22, in the draft.

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