“You should have any number of players on your list that you think you can manage.” That is Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell’s answer to how many players an AFL club should carry, and his number has no ceiling.
Under today’s rules, a club lists 36 to 38 primary players, six to eight Category A rookies and up to two Category B rookies. In practice, most clubs end up with between 44 and 46 names.
That structure is expected to change in 2028, when Tasmania joins the competition and a new collective bargaining agreement begins. Rookie lists are understood to be on the way out. “Rookie lists appear to be dead,” Tom Morris told The Agenda Setters on Wednesday night. He said club CEOs expect the AFL to move to one list plus Category B rookies.
Mitchell wants to go further. “My personal opinion is that there should be a minimum list, but no maximum,” he told reporters. A club that wants 34 players could run with 34. “But if you want 60 and you think that’s the best way to manage your salary cap, then my take is you should be able to do that.”
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St Kilda champion Nick Riewoldt said list managers should be thrilled. “If you’re a list manager, it’s Christmas,” he said, because the change adds complexity and gives clubs more discretion. “If you’re clever and you’re more strategic, then you can get an even bigger gap on the competition.”
The idea would let a club either pour its total player payments into a few players or spread them thin. Riewoldt said the choice would depend on where a team sits on the ladder. A contender might list 34. A side like Richmond might list 60, he said, and have a bigger pool from which to pluck one or two stars.
Mitch Cleary said developing clubs already struggle to reach the 95 per cent minimum on the salary cap. They front-end contracts and pay players above their worth or on potential, he said. With 45 or 50 players on the list, that money could be spread more evenly.
