It’s an incredible achievement to be taken with the first selection in the AFL Draft. But who’s the king of the ‘first overalls’? Let’s dissect the best pick 1s of all time.
With over 35 years of AFL draft history, there have been many famous player taken through the system, but only a select few have heard their name called first of their draft class.
Some of these players have gone on to achieve the highest of highs in the AFL; premierships, Brownlow medals, best & fairest awards and All-Australian honours. But who is truly the greatest of the greats – the best pick 1s?
It’s a question that often is answered with a subjective opinion. But we’ve tried to lean on certain career accolades that are universally appreciated.
Understandably, AFL talent shouldn’t just be determined through that, as there are plenty of factors outside of winning awards that can make a career brilliant.
With all of this in mind, here is our top ten number 1 draft picks of all time in the AFL. Otherwise known as the best pick 1s.
Best pick 1s in AFL history since 1981
We’re going from ten to one in this list, with some of the greats of the game included in this best pick 1s countdown.
We’ve done a similar one for the NBA’s best number 1 draft picks since 2000, check it out here.
10. Jeff White (1994)
Best Pick 1s resume:
- 268 games (32 with Fremantle, 236 with Melbourne)
- All-Australian Team (2004)
- Best & Fairest (Melbourne, 2004)
9. Michael Gardiner (1996)
Resume:
- 181 games (129 with West Coast, 52 with St Kilda)
- All-Australian Team (2003)
- Grand Finalist (2005, 2009, 2010)
8. Alan Johnson (1981)
Resume:
- 135 VFL/AFL games with Melbourne (140 with Perth in WAFL)
- 2x WAFL premiership winner (1976, 1977)
- 2x Best & Fairest (Melbourne, 1983 and 1989)
- Melbourne Hall of Fame
7. Brett Deledio (2004)
Resume:
- 275 games (243 with Richmond, 32 with GWS)
- 2x All-Australian Team (2012, 2015)
- 2x Best & Fairest (Richmond, 2008 and 2009)
6. Marc Murphy (2005)
Resume:
- 300 games (all with Carlton)
- All-Australian Team (2011)
- 2x Best & Fairest (Carlton, 2011 and 2017)
- Carlton captain (2013-2018)
5. Drew Banfield (1992)
Resume:
- 265 games (all with West Coast)
- 2x Premiership winner (1994, 2006)
- Best & Fairest (1996)
4. Adam Cooney (2003)
Resume:
- 250 games (2019 with Western Bulldogs, 31 with Essendon)
- Brownlow Medal winner (2008)
- All-Australian Team (2008)
3. Brendon Goddard (2002)
Resume:
- 334 games (205 with St Kilda, 129 with Essendon)
- 2x All-Australian Team (2009, 2010)
- Best & Fairest (2013)
- Essendon captain (2016)
2. Nick Riewoldt (2000)
Resume:
- 336 games (all with St Kilda)
- 5x All-Australian Team (2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2014)
- AFL Rising Star (2002)
- 6x Best & Fairest (2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2014)
- St Kilda captain (2005, 2007-2016)
1. Luke Hodge (2001)
Resume:
- 346 games (305 with Hawthorn, 41 with Brisbane)
- 4x Premiership winner (2008, 2013, 2014, 2015)
- 3x Premiership winning captain (2013, 2014, 2015)
- 2x Norm Smith Medalist (2008, 2014
- 3x All-Australia Team (2005, 2008, 2010)
- All-Australian captain (2010)
- 2x Best & Fairest (2005, 2010)
- Hawthorn captain (2011-2016)
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