A star from the country has tightened his grip on the No. 1 pick mantle across the AFL Draft combine, while it was a big weekend for a pair of speedsters.
Sixty-nine of the best junior talents around the country converged on Melbourne over the weekend for combine testing as we approach November's AFL Draft. Each prospect is given a medical screening, gets interviewed by clubs and, if physically able, completes a 2km time trial, 20m sprint, agility test and vertical jump tests.
Eastern's Oskar Taylor continues to rise up boards after his scintillating finish to the season and now looms as a potential top 15 pick after dominating testing on Sunday. But he wasn't the combine king with an Oakleigh stud producing elite numbers to claim his own slice of combine history.
Prospects who didn't test included Dyson Sharp, Ollie Greeves, Dylan Patterson, Noah Hibbins-Hargreaves, Archie Ludowyke and Riley Onley through injury or illness.
You could also forgive Sullivan Robey for skipping testing given he played out the season with a fractured collarbone, but the bolter completed the 2km in 6:45 minutes and the 20m dash in 3.118 seconds as he solidifies his top 10 credentials.
With the draft picture becoming a little clearer, these are the big winners and biggest takeaways from an important weekend on the AFL Draft calendar.
2025's combine king
Sam Grlj (pronounced Grill) didn't claim any combine titles but he proved himself as the premier athlete in this year's draft class.
On Friday, the dashing midfielder trailed only Jack Dalton in the 2km time trial at AIA Centre, breaking the line at 5:59 to sneak under the six-minute mark. It was a time that would have taken out the test in last year's stacked pool.
On Sunday, Grlj backed up his endurance feat with a fantastic 2.931 seconds in the 20m sprint. No prospect has combined for a sub-six minute 2km and sub-three second 20m sprint at the national combine in the past two years.
His acceleration is backed up on-field -- Grlj takes on all-comers and burns away from his direct opponents in space. Clubs have had concerns around his contested work and damage by foot but Grlj's athletic profile and attacking mentality give him massive upside in time.
Others to impress across the days of testing included Ranges halfback Oskar Taylor who blitzed the 20m sprint with 2.823 seconds and finished second in the agility test, behind teammate Lachy Dovaston whose 7.794 places him equal-third all-time.
West Coast NGA prospect Tylah Williams finished top five in both the 20m sprint and agility test to show off his athleticism. Cooper Duff-Tytler was impressive with a 2.922 second 20m sprint, rangy tall Louis Emmett flew through the 2km in 6:07 minutes, and South Australian key defender Blake Thredgold continued his rise up boards with a strong showing across the weekend.
Top prospect open to a move west
Willem Duursma has firmed as 2025's top pick in recent weeks. Now with West Coast holding picks two and three the Eagles are primed to select the burgeoning star.
Duursma addressed a potential move west to media outside of the MCG at the draft combine, leaning on brother Xavier's experience in Adelaide to prepare him for the change.
"He loved going to Adelaide when he got drafted", Duursma told the media.
"Going interstate really isn't a big thing for us. It's also good having my siblings to use them for advice, I always talk to them about anything footy related and they always give it to me straight.
"I've had a fair bit of experience in Perth and I do like it over there.
"As a country boy you know you're going to move away from home regardless so whether that's Perth, Melbourne, I'm pretty happy to go wherever."
The last game Duursma played in Perth was a dominant 27-disposal outing for Vic Country.
There's still lots to play out in regard to the Eagles' top selections, with Essendon and Richmond holding multiple selections at the pointy end. The need for an influx of talent to propel their rebuild along could see West Coast split one of their prized choices for an extra top-10 selection, but the 193cm midfielder looms as the top choice for most clubs this year.
Duursma ran the 2km in 6:19 minutes, completed the 20m sprint in 2.993 seconds and managed an 8.579 second agility test in a strong showing across the combine.
Suns points crunch creates opportunity
Clubs are circling the Suns as a trade partner with their academy kids causing a draft points crunch.
Gold Coast is set to be the busiest club across the trade period as it fends off interest in young gun Bailey Humphrey while dealing with the trade request of Sam Flanders to St Kilda. Craig Cameron's team is also trying to bring in Christian Petracca while still protecting the draft capital needed to land a quintet of academy talents.
Zeke Uwland and Dylan Patterson are expected to garner top-five bids, with Beau Addinsall poised to land on night one as well. Koby Coulson and Jai Murray will also attract a bid in the national draft.
It means the Suns will be fighting to land pick seven from the Saints for Flanders. From there retaining one of picks six or seven in a Petracca deal would mean it could then be split for more points.
If bids on Uwland and Patterson come at No. 2 and No. 5 in the draft, the Suns will need 4276 points. They currently possess picks worth 3900 points.
West Coast and Essendon are both in a position to trade for Gold Coast's pick six. The Eagles can offer up picks 16, 22, 23 and 37, while the Bombers have selections 20, 26 and 29.
The added allure of West Coast's offer could be the promise not to bid on Uwland or Patterson with their first two selections, saving significant capital for the Suns. It puts the Eagles in the box seat to trade for the coveted selection and add to their top-end hand.
The draft's most polarising prospect
There have been few more polarising prospects to come through the pathways in recent years than Dyson Sharp.
Some clubs have the SA captain right in that top echelon of talent after winning the Larke Medal at the championships, averaging 27 disposals and 1.3 goals as his state went undefeated. It's his combination of leadership, character and elite contested ball-winning that clubs love, but his detractions mean there's a wide range in which clubs would take the midfielder.
Sharp's athletic profile is concerning for clubs and he wasn't able to allay those fears this weekend after not testing at the combine. He has great strength through the hips but it's his speed and transition running outside of the contest that has other clubs overlooking him in top 10 discussions.
Despite producing one of the best junior careers in recent memory, there's a chance that Sharp slides past West Coast, Richmond and Essendon at the top of the board and into the next rung of clubs.
Given the shallower nature of 2025's crop compared to the past two seasons, it's difficult to see Sharp sliding too far. But he may become a needs-based decision with West Coast and GWS two such clubs looking for depth through the midfield.