THE AFL has today announced a list of 48 players set to feature in the 2022 Under 17 Futures match on AFL Grand Final day. Usually an annual showcase, the last edition was played in 2019 and returns for a fifth instalment as the AFL pathway resumes its national normalcy.

Squad members will come together for a training camp in the build-up to the grand final curtain raiser, before being split into two sides. This year, the teams will be named after retired champions Bachar Houli (Essendon & Richmond, 232 games) and Marc Murphy (Carlton, 300 games).

All states and territories are represented in the overall squad, with Vic Metro and South Australia each contributing nine players. Vic Country and Western Australia boast eight representatives apiece, leading Queensland (six), NSW-ACT (three), Tasmania (three), and the Northern Territory (two).

There are nine AFL Academy members set to feature, including pick early frontrunners for the class of 2023 in Nick Watson and Harley Reid. Among the many more top talents to keep an eye out for are South Australia’s Ashton Moir, the West’s Daniel Curtin, gun Tasmanian Ryley Sanders, and bustling big man Jed Walter from Queensland.

Fans will already be familiar with the Duursma name, and Zane is the latest of the clan to come through the elite talent pathway. Other famous names include Nate Caddy, the nephew of Josh, and Archer Reid, the brother of Essendon’s Zach. A couple of father-son candidates have also been selected, namely Kynan Brown (Melbourne) and William McCabe (Hawthorn).

The match, which intends to give a glimpse into the next crop of AFL Draft prospects, will be streamed live on the AFL website, starting at 9:30am local time on September 24.

2022 AFL U17 FUTURES SQUAD: