AUSTRALIA’S top young AFLW Draft hopefuls will take on Carlton VFLW in the first clash against a senior opposition since 2018. The National Academy will face the Blues at the opposition’s spiritual home of Ikon Park on Sunday, breaking the drought of consecutive years against a ‘best-of-the-rest’ setup against an All-Stars team.

With those results heavily lob-sided in favour of the National Academy – as one would expect given the handpicked, invite-only nature of the high-performance program – 2026 marked a change of format for the squad. While in a couple of months the Naitonal Academy will take on an All-Stars team, Australia’s top talent gets its chance against an opponent who has had the entire off-season to train and be a cohesive unit.

The last time the National Academy took on a senior side was back in 2018 when the Academy went down to GMHBA Stadium to tackle Geelong VFLW. On that day, the likes of Madison Prespakis, Tyla Hanks, Jordyn Allen and Becky Webster ran around for the Academy.

Looking ahead to Sunday’s match and the 2026 edition, the National Academy is a little light on numbers given withdrawals and injuries. Pick one contenders Emma Charlton and Taya Maxwell are both out of action at the moment, as is hard-running Suns Academy prospect Summer Browning and hard-luck story Grace Tracey.

On the flip side it has provided an opportunity for New South Wales talents Darcie Prosser-Shaw and Frances Walsh to don the jumper, as will Lions Academy midfielder Molly Ferguson and versatile Western Jet Kiara Boyd.

Among the players to watch are goalkicking machine Bailee Martin, smooth-moving Emily Mableson, Eastern Ranges pair Brylee Anderson and Scout Semple and Swans Academy star Charlotte Tidemann. West Perth duo Cara Dziegielewski and Lexi Strachan will look to combine for the Australian side after doing so for the Falcons last weekend.

AUSTRALIA U18 TEAM LIST

* Won’t play against Carlton VFLW due to injury
^ Addition to squad to play against Carlton VFLW as injury replacement