Sam Cumming Draft Profile

North AdelaideMidfielder-Forward

#16

Sam Cumming

height: 183cm

weight:

D.O.B: 27-07-2007

Leagues: AFL U18 Championships

Snapshot
Analysis
Summary

SNAPSHOT: “An explosive and competitive midfielder-forward who reliably wins contested ball and has added weapons to his game.” – Michael Alvaro

Sam Cumming will be among the most highly sought after prospects at this year’s draft after an impressive couple of seasons with North Adelaide. The midfielder took out last year’s SANFL Under 18 MVP award as a bottom-ager, making 10 appearances for an average of 27 disposals. He also turned out twice for South Australia at the Under 18 National Championships, and was selected to play in the National Futures game.

With such exploits under his belt, Cumming was inducted into the 2025 AFL Academy and impressed during a preseason training stint at Port Adelaide. He came into season proper with huge wraps on his potential, and delivered to become an All-Australian by the end of SA’s title-winning nationals run. The best was yet to come, though, as Cumming stepped up into North Adelaide’s League side and made an immediate impact.

Amid arguably his best patch of form for the year, he starred with 21 disposals and three goals in Round 13 against South Adelaide. Unfortunately, his season ended in a fourth and final senior game after injuring his shoulder three weeks later against Central District. Still, Cumming was fit enough to participate at the National Draft Combine where he showcased his explosive speed with a sub three-second 20m sprint time.

Cumming is quite well travelled already having played his junior football in Wentworth, a town over the New South Wales border in the Sunraysia region. He also represented Bendigo Pioneers in the 2022 V-Line Cup, but ended up attending school at the prestigious Prince Alfred College in Adelaide and thus linked up with North. He’s a Hawthorn supporter and models his game on the likes of Sydney star Isaac Heeney.

Click the ANALYSIS tab for more

STRENGTHS:

+ Competitiveness
+ Consistency
+ Overhead marking
+ Power
+ Scoreboard impact
+ Work rate

IMPROVEMENTS:

- Kicking technique
- Outside game

There's a well-roundedness to Cumming's profile that will appeal to AFL clubs, but mostly it's his ability to hurt the opposition as a powerful midfielder who goes forward. He built his base as an inside ball winner, capable of prising first possession and combining his explosive speed with poise to distribute out of packs. Now, he's also genuine goal threat who has enhanced his forward craft and can impact with strong overhead marks.

Cumming's consistency is part of what makes him such a reliable prospect. Across 15 SANFL Under 18 appearances in the last two seasons, he has dipped below 20 disposals just twice, highlighting his elite ball winning acumen. Part of what keeps him in the game in his competitive nature, applying desperate two-way effort and scrapping for possession at each contest. It lends to his high work rate, but is only one aspect of it.

The other facet of Cumming's work rate is his running power. He has always been a bull on the inside with quick feet to step to the outer, or the strength to break tackles and shrug his way out of congestion. But Cumming has also been developing his ability to accumulate in all parts of the ground. His elite training standards have allowed for that improvement, and helped uncover the versatility to chop out as a high forward or dangerous deep option.

Cumming's weapons forward of the ball include his gutsy overhead marking and consistent scoring record. He posted an 89cm running vertical jump in preseason and is capable of competing for pack marks. That attribute aids his ability to kick goals, which Cumming has done regularly across all levels this year. In all, he's a high-impact type who previously just racked up the ball, but now can cut up the opposition in a variety of ways.

Further improvement will come as Cumming continues to refine his skills. His kicking technique can look a little awkward at times and there were stages where Cumming struggled to execute under pressure. He's quite neat in the short range and can pick out targets, but being able to consistently deliver on the run or in tight spots will only make him more dangerous. He is already quite apt at doing so by hand, so can add that string to his bow.

DRAFT RANGE: 5-15

SUMMARY:

The powerful and impactful midfielder-forward is a highly desirable archetype in current day football, and that’s exactly the mould Cumming fits into. His competitive nature won over recruiters heading into the season and his remaining skillset took over in match situations. Having developed his outside game and ability to hit the scoreboard, Cumming’s explosive contest work is not the only way he can hurt the opposition. A club like Essendon may be inclined to have a look with their dual top-10 selections, otherwise Cumming won’t be on the board much longer on night one with the likes of Greater Western Sydney lurking.

AFL U18 Championships

Season	Team	K	HB	D	M	CP	UP	T	CLR	I50	R50	GL	GM	K	H	D	M	T	G	DC
2024	South Australia	11	12	23	9	14	12	10	2	5	2	1	2	5.5	6.0	11.5	4.5	5.0	0.5	54
2025	South Australia	31	37	68	14	18	48	13	5	13	3	4	4	7.8	9.3	17.0	3.5	3.3	1.0	69
Total	-	42	49	91	23	32	60	23	7	18	5	5	6	7.0	8.2	15.2	3.8	3.8	0.8	123