The Richmond Football Club has made a big move ahead of the 2023 AFL season, adding 21-year-old Kaelan Bradtke to its list as a rookie. Bradtke, a 195cm athletic forward from Corowa-Rutherglen, has been impressing the Richmond training staff since he joined the club in December as part of the AFL’s Supplemental Selection Period.
This is a meteoric rise for Bradtke, who had a standout year in the strong Ovens and Murray Football League, booting 39 goals from 17 games. His impressive performances at the local level also earned him a spot on the Sydney Swans VFL list and an invitation to the state combine testing before the National Draft.
Despite being overlooked at the AFL National and Rookie Drafts, Richmond recruiters saw something special in Bradtke and gave him the chance to train with the team, alongside veteran key forwards Tom Lynch and Jack Riewoldt. According to Richmond National Recruiting Manager Matt Clarke, “He is pretty raw, which is exciting, but already he has shown a strong desire to learn and improve, which gives us confidence he can flourish within our program.” Clarke went on to say that the club believes Bradtke has the tools to develop into a player that will be hard to play against at the elite level.
Another player who had been training with the club throughout the SSP was Quinton Narkle, a former Geelong player. Despite impressing the Richmond staff with his character and commitment, the club unfortunately did not have two spots available and had to make a difficult decision.
It’s worth noting that Richmond has been a regular user of the AFL SSP rule, with third-year defender Rhyan Mansell and former senior Tigers Sydney Stack and Derek Eggmolesse-Smith all being former selections of the club.
