Potential top 10 selection Xavier Taylor has dreamt of playing for Richmond when he joins the AFL, but pulling on another club’s colours will be just as satisfying for the highly-rated defender.
Taylor has earned interest from Richmond toward the top of the draft, with the Tigers possessing Picks 3 and 4 to be a key player at this week’s count.
A medium-sized backman who compares his game to triple premiership Tiger Nick Vlastuin, Taylor had an exceptional season with his commitments to Vic Metro and the Eastern Ranges, going on to claim best-afield honours in the latter’s premiership triumph in September.
His eye-catching campaign has seen Taylor rise into top 10 calculations, with Richmond’s opening pick a potential landing spot for the Tigers die-hard.
Having met with Richmond on several occasions this year, Taylor has welcomed the interest, but won’t be fazed if the Tigers pass on him with their pair of opening picks.
“That’d be a massive dream of mine to play for Richmond, but I’ll be happy wherever,” Taylor said. “Whatever team calls my name out, I’ll be grateful.
“I went into Punt Road a few months ago, met them throughout the combine and had a home visit.
“It was pretty surreal meeting those boys, going through the club and meeting some player.”
Essendon, who hold the two picks that succeed Richmond’s, have also shown an interest, having Taylor come to the club last week alongside his Eastern teammates Sullivan Robey and Lachy Dovaston.
While playing down his tour at Tullamarine, Taylor expressed an excitement in joining the Bombers, and potentially doing so with one of Robey or Dovaston.
“They just wanted to have me and a few of the other boys in to kind of see around and meet for the third time,” Taylor said of his Essendon meeting.
“We’ll see what happens there, but it was good.
“100 per cent, it’d be good to go there with a few mates, and even to a big club like Essendon, that’d be a dream of mine.”
The Ranges trio headline a strong crop of kids who helped lead Eastern to the Coates Talent League premiership this year, with captain Ollie Greeves and defender Oskar Taylor also in consideration as first-round prospects.
Eastern’s coach Lauren Moorcroft and talent lead Danny Ryan have been continued sources of support for the squad, with Taylor commending the environment that staff and players have been able to create at the club this year.
“This year was probably one of the best years of footy I played,” he said.
“We’re such a great group, and just finishing on a high with the grand final win was awesome to cap off my junior footy. I was grateful to do it with a great group of boys.
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – SEPTEMBER 20: The Eastern Ranges celebrate winning the during the 2025 Coates Talent League Boys Grand Final match between the Eastern Ranges and the Sandringham Dragons at IKON Park on September 20th, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Lachie Chugg/AFL Photos)
“Off and on the field, we just gelled so well and were such a tight group. There’s those five or six boys that might get drafted, but there’s so much more talent you probably don’t hear enough of.
“[Moorcroft and Ryan] just know how to get the best out of every other player in the team, and get the best out of the individual.”
The 2025 AFL Draft will commence on November 19-20, with night one on Wednesday to see just the first round of picks taken.
