The Western Bulldogs have committed to re-drafting young defender Roarke Smith after he was delisted by the Club today.
Smith has been on the Bulldogs rookie list for the last three seasons – the maximum length for a rookie under AFL rules.
“We have had positive discussions with Roarke and his management about the Club’s commitment to him, and we intend to re-draft him as a rookie,” said Bulldogs List Manager Jason McCartney.
“Roarke is a promising young player who has had terrible luck with injuries, and we are committed to seeing him return to the Club because we believe he has a bright future.
“Roarke has been diligent with his rehab this season and we’re all looking forward to seeing him get another chance to play senior football, which would be well deserved.”
Smith was selected by the Bulldogs with pick five in the 2014 NAB AFL Rookie Draft, and made his debut in Round 21, 2015 against West Coast.
A knee injury which required a reconstruction forced him to miss a large part of the 2016 season, but he returned to play his second career game in Round 22.
He went on to play a significant role in Footscray’s VFL premiership team that year, and followed up with a strong pre-season before being forced to undergo a second knee reconstruction when he injured his other knee in the 2017 JLT Community series.
All AFL clubs were required to submit their first list lodgement to the AFL on Tuesday October 31, in preparation for the November NAB AFL Draft.
