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Hot or Cold: Which bottom 10 clubs will rise or fall in 2026?
Connor Scanlon • July 23rd, 2025 1:48 pm
As the home and away AFL season edges closer to its finish, many fans and pundits are wondering how their club will fare next season.
Speaking on SEN SA Breakfast Adelaide Crows legend Mark Bickley ranked the clubs sitting outside the top 8 on whether they will be hot or cold moving into 2026.
See which AFL clubs will be hot or cold moving into 2026 below:
Richmond: Hot
“They’ve gone to the draft and they’ve taken a whole heap of kids… A lot of them look okay,” Bickley said.
“They’ve exposed lots of their young talent this year, and we’ve seen them win 5 games.
“Players like (Tim) Taranto and (Jacob) Hopper have been in good form, and have supported those younger players.
“They’re gonna improve again you would think next year.
“So, I’m not saying they’re gonna jump up and be in the 8, but I think their trajectory is going to be moving forward.”
Carlton: Cold
“I think they’re going to stay somewhere similar to where they are,” Bickley admitted.
“They need to get busy.
“Obviously, Jagga Smith’s gonna help, but he’s a baby.
“They need some more classy players and ball carriers.”
Essendon: Cold
“How do you judge this year? It’s impossible,” stated Bickley.
“It’s almost like a mulligan.
“It feels like that bust year when they had picks 7, 8, 9. It just looks like they might’ve missed the boat there.”
Port Adelaide: Hot
“I think Port can really challenge to get back in the 8 next year,” said Bickley.
“I know that they’re challenged at the draft table (this year) with the hand that they’ve got, because they gave away their first-round pick for Jack (Lukosius).
“So much relies on keeping (Zak) Butters, he’s the linchpin of this footy club.
“But (Mitch) Georgiades, Butters, (Connor) Rozee, (Jason) Horne-Francis, Jase Burgoyne, Miles Bergman, they’ve got 6 or 7 players who are all aged between 22 and 26, so that bodes well.
“And they’ve got (Joe) Berry, who was a first-round draft pick last year, who people think will be great.
“Along with Lukosius as well, and also Todd Marshall to come back from injury.”
West Coast Eagles: Stone cold
“I’m stone cold on the Eagles, stone cold,” admitted Bickley.
“I know they’ve made some movement forward under Andrew McQualter, but I just feel like they still look skinny talent wise even with Harley Reid.
“Their top-end don’t get on the park often enough.
“They don’t seem to have a middle-group of players that have played 100, 150 games.
“I’m not all that bullish.”
North Melbourne: Cold
“I wish I could say I’m hot for them, but I’m not,” Bickley admitted.
“They’ve got too many guys in mid-range, and the top-range like (Luke) Parker, (Caleb) Daniel, and (Jack) Darling. They clearly offer something around the club, but I’m just not sure if their footy’s where it needs to be.
“They’ve got a couple of young stars coming through, but for all the draft picks there’s not enough (talent).
“You know, Will Phillips was pick 3, and he’s sort of battling away with 40 games.
“George Wardlaw who is a star, can’t get on the park often enough.
“(Zane) Duursma hasn’t really hit his straps yet.
“If you go back to the (2024) draft, North Melbourne gave up their first-round draft pick to get access to the first pick on night 2 of the draft last year to take one of the Whitlock twins.
“So, how is that looking now?
“They gave up pick 2 for this guy… I’m certain that North Melbourne thought they were going to be up around 10th or 11th.”
St Kilda: Cold
“So much is gonna depend on if they can keep Nasiah (Wanganeen-Milera), and also if they can attract some players,” revealed Bickley.
“If they can get (Tom) De Koning and others.
“Max King is the other one they just need to get on the park.
“I’m actually not unhappy with where they’re building, with the young talent they’ve got.
“But they just haven’t been able to get them consistently, and they don’t have enough of it.
“So, just continue to build for the Saints.”
Sydney: Hot
“Sydney proved when their good players are out there, they’re super competitive,” Bickley revealed.
Western Bulldogs: Hot
Melbourne: Cold
