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Jaiden Sciberras • July 13th, 2025 5:57 pm
Although several questions surround the inauguration of the Tasmania Devils, the club is wasting no time in preparing for their AFL debut.
Under the guidance of their head of recruitment and head of list management Derek Hine and Todd Patterson, the Devils are rumoured to have already kicked off their list building project.
With three years until the club is expected to feature at AFL level, AFL.com.au journalist and SEN regular Josh Gabelich has reported that the club has already made major progress in nailing down potential signatures ahead of their debut season.
In unprecedented circumstances, the Devils believe they could potentially lock up verbal agreements from players as early as mid 2026, well over a year before their first AFL season.
“With the unknown around the stadium right now, most would assume that Brendan Gale and the Devils are treading water right now, but that is not the case at all,” Gabelich told SEN Crunch Time.
“Derek Hine and Todd Patterson, the Tassie Devils recruiting boss and new list manager, they’ve been out meeting with every recruit and every agent in the country, been distributing these booklets, and it really does spell out what they can provide players that land at the Devils.
“It really does detail the stadium, the training base, real estate options with QR codes, even university options and even private schools that they could sent their kids to.
“There is a real level of confidence around the Devils that they could have commitments from players by the middle of next season. That would be 18 months out from their proposed first game in the AFL.
“That is the feedback from player agents, that they’ve gone and met with over the last month. Clearly, agents have a strong understanding of who might be interested, who might be best suited to making a move and playing and living in Hobart.
“Geelong has had a great deal of success in bringing players to that area that want a different, regional lifestyle.
“That is the confidence at the Devils right now.”
While the Devils' AFL recruitment efforts have reportedly been a success thus far, the side is also preparing potential VFL recruitments as they eye off a transition into the state program as early as 2026.
“The feedback has been that they’ve run out of booklets. All the agents, they want more of them,” Gabelich continued.
“There is a real demand with their clients at this point in time, and they are planning for a VFL season next year. It won’t be a full season; they’ll play 10 games in the VFL (and a full season in 2027).
“They’re already approaching players in the state leagues to come and join them on a two-year contract, because they are going to have some concessions with their list where they can promote maybe three, maybe four players from their VFL program straight to their AFL program.
“So, they are doing some long-term planning around that, and I’m aware for a couple of players that they have already reached out to, some project type players.”
As it stands, the Devils are expected to fulfil their contractual agreement and partake in the AFL from the 2028 season, in spite of ongoing deliberation surrounding the Mac Point Stadium.
