Murray Bushies' Connor O'Sullivan, Darcy Wilson to play AFL grand final day

The pair was named in the annual AFL Futures match, which comprises the game's best under 17 players.

"Both Connor and Darcy have had some impressive moments throughout the season," Bushrangers' coach Mark Brown praised.

A squad of 48 was named with a training camp ahead of the match, where the players will be split into two teams for the September 24 clash.

The teams are named after retired AFL stars Bachar Houli and Marc Murphy.

All players will be eligible for next year's draft, so the match serves as a dress rehearsal, allowing AFL recruiters an early look at the 2023 contenders.

Wodonga's Elijah Hollands starred in the 2019 Futures clash.

He captained Team Brown, named after three-time Brisbane premiership player Jonathan Brown, to a 41-point win over Team (Nick) Dal Santo (ex-St Kilda, North Melbourne).

Hollands racked up 24 disposals, including five clearances and two goals.

He was drafted to Gold Coast Suns with pick No. 7 in the 2020 Draft.

The 2019 game, the fourth Futures match, was the last, due to COVID.

Melbourne premiership player and last year's AFL Rising Star Luke Jackson, Gold Coast prodigy Matt Rowell and All-Australian Andrew Brayshaw are just some of the big names to play the Futures match.

"Connor played his first game as our third forward and then played as a key back in the middle of of the year and one game, in particular, he was outstanding against Tasmania," Brown offered of the 197cm O'Sullivan.

"He finished the year as a key forward and in that game against Sandringham last week, in what was a hot game of footy, he took four contested marks in the last quarter.

"He's certainly impressed as one of the country's leading 17-year-old key position players.

"Darcy's also a good size (186cms) and when combined with his running ability, there would be very few players in the league who can run and cover the ground as well as Darcy does.

"Darcy's still trying to learn how to optimise that, like all bottom-agers and in particular those who play half-forward, it's a difficult position at the best of times and you can go long stretches without having a large impact on games.

"Just like Connor, Darcy was also good on the weekend (in the elimination final, which the Bushies lost by 10 points), covers the ground brilliantly, gets up at the footy well, he's got a real touch of class."

O'Sullivan made his senior debut for Albury against Wodonga on the June long weekend, where his team toppled the Bulldogs by 43 points.

Wilson also played his first senior game for Wangaratta Rovers against Corowa-Rutherglen in round seven.

Rovers won by 38 points.

Earlier this year, Wilson was one of only three bottom-agers to play for Victoria Country against the Young Guns in Melbourne.

And Brown maintains a couple of team-mates were also close to selection.

"Wangaratta's Harry Hewitt, he was very unlucky to miss out, while Coby James is a Mooroopna boy and before he had his shoulder reconstructed, he was our standout bottom-ager," he confirmed.

The Bushies had their group exit on Wednesday night for the season and while a host of the bottom-agers will be hoping to join an AFL club at the end of next year, Brown says the players were forewarned just how difficult that path is.

"It's harder now than ever to get drafted and they're well aware of that," Brown stressed.

"The numbers suggest it. We put up a table which showed the difference between being drafted now and some years ago.

"At that time there were 70 to 75 selections, but that has now dropped to 62, 63, 64.

"For all the players, they realise they've got a lot of work to do over the off-season heading into 2023.

"For Connor and Darcy, for example, playing this (Futures) game, it's the game that saw Lachie Ash play when he was then later selected at No. 4 in the Draft by GWS.

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"It's certainly a good indication and reward for what's been an impressive bottom-age year, but there's no guarantees that these kids go on to get drafted (next year)."

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