THE first of the 2022 NAB AFL Rising Star nominees has been named with Essendon’s Nic Martin getting the nod from the selectors after a five-goal debut effort.

182 players are eligible for the award including eleven from Port Adelaide, headlined by defender Lachie Jones, midfielder/forwards Jed McEntee and Jackson Mead and wingman Josh Sinn.

Hawthorn leads the competition with 15 players eligible for the award.

Of Port Adelaide’s eligible list, four have already played at least one game at AFL level. 

To be eligible to be nominated, a player must be under the age of 21 on the 1^st of January 2022 and have played 10 or fewer games before the season starts.

In general, the player judged by the panel to have had the best individual performance of the round will win the weekly nomination, however when several players have similar strong performances, weight will be given to how they have played in previous rounds.

The NAB AFL Rising Star Award was initiated in 1993 to recognise talented young players in the AFL Competition. The winner of the NAB AFL Rising Star award will receive the Ron Evans Medal, a $20,000 personal investment portfolio and a dedicated private banker courtesy of NAB.
 
After each Round of the home and away season, a player is nominated as the weekly NAB AFL Rising Star and, at the end of the season, a player is selected as the winner from the group of twenty-three (23) players who were nominated.

This year’s 2022 NAB AFL Rising Star selection panel is led by Chairperson Kevin Sheehan, along with former players turned media personalities Nathan Buckley, Jude Bolton, Kane Cornes, Abbey Holmes and Chris Johnson.

Port Adelaide’s 2022 NAB AFL Rising Star eligible players:

Jase Burgoyne

Hugh Jackson

Lachie Jones

Ollie Lord

Jed McEntee

Jackson Mead

Jake Pasini

Taj Schofield

Josh Sinn

Dante Visentini

Dylan Williams