Richmond have selected Victorian midfield gun Sam Lalor with the first pick in the 2024 AFL Draft, with his jumper presented by triple premiership captain Trent Cotchin.

The Tigers opted not to bid on highly-touted midfielder Levi Ashcroft, who is linked to Brisbane as a father-son selection, with Lalor’s name the first called out by AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon on Wednesday night.

The 18-year-old revealed the club told him they would select him with the first selection on Monday but admitted he was still nervous ahead of the draft.

“It’s a pretty special moment, I’m pretty happy I get to spend it (the night) with my family and friends in the room,” Lalor told Fox Footy.

The GWV Rebels midfielder-forward had drawn comparisons to club great Dustin Martin, as well as Collingwood star Jordan De Goey, but had been limited by injuries in his draft year.

Lalor acknowledged there would be “a lot of pressure” on him as the No.1 pick but he was delighted to be in the yellow and black.

“Getting into a really good club like Richmond, it’s going to be so good and I can’t wait,” he said.

In a touching moment, the son of the Tigers’ late national recruiting manager Chris Toce was on hand to put Lalor’s nomination number into the system.

“I hope he knows what he’s doing, he’s backed me in. That was awesome, I really enjoyed it,” Lalor said.

The Tigers hold eight first-round picks heading into the opening night of the draft, including 1, 6, 10, 11, 18,20, 23 and 24.