Under a system that caps the number of points a team can field, any player who has played at least 40 games in an under-17 or younger team at a club, or who has only ever played with the one club, is deemed a “home player” and worth one point.

In comparison, a junior who has moved from another club’s under-19s or younger will be worth three points.

All senior footballers will be valued at one to six points depending on their history, with ex-AFL recruits the highest-valued at six points.

Players who compete in at least five senior or reserves games each season will shed a point each year, but junior players do not qualify for the same deductions. The omission means young players could have been at the same club for several years, but could still start at three points when they begin their senior football career.

AFL Victoria’s Brett Connell said making juniors ineligible for point deductions would deter ­recruiters from targeting young footballers, forcing clubs to develop players rather than poach young stars, as many clubs fear.

“Allowing deductions for under age football at under-18 and under-19 level would do little to deter that practice,” Mr Connell said.

AFL Central Victoria general manager Paul Hamilton said the system allowed for flexibility in certain circumstances, such as a junior player who switched clubs because his family had moved, or they wanted to play at a higher level.

“But if clubs are headhunting, then those clubs will have to pay the penalty when you become a senior player,” Mr Hamilton said.

In parts of country Victoria, the path from junior to senior football is not straightforward with junior clubs not linked to specific senior clubs, and some senior leagues not including junior grades.

Some of the AFL’s administrative regions are making arrangements to accommodate the policy, in some cases giving their own definition to the “home player” title.