The best young prospects from around Australia will descend upon Etihad Stadium on Tuesday for the four day Draft Combine in front of the top recruiters from across the competition.
Essendon’s recruiting team led by Adrian Dodoro and Merv Keane will be in attendance as the best young prospects undergo an in-depth evaluation.
The prospects will participate in testing that will measure athletic attributes such as speed, agility and endurance along with football skills.
AFL National Talent Manager Kevin Sheehan said over 100 youngsters from across the country would participate in the Draft Combine.
“With the NAB All Stars match on Saturday being the final match around Australia for players to showcase their playing ability, it is now down to the analysis of the physical abilities and personalities at the Draft Combine,” Sheehan said.
“The next week will be a up close and very personal look for a player’s ‘X’ factor or competitive advantage which could help him become a draftee. Over 150 recruiting staff will observe the players’ every move over the next four days.”
The specialised football testing will include the Matthew Lloyd clean hands/ handpassing test, the Nathan Buckley kicking test and the Brad Johnson goal-kicking test.
The players will also test their agility, endurance with a 3km time trial and speed with sprint testing.
Essendon currently holds selection 19 and 50 in the 2014 national draft held on the Gold Coast on November 27.