List and Recruiting Manager Adrian Dodoro has every reason to be happy after securing both Darcy Parish and Aaron Francis in the 2015 AFL Draft.

The highly rated pair have been on Essendon’s radar throughout the year and will be welcome additions to the list.

Looking to fill a number of holes, the recruitment team had to weigh up several options when making their selections at Tuesday night’s draft.

“We rolled the dice a little bit with our strategy and it paid off,” Dodoro said.

Dodoro is particularly pleased in being able to get two targeted selections in Parish and Francis.

Geelong Falcon, Darcy Parish, is a particularly handy pick given he could have gone even earlier than the Bombers pick number five.

As a junior Parish has ticked almost every box, with many suggesting that he was the best midfielder available in this year’s draft – something that Dodoro isn’t going to argue with.

“He’s just a very good player,” Dodoro said.

“He’s been in the system for a couple of years and is an All-Australian under 18 and under 16 player.

“He’s got the appetite and the constitution to be a very good AFL midfielder.

“I think that all our fans have been crying out for a class midfielder and we’ve got one. He’s going to compliment our midfield for many years to come and he’s a really good get for us.”

Two picks in a row also benefitted the Bombers, giving the recruitment team a bit of breathing space to choose the right players.

Backing up from the selection of Parish, Essendon chose the highly rated Aaron Francis with pick number six.

The 191cm South Australian was a top performer throughout the year and showcased an ability to dominate games.

Francis’ versatility is one of his great strengths.

Although he played predominantly in the backline during the National Championships, Francis also snuck forward to prove a problem for the opposition defence, hitting the scoreboard on a number of occasions.

“Francis could play in a number of positions,” Dodoro said.

“He could play across half-back, forward and hopefully – one day, he becomes a midfielder.

“He’s going to grow, he’s going to play in a number of positions and he’s a genuinely exciting player.

“There were a number of people throughout the course of the year who had him as number one in the draft.”