NOBODY knows Harvey Langford quite like Cooper Hynes.

And nobody knows Cooper Hynes quite like Harvey Langford.

The two are close mates, having first formed a friendship through their time with Vic Country representative teams and then through the Dandenong Stingrays. It's a program they not only played in, but also co-captained this season.

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"I've grown really close with 'Harvs'," Hynes tells AFL.com.au.

"I've played Stingrays with him since under-16s and we're obviously co-captains, so our relationship has gone to that next level. He's a super quiet kid, but he's secretly confident. He knows he's good and he backs his ability against anyone."

"He's a really good person to be around," Langford adds.

"The last couple of years, I've gotten really close with him. I love being around him and how he connects with other people. It's pretty special. Not everyone can do that. He's a really kind guy and loving towards everyone."

Clubs have often joked that if they need background on either Langford or Hynes, there's no point going to talent managers or player agents or schoolteachers like they normally would. They might as well go to the other one.

It's with good reason. The pair are not only close friends, but they're also very similar footballers. Langford is the explosive 190cm mid-forward, Hynes is the powerful 190cm forward-mid.

"Not to blur them, but we literally had a rotation where one would be forward and one would be mid and they would just swap with each other throughout the game," Dandenong's talent manager Toby Jedwab told AFL.com.au.

That was evident both with the Stingrays and with Vic Country through the season, where recruiters noticed they not only ripped games apart but often did it with an eye on where the other was.

"Obviously, there's a bit of kick-to-kick that's gone on," Langford laughs.

"I guess we're just in the right spots at the right time. But it's been special to play with him. We've enjoyed it so much, going through the Championships as well, and we've obviously been able to find each other."

Their games complement the other's nicely. The left-footed Langford prefers to feature predominantly through the midfield, where he's emerged as a potential top five pick thanks to his immense presence and impact.

Langford averaged 25.9 disposals at Coates Talent League level this season, also chipping in with 20 goals from 15 games. That added to a Championships campaign where he claimed Larke Medal honours as the joint-best player in the carnival.

Included in his season have been truly dominant games, like a performance against Gippsland Power in August that featured 33 disposals and four goals. Or another against the Allies in the Championships worth 30 disposals and nine clearances.

"He started to run with the ball a bit more," Jedwab says of Langford.

"He went from getting it and kicking it and being a 50m player to taking ground. He became that 80m to 100m player. That just opens games up when you can do that as a player.

"He just set up his season as that really damaging midfielder that could go forward and control the game as a forward as well. But when he went forward, there were games where he was unstoppable."

Hynes, meanwhile, is the forward that can pinch-hit through the midfield. Often working in tandem with Langford, he has used both his size and physicality in various ways to impact games this year and stamp himself as a potential top 20 pick.

Just like his partner in crime, there were also a series of emphatic displays. Like against Gold Coast's Academy side (23 disposals, five goals), Brisbane's Academy (27 disposals, four goals), the Oakleigh Chargers (27 disposals, three goals), or the Murray Bushrangers (28 disposals, three goals).

Hynes was also able to show his wares for Vic Country, combining his dual threats in his best performance against Western Australia where he finished with 20 disposals and two goals.

"He's a deep forward who is very hard to beat because he's just so strong," Jedwab says.

"Later in the season, he'd almost take centre bounce and then drift forward and play more as a forward. But he still has the smarts. When he's up around the ball, he knows how to find it and knows how to use it well.

"He's always had that forward nous, but he's done a lot of work this year on his midfield craft. The positioning at stoppage, being able to impact straightaway at the contest, then because he's dropped a fair bit of weight to get his conditioning to a level where he could play midfield."

But it's not just on the field where Langford and Hynes have been able to play off each other's strengths this year. They've also developed a niche in their captaincy duties throughout the campaign.

The Stingrays have described Langford as the lead-by-actions type, whereas Hynes is more of the vocal presence around the group. But both have improved in all aspects of their leadership roles.

"We were able to develop our voice and address our team really well," Langford says.

"We do two speeches before a game. There's one inside the changerooms where we put our jerseys down in front of us and one of us addresses the group. I think he's better at that one. The one on the field, I might be a bit better at that. I can get the boys revved up to have a crack."

"I do plenty with him in the captaincy space," Hynes adds.

"As a captain, he leads by example in the way that he plays. He's super competitive and he just hates losing. He leaves it all out there on the field. That rubs off on the boys. That's his leadership."

While both are likely first-round picks ahead of November's national draft, neither Langford nor Hynes yet has surety on where they will end up. But there remains some hope that wherever it is, they can be drafted by the same club.

"I love playing with him," Langford says. "Hopefully I can in the future as well."