THE AFL's recruitment drive into Ireland is set to land the son of one of Gaelic football's greatest and most decorated players.
Pat Spillane jnr, the son of nine-time All Star and County Kerry great, Pat snr, impressed club recruiters at the International Combine in Dublin over the weekend.
Spillane excelled in all forms of testing, but was particularly impressive in the jumping tests with a 78cm effort in the standing vertical jump and a 96cm leap in the running vertical jump.
If he successfully makes the transition, Spillane looms as a classy midfielder at AFL level.
The 18-year-old was one of 20 attendees to brave the wet and windy conditions under the watchful eye of AFL international manager Tadhg Kennelly.
The Sydney Swans premiership star is making no apologies for giving his fellow countrymen the chance to follow in his footsteps amid potential backlash from the Gaelic Athletic Association.
"What we're trying to do is create an opportunity and give them the chance they would have with rugby or soccer," he told the Irish Independent.
"People can be unhappy, they can be happy about it but it's going to happen in soccer and rugby and we're just trying to make it a fact that players are given the opportunity to be a professional footballer."
A prospect that is no stranger to recruiters is Kilkenny product Darragh Joyce.
The 192cm hurler once again showed he has all the attributes to make the switch, with St Kilda keeping close tabs on the 18-year-old after he did some testing with the Saints back in October.
Two others to catch the eye were Ireland's International Rules squad member Ray Connellan and ferocious midfielder Cillian McDaid.
Joyce and two other prospects will head to Florida next month to join the AFL Academy squad for a training camp at the elite IMG Academy facility.
The AFL's international recruitment program has been very fruitful in recent years with 16 players finding themselves on club lists.
Irishman Colin O'Riordan (Sydney Swans) and American Matt Korchek (Carlton) are the latest success stories after they recently signed two-year international rookie contracts.
