THE AFL has beefed up its in-house recruiting team, hiring experienced scout Simon Young as a talent identification consultant.
The League has been filing through applications for the position over the past month after receiving significant interest since advertising the role.
Young, who has worked in recruiting at AFL clubs Port Adelaide, West Coast, the Sydney Swans, Hawthorn and most recently at St Kilda over the past 15 years, will focus closely on the identification of talent at under-14, under-15 and under-16 level.
That will include national, state and elite schoolboy competitions, and he will assist in the selection of state under-16 and under-18 academies alongside talent managers.
He will also add another eye to the NAB AFL Academy by being part of the selection team for the level one and two groups.
Late start for 2015 NAB AFL Draft Combine
As part of last year's talent review it was acknowledged the AFL would benefit from having more coverage of young talent before it reached under-16 level and to constantly be looking at the draft pool two or three years in advance.
Young's appointment sees that recommendation implemented after several other key roles in the talent department were filled in recent months.
Former Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson was named head coach of the academy and is into his second month based at AFL House, while Erin Ablett was appointed welfare officer for the elite academy group.
An Indigenous Talent Advisory committee, made up of current and former AFL players, club staff and AFL officials, has also been established after a proposal to come out of the national review in 2014.
Sanderson will take charge of the level two group for the first time next week, when the 35 players come together for a 10-day camp in Melbourne.
In that time they will play two games against VFL teams – first facing Werribee at Simonds Stadium on Sunday, April 5.
The draft hopefuls will then play the Northern Blues on Saturday, April 11, with the match likely to be staged at the MCG.
