AFL Draft 2014: Recruiters say character just as important as skill

SYDNEY’S Kinnear Beatson says a draftee’s character is just as important as his skill-set when clubs are considering whether to draft him.

02/12/2003 - New Brisbane Lions recruits LtoR: Jed Adcock, 18, Llane Spaanderman 17 and Michael Rischitelli 17.

SYDNEY’S Kinnear Beatson says a draftee’s character is just as important as his skill-set when clubs are considering whether to draft him or not.

Beatson and the Swans have been known for drafting great people, not just great players, to the SCG over the past decade, which has helped Sydney develop one of the league’s most professional club cultures.

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Beatson, who helped assemble the Brisbane Lions player group that played in four consecutive Grand Finals, admitted his biggest recruiting mistakes in the past have been selecting highly-skilled players with a “questionable attitude”.

“With that character, there’s a real link between their level of competitiveness and that character — you look for things like that,” Beatson told FOX FOOTY.

“All the good players that I can think of, all the greats — they’re all competitors, massive competitors.

“That’s what we’re all trying to find, that linked with their skill and athletic capabilities.

The 2014 NAB AFL Draft will be broadcast LIVE and EXCLUSIVE on FOX FOOTY, Thursday 27 November.

Originally published as AFL Draft 2014: Recruiters say character just as important as skill