Brisbane Lions hope friendship factor can help solve the go-home factor at AFL draft

THE FRIENDSHIP factor has emerged as a recruiting tactic the Brisbane Lions will use at Friday night’s national draft to combat homesickness.

THE FRIENDSHIP factor has emerged as a recruiting tactic the Brisbane Lions will use at Friday night’s national draft to combat homesickness.

Chief Lions recruiter Stephen Conole told the Sunday Herald Sun that securing players with existing relationships would help snap the worrying trend of star youngsters returning home.

The Lions hold picks No.1, 15 and 18 in another draft critical to the club’s promising rebuild.

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Conole said homesickness was “always a factor” at the draft table.

“You’ve got to query them as much as you can,” he said.

“At the Lions we’ve been impacted by that factor as much as any footy club.

Western Jets young gun Cameron Rayner could be drafted at No.1.

Lachlan Fogarty could also be drafted by Brisbane. Picture: Ian Currie

“You’ve got to look at relationships. The fact a lot of these boys have been through the AFL Academy (together) can be a positive.”

The Lions will interview No.1 prospect Cameron Rayner after Monday’s final Year 12 exam.

It is believed that goalkicker Rayner indicated to the Lions he wanted to keep playing with Western Jets teammate Lachlan Fogarty.

Small forward Fogarty, who Champion Data ranked No.8 in the draft pool, is on the Lions’ watch list and will be considered at picks 15 and 18.

Similarly, if the Lions crown Sandringham midfielder Andrew Brayshaw the No.1 pick they could then draft his brother Hamish with a late selection to help the boys settle.

Hamish Brayshaw missed out at last year’s draft and split his time between the TAC Cup and VFL this season, averaging 131 SuperCoach points per game for Sandringham Dragons.

Last year the Lions’ four top-25 selections were all used on Vic Country boys, including three from North Ballarat.

But Conole said that was an “added bonus” and the Lions rated No.3 pick Hugh McCluggage and No.17 pick Jarrod Berry “well and truly inside where we took them”.

Brisbane drafted Vic Country youngsters Jarrod Berry and Hugh McCluggage together. Picture: Jono Searle.

“We didn’t really construct the whole draft plan around Vic Country kids,” Conole said.

The Lions are confident that as a “club on the rise” and with beefed-up welfare, coaching and development programs, the worst of the go-home factor was behind them.

Conole said this year’s No.1 contenders looked safe bets.

“The kids at the top end of the draft usually have a driving ambition to be successful,” he said.

“You just hope that once they’re there they’ll hang around and see it through.

“In regards to doing background work and working through psychological stuff — geez, we do a fair bit of that.”

Conole was even buoyed by the time this year’s hottest prospects spent together preparing for the All-Stars game on Grand Final day.

“Obviously they’re not lifelong friends, but at least they spend 2-4 days together in a camp environment,” he said

“If you can bring in boys who have connections it’s always a positive.”

Since 2013 eight early draft choices have walked out of the Lions; Josh Schache, Jack Redden, James Aish, Sam Docherty, Elliot Yeo, Jared Polec, Patrick Karnezis and Billy Longer.

Yeo won West Coats’s best-and-fairest this season while Docherty won Carlton’s 2016 club champion and was this year, the Blues’ first All-Australian selection since 2011.