The emergence of West Australian tall Tim English has clubs hoping for a bigger batch of ruck prospects available at this year's NAB AFL Draft.
The past two drafts have proved to be lean for clubs searching for young ruck talent, with just two selected in each of the national intakes of 2014 and 2015.
But there are a handful of ruck options developing nicely in this year's pool, with the 204cm English looking perhaps the most impressive at this early stage of the year.
English has averaged 23 hit-outs in his seven games this season for South Fremantle's colts side and is also expected to feature in the forward line during WA's under-18 campaign.
WA talent manager Adam Jones said the raw-bodied ruckman, who turns 19 this year after focusing on school football last year, has AFL attributes.
"South Fremantle got him down over the pre-season and his form's been excellent in the colts. He's an athletic ruckman with really good skills and a really good decision-maker in the mould of Dean Cox," Jones said.
"He's still very skinny so he has a lot of physical development left but he's an exciting prospect. With his natural athleticism and (the) way he reads the game, he could really develop that forward side of his game quite well."
He isn't the only ruck hopeful in Western Australia, with English likely to rotate duties with powerful 202cm Jeremy Goddard during next month's national carnival. Goddard's size and athleticism will appeal, and the NAB AFL Academy squad member has shown improvement over the past year in his game sense.
Another ruckman who has developed impressively in the past few months is the 200cm Jordan Sweet, with the South Australian improving his fitness to compete strongly in the SANFL.
Sweet entered the national academy last year and travelled to America with the group in January, but has stepped up his running ability since the training camp and will lead SA's midfield at the national carnival.
Max Lynch's growth as a player has seen him leap into the No.1 ruck role for the NSW-ACT Rams, and the Giants will have first access to the 200cm Murray Bushrangers product. The athletic Liam Maze is another ruck option for the Rams, and is eligible to join the Swans through their academy set-up.
In Victoria, Lloyd Meek looks likely to hold down the ruck duties for Vic Country, while the rapid improvement of Sandringham Dragon Lachlan Filipovic has caught the eye of recruiters.
Former soccer player Tony Olango (200cm) has hit form for the Northern Territory, highlighting his potential as a ruck option for scouts. The Sudanese-born prospect is quick and has a side step that gets him out of trouble, and he booted two goals in last week's win over Tasmania.
Clubs have shown a reluctance to use early draft selections on ruckman in recent years, with Brodie Grundy (Collingwood, pick 18 in 2012) the only pure ruckman to be taken in the top-20 in the past four years.
Strategy has often seen clubs use the trade and free agency period to add ruckmen to their lists once they have passed their maturing years.
