Georgia Aish catches up with Crows recruiting manager Matthew Rendell for www.afc.com.au ...

The 2011 draft is still more than six months away, what do you and your recruiting team focus on at this time of the year?

MR: We are trying to get a handle on all of the new talent that is around. A lot of them played last year and we saw a few of them when we were doing the draft last year. This time of year we also like to see how they have progressed and look at the new kids.

How many people are involved in scouting for you?

MR: I have one full timer in Victoria and nine part timers. Two are in Western Australia, three in Victoria, two in South Australia and one in Queensland and New South Wales.

What about you, how many games of football are you watching every weekend at the moment?

MR: It really depends where you are. This Saturday I will be in Perth watching four in one day, which is unusual. It is more common in Victoria where they have three in one day and three in the other on the weekend. South Australia has a good spread of games but they have never played them back-to-back.
The most I have watched on a weekend is six (two triple headers) and when spread over a long weekend, maybe eight games.

What sort of qualities do you look for in potential players?

MR: They have obviously got to have talent for a start because that is what we are looking for. Other things we like are players who are competitive and play with intensity; it means they care and will get the best out of themselves. This obviously has to be balanced out with their talent. There are lots of other little things, but they are the three main ones.

Is your job a lot harder now with the draft concessions for Gold coast last year and now this year with the GWS team?

MR: It’s not harder; you are still going to have your list of players who you think are draftable. It does mean you are probably not going to get the players that you would get in any other year. So, our pick last year, number 13 Brodie Smith we were very happy to have because he has been a star so far but we would have been pick 5 last year so that would have made it interesting. The same thing will happen this year with GWS.

Your focus is the club’s future, but do you get a buzz out of watching some of your earlier draftees come through to the Crows team, like Brodie Smith and Luke Thompson?

MR: Absolutely. I am always reviewing back to the first draft I was involved in for the club in 2007. I look at what we did right, what we did wrong, things we have learnt and taken that into future years. It is essential that you watch the players that you pick and look into when they are playing well; you think, job well done.

Has Luke Thompson’s strong start to his AFL career been a surprise to you?

MR: Yes and no. I always thought he was going to be an AFL player. I thought there were a few little things that may hold him back a bit but he has always quietly gone about his business to the best of his ability. One of his greatest attributes is that is he doesn’t get flustered. Like Brodie Smith, they are cool, calm kids. Nothing fazes them, they don’t get nervous, don’t worry about stuff and make good decisions, which are all great attributes to have.

Obviously those attributes have impressed you regarding Brodie Smith. What did you see from him last year that impressed you?

MR: When picking Brodie, the attributes I mentioned before outweighed any doubts I had about skills and speed tests. He is always playing well, never plays poorly, always plays and is always consistent. Brodie is a determined character who’s peers rated in leadership and overall a quality person to have on your team.

Neil Craig has said this is an “exciting squad” to work with. Do you agree?

MR: I have only been with the club since 2007 but who’s going to argue with him? I think there is a lot of really good, young talent but at the same the important thing is that they are a really focused bunch. I think that is probably more to what Neil is eluding to; that the group will get the best out of themselves which is always what you want with players. What they have in themselves, we need to get it out and I think they are capable of doing that. There is good leadership amongst them, which will stand them in good stead and they don’t mind the hard work so from that point of view he is certainly correct. They do have little deficiencies in their talent base but they more than make up for it in their competitiveness and intensity.