Future stars unearthed in Coffs Harbour

Thirty five players from northern NSW attended an AFL Combine held in Coffs Harbour on January 31.

The combine was designed to provide AFL recruiters with an assessment of the players’ athletic capabilities.

They undertook fitness tests, 20m sprints and analysis of their vertical leap, agility as well as height and weight measurements.

Players then moved to Coffs Harbour’s International Stadium where they were put through a skills session under the watchful eyes of AFL NSW/ACT State Coach Jason Saddington and Talent and Coaching Manager Mark McVeigh. 　

Modified versions of the Nathan Buckley kicking test and Matthew Lloyd clean hands test, used at the national draft combine, were performed to measure the skills of players in those key areas.

Finally, participants were involved in small games to assess their ability to win the ball and make smart decisions under match conditions.

The ability of the players to be coached, and their enthusiasm to learn more, were also qualities identified by McVeigh and Saddington.