What the recruiter said
"The area we lack a bit of polish in is our forward area. It was a slightly tricky pick (eight). We debated long and hard about whether we go tall early or wait later. In the end we felt the class of Sam (Mayes) was too attractive to pass up on. Sam helps us in that regard and we think he also becomes a midfielder as he develops. And the other two boys we'll see as playing forward of centre as well." Brisbane Lions national talent manager Rob Kerr.

Pick 8: Sam Mayes, North Adelaide

Kerr says: "He's a very good kick, that helps us in terms of delivery, but we feel he has the ability to move into the midfield after he develops his footy. Clearly he'll start in a forward role and has played on a flank in the SANFL. He'll have a big frame, he's quite quick and he shows signs of being able to get in and out of the game as well and will be a bit of a weapon for us with his versatility."

Pick 23: Marco Paparone, East Fremantle

Kerr says: "He's a non-stop runner, he's got super endurance. Another area Michael (Voss) wanted to address was he thought we lacked that player to connect that defence with our forward half and we think Marco's got the ability to do that. (National recruiting manager) Graham Hadley has seen him since he was 15 and really brought him to our attention around about April-May in terms of the players we really hone in on."

Pick 32: Michael Close, North Ballarat

Kerr says: "He had a couple of super games early in the season in the TAC Cup. He got injured and fell away a bit so we're probably picking him on his early season form. The thing we like is he's very competitive young man, got a bit of aggression. He's got very good endurance and he's not a bad kick. When he's on-song he looks like a powerful mark. Got a good leap too."

Pick 86: Jack Crisp, rookie upgrade

Pick 99: Niall McKeever, rookie upgrade