THE AFL Commission secretly agreed to a proposed change in draft rules 18 months ago which will allow the winner of a reality television series to choose his destination club.

The winner of The Recruit will receive pitches from clubs which want to draft him after AFL club recruiters place the crown on one of the final three contestants.

He may only select a club which declares interest in listing him.

Clubs will vote 3-2-1 in a secret ballot before the winner turns the tables in the AFL-sanctioned draft live on television — and The Recruit’s AFL Category B rookie contract won’t cost his team a draft pick.

VOSSY INSPIRED BY THE RED DIRT

Contestants include talented WA basketballer Reece Maxwell and Central Districts-listed 23-year-old Johann Wagner, while indigenous star Waylen Manson was delisted last week but now hopes to get drafted via VAFA club Beaumaris.

AFL scouts were yesterday briefed on the trailblazing format, which will take place at Crown on September 17 in front of a function filled with fans and attended by every club.

AFL clubs sifted through match footage on Monday, GPS data, fitness testing statistics and interviewed the remaining hopefuls on the smash-hit FOX8 show.

media_camera The Recruits with Michael Voss.

The winning recruit will be given time to consult his family before selecting which club to play for, where he must factor in the likelihood of breaking into a best 22, development and where to live.

AFL general counsel Andrew Dillon last night said the club which drafts the player will pay his salary but it will sit outside the cap, unless he is upgraded to the senior list and plays AFL games.

Dillon said the concept had an in-principle agreement with the Commission 18 months ago and was formally ticked off early this year.

“It’s not for every club, but I think there’s — from the feedback we’ve got — certainly enough clubs interested,” he said.

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“We know from discussions with a number of clubs that with the last five or six players (on the show) there are enough clubs that are happy with enough of those players.”

The Recruit coach Michael Voss yesterday urged every club to put their hand up for the winner as it loomed as a rare free hit.

Asked if the landmark process of a player selecting his club posed integrity issues, Dillon said: “We’ve been very tightly defined around the players that are eligible — you had to be over 20, couldn’t have played VFL, SANFL or WAFL over the previous two years — so they really had to be outside the traditional talent pathway”.

“On the basis of that as a qualifying criteria we’re happy to make some slight adjustments to what are pretty strict entry regulations for something like The Recruit.”

THE RECRUIT AIRS ON FOX 8 AT 7.30PM WEDNESDAYS

Dillon said after securing the Commission’s draft approval The Recruit had the green light to film a second season next year and produce another AFL player.

Voss believes as many as three contestants unsuccessful in winning the contract on offer from the television show will still get drafted later this year, with the talent he has developed mixing local legends never unearthed and project players from other sports and overseas.

Players have previously signed at the club they wanted — such as 211cm US recruit Mason Cox (Collingwood) this year — but never through an official AFL draft meeting.