Of the 1995 National Draft crop, just one player is still playing at the highest level … any guesses? It’s Brent Harvey of course.

But how did the little champion come to arrive at North Melbourne with selection 47?

Harvey played his junior football at Preston RSL, where he kicked a remarkable 21 goals and ten behinds in a single game, a club record.

It was at the club he earnt his famous nickname ‘Boomer’; handed him to by his junior coach’s wife after he won the most courageous award.

At just 167 centimetres tall as a 17-year-old leading into the draft, Harvey certainly had his doubters, but his achievements on the field were unquestionable.

He’d won All-Australian selection following the under 18 National Championships, also named the Ron James Medallist as Victoria’s best player.

Then, just hours before Carlton won the AFL premiership against Geelong, he was best on ground in under 18’s Grand Final of 1995.

“This was a key to getting drafted because the recruiters always like to see players who can play under pressure and on the big stage,” he said years later.

He was invited to draft camp, and despite breaking three records his size was still considered an issue.

In fact, it was only on the draft night itself that North decided to take a punt on the 65 kilogram youngster.

Searching for a speedy midfielder with the Roos’ second last pick, coach Denis Pagan turned to recruiting officer Neville Stibbard.

“Obviously size was a huge concern, but he had a few things going for him,” Stibbard recalled years later.

“He had outstanding elite skills, elite in the athletic side and his understanding and game sense was elite.”

But many other clubs had overlooked Harvey and there were still serious reservations.

“He was tiny and at that stage somebody said to me he’s smaller than (jockey) Darren Gauci,” Pagan recalled.

Nevertheless, Stibbard convinced him to sound out AFL national talent manager Kevin Sheehan.

"They queried his size but he had the heart of a lion," Sheehan said.

"He always had this absolute belief he could win the football."

It was a risk, but at pick 47, one that was worth taking.

“I actually thought I was going to Adelaide because the Crows read out the name ‘Brent’ with pick 18,” he revealed in The Herald Sun.

“My heart stopped for a minute until they finally said ‘Brent Williams’. Going to North was a huge thrill for me and it didn’t matter that I’d been a Geelong supporter all my life, I was just happy to be staying in Victoria.”

Of course, the rest is history … but it’s worth reflecting on just how gutsy a decision Harvey’s recruitment turned out to be.

Outside Harvey (409* games), the next greatest games tally from a 1995 draftee was 292, Darren Milburn. Interestingly, the Cats’ defender was taken the pick after North’s number 29.

Just 17 of the 76 players taken in the ’95 draft played 100 games or more; only eight over 200.

It was somewhat of a forgettable year for the Roos at the draft table apart from a clear outlier, with Scott Welsh (pick 17), Chris Groom (pick 26), Sam McFarlane (pick 33) and Erich Lissenden (pick 65) combining for just 45 games in the royal blue and white.

As for the history of pick 47 … well no player matches the output of Harvey across the league, but Geelong could certainly claim a bargain with Corey Enright back in 1999.

With 309 games to his name, Enright sits 46th on the all-time games list.

Harvey though is in a class of his own and with North again holding pick 47 at next week’s draft, who knows who it could bring through the door?