It’s a draft year like no other, but North Melbourne’s head of player personnel, Scott Clayton, remains optimistic about the talent that will call Arden St home.

"We deal in future picks in the AFL, so we must scout for the future, so a lot of our team members did a lot of work last year on this group,” Clayton told ESPN.

"There's a bit of uncertainty. But I say all the time we're in the futures market. We're trying to predict what 17, 18-year-olds are doing, but where they can be in three, four, five six or seven years' time with the right development.

"The fact we haven't been able to see these players in their 18th year is not ideal, but I'm not going to whinge about it either. We just need to give the opportunity to these 18-year-olds and we'll do our best to pick who we think will be the best long-term players.”

COVID restrictions put a halt to sport in March. The VFL and NEAFL seasons were a casualty, but the WAFL, SANFL, QAFL and TSL have all since resumed with modified seasons.

"The volume of work is still there. We're still meeting, discussing, talking draft orders, undertaking reference checks and interviews," he explains.

"There are some great products available now. In South Australia, the SANFL has a digital pass, so all their senior and U18 games are available live, and there's some great vision that comes out of WAFL, and Tasmania and Queensland as well.

"The [Queensland and New South Wales] academies, too. They played two games in both states over the last couple of weeks, so we're poring over that vision.

"In Victoria there's nothing. It is what it is. But we'll watch all that vision available, and with Champion Data we can narrow in a bit more.

"But we're all here, doing it remotely, and we've learnt a lot as well. As I said, some practices we used to do will change a bit and will become more efficient and cost effective for sure."

Clayton said the disruptions mean the club can’t follow players as closely as usual and as a result will be paying extra attention to those who might slip through the draft this year.

"There can be fluctuation [in players], but it's more about maturity. In their 17th year we see some guys really mature. Perhaps emotionally and mentally, not so much physically. They're ready to express themselves on the field,” he said.

"I wouldn't be honest if I didn't say there were some players we didn't rate, or, rather, pay as much attention to, as a 17-year-old who just comes on with a bang in their 18th year. Clayton Oliver is an example of someone who just came from nowhere.

"You just hope that whoever they are, and if they don't get picked, they'll have a chance in their 19th year.

"Next year will be a great period for recruiting, because you'll have the 18-year-olds from that year, but also the 19-year-olds who [didn't get a chance to shine this year].

"Next year we will certainly pay extra attention to the 19-year-olds that's for sure."

Clayton said while this year has presented challenges like no other, it also poses an opportunity to change the way things are done moving forward.

"We've done a massive amount of interviews ... it's been good to still meet a whole host of families and see how they're going," Clayton says.

"Some of these things will probably change forever. We used to do a lot of house visits in regard to interviewing young players. Certainly that's changed, we're on Zoom or Microsoft Teams, and we're going into family homes via [technology], so I suppose the days -- the cost and time of four or more people covering massive kilometres for these things -- are probably gone."

North Melbourne will enter this year’s draft with two first round draft picks.

This article originally appeared at - https://www.espn.com.au/afl/story/_/id/29735709/afl-draft-2020-covid-curveballs-faced-afl-recruiters