By Jason Phelan
The second and final GWS mini-draft will take place during this year's trade period with two picks available to the highest bidders.
The Giants can trade with other clubs for the right to select a player from the mini-draft pool during the trade period (October 8-26), with clubs able to make their selection at any time once the trade has been completed, up until the last day of the exchange period.
The Giants have two picks left to auction off to the highest bidders after they granted Gold Coast SUNS and Adelaide the right to select Jaeger O'Meara and Brad Crouch respectively at last year's mini-draft.
The SUNS sent pick No.4 at the 2011 NAB AFL Draft and a mid-first round compensation pick to GWS for the right to select O'Meara with the first pick at the mini-draft, which is designed to help the Giants build their playing list.
Crouch became a Crow with the second mini-draft selection after Adelaide parted with the 10th pick overall at last year's national draft along with the round one compensation pick the club was awarded for the loss of Phil Davis as an uncontracted player.
The Crows also received promising young Norwood defender Luke Brown in the deal.
To be eligible to nominate for this year's mini-draft, players needed to be born between January 1 and April 30, 1995. Sixteen players nominated to be part of the mini-draft pool before the August 1 deadline.
The two most highly sought players at this year's mini-draft are WA pair Jack Martin and Jesse Hogan. Martin is a highly skilled midfielder, while Hogan is considered one of the most exciting key-position prospects in the country.
However, Victorian pair Josh Kelly and Matt Crouch, the brother of Adelaide's Brad, lead a field of candidates who could elevate themselves into contention with a big finish to the year.
Like O'Meara and Crouch, the two players selected will be too young to play at AFL level in their first years with their new clubs as League rules stipulate a player must turn 19 in his first year in the competition.
However, the SUNS and the Crows received special clearance from the AFL to play O'Meara and Crouch during this year's NAB Cup, with O'Meara playing four games and Crouch one.
O'Meara played six games for the SUNS reserves team in the NEAFL competition before undergoing season-ending groin surgery in July, while Crouch has played eight senior games for SANFL side West Adelaide and has been named in the team's best players four times.
The Giants made an audacious bid to hang onto O'Meara for themselves last year before the AFL ruled they must on-trade all players selected under the scheme.
While the mini-draft was designed as an incentive for other clubs to trade picks and/or experienced players to GWS, the Giants had a clear preference to stock up on draft picks via the scheme last year.
With Kevin Sheedy's young team tiring in the second half of its inaugural season it remains to be seen whether the Giants will follow the same path this October.
As was the case last year, several of the most highly rated mini-draft hopefuls will be invited to attend the NAB AFL Draft Combine to be held at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne in October.
