Regardless of the strength of the 2010 national draft, the Gold Coast is set to become an AFL powerhouse based on the recruiting concessions it has won from the AFL and the existing clubs ahead of its entry to the national competition in 2011.
The AFL announced on Thursday that the 17th club would be given picks one, two, three, five, seven, nine, 11, 13 and 15 in the 2010 national draft as well as access to 16 uncontracted players from rival clubs.
But even discounting its ability to poach players from rival clubs, the Gold Coast is set to have a powerful team in the years ahead solely on the draft choices it will be allocated in 2010 based on who was selected with those picks in previous drafts.
Last year's draft would have yielded the Gold Coast - Matthew Kreuzer, Trent Cotchin, Chris Masten, Jarrad Grant, Rhys Palmer, Ben McEvoy, Patrick Veszpremi, Brad Ebert and Robbie Tarrant - with Kreuzer, Cotchin and Palmer already showing signs of being 200-game-plus players.
The previous year the Gold Coast would have secured Bryce Gibbs, Scott Gumbleton, Lachlan Hansen, Travis Boak, Joel Selwood, David Armitage, Andrejs Everitt, Jack Riewoldt and Daniel O'Keefe with Selwood in particular already considered to be one of the best midfielders in the AFL after just two seasons.
But it is when you look back on drafts held several years ago that one begins to truly realise just what a huge opportunity to become an AFL powerhouse the Gold Coast has been handed - once the players they pick in the 2010 national draft begin to mature.
Under the rules announced by the AFL on Thursday, if the Gold Coast joined the competition in 2004 their picks would have produced Brett Deledio, Jarryd Roughead, Ryan Griffen, Lance Franklin, Jordan Lewis, Jordan Russell, Adam Thomson, Matthew Bate and Lynden Dunn while even in the 'weak' 2002 draft those same picks would have produced a team including Brendon Goddard, Daniel Wells, Jared Brennan, Jarrad McVeigh, Andrew Mackie, Hamish McIntosh, Jason Winderlich and Byron Schammer.
But rival clubs better hope the 2010 national draft is not as strong as the 2001 super draft, which if repeated would make the Gold Coast all but unbeatable in future years.
Had the Gold Coast joined the competition that year their picks would have yielded the likes of Luke Hodge, Luke Ball, Chris Judd, Xavier Clarke, David Hale and Nick Dal Santo.
That's four of the AFL's premier midfielders in the same team in Hodge, Judd, Ball and Dal Santo plus one of the league's most improved big men in Hale.
AFL national development manager David Matthews said based on early research - with the players available in the 2010 national draft having taken part in this year's national under 16 championships - the 2010 national draft was shaping up as 'a normal draft' rather than a super draft like 2001 or a slightly weaker draft such as 2002.
Matthews said the AFL expected the Gold Coast team to be 'competitive' in year one but not an instant powerhouse.
"We defined 'competitive' as being in year one, somewhere like five to six wins with a percentage of 80, 80-plus," Matthews said.
"We do think the percentage a new franchise can achieve in their first year is a pretty good indication of how competitive they are within games."
Matthews said