Richmond’s Recruiting Manager Francis Jackson has revealed that the Tiger talent scouts closely followed the football progress of mature-age Frankston recruit Sam Lloyd over a two-year period.

Lloyd, a medium forward with real ‘X-factor’, was the Tigers’ third pick in the 2013 National Draft, held last night (Thursday, November 21) on the Gold Coast.

“We tracked Sam for two years.  We went and watched him last year playing for Mt Eliza in the Morning Peninsula league, and then he made the commitment to (VFL club) Frankston,” Jackson told ‘Roar Vision’.

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“He had a full pre-season there and kicked a lot of goals in the VFL.

“He’s really worked hard on his fitness, and he’s got some real talent . . .

“Sam is an old-fashioned, very intelligent footballer.  He’d be very difficult to play on because he can hurt you in so many different ways . . . he’s an outstanding mark.”

Jackson also confirmed the Tigers had kept a close eye on ex-Swan Nathan Gordon, who they snared with their second selection in the National Draft.

“We had been tracking Nathan all year at (SANFL club) North Adelaide,” he said.

“He had a fabulous finals series for North Adelaide, who played off in the grand final.

“He’s a very competitive player, with a wonderful work ethic, terrific endurance, and he’s a strong mark as well.

“We think he may be able to play a midfield role.  He played a little mid role early on in the year, but predominantly played as a forward.”