THE National Draft might be more than five week's away, but the dreams of one county Victorian youngster have already come true.
Seventeen-year-old North Ballarat rebel Brad Crouch was selected by the Adelaide Crows with pick two in Monday's mini-draft.
Normally, a player would need to have been born in 1993 or earlier to be eligible to be selected by an AFL club in this year's National draft.
But with the introduction of Greater Western Sydney, a special 'mini-draft' which was held on Monday that allowed for players whose birthdays fall between January 1 and April 30, 1994, to be claimed by a club with one of the four picks the Giants had to trade away.
A complex trade that involved the Crows exchanging players and draft picks with Hawthorn and then the Giants secured the rights to select the highly rated youngster.
Crouch played his junior football with the Ballarat Swans and Beaufort before joining the Rebels this season.
The midfielder represented Vic Country in this year's under-18 National Championship and is regarded as one of the best young prospects in the country.
Because of his age, Crouch will have to wait to 2013 to make his AFL debut for the Crows but can join the club on a full-time basis.
He will play for a South Australian National Football League team next season.
