Deal Maker: The Secret World of AFL Recruiting and Trading

by Peter Ryan, Scott Clayton

Scott Clayton has been in the AFL industry for 40 years and has been a recruiting manager for over 30 years. Deal Makertakes us behind the scenes to look at some of the AFL’s biggest trades and what it takes to find the right players. The trade period and draft are the biggest recruitment events on the calendar for AFL clubs to refresh and invigorate their lists with hot players from other clubs and young emerging stars. Scott has been in charge of setting up the Gold Coast Suns and was the person who recruited Gary Ablett from Geelong to the Suns in a major coup. Journalist, Peter Ryan, brings to life the behind-the-scenes machinations that affect every club.

314 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 28, 2026

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Jonathan]

Deal Makers: The Secret World of AFL Recruiters is a fairly simple and easy read, offering an interesting behind-the-scenes look at how AFL clubs identify, assess and recruit players. There are some good stories about how particular players ended up at their clubs, which provide a glimpse into the often unpredictable world of recruiting.

That said, there’s nothing particularly groundbreaking here. It’s more an enjoyable collection of recruiting stories than a deep dive into the strategy or science behind AFL list management. Worth a read for footy fans interested in what happens behind the scenes, but unlikely to change the way you think about AFL recruiting.

[BZ66]

"Don't give into fatigue."
"Tell myself: 'even Paul McCartney didn't write hit songs everytime' to make myself feel better when we miss."