Selected with pick 21 in the 2015 National Draft, Ben McKay is a key-position prospect who can play at either end of the ground.
At 198 centimetres and 95 kilograms, McKay casts a big shadow, despite joining the club as a 17-year-old.
Senior Development Coach, Gavin Brown
“It was a really pleasing first year for Benny.
“We knew he was going to take a little bit of time, and the taller guys do take a bit longer to grow into their body.
“He’s come in here, been really diligent and professional and he’s put on a lot of muscle to get to the 97, 98 kilo mark.
“He hurt his shoulder in a tackling drill and he was unable to do much physical contact in pre-season training, so he was really behind the 8-ball in terms of when he first got here.
“When the games came around, he found himself in the development league, playing a handful of games there.
“Then he was able to break into the VFL senior side and he progressed really nicely throughout the whole year.
“He got better and better as the year went on, and he had a breakout game against Essendon where he kicked three goals and took seven or eight marks in a quarter and a half.
“From then on in, he looked like a really key power forward for us down at Werribee. By the time the end of the year came, he was a really damaging key forward for us.
“He’s a very coachable young player. He’s the first one up on Monday morning to check his vision from the weekend’s game; he’ll ask questions, sit in on other reviews and he had a real thirst for it.”
Draft History: Pick 21 2015 AFL Draft (North Melbourne)
