Claremont Colts Premiership Player Declan Mountford is heading to the AFL. The hard running midfielder was selected with pick 60 by the North Melbourne Football Club in the 2015 AFL Draft which was held in Adelaide.

Declan averaged 23 disposals per match with the CFC Colts and made his League Debut against Swan Districts in Round 22 at Steel Blue Oval. He ended his season with a stellar 25 disposal, 2 goal effort as the Tigers took out the flag in the 2015 WAFL Colts Grand Final.

Also selected in the WA State Academy, Declan impressed throughout the 2015 National Championships with his athleticism, hard running and ball winning ability. This was capped off with some very impressive results at the AFL Draft Combine where he ran a 2.90sec 20m sprint and a 15.2 in the beep test.

Claremont Football Club Talent Manager Warren Parker had this to say about the Great Southern product and his pathway to the Claremont Football Club and now the AFL.

“As a club we have great faith in our Talent Academy and the Programs that we have in place. The Great Southern Storm do a fantastic job of developing players from the Great Southern Region and in helping them to reach the WAFL system. They can take a lot of credit for building the foundation for Declan to work with and certainly assisted him in his journey.”

“Declan is an extremely hard trainer with great attention to detail. He worked hard on the areas that he needed to improve throughout the season after transitioning to Perth, and we continually saw the results as he improved in every match he played.”

“It’s no coincidence that Declan improved to the level that he is at, and to the point where an AFL club took interest in him. He put in the extras, worked really hard and saw results. It’s a great lesson for our kids here at Claremont who dream of reaching the AFL. You have to work.”

“The club wishes Declan all the best for his future at North Melbourne. We have no doubt that he will leave no stone unturned. They have invested in a great character and we hope that he gets a chance to show us all what he can do at AFL level.”

Attention now turns to the AFL Rookie Draft which will take place on Friday 27^th November where a number of Claremont players will hope to hear their name read out.