haʊˈɛvɚ, ˈælɐstˌɛɹ klˈɑːɹksən, hɪz fˈɔːɹmɚɹ ɐsˈɪstənt kˈoʊtʃ æt pˈoːɹt ˈædəlˌeɪd ænd nˈaʊ sˈiːnjɚ kˈoʊtʃ æt hˈɔːθɔːɹn ɛŋkˈɜːɹɪdʒd hˌɪm tə nˈɑːmᵻnˌeɪt fɚðə tˈuː θˈaʊzənd sˈɛvən ˌeɪˌɛfˈɛl nˈæʃənəl dɹˈæft, wˌɛɹ hiː wʌz sᵻlˈɛktᵻd baɪ hˈɔːθɔːɹn wɪð ɪts θˈɜːd ɹˈaʊnd sᵻlˈɛkʃən nˈoʊ. fˈoːɹɾi fˈaɪv ˌoʊvɚɹˈɔːl.
However, Alastair Clarkson, his former assistant coach at Port Adelaide and now senior coach at Hawthorn encouraged him to nominate for the 2007 AFL National Draft, where he was selected by Hawthorn with its third round selection (No. 45 overall).