IT MAY have been a two-horse race from a long way out, but Tom Scully and Jack Trengove maintain they never bought into the debate over who should be the first player picked at the NAB AFL Draft.

The honours, of course, went to Scully but, despite the weight of expectation the coveted tag brings with it, he rejected the notion that he now has some sort of extra burden to carry through his debut AFL season.   

"All that pressure is external and I think the club will be more than understanding of the position that Jack and myself are in," Scully said minutes after AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou called his name on Thursday night.

"All players that come to the club start off the same.

"I think if you let that stuff get to you too much it can affect your football, but if you stay strong and stick to the stuff you know then that other stuff shouldn't worry you too much.

Trengove, for his part, appeared unfazed by the occasion and was more concerned about getting on with his new career than the number attached to his name.

"I don't think there's too much difference," Trengove said sitting next to Scully.

"We're going to the same club, we're going to have to earn the same respect from the other players and really work hard from the start.

"The number doesn't really mean everything. You're [still going to be] out there playing footy and showing how good you are".

The big event at the Melbourne Convention Centre provided the top hopefuls with an emotional rollercoaster ride, and for Richmond's top pick Dustin Martin - the third selection overall - the relief was palpable.

"It's been a long wait since draft camp so it's just good to have it over with. I can't wait to get to training," Martin said.

"Richmond has  10 picks so there will be a lot of youth … It will be great to have a lot of young blokes around".

"Hopefully, if I work hard, I can get there for round one."

Gary Rohan and Ben Cunnington, friends and teammates from the Geelong area since the age of 12, have followed similar paths to the top, but the night sent their careers in wildly different directions.

Cunnington will move up the highway to Melbourne after the Kangaroos took him fifth overall, while Rohan will cut his teeth with the Sydney Swans after they selected him sixth.  

"It was always in the media that I was going to Sydney," Rohan said.

"I came in here with an open mind. I'm looking forward to it.

"Last year I would have never have thought I would have been in this situation. I was playing Cobden footy and luckily got a good year in with the Falcons and Vic Country. The hard work has paid off so far, but it's just the beginning.

"You have to follow your dream and that's where it's taken us."

Fremantle and West Coast went for local lads at pick four and seven respectively, with Anthony Morabito and Brad Sheppard both expressing their delight at being given an AFL opportunity in their own backyards.

The most-talked about big man of the draft pool, key forward prospect John Butcher, had no qualms about moving to Adelaide after the Power swooped on him with pick eight.

Butcher's game has been put under the microscope perhaps more than any other draft hopeful during the year and he admitted he had to work at maintaining a strong focus.

"I have had a bit of scrutiny this year, but I've just listened to the people that matter," Butcher said.

"It's a huge relief that it's all over because it has been a long wait. I'm incredibly grateful to Port Adelaide for giving me the opportunity to start my AFL career."

Andrew Moore proved to be one of the bolters of the draft when Port tabbed him with the ninth pick overall much to his surprise.

"I didn't expect to go so early, so I'm a bit overwhelmed", Moore said.

"Port Adelaide is a terrific club so I can't wait. To get picked at No.9 - I'm stoked."