The veteran coach didn’t go out of his way to stress rugby league players were on the Pies’ recruiting agenda, rather suggesting clubs would be more likely in the future to look at elite sportsmen of any code capable of making a smooth transition.
Malthouse was speaking in the wake of this week’s cross-code signing of Israel Folau, who agreed to join new franchise Greater Western Sydney from NRL club the Brisbane Broncos.
“There are no limits, really,” Malthouse said when asked if Collingwood had explored recruiting an NRL player.
“Once you confine yourself to limits you’ve got to then wonder why other clubs do it and maybe succeed.
“So we’ve got no limits here. Our recruitment department is very active in pursuing all players from all codes all over the world, and that’s what we’ll see.
“I think we’ll see that more and more, which is fantastic for our game.”
In recent years the Pies have been more than willing to experiment with new recruiting methods.
They currently have two 204cm rookies on their list of varying backgrounds.
Seamus McNamara, a former basketball player from the US, joined the club late last year after sending the club his own video showcasing his unique athletic attributes.
Lachlan Keeffe, a former soccer player who converted to AFL, is also on the club’s list.
Before that pair, Irish imports Marty Clarke and Kevin Dyas - both former Gaelic footballers - spent time at the Westpac Centre.
The recent signings of Folau and Karmichael Hunt have intensified talk that more NRL players will be the target of AFL clubs.
Malthouse believes the players will be a hit.
“I think they’ve both got an excellent chance of playing football,” he said.
“We see it too often. If a player’s got talent, and he might be deficient or suspect in certain areas, then that’s identified and worked on
“Those that follow all sports, it’s hard to forget that try where he (Folau) took a mark and still came down near his head.
“If you can do that I think you can do a lot of special things in AFL.”
Malthouse said players such as Carlton’s Setanta O’hAilpin - a former hurling star from Ireland - had shown that an upbringing of Australian football was not a pre-requisite for success in the AFL.
“I think O’hAilpin’s the classical case moreso than [Marty] Clarke or [Tadhg] Kennelly,” he said.
“They say he played with a round ball. Yeah, a round ball the size of a cricket ball.
“Now he’s kicking a football and plays it his way, which is unique.”
