North Albury confident of landing several prized recruits after AFL draft

The Hoppers have been one of the quietest clubs on the recruiting front since Norman was announced coach in October.

However, Norman expects there to be a lot more player movement after the AFL draft on December 9 with the Hoppers hoping of landing at least one or two prized signings.

"A lot of blokes are still hopeful of being drafted and are waiting until the draft before deciding on their playing futures," Norman said.

"We have targeted half-a-dozen high-profile recruits and will be rapt if we can sign one or two of them.

"So we are still waiting on answers from them.

"I'm confident once the draft is held there will be a lot more player movement."

The Hoppers have been training for the past month, with most sessions attracting solid numbers.

"The first two weeks the numbers were really good," he said.

"The third week they dropped off a bit but there were a few players having issues getting through the border closure and couldn't make it to training on time.

"Now the restrictions are gone the numbers have picked back up.

"We are going to ramp up the intensity over the next couple of weeks before the Christmas break.

"We are going to have a bit of pre-season camp on Saturday, nothing too serious but start at 8am and finish at 4pm.

A ruckman to replace departed coach Isaac Muller is high on the Hoppers recruiting radar.

Muller signed with rival side Wodonga Raiders in August in one of the biggest stories over the off-season.

The Raiders also lured high-profile recruit Jacob Smith to Birralee Park despite not playing a match for North Albury.

The two fierce rivals will clash for the first time in round nine after the O&M released its draw on Friday.

The Hoppers have an away twilight fixture against flag favourite Myrtleford for their season opener on Easter Sunday.