I imagine a senior coach would be interested enough to know who the recruiters have on their short list. I imagine Eade took at least as much interest as us bigfooty posters. I also imagine if he had the same reservation as us simple big footy posters had about Howard, the recruiters may have cast their eyes a little wider. Indeed, had Eade asked whether there weren't some taller guys around, considering how short we were, that the recruiters may well have provided him with an alternative short list.
I imagine if Eade took a little interest he may well have questioned why no one else was looking at this Howard fella. He may have even said, look , we will probably still be able to pick him up with our second round, lets look at someone more credentialed. At least, I imagine a good senior coach should have enough interest and enough sway to influence his recruiters who are making decisions which ultimately are more crucial than the decisions made by coaches.
But what do I know.