GOLD Coast's prized 17-year-old recruit Jaeger O'Meara has set his sights firmly on a round one debut when he becomes eligible to represent his new AFL club in 2013.

O'Meara, who is too young to play senior football next season, will represent the Gold Coast reserves team in the North East Australian Football League in 2012 after being secured by the GC SUNS in Monday's 'mini draft'.

However, playing football won't be the priority for the brilliant junior midfielder, with the GC SUNS drawing up a comprehensive conditioning program to get the youngster ready to play at the elite level.

O'Meara, who received rave reviews throughout 2011, said he would spend the next 15 months "developing his body and managing injuries" with a view to having an immediate impact with the GC SUNS in 2013.

"I've had a fair few injuries this year, so just getting my body right for round one 2013, I've definitely got my sights set on that," O'Meara said in Perth on Thursday.

"It's always been a dream of mine of mine to play AFL and to be given an opportunity somewhere similar to my surroundings that I was brought up in is definitely something I'm looking forward to."

Gold Coast won the rights to select O'Meara with the first pick in Monday's mini draft by trading selection No. 4 in the 2011 NAB AFL Draft to Greater Western Sydney.

Coach Guy McKenna said the GC SUNS had no doubt O'Meara would have been selected higher than pick No. 4 if he was eligible for this year's Draft, and the club would have "kept backing up the wheelbarrow" until they'd secured a trade for him.

"We think we've got an elite talent at our football club," McKenna said. "It was a fairly easy decision in the end.

"Not only does he bring a really sound technical side to his football, he's also a great citizen off it as well and you just know he's going to be a long-term player."

McKenna oversaw young midfielder David Swallow's transition into the Suns program more than 12 months ahead of his eventual AFL debut, and he said the club would have a similar approach with O'Meara.

"We knew we were going to take him (Swallow) first round of our draft, so we got him over 12 months early [to] get him through the potential issues that young players will have," the coach said.

"If you can do that over a 12-month period, it's by far better than doing it in six months.

"He (O'Meara) will be pretty much in a conditioning program. Technically we know he can play.

"Of course he'll play football, but it's more just conditioning his body so he's right to be selected come round one 2013."

McKenna said a major advantage of introducing O'Meara to the AFL environment 12 months ahead of schedule would be the opportunity to work with brilliant midfielder Gary Ablett.

The coach said O'Meara's temperament, ability and drive would give him every chance to develop into a player similar to the Brownlow medallist.

"When you recruit players there [are] players that you deem as outside players, inside players … take this in the right way, he's probably an eight out of 10 in both those areas," McKenna said.

"As he grows and develops he'll become like someone like Gary Ablett. Gaz is probably a 10 out of 10 in some of those areas.

"He's blessed with both of those attributes and that's why he's such an elite talent. He's got the technical ability to be as good as anyone I've seen and he's also got the temperament and the drive to do it as well.

"I know he'll leave no stone unturned to be the best he can."