Dustin is a powerfully built midfielder with exceptional kicking abilities. He has great depth in his kicking, allowing him to break lines and zones through the middle of the ground. He plays his football with a physical, robust approach to the contest and is a highly motivated individual. Dustin is originally from NSW and played football in 2008 with Castlemaine while also representing the Pioneers in three games.

This year Dustin played 11 games with the Pioneers, averaging 25 possessions per game - 10 of those contested - and appearing in the best players five times. He began impressively in round 1 against the Geelong Falcons, where he recorded 34 possessions, 10 tackles, seven clearances and two goals. He was rewarded for an impressive year by being named in the centre in the TAC Cup Team of the Year. Dustin also represented the Victorian Country side at the NAB National U18 Championships where he averaged 21 possessions. He finished the carnival strongly with a 28 possession game against the championship winners Western Australia. He was again rewarded for an outstanding carnival by being named in the centre for the U18 All-Australian team.

At the AFL draft camp at the AIS in Canberra, Dustin recorded the second-faster time over the 20m sprint of 2.89 sec, while also reaching an excellent score of 14.0 on the endurance based “beep test”.

Richmond is genuinely excited about the prospect of Dustin joining the midfield group of Deledio, Cotchin, Cousins and co in the near future. He has a strong body which will be able to cope with the rigorous demands of an AFL environment and the skills to impact quickly.