The commonly shared dream of most youngsters in Australia – to play in the AFL – may be realised in a few months by four of the NFL’s hopeful recruits.
The Northern Knights’ Jade Gresham, Darcy Macpherson, Brayden Fiorini and Tyrone Leonardis have all been invited to attend the NAB AFL National Draft Combine in October.
Knights’ Talent Manager, Peter Kennedy has kept a close eye on the development of all four draft hopefuls before one of the biggest moments of their lives.
Captain of the Northern Knights, South Morang’s Jade Gresham, is touted as a top draft prospect after being named Vic Metro’s best player at this year’s national carnival. Gresham was also named in the 2015 Under 18 All-Australian Team.
“Jade’s had a great season,” Kennedy told NFL.org.au.
“He follows a very similar path to Nathan Hrovat who was drafted in 2012.
“He’s had a great year. He’s a mid who can go forward, a beautiful kick of the ball, an elite kick. He’s got a great side-step, displays excellent agility but he’s also very good clearance player.
“Early in the season before he went to nationals, he was leading the (TAC Cup) competition for inside 50s.”
Football talent runs thick through the Gresham bloodlines. His father Jamie recently finished up his own football journey as Jade embarks on his own, according to Kennedy.
“His father is Jamie Gresham who played in the 1995-96 premiership side for the Knights and his father played at Northcote Park.
“But he was also still playing up until a season or two ago at Parkside. His father played footy in the same premiership team at the Knights with (Brent) ‘Boomer’ Harvey,” he said.
Much like his father, Jade has had a decorated junior career, playing in the indigenous Flying Boomerangs side in South Africa in 2013 while with the Northern Knights.
“Jade Gresham came through our under 15 program, our under 16 program, and he also played with the indigenous team in South Africa,” Kennedy said.
“He went (to South Africa) as a 15 year-old, as an under 16 year-old, and also didn’t play in Vic Metro, he played in the (under 16) indigenous team at the national championships.”
Much like Gresham, teammate Darcy Macpherson (pictured) also has football talent running thick through the blood.
The 2015 draft prospect is the son of former Footscray player, Stephen Macpherson, who played 188 games between 1982 and 1995, representing Tasmania at state level on three occasions.
Despite a slow start to Darcy’s year, the Diamond Creek junior has been back in form in the past six weeks and taking the field for Footscray in the VFL last weekend.
“Darcy didn’t play nationals this year. At the start of the season he had shoulder surgery, and he’s only been back maybe five or six games now,” Kennedy said.
“(Darcy) was in the initial Vic Metro Academy squad, but because he had the shoulder surgery in February, he didn’t recover in time to be considered.
“But he came back, played very well, and the other clubs want to know a little bit about him because with father-sons now they like to know the ins and outs of those players.”
While Darcy may be smaller than many of his peers, Kennedy says he has caught the eye of AFL recruiters, particularly as a potential father-son.
“He’s only small, he’s under 175 centimetres. He’s on the AFL radar, he’s got good qualities, it just depends with small players of who they’re looking for.
“The (Western) Bulldogs are obviously interested in him, so that’s why he’s playing at Footscray (VFL), so other clubs might be interested in him as well.
“We know that the (Western) Bulldogs have got a lot of good smalls playing, so it’s going to be an interesting one as to where he’ll end up,” Kennedy said.
While his father may have taken a backseat in the coaching of Darcy’s development at TAC Cup level, the unwavering support and passion continues at the Northern Knights.
“He (Stephen) is just a very good supporter. He and his wife Karen, they support the club. They run the pasta meals on a Thursday night, so they’re very, very good supporters. They leave the coaches to do their coaching and development with (the players),” Kennedy said.
Greenborough’s Brayden Fiorini – who has also played at Research – followed captain Gresham with a successful 2014 season, and has been improving in leaps and bounds since the nationals.
“Brayden came through our 15s, and 16s, and was emergency for the Vic Metro squad.
“Brayden played every game last year of the TAC Cup as a 17 year-old, the same as Jade (Gresham), and this year he’s just continued his form and to play nationals,” Kennedy said.
“He had a reasonable carnival, and ever since he’s come back from the nationals, he’s really been a high possession winner, he’s a left-footer, good skills (and) reads the play very well.”
Fiorini has also found more contested footy as a midfielder in the months since the nationals.
“(Brayden has) a good footy brain, probably not an inside, contested ball-winner but he plays a bit of both.
“Since he’s come back from the nationals, we’ve started playing him in the midfield, and he’s starting to become more of a contested ball-winner and also more of a clearance player,” Kennedy said.
“He’s about 184cm, a good size, so obviously he’ll get on a few (AFL) clubs’ radars as well.”
North Heidelberg-listed Tyrone Leonardis has been the surprise packet of the bunch according to Kennedy, bolting into draft contention in the last 12 months despite spending nearly three years with the Knights.
Leonardis played his junior football with Bundoora Junior Football Club, but is registered on North Heidelberg’s this year, despite not playing a game with the Bulldogs in 2015.
“He’s come through our 15s and 16s, and he’s a late developer,” Kennedy said.
“(Tyrone) showed promise, but was really a player that blossomed in the second half of last year.
“Last year he didn’t get a game until mid or late in the year, but then he’s just blossomed this year, and has been a regular for us (this year).”
Left-footers are a valued commodity at AFL level, and Kennedy thinks this to be one of Leonardis’ strongest weapons in the arsenal.
“He’s a left footer, and has got pace and a side-step, so again he actually changes direction, takes on the opposition and is a beautiful left-foot kick.
“He’s a player that’s very strong at the core, and one of those players that breaks lines and kick the ball long.”
But despite Leonardis being a late-bloomer, Kennedy has seen it all before.
“(Western Bulldogs’) Marcus Bontempelli, an Eltham boy, made the NFL twos side at under 15s, was in our under 16s, we didn’t bring him in to the side until the second half (of that season) and just blossomed from there, and have a look at him now,” he said.
“It always changes. The boys who are superstars at 12, 13, 14, don’t always go on, even though saying that, Trent Cotchin at 13-14, you just knew he was going to play AFL footy, he was just one of those players.”
The Northern Knights will miss the finals this season, and so Kennedy and the coaches have an early plan of attack heading into October’s NAB AFL National Draft Combine.
“We’re finishing early, so we’ve got a program in place where all our boys come in. They do two nights of skills, one night of conditioning, and we prepare them in the testing they’ll be doing for the combine,” Kennedy said.
“Also, AFL Victoria put on a day where all the tests that are performed at the national and state combines, they do a dry-run type thing a couple of weeks out where they get all the guys out to Maribyrnong Secondary College and they perform the tests.
“In the meantime, we’ll continue to train the boys. At this late stage, if a boy’s quick, he’s quick, you can’t do a lot (else).
“With their endurance, we make sure it doesn’t drop off,” Kennedy said.
And as Talent Manager of the Northern Knights, Peter Kennedy’s job reaps the rewards through watching young boys develop into men through years of blood, sweat and tears.
Once the commonly shared dream of many youngsters in Australia of one day donning an AFL guernsey becomes reality, the rewarding part of the Talent Manager’s job comes to fruition.
“That’s where we get our rewards from is seeing the players if they get through and then go on to have good careers,” he said.
“Probably since 2007 we’ve had over 14 first-round (AFL draft) picks. We see players like Kreuzer, Cotchin, Josh Caddy, Jack Newnes, Billy Longer, all playing AFL footy.
“You get a lot of reward out of seeing these boys work hard as kids and then fortunately do well enough to find their way onto an AFL list.”
A further two players with links to the NFL have been invited to the Victoria draft combine.
Northcote Park forward Ash Close and former Yarrambat junior James El Moussalli have both been invited to the Victorian state testing day, which will be held at Etihad Stadium in October.
