IT IS Harley Reid and then daylight right now in the Rising Star award. But with two thirds of the season still to play, don't discount one of the tallest players in the League. 

After an injury-interrupted start to life at the Western Bulldogs, Sam Darcy is compiling a case to be carefully considered when the voting panel convenes in September. 

Despite producing one of the better pre-season campaigns at the Whitten Oval across the summer, the 208cm utility was overlooked in round one in favour of Rory Lobb. That lasted one week.

Since returning against Gold Coast in Ballarat in round two, Darcy has flaunted a deep array of tricks and rare mobility for his size that have him well positioned to be a star in this competition for a long time to come. 

The 20-year-old slotted three goals against Fremantle at Optus Stadium on Saturday night, after kicking three against Geelong at Adelaide Oval during Gather Round when he earned a Rising Star nomination. 

Darcy has now kicked 11.6 from six games and is averaging 12.3 disposals, 5.2 marks, 3.7 tackles, two contested marks – only seven players are averaging more – and 8.2 hitouts, splitting his time as a target inside 50 alongside Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and Aaron Naughton and as Tim English's back-up in the ruck.

The 2021 pick No.2 was restricted to only seven appearances across his first two seasons in the AFL due to a range of injuries. He arrived at the kennel with a stress fracture in his foot. Then there was the hole in his lung, the broken jaw and the badly corked quad that ended up costing him two months last year.

But right now, the son of Western Bulldogs great and current football director Luke, is rated as the second most improved player in the AFL, according to Champion Data’s AFL Player Ratings. 

Only Brownlow Medal favourite Isaac Heeney has produced a bigger spike in his output from 2023. The box office Sydney star has been the clear standout performer of 2024 to date, becoming just the second player to reach 50 coaches' votes this week – 54 total – after seven rounds, behind Nat Fyfe in 2015, 17 votes clear of the next best this year in Zach Merrett.

Unlike last year when eventual winner Harry Sheezel burst out of the blocks and maintained that pace for most of the year, Brisbane's father-son recruit Will Ashcroft nipped at his heels until he tore his ACL, and Mitch Owens and Jye Amiss were in the mix once their impact inside 50 where properly assessed, Reid is the clear standout after seven rounds. And will take some beating.

The Tongala product has had a level of impact not many, if any, first-year players have ever had, especially when you factor in West Coast's struggles since 2021 and the never-before-seen level of coverage his every move has garnered in Western Australia. 

Reid's numbers don't catapult off the page; he is maximum impact, rather than an accumulator. Second-year Kangaroo George Wardlaw is cut from a similar cloth and one of the leading contenders, along with his teammate Colby McKercher, who was narrowly overlooked for the round seven nomination on the weekend in favour of Jake Rogers, despite collecting 32 touches.

Darcy Wilson has made a seamless transition to League football at St Kilda, as has Caleb Windsor at Melbourne. Both have played all seven games since making debuts at the start of the season.

Geelong's Ollie Dempsey and Sydney's Matt Roberts are both playing roles in top-four sides right now, keeping more experienced players on the outer at both clubs and improving by the week.

Regardless of whether Darcy pushes Reid all the way in the Ron Evans Medal or not, he is clearly a crucial piece of the Western Bulldogs' future. 

And after such a frustrating start to life in the AFL, the mobile big man is making a big impact in 2024.

Should a third-year player be eligible for the Rising Star? That is a debate for another day. But the rules are the rules. Under the age of 21 on January 1 and 10 games or less to your name is the criteria. 

Sanders was expected to be the standout contender at the Dogs, but has been inconsistent. Harvey Gallagher has played all seven games and earned a nomination.

But it's Darcy that could be Reid's biggest challenger.