HOW MUCH of an Essendon fan is Isaac Kako? Let's allow the future Bomber to reveal that.
"Do you remember Leroy Jetta? I used to love him, I don't know why but he was one of my favourite players. He was a small forward as well so I had a soft spot for him when I was really young," Kako told AFL.com.au.
"He was number seven. I don't know how I remember that. I used to love Dustin Fletcher as well when I was a kid. I had a training top with number 31 on it.
"I'm a pretty big fan. I grew up watching them and going for them and my brothers are fans as well so we used to go to the games when I was younger."
Soon Kako will have his own training tops and his own number at the Bombers – although No.7 will be off limits.
The small forward is on his way to the Bombers as a Next Generation Academy player after Essendon traded out of the first round of this year's draft for more points to match an early bid for Kako while grabbing a future first-round selection from Melbourne.
It locks the club in to grab the Calder Cannons star at this month's Telstra AFL Draft, after he enjoyed a brilliant draft season and established himself as the most exciting small forward in the talented 2025 crop. Kako has hedged his bets on where he could end up, knowing nothing is locked in until his name is called, but has trained with the Bombers in recent times, gotten to know their program and become a Tullamarine regular.
The Bombers, too, are keen to add him as they search for a gun small forward to match those of the best teams in the AFL – a role they haven't been able to fill since Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti (another one of Kako's boyhood heroes) departed the club.
"I've definitely spent a lot of time at the club and I know it inside out. They've done a lot for me as a player in using the facilities as a kid and getting the upper hand. It's been really good," Kako said.
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"I'd like to go anywhere but Essendon has done a lot for me so playing for them would be a blessing."
And the 176cm prospect doesn't want to waste any time. Kako saw Hawthorn's Nick Watson excel in his first season in the AFL as a small forward and watched as small forwards dominated the finals series.
"It's pretty good being a small forward and seeing how important they are in the AFL now, I definitely feel I can impact from the get-go as a small forward. It's not a position where you need to develop heaps of size so it's been really good seeing how well the small forwards are doing and hopefully I can make an impact from round one," he said.
"It's changing and smaller players are probably more important now than the taller ones. How tall someone is is probably less of a factor now.
"Playing on these bigger grounds with bigger crowds is something I'm excited for and doing what I know I can do with the footy in my hands. As soon as I get it I want to entertain. I reckon I'm ready now. I feel like I can impact straight away and bring something to a club."
Kako's association with Essendon began when he was 13, having played with the Adam Saad Academy. His talent was noticed and since then he was involved in the NGA due to his Iraqi background.
His father was in the Iraq army for a decade before his parents moved to Australia in 1999. He is one of three brothers, with his oldest brother 15 years his senior. His father has become a convert to the game – despite different allegiances.
"My brother started playing footy when he was 16. My dad never really went and watched but as soon as I started playing he got into it more. Now he loves it more than anything. He loves it more than I do and I love talking to him about my footy as well," Kako said.
"My dad goes for Richmond, but my two brothers, especially my oldest brother, he's always loved the Bombers so if he could see me pull on the jumper I think it would mean a lot."
His family's story has served as reminder of sacrifice.
"They had to go through a lot of countries to get here. It's something I really look up to, the amount of effort my parents have put in to get here just to live a better life," Kako said.
"It makes me very appreciative and it makes me work a lot harder. They worked so hard to get here so it would be a waste if you're not putting that to good use."
This season he booted 20 goals for the Cannons and eight for Vic Metro at the under-18 carnival, before his campaign was ended prematurely by an ankle injury that required surgery. That also left him out of testing at the Draft Combine.
Clubs didn't need the testing to know of his vibrant, eye-catching traits: the ability to turn nothing into something around goal, his front-and-centre nous, the sharpness off a step and the electric creativity in his skills.
The likes of Shai Bolton, Izak Rankine, Kozzy Pickett and Charlie Cameron are the small forwards Kako has studied closely, as with youngster Darcy Jones.
"He plays with speed and freedom, it's good to watch," he said. "I think a lot of players get stuck in the system and they don't showcase what they can do, but I want to be one of those players who brings something to the table that others can't."
