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PART 4
Friday, September 19 – WHEN Jarrod Pickett learned he was selected to make his senior debut for South Fremantle, he tried to keep it under wraps.After a Thursday night training session seven weeks ago, he walked to his dad's waiting car and jumped in the front seat. "I'm playing 'ressies' again," Pickett said. "Oh well, that's all right," his dad Lance replied.
They backed out of the car park, and drove for a minute in silence, before Pickett let it slip. "Nah, only kidding," he said, "I'm playing League!"
Lance didn't believe him for a few minutes, but soon enough it registered. "I could see in his eyes he was really happy, and he got a bit emotional about it," Pickett says.
"He'll be crying if I get drafted. He was very proud, and the rest of my family couldn't believe it. Playing League showed that a lot of hard work had paid off."
'I never thought I'd be playing League footy at 17'
It was a significant milestone for Pickett as he completed his draft season. After two strong games in the club's reserves side, he signed a senior contract for $100 a game and was then immediately selected.He made his debut in round 19 (16 days short of his 18th birthday) against East Fremantle in the local derby.
It had some extra meaning for him and his family. Before Pickett moved to Geraldton, every second Friday night he would head down with a group of mates and watch Souths' seniors play. He would sit on the fence with his feet dangling over the edge, and at every quarter break they would race onto the field and play 'marker's up'.
The club is known for its indigenous culture, and has produced some brilliant footballers, including Maurice Rioli, the Matera brothers, Jeff Farmer, Nicky Winmar, and the Collard brothers – Brad, Derek, and Cliff. It even selected an indigenous team of the century in 2009.
Wearing the same red and white jumper those players had was hard to take in. "I never thought I'd be playing League footy for South Fremantle at 17, so it was a pretty happy moment for me," Pickett says.
Before Pickett had won a possession at senior level he had been reported (a charge for rough conduct later withdrawn). But moments later he collected the ball, wheeled sharply and slotted a goal from 55 metres with his first kick.
Every teammate on the field ran to pat him on the back or head, and he finished with 2.3 from 10 touches in South's 43-point win.
"I didn't have big expectations and didn't think I'd be running amok out there, but when I came on I felt like I belonged," Pickett says.
'Did that just happen?'
His impact was more crucial the following week, against Peel Thunder, Fremantle's affiliate club. Pickett started in the forward line, and struggled to get into the game. With seven minutes to play in the final term, he was making his way off the ground at the request of the runner, but the ball was headed his way deep in the forward pocket."If I went off I probably wouldn't have come back on, and might have not played the next week," he says. "So I just went for it."
Pickett took three quick steps then leapt on the back of an opponent, got a second push, and took a huge mark. As usual, he landed on his feet.
Nervous, with his side five points in arrears, Pickett poked the goal through to hand South Fremantle a one-point lead. He went to run to the bench, but was called back by his captain. In the meantime, Thunder had cleared the ball out of the centre and quickly goaled to reclaim its five-point advantage.
A tight tussle ensued in the final few minutes, with plenty of stoppages. With about 20 seconds to play, the ball was kicked into South's forward line. Pickett used his body to protect the space and marked on the boundary line. He took five steps back, had a deep breath, and coolly slotted a checkside kick for a goal. You can watch the moment below.
The instant he started celebrating the siren rang, and South won by one point. "I was practising kicks from that spot earlier in the week so I was confident," Pickett says. "That night I was talking to dad and said, 'Did that actually happen?'"
Pickett continued to flash in and out of his next three seniors games, but the experience was good for him. It made him more confident he could match it with bigger bodies next year for an AFL team, and that his smaller frame (178cm, 77kg) wouldn't be an issue.
He also felt like when he returned to the club's under-18 team for the finals, he had more space and time, and that he was better than those around him. In the preliminary final he gathered 23 touches and kicked two goals, but it wasn't enough to lift his side as it fell one point short of Claremont.
Pickett is glad he had the chance to move up a standard, a step he needed in what's been a busy season.
"It's been a lot to take in," he says. "I wish I played more consistently but that's something I've got to improve."
A future Hawk?
At many stages through the year he has been reminded how he can do that: tackle, tackle, and tackle some more. With a month of his season left, Pickett was set a challenge by Gold Coast recruiters, who wanted to see him lay 20 tackles in his final four games of the season."They sat me down and said they wanted to see a change in my game defensively," he says.
Pickett recorded less than 10, but the WAFL statisticians are notoriously harsh on tackles. His best effort in a game was five. In the same match, he also ran across the field to bump an opponent out of bounds. After the game, recruiters told Pickett they hadn't seen that side to him before. "I know I can do it," Pickett says, "I just have to do it more."
Clubs know that too, but can't work out why he hasn't been able to implement that into his game, despite their urgings. They know he's a talented, brilliant match-winner, but would have liked to see more from him though the season, a sentiment he shares.
"He's got huge ability, and is a bubbly, funny, happy and polite kid," one scout says. "He just needs to show he's capable, and willing, to run both ways consistently."
WATCH: the best of Jarrod Pickett's WAFL season with South Fremantle
Yesterday Hawthorn sent its Indigenous welfare manager, Leon Egan, for a chat with Pickett. Egan works at the club two nights a week and if the Hawks drafted Pickett, he would live with Egan for the first two months to help his transition.
Egan passed on positive feedback from the club's recruiters, and said the Hawks would strongly consider drafting Pickett with their first pick, if he was still available.
Each time Pickett catches up with recruiters, he ends up thinking about what it would be like to settle into that club, who he knows there, and what he'd look like in the jumper.
"Hearing that from them made me change my mind and think, 'What if I go to the Hawks?' That'd be exciting for me. I saw Bradley Hill play in a premiership in his second year and it'd be exciting to go there," Pickett says.
"Every club that comes around, they sound better and better. I was having all these thoughts like, 'Far out, that club would be awesome to go to' and every club has done that so far.
"That's why I'm so excited about being drafted. I just want to be in the system. It sounds exciting. Wherever I go will be awesome."
Pickett is biding his time until then. A month ago, he turned 18. His family celebrated by heading to Outback Jack's, an Australian-themed grill restaurant where if you finish one stack of ribs, you get another for free.
Pickett didn't take on that challenge, but later on, headed to the casino in Perth with his older brother and Smith, for his first night out. He didn't drink – and never has – but won a few dollars on the pokies before heading home.
Pickett isn't interested in the nightlife. He has a girlfriend, Tahlia, who he has been with for eight months, and is more comfortable to stay in than go out. To relax, he goes to the movies (he can recite lines from most films at ease), likes fishing, and about once a month goes out hunting with Lance. He doesn't swear, having been taught early it wouldn't be allowed at home.
Pickett's attention has returned to his fitness ahead of the NAB AFL Draft Combine, starting with a tough session at South Fremantle's headquarters this morning.
He'll do two more big sessions with the club before heading to Melbourne for the four-day testing. He'd also planned to run a few times around the lake near his house, having measured out a 3km track, but the club encouraged him to stick to its program.
Pickett sees the combine as his final chance to impress. "Everything counts," he says.
THE FINAL SPRINT
Wednesday, October 22 – ONE OF the first things Jarrod Pickett did last week when he got his driver's licence was take his mum's car for a spin. He picked up his friend Clem Smith from his house a few minutes away, and the pair headed to a park for a run together.Pickett had a week off training after the NAB AFL Draft Combine earlier this month, giving his body a rest after a tiring few days in Melbourne at Etihad Stadium. But since then he's been active again; a couple of days ago he was at a local playground, doing chin-ups on the monkey bars and working on his core strength.
Pickett went to the combine wanting to prove his fitness base. Although some were excited to see him run the 20-metre sprint – his pet event – he was more interested in going well in the beep test and 3km time trial. So were recruiters.
"When I spoke to West Coast they wanted to see my work rate and fitness lift for the endurance tests. They said, 'You could fall over in the 20-metre sprint and none of us would care'," he says.
"And the Dockers, midway through the year, asked if I thought I would have better fitness at the end of the season compared to the start. I said I'd be around that 14.3 mark in the beep test and I ended up getting 14.4 at the combine, my best ever. It was a good place to do it."
A new personal best in the time trial (11:07 minutes) capped his week. Pickett's fitness gains emphasise his maturity during his draft season, a concerted effort that started about a year ago.
Jarrod Pickett sets a new PB in the 3km time trial at the NAB AFL Draft Combine. Picture: AFL Media
"Jarrod is a great example for any young Indigenous footballer who wants to make it and be the best he can," says Raff Guadagnino, the West Australian talent manager.
"Last November he was carrying a few extra kilos and his skinfolds were high. We said, 'If you're serious about your football, you've got to seek out a dietician, find out how to eat properly, and get the best out of your body'.
"It was amazing. He went away and got it all right, and lo and behold, his endurance got better, his speed got even quicker, and he just felt better about himself. It set him up for a great season."
Counting down the days
Pickett is now feeling good about what lies ahead. He met with 11 clubs at the combine, and most asked variations of the same questions about his season, his past and his ambitions.The quirkiest came from Essendon, which asked him to quickly spell Gatorade backwards. "I got it right, luckily," he says.
Pickett is much more comfortable talking in front of crowds, to groups and to people he doesn't know than he was at the start of the year. "I've become good at speaking, and how I talk and present myself," he says. "I've worked on it, and I find it much easier talking in front of people now, whoever it is."
Pickett listens as the draftees are addressed at the Combine. Picture: AFL Media
When Gold Coast asked to which club he'd like to be drafted, he said the Suns. He knows Jack Martin well, and is related to Brandon Matera and Harley Bennell. He's also thought how cool it would be to play alongside Gary Ablett.
But, really, Pickett doesn't mind which club's recruiter reads out his name at the draft, as long as someone does.
Although he wished he had played more consistently in the under-18 championships for his state, he is happy with what he's achieved and how he's handled a busy year of games, interviews, work, study and everything in between. "I'm pretty proud of where I'm at," he says.
He's been told the Suns, Giants, Magpies and Cats could be interested in him, and wherever he goes he wants to make a good first impression. And a lasting one, too.
"I always say I don't want to be one of those Indigenous boys who drop out. Looking at uncle Leon (Davis), 'Micky O' (Michael O'Loughlin), 'Goodesy' (Adam Goodes), these blokes are what I aspire to be like. I want to be in the AFL, have a long career and make an impact," he says.
"The draft's only a few weeks away now, and I'm still nervous. I'm wondering all the time where I'll go. Hopefully, it all falls into place and everything works out.
"Wherever I go I have to be loyal to that club and work hard in the pre-season. I can't wait. It's only just the beginning, I hope."
Read part 1 – Get set. Go!
Part 2 – 'If I don't get drafted, it's a waste'
Part 3 – Recruiters' big question for Jarrod Pickett
Twitter: @AFL_CalTwomey
