Jared Brennan of the Brisbane Lions is the National AFL Rising Star round four nominee.

Originally from Southern Districts in Darwin, Brennan was the number three selection at the 2002 National AFL Draft, with Brisbane gaining the coveted high draft pick as part of a trade deal which saw premiership player Des Headland go to Fremantle.

Brennan came to prominence with recruiters across the country when he co-captained the Northern Territory team which won division two of the 2002 National AFL Under 18 championships and was named in the Under 18's All Australian side.

At the 2002 National AFL Draft Camp he recorded outstanding results, ranking number one in speed over five, 10 and 20 metres (2.83sec for 20 metres) while his measured leap was 102cm - the average being 60cm.

The versatile left footer has had an excellent summer and played for the Lions against Sydney in the first round of the Wizard Home Loans Cup. Obviously impressing the coaching staff of the Lions, Brennan pulled on the boots again in week two against Geelong and also played in the Wizard Regional Challenge Series against St Kilda at Coorparoo.

Standing at 192cm, blessed with tremendous speed off the mark and a prodigious leap, Brennan is already shaping up as a future star of the Brisbane Lions.

Possessing a raking left-foot kick, he can play in a variety of positions at either end of the ground, although he admits he has a liking for the wing.

Brennan has made great progress in a relatively short amount time given that he played rugby league until his early teens. His family all had a preference for rugby league and Brennan himself was good enough to represent the NT at junior level.

The National AFL Rising Star was instituted in 1993 to recognise the best new young talent entering the AFL competition and past winners include two current club captains in Nathan Buckley (1993) and Ben Cousins (1996).

The award is the premier recognition for young players in the game and, to be eligible, contenders must be under the age of 21 as at January 1, 2003, and played fewer than 10 senior games at the start of this season.