IMAGINE you've just run out in front of 45,000 fans in your first AFL game at the MCG, the home of football. You miss a couple of goals you'd otherwise kick in your sleep but generally look more than comfortable in your first appearance in the big time.

Still finding your feet, you suddenly notice perhaps the game's best defender, James Clement, walking your way. Surely he's on his way to pick up Corey Jones, or Arch, or maybe even Shagga. No – he's headed towards you.

That's the scenario that faced Lindsay Thomas in his Roo debut. Was he daunted? He loved it!

"It was such a great experience to play on someone like James Clement in my first game. I used to watch him play as a kid and think how good he was. To be playing on him at the MCG in my first game was a little bit like a dream."

Far from being overwhelmed by the experience, the former Port Adelaide Magpie was one of the Roos' better performers in their heart-breaking three-point opening round loss, helping himself to 15 possessions and having five shots at goal – albeit for five behinds.

"To get five shots at goal playing on Clement was amazing for me. I was pretty down on myself because we couldn't finish them off when we had the chance and most of the ones I missed were ones I'd normally get. To finally kick my first goal in AFL footy last week against Port Adelaide was a huge relief."

Indeed, Thomas' first goal in senior company came in the middle of a tense final term against the Power in which he almost swung the match the Roos' way. After an admittedly quiet first half, the 19-year-old suddenly found himself thrust into the midfield to try to engineer a remarkable come-from-behind win.

Although the cards would not eventually fall the Kangas' way, there can be no finger of blame pointed Thomas' way.

"My first half was pretty quiet and I was disappointed in that," he said. "I wanted to make a point to Port Power because I thought they were keen on picking me up but they didn't in the end.

"So I sat down in the rooms at half-time and thought about how I had a lot of my family there and how I wanted to get a kick to try and help the team out.

"I got a couple of kicks early in the last quarter and got my confidence up and to get that goal was pretty good. To fall just sort was pretty tough but we showed we can match with any team, home or away."

While Thomas was no doubt miffed to be overlooked by the AFL version of Port Adelaide, he is more than thankful for the opportunity given to him by the Port Adelaide Magpies in the SANFL.

Another product of the fertile Mallee Park football nursery in the South Australian fishing town of Port Lincoln, Thomas was convinced by a persistent Magpies recruiting team to leave his family and friends and try his luck in the big smoke. It's a move he hasn't regretted.

"At first I wasn't a real big fan but all of my family saw it as a good opportunity for me if I wanted to play AFL, so I thought I'd have a crack at it.

"After my first year I went back home and decided I didn't want to go back to do pre-season the next year. Then the club rang me up and wanted me to come back, but as much as I didn't want to go my family almost forced to go back. It's the best decision I ever made, I reckon."

"To be honest, if I hadn't have left, I would have been a bum. I might have picked up a bit of work working on the boats but I wouldn't have made anything of myself if I hadn't have left Port Lincoln."

Kangaroos recruiting manager Neville Stibbard is one person who is grateful that Thomas decided to take the path he did. He sees a real future for the young man taken with the club's 53rd selection in last year's NAB AFL Draft.

"He's just a kid who loves playing footy. He'd play it every minute of every day if he could, and if he keeps that attitude, it's going to help him improve.

"He's got so many strings to his bow; he's pretty good aerobically – but he can get better – he's great around goal, he's tough and he's deceptively good overhead.

"He's a terrific young kid and there's so much to work with but it's up to Lindsay now. But from what we've seen, he'll be a good one to watch."