The ground attendant in the Brownlow Stand has seen it all. He has witnessed God himself ascending over packs to take screamers and now, even the second coming in the shape of Gary Ablett Junior.

“That kid can play,” he muttered in solemn tones as the Cats enjoyed a picnic at St.Kilda’s expense. “Give it three years and he’ll be the biggest thing at this club.”

And while the kid they should call “The Carpenter” (after all it was the chosen profession of the other son) had a big day at Skilled Stadium on Sunday, it was another of the Kardinia Kittens our sage was referring to.

It was a young bloke by the name of James Bartel who bared his claws and tore the sorry Saints to shreds. In doing so he earned himself the Rising Star Nomination for round 4.

“I’m rapt. A lot of the young guys played well so I‘m surprised. A lot of things went right and it was a good day – especially for the fans.”

Bartel was the Cats’ first pick in the 2001 draft. The rookie mid-fielder has been an under 18 All-Australian twice so he was no doubt top of quite a few footy shopping lists. And as a local lad the Cats were especially keen to nab him. He’s yet another graduate from the Local footy factory down Corio way – St Joseph’s College.

Not that the young Bartel was grew up wearing the famous navy blue and white hoops. While his mates dreamed of Geelong glory, his loyalty lay elsewhere.

“I didn’t follow the Cats as a kid, I barracked for Richmond. You’d be surprised how many people in Geelong don’t actually follow the Cats. Now that I play for Geelong I kind of don’t like those people anymore,” he said cheekily. “They should really get on board”.

For a guy whose idea of a perfect day is to get out of bed just in time to catch Bert Newton on the TV for breakfast before heading to the beach for a swim or to cast a line, AFL footy presented real challenges; training for instance.

“I found pre-season a bit different. Early mornings were the most demanding aspect. Getting up early and going for a run wasn’t really my cup of tea. I used to have one, maybe two training sessions a week. It usually involved having shots for goal by kicking banana’s from out of the change room doorway.”

This sounds like he was enrolled in the Ronnie Burns academy. There was a time when James Bartel might have been heading for a different academy all together - The Australian Cricket Academy. A gifted junior cricketer he had to make a choice. To bat and bowl, or kick goals? In the end he choose shooting from 50 rather than making one.

“Cricket is a very tough sport to make it to the top. I just enjoyed football a little bit more. I enjoy the physical side of the game and it’s more of a team sport. Cricket is a sport where a whole lot of individuals put their collective scores together where as with footy you heavily rely on everybody.”

He does base his approach to footy on that of one of his heroes in the baggy green cap. Adam Gilchrist might look like a scarecrow hung out in a breeze, but he bats like a tornado, and his seek and destroy attitude has rubbed off on the young Cat.

“He purely back his ability and is so aggressive at it. Nine time out of 10 it comes off, because he just goes for it. You know you can play at that level so you have to go for it.”

Bartel enjoys the fact that the low-key Cats have few expectations on their shoulders in 2002. It’s all to play for and nothing to lose. With a bunch of young blokes pushing through people are slowly waking up to their potential. And their hunger is self-evident.

“While we’re a young bunch we want to win and we’re not going to use that as an excuse through the year. We are young, pretty aggressive group that wants to win.”

And kick the odd boundary line, banana-bending, miracle goal when the opportunity presents. After all, it wouldn’t be Geelong if someone wasn’t having a crack at it. And if the Guru showing you to your seat in The Brownlow Stand is right (and he usually is) that someone will be James Bartel.