Click here to watch interviews with Jack Carter and Tom HunterThe rookie draft poses as a one last chance for hopeful players to fulfill their childhood dreams of making it to an AFL club.
For many players it’s a time of near certainty where clubs have pledged their allegiance to them prior to the draft. For others it still feels like a far off dream to even be considered as a potential draftee.
Collingwood’s two rookie draftees, Tom Hunter (overall pick 18) and Jack Carter (pick 37), fell on either side of the spectrum.
Hunter, who enjoyed a premiership with the Calder Cannons, playing in the midfield and up forward, was extremely confident of his selection in the rookie draft.
“I had a bit of an inkling,” Hunter told CTV.
“Derek (Hine) told me if I was there that he would take me. I was pretty excited about that but even when it happened it was still an exciting experience.”
Carter, on the other hand, thought he was an outside chance to move to Melbourne from his club in West Adelaide.
“It was pretty surreal. If you said last week that I would be in Melbourne today, I probably wouldn’t have believed you.”
The 18-year-old flew into Melbourne on Wednesday after enjoying a strong season for the West Adelaide Football Club playing as a key defender and finishing sixth in the best and fairest.
“I can play up and back as a key position. I like to think I have got pretty strong hands and I like my marking ability. “
Carter only had a few kilometres to cover when he arrived at the club, celebrating a premiership season playing for the Calder Cannons.
“I am a midfielder/half-forward and have a pretty good defensive side to my game and can attack as well.
“I consider myself a bit like Max Rooke (Geelong Cats). He has come off the rookie list and forged himself a good AFL career. He is pretty tough and courageous and I would like to think that I show a bit of that in my game as well.”
Both new Magpies will train with their new teammates for the next week before taking two weeks off over the holiday period.
