JOSH Fraser ended up staying in his home state as a No.1 draft pick, but the former Collingwood and Gold Coast ruckman/forward believed he'd be heading a long way west.

It was 1999 and Fraser was a highly touted junior playing for the Murray Bushrangers in the TAC Cup competition in Victoria. The Mansfield lad was in a draft crop that included Paul Haselby and Matthew Pavlich (who both would end up at Fremantle), Joel Corey (Geelong) and Darren Glass (West Coast).

Fremantle had three picks inside the first five, and the club spoke extensively with Fraser before the draft. 

"I had an inkling I'd go fairly early because I'd only really spoken to Fremantle," Fraser recalled. "I figured I'd be moving to Perth."

 

As it turned out, his "informal chats" with Collingwood were enough to impress the Magpies, and he headed for Victoria Park as the top overall pick.

The Dockers selected Haselby (at No.2), Pavlich (No. 4) and Leigh Brown (No.5), who would later join Collingwood and keep Fraser out of the Pies' 2010 premiership team.

Fraser played 200 games in a heavily scrutinised career for the Magpies, including appearances in the losing 2002 and 2003 Grand Final teams. 

He captained the club in 12 matches and represented Victoria, in 2008, when a state team played an All-Stars squad to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Australian Football.

He moved north at the end of the 2010 and played two seasons for Gold Coast, helping develop the club's young list. 

Fraser returned to Victoria at the end of the 2012, but headed back to the Gold Coast this year with his wife Kylie and children Ted and Emmy as coach of the Suns' NEAFL team.

The 32-year-old said he had learned plenty of lessons over a bumpy journey.

"Playing (against) guys like Scott Wynd, Shaun Rehn, Paul Salmon, John Barnes taught me a whole lot and I probably didn't know it at the time," Fraser said.

"Although I got beaten more often than not early days, the experience I gained was enormous, and the learnings I took from that helped me later on.

"There's also a bit of patience involved as well. Young players, usually at the top of the tree in the under-18 system, come into the AFL system and they find themselves down the pecking order fairly quickly," he said.

"You've got to be a bit patient but the rewards will come if you're prepared to work hard and be respectful of those around you and the environment you're in."