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Which young Saint loves sleep like nothing else?
Which Essendon young gun is regarded as an excitable big kid?
Which emerging midfielder is being touted as a future captain?
aflplayers.com.au caught up with St Kilda’s David Armitage, Essendon’s Shaun McKernan and North Melbourne’s Jack Ziebell to find out more about the 22Under22 nominees from their clubs.
ESSENDON’S SHAUN MCKERNAN ON…
JOE DANIHER
“He was a really welcoming person when I first got to the club. I’ve only been there for six months, but I played a little bit of footy with Joey growing up so I knew him. He’s a caring bloke and always up for a chat. On the field, he’s pretty exciting to watch when he’s flying for his marks.
“‘A big kid’ sums him up pretty well. That’s what we love about him.
“He’s always the first one in there if someone does something well on the field – that’s been noted around the club and in team meetings.”
ZACH MERRETT
“He’s always working hard on his game. Hirdy always singled him out as being a bloke who goes above and beyond in trying to get better. He’s always working on his craft, which is why he’s had a good amount of reward for it over the last two years.
“He’s pretty similar to his brother in that he’s pretty serious, but the way they play is pretty different. Obviously athletically they’re a bit different too.”
St Kilda’s David Armitage on…
JACK NEWNES
“He’s in our leadership group and rightly so – he just oozes leadership. He’s a hard, tough kid and a great fella. That sums him up.
“He’s relentless on the field. He’s probably touted as a future captain as well. He’s been exceptional for us, and he’s continued to grow and his footy’s gone to another level.”
BILLY LONGER
“Big Billy’s a different unit. He’s definitely the most likely to fall asleep in meetings. But he’s a real competitor, hates losing and is a tough kid. He’s got a lot of improvement left in him and he’ll be really good for us in the future.
“We’ve got pretty good chemistry out there and probably the best thing is we hold each other accountable. If he doesn’t hit it where I expect I’ll let him know, and if I’m not where he expects me to be, he’ll let me know. We’ve got a good relationship where we challenge each other like that, and I think that’s the way to go.”
North Melbourne’s Jack Ziebell on…
Ben Brown
“The boys love him; he’s a great guy and works really hard.
“He’s pretty athletic for his size, I think he’s 200cm – he’s a big boy – and only played 20-odd games.
“His main impact on the side is up forward where he runs and jumps at the footy, he can really take a grab. He’s kicked some big goals for us too, especially in finals last year.”