Coast AFL star hopes for good season
Mon 03 April 2006
Jonathan Williams, Journalism
With one season of AFL football under his belt, Sunshine Coast star Josh Drummond is looking for bigger and better things in 2006.
Drummond created headlines both locally and across the state when he made his debut for the Brisbane Lions in May last year against the high-flying Adelaide Crows. A player in their debut game is not expected to have too much impact - that was not the case for Drummond, picking up 15 possessions.
“It was amazing, I honestly never thought I would play AFL footy and to actually realise that dream and play pretty well was just great,” Drummond said.
That game was a mere stepping stone for the 22-year-old, going on to become a regular face in what by the end of the season was a very young Lions team. While injuries to other players gave him his start in the senior team, there was little doubt where he belonged as the season progressed.
"By the end of the season I did feel a lot more comfortable, although you can’t get too comfortable playing at a top level, especially at the Lions,” he said.
Drummond was primed for a big pre-season, looking to cement a regular place in the team for 2006. However, that has not gone to plan. An ankle injury sidelined him from the start of the pre-season competition the NAB Cup, and he now looks to be out for one or two months following a shoulder injury in the opening game of the season.
As one of the first-ever players from the Sunshine Coast to play AFL at the top level, Drummond has set a precedent for future stars to live up to. He has also proved you do not have to be 18 and straight out of school to get drafted to an AFL club.
There are some schools of thought that believe 22 is too old to make an AFL debut - not so says Drummond. He may in the minority, but is happy the way it worked out.
“Sure I would have loved to have had 30 or 40 more games under my belt, but that’s not the way it worked out. I’m just focused on what I can do now and in the future.”
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