Meet the Canberra Demons' greatest AFL draft hopes.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
There's the "Mirroul magician" Mitch Maguire, whose family live 258 kilometres away but never miss a game. There's Mitch Hardie, the Riverina kid that landed in Canberra because Kade Klemke took a shot in the dark. There's Sydney products Angus Baker and Jarrod Osborne. And then there is Alex Paech, who only came to Canberra because Klemke just wouldn't stop calling.
They are the club's five NEAFL Rising Star nominees set to play a key role in Canberra's first finals appearance in a sudden-death showdown against Sydney University at Blacktown International Sportspark on Saturday.
But the 20-year-old would trade the award and NEAFL team of the year selection in for a premiership medal. The ultimate team success will put the star quintet's names up in lights ahead of the AFL draft.
"Anyone who plays NEAFL, it’s in the back of their minds all the time," Maguire said.
"You’re playing in a high standard of footy so there is always going to be something looking at you. It’s definitely in the back of my mind, I’d love to get picked up by a club but I’m realistic too in knowing you’ve just got to go out each week and try and put my best foot forward, then whatever happens, happens.
"I’m happy at the Demons too, if I was to not get drafted. I’m enjoying my footy there and I’m studying. I just roll with the flow, whatever happens happens.
"It’s going to be unreal if we could manage to win this week and get ourselves into a prelim final, you never know what could happen from there. I can’t wait, it’s a big opportunity for a lot of us and I’m super excited about it."
The elimination final winner moves on to face the Sydney Swans next week for a spot in the grand final. The loser can start preparing for next season.
The Demons know they can match it with the best - they were sitting first a month ago, but haven't won a game since to slide to sixth. However that means the blue-collar Demons can slot into the underdog role they played so well for the bulk of the year in their remarkable rise to title contention.
"The last four weeks we’ve probably placed too much pressure on ourselves, and being a young group it’s pretty tough to handle all that," Maguire said.
"It’s been a pretty good vibe around the joint this week, training has been really good and everyone is up and about. We’re going into the game with no pressure on us, we’re probably the underdogs this time in.
"Considering last year, I wasn’t there in the first year either, but we were the pushovers of the competition. Sides would come up against us and think ‘today is an easier game’, they’d pencil themselves down as a win.
"We’ve come a massive way this year and it’s bloody awesome actually, it’s a really good environment. A winning environment is better than a losing one."
Canberra will be without Tom Faul (hamstring) and ruckman Cameron Milne (concussion) against the Students, with Alex Smout, Nathan Richards and Ben Halse all set to return.
NEAFL ELIMINATION FINAL
Saturday: Sydney University v Canberra Demons at Blacktown International Sportspark, 12pm. Live stream on NEAFL TV. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXhheiAvDrk
SYDNEY UNIVERSITY
B: 16. Ryan Hebron, 24. Tim Barton, 34. Samuel Barkley
HB: 41. Adam Gulden, 25. Nathan Cooper, 1. Jack Hiscox
C: 18. Jack Dimery, 42. Jake Bartholomaeus, 26. William Sierakowski
HF: 4. Austin Lucy, 33. Tristan Davies, 8. Damien Bonney
F: 15. Tom Young, 9. Jacob Derickx, 5. Zac O’Brien
Foll: 22. Sam Tagliabue, 3. Craig Bird, 21. Lewis Stevenson
Inter: 31. Ned Reinhard, 11. Nick Foster, 23. Callum McFadden, 17. Jackson Potter, 12. Aaron Day
Emer: 32. Joshua Burke, 10. Mitchell Thompson, 14. Monty Krochmal
CANBERRA
B: 35. Tom Highmore, 2. Alex Paech, 18. Angus Baker
HB: 25. Sam Martyn, 15. Jack Baker, 6. Kade Klemke
C: 36. Lucas Meline, 24. Alex Smout, 9. Jack Powell
HF: 10. Reed Stevens, 4. Aaron Bruce, 16. Mitch Hardie
F: 17. Jarrod Osborne, 45. Harrison Carr, 23. Ben Fulford
Foll: 19. Nathan Richards, 8. Mitch Maguire, 1. Isaac Taylor
Inter: 37. Riley Budd, 21. Matt Vardanega, 7. Connor Owen-Auburn, 29. Ben Halse, 44. Guy Richardson
Emer: 28. Nathan Oakes, 5. Nick Collins, 34. Luke Robertson
