The race for the 2018 AFL Rising Star award is starting to pick up. Over the first 15 weeks, we've seen young guns such as Adelaide's Tom Doedee, Brisbane's Alex Witherden and Sydney's Oliver Florent all been in amongst the discussion of who will win the award this year, but as it currently stands, Collingwood's young gun Jaidyn Stephenson is the outright favourite to claim the honours this year after a 2018 campaign that I can only describe as sensational and electric.
Stephenson's road to the AFL has been one of the more fascinating tales in recent memory and as the season unfolds, is shaping into one of the more feel-good stories of the year.
Heading into the AFL Draft last year, Stephenson had been one of a few youngsters that were in the running to be the number one pick in the Draft, which was held by the Brisbane Lions. The biggest asset in his game is that he likes to run. He's naturally quick and combine that with a good goal-sense, his intensity and his football IQ, there was no doubt that there was a potential number one draft pick. If he didn't go to the Lions at one, then looked like a lock to be a top-five pick at least.
Then came somewhat of a shock. Just days before the 2017 AFL Draft, it was revealed to the Football world that Stephenson had a rare heart condition which required medication. This forced all AFL clubs to re-think whether or not taking him was the right move. All of a sudden draft experts had him ranging from outside the top five to late in the first round, which is a massive fall from grace. Whilst Stephenson believed that the heart condition didn't affect his footy, it seemed that recruiters were far from convinced.
However, enter Collingwood, who eventually took the gamble on him with the sixth overall pick in the draft. With their next pick not until the 39th overall selection, it was a risky move, but it was one that the Pies needed to do. They finished the 2017 season in 13th position and there was a lot of talk at the time that Nathan Buckley's job was in serious jeopardy. Not even a two-year extension could've toned down the rumours. The Pies had been struggling for a while now and had not played finals since 2013.
It looks like this year could finally change all that. From selecting Stephenson with the sixth pick in the Draft, the Pies have finally formed a forward line that emulates that of the two previous premiership winners. Stephenson is part of a mosquito fleet that includes Josh Thomas (24 goals in 14 games), who was once given a two year ban for doping and Will Hoskin-Elliott (30 goals in 14 games) who is arguably in the best form of his career.
Stephenson's career to date is shaping up as a great debut season in itself. Having played every game for the Pies in season 2018, he has kicked 24.11 for the year and is only behind Hoskin-Elliott in the club's goal-kicking. This season has seen him bag a career-high five goals against Adelaide in Adelaide, which is pretty damn impressive, whichever way you're seeing the Crows this season. He has also tallied a bag of four against Melbourne on Queen's Birthday, which again is very impressive considering it's a marquee game in front of a massive crowd and Melbourne are no scrub team.
Furthermore, the Pies are playing such a wonderful brand of football at the present time. Whether you love them or you hate them, it's hard to deny that Stephenson has played a fair part in their resurgence up the ladder and after 15 rounds, they sit second on the ladder, just one game behind Richmond. Which makes his season all the more impressive – How many first-year players can say that they can do what Stephenson has done in a team staring down a spot in the top four?
Here's some trivia which could prove his worth down the line. In a list of goals kicked by a top-10 pick from the previous draft in their first season, Stephenson sits third. Four goals behind John Hutton in 1992 and seven behind Graham Wright in 1988. What's even more astounding about this fact is that he is nine goals ahead of Lance Franklin's 13 goals in his debut year of 2005, and we all know the end result of that. The bottom line is that Stephenson is a future star of competition, and I don't blame some experts for going as far as to say that he's just about locked in the Rising Star award this year.
However, there is one player that I believe is making a serious push to challenge Stephenson for the award this year. Some might be thinking of Sydney's Ollie Florent, who I maintain will be a gun in the future, but I don't think that will happen unless he can consistently put in games like he did against St. Kilda and against West Coast in rounds 12 and 13.
Strangely enough, the young man I'm talking about has got a Collingwood connection. His grandfather is Ron Richards, who played in Collingwood's 1953 premiership and played 143 games for the Pies between 1947-56. His great uncle is none other than Hall of Famer Lou Richards. 250 games for the Pies including captaining the 1953 premiership and led the Pies' goalkicking in three seasons – 1944, 1948 and 1950.
Collingwood could've got Richards with their sixth pick and continue on the Richards' name, but for someone that only bolted up the draft boards with a strong back-end to the state under-18 competition, the Pies liked Stephenson's potential more, and prayed that he was available with their second pick. This of course, didn't eventuate, and the Bulldogs pounced on him with the 16th pick, which was another story altogether.
Pick 16 was acquired through the whole Jake Stringer debacle. With the Bulldogs receiving picks 25 and 30 for the out-of-favour forward in the final day of the trade period. Pick 30 was on-traded to Carlton along with pick 28 and a 2018 second-round pick in exchange for the 16th pick along with pick 40. Essentially, Jake Stringer was traded for Ed Richards along with former number two draft pick Josh Schache – who was acquired in literally the last second of the trade period from Brisbane.
However, the Blues were also very keen on Richards, seeing him as someone they could use with the 10th overall pick. It was a toss-up between him and another talented kid by the name of Lochie O'Brien. The decision was made easier for the Blues when Richards was reportedly 40 minutes late to an interview with Carlton coach Brendan Bolton and list manager Stephen Silvagni, and they chose O'Brien.
A few picks later, Richards landed at the Bulldogs, which was the best result possible for then-recruiter Simon Dalrymple, who landed his top two targets in the draft with their first two picks before packing his bags for Sydney. Dalrymple believed that Richards' pace, footy smarts and skill with the ball in hand would make him the perfect replacement for veteran defenders Matthew Boyd and Robert Murphy, both of whom had just retired.
After making his debut in the round two loss to West Coast, in another sense of irony, it was in round 10 against Collingwood that saw Richards' have a career night on the half-back line. On a night where the Bulldogs struggled, particularly in the second half, it was the emergence of this red-haired young lad that got Bulldogs fans something to smile about. He recorded 23 disposals, five inside 50s, four marks and four tackles to be one of the Doggies' best players on that night.
Before that night, Richards had played eight of the Dogs' nine games and had shown in patches that he could become a legitimate player in due time. He proved that he could run and create off half-back and he could hit a target. But since his nomination, it feels as if his game has risen another level or two.
Following the bye, Richards was moved forward, which had often been their weakness this season, in their game against Port Adelaide in the second quarter after the side was dominated in the opening term. He made an instant impact, kicking three goals in the second term to trim the deficit from 34 points at quarter time to 25 points at half time. Although they got done by 57 points at the end of it all. Supporters found out that the kid could play forward as well as his natural position in defence.
A couple of weeks later, Richards once again found himself making a huge impact on the contest. He kicked three very important goals as the Bulldogs broke a nine-year drought against Geelong. He slotted home the first of the match, followed by two goals in the fourth quarter – both kicks giving the Dogs' back the lead in what was a see-sawing contest.
One of those two final quarter goals featured a brilliant piece of play which saw him contest with Geelong's Jake Kolodjashnij inside attacking 50 and then with another Cat defender closing in, kicked it off the Etihad Stadium turf and it tumbled over the goal line, prompting Channel Seven commentator Bruce McAvaney to laud his football smarts. Looking at his game on Friday, he looked equally as home up forward than he does in the back-line, which is a pretty good thing for a player these days, as versatility is key in a footballer.
There are eight games to go in the AFL season before a winner for the Rising Star award is announced, and there is still time for the talented boy to make strong claims as he has done so over the past month and a bit. He would be the third Bulldog in the span of five seasons to seriously contend for the award. Caleb Daniel finished runner-up to Sydney's Callum Mills in 2016 and of course Marcus Bontempelli infamously finished runner-up to Brisbane's Lewis Taylor in 2014.
History could be doomed to repeat itself and see Richards finish runner-up to Stephenson in 2018 – it's a strange pattern when you think about it. But then again, anything could happen from now until the end of season. For those of you that have already locked in Jaidyn Stephenson for the Rising Star award or are just about set on it – don't do it. There is still a fair bit to play out and the competition is just picking up some steam.