WA draft prospect Jed Hagan has already had a glimpse into what life could be like as a senior footballer before being picked up by an AFL club.
While the highest level of football the utility has played is at the WAFL level with East Fremantle, Geelong great Harry Taylor has made sure that Hagan will be ready if his name is called out later this month at the National Draft.
With Hagan hailing from Taylor’s hometown Geraldton, the Geelong great took it upon himself to take the youngster under his wing after moving back home in 2021.
As Hagan’s WAFL club is situated more than four hours from his hometown, he couldn’t thank Taylor enough for helping him keep his training standards high during the off-season.
“I can’t thank Harry enough for what he’s done really,” Hagan said on SEN WA The Run Home.
“He’s just been massive for mainly the footy side of things.
“Last year I was back in Geraldton and as you know everyone back in Perth is training in their groups and I sort of felt like I was on my own a little bit here.
“You can train at the Brigades (Football Club), there is an East Fremantle mid-west academy but it’s just not the same.
“Harry took me under his wing and just basically went along for the ride with him that whole year and just trained and went through vision.
“His main thing was just to give me an insight into what an AFL system could look like.
“So, I think I’m pretty prepared just from his information really, learning from the best like him should hold me in good stead.”
The 175cm impact player could be taken as early as the second round of this year’s draft.
The teenager enjoyed a dominant junior career having broken into East Fremantle’s Colts side aged just 15 before being named an All-Australian at the Under-18 National Championships.