Wil Parker has joined Collingwood as a Category B rookie.
The 21-year-old has opted to focus on footy after playing Sheffield Shield cricket as a leg-spinner for Victoria and in the BBL with the Hobart Hurricanes in recent years.
Parker played his Under-18 footy with the Eastern Ranges where he was coached by Essendon legend Darren Bewick.
Bewick says if all went to plan, Parker might have been a first-round draft pick in 2020 had COVID not impacted football around Australia.
“I’m really excited for him, for a start,” Bewick said on SEN Breakfast.
“He’s a ripping kid who comes from a really good family. (Parker’s uncle Geoff is the national recruiting manager at Port Adelaide who is also a former Victorian and South Australian cricketer).
“He was touted as probably a first-round pick. He played in a couple of games as a 16-year-old at Eastern Ranges. He played a full year in 2019 and played in the Grand Final side. He then started pre-season in 2020 but obviously COVID interrupted everything.
“He was tracking really good. As I said, he was touted as a first-round pick and I would have thought as the year went on he probably might have been a bit higher.”
What type of footballer is Parker?
Bewick describes him as a clever half-back with nice skills who makes great decisions on the field.
“He didn't play through the midfield a lot. A couple of times we tried to put him through, but because of his cricket commitments, his pre-season wasn't a full one all the time,” he added.
“So it took a few games to get into it in that 2019 season. He was an intercepting half-back. He was a beautiful kick, an elite kick.
“He saw the game really well and was able to use the ball (well), his decision-making is really high. Off half-back he caused a little bit of damage.
“He wasn't athletically gifted. Because of his lack of pre-season due to the cricket, the commitment that he had in summer, it took him a little while, but he had power.
“He kicked the ball long distances, the game slowed down a little bit for him.
“He could see things happening and his decision-making was really good.”
According to Bewick, the talented multi-talented sportsman made a decision on his future back in 2020 based on that NAB League (Coates Talent League) season being cancelled due to COVID.
“That was part of the reason why Wil decided to go down the cricket path because the NAB League, as it was then, got called off and he had nowhere to show what he could do,” Bewick said further.
“He had no avenue to show what he could do with his footy. So, the cricket was there for that summer coming up.
“There's a lot of kids in 2021 who I don't think were able to develop to their full potential.
“It’s been seen in the draft that a lot of those boys have taken a while to adjust to the AFL system and show what they can do.”
Parker is the latest player to be added to Collingwood’s list after they signed Lachie Sullivan, Jack Bytel and Josh Eyre via the Pre-Season Supplementary Selection Period (SSP).
He follows fellow former cricketer James O’Donnell onto an AFL list after he joined the Western Bulldogs last year.
Listen to Bewick on Parker below:
