Star Fremantle midfielder Caleb Serong has been rewarded for his outstanding season with selection in the 2023 All Australian team.
Named on the interchange, Serong has quickly risen to be among the game’s best midfielders at the age of just 22.
As well as leading the AFL for disposals, Serong ranked in the top five for clearances and contested possessions. Earlier in the week, he was named the 2023 Herald Sun Player of the Year.
He said it was hard to wrap his head around earning one of the AFL’s most prestigious honours.
“It’s feels pretty crazy to be honest,” Serong said.
“It’s an amazing feeling but I don’t really know what to say or to think.”
Serong grew up idolising Sydney’s midfield of the 2000s, and now has his name alongside the likes of Josh Kennedy and Adam Goodes as All Australian players.
“They’re guys that I watched growing up and they were superstars of the game,” Serong said.
“To be an All Australian now alongside them, who have been there and done that, it’s pretty cool to think about.
“Even the team this year, I’ve played against them, watched and idolised and learnt a lot from them, so it’s pretty cool.”
Serong is the 13th Fremantle Docker to earn an All Australian selection alongside Matthew Pavlich, Paul Hasleby, Peter Bell, Aaron Sandilands, Luke McPharlin, Michael Johnson, Nat Fyfe, Hayden Ballantyne, David Mundy, Michael Walters, Luke Ryan and Andrew Brayshaw.
He credited Fyfe, Mundy and Brayshaw on his rapid development since he arrived at the Club at no.8 in the 2019 AFL Draft.
Serong said he was particularly inspired seeing Brayshaw’s rise up close – with Brayshaw named in the 2022 All Australian team and winning the Leigh Matthews Trophy as the AFLPA’s MVP.
“The guys around me have helped a lot in Nat Fyfe and David Mundy,” Serong said.
“Andy Brayshaw – seeing what he’s been able to achieve in such a short period of time as a young player, that’s really inspired me, motivated me and given me belief that I can do that too.
“We do a lot of training and push each other to get better every day.”
While Serong was Fremantle’s only All Australian in 2023, he was named in the squad alongside Ryan and Luke Jackson.
“They’re very well-deserved members of the squad,” Serong said.
“Lukey Ryan is extremely consistent for us down back, you can rely on him week in week out to give his all and he’s someone that the boys absolutely love playing with every week.
“Luke Jackson, he’s going to be a special player, he’s only just scratching the surface with what he’s going to be able to do.
“What he’s been able to achieve, especially in the past couple months, has been phenomenal and he’s going to be a superstar player of the comp for years to come which is exciting.”
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