Hugh Dixon’s debut game on Sunday against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval has only made the young forward hungry for more action at the game’s top level.

The 20-year-old showed plenty of promise in his first AFL appearance, including an impressive snap in the final quarter for his first career goal.

 

Dixon joined Fremantle with pick no.44 in the 2017 NAB AFL National Draft and was thrilled to have the chance to debut to wrap up his second year as a Freo Docker.

 

The 196cm big man said the experience would be a motivator for the 2020 season.

 

“It’s massive, it makes me feel like I’ve really accomplished something over the past two years,” Dixon said.

 

“It really fires me up and makes me want to compete even harder and play as many games as I can next year.

 

“It keeps me motivated, now I know what to expect and what I need to do to continue to play at the top level.”

 

Dixon said he the opening few minutes were a surreal experience.

 

“The first quarter was still a bit weird for me - I was sort of a bit star struck but I started to find my ground, run around and get my hands on the ball a bit,” Dixon said.

 

“I settled in quite nicely and it was an unreal feeling out there.”

 

Dixon said he acted on instinct for his final quarter goal, and enjoyed sharing the moment with his teammates.

 

“It was pretty late in the last quarter and I thought that I just wanted to get one in,” Dixon said.

 

“The ball came in to a one-on-one and the ball hit down off my hand onto the ground.

 

“I picked it up, snuck it over my shoulder and it floated through. It was pretty lucky but I’m very happy with it.

 

“That was a great feeling, to have the boys get around me.”

 

Dixon was thankful for his family who travelled from Tasmania for his big day.

 

“I felt really really loved to have everyone come over and support me in my first game,” Dixon said.

 

“It’s a decent crew and it was a really good feeling.”