The excitement was building back stage at Marvel Stadium on Wednesday night as Freo went back-to-back-to-back with picks seven, eight and nine at the 2019 NAB AFL National Draft.

Hayden Young, Freo’s first selection at no.7, had his eyes glued to the TV screens in between signing footballs, having his photo taken, doing interviews for TV and chatting to new senior coach Justin Longmuir.

When his Vic Country teammate, and good friend Caleb Serong, was drafted at no.8, Young let out his first fist-pump as a Freo Docker.

“I was watching pretty closely when I saw Freo had the next pick and there was a huge sense of relief (when they drafted Serong),” Young said.

“I’m very happy that Cal’s coming across with me because obviously we’ve been great mates for a while now.

“We used to joke about getting drafted at the same club when we were about 16, so for it to become a reality, that’s pretty special.”

The drama continued when Carlton bid on Fremantle NGA player Liam Henry at pick no.9.

The tension built during a long wait as Freo swapped picks with Port Adelaide before matching the bid.

“I hope we match,” Young told Serong at the time.

Both players knew what Henry could do. WA and Vic Country played out the 2019 NAB U18 Championships decider in July, with WA winning and Henry the star with 25 disposals.

They didn’t want to have to play against Henry again, and would have loved to be his teammate.

 

Freo matched the bid as Serong was in an interview with former Carlton and GWS player Dylan Buckley. As soon as Serong was free, Young made a beeline to tell him the news.

More fist-pumps followed.

“I’ve been on the opposing side of Liam Henry and I’m very happy he’s on my team, I can tell you that,” Young said post-draft.

“He’s an electric player and brings a lot of different skill sets. I’m very excited to be on board with Liam.”

The trio went through the craziness of draft night together after their names were called out, going through photoshoots and interviews for more than two hours.

Henry said he felt like he fit in straight away with the Vic Country boys.

“They’re top-notch blokes and I can’t wait to get started with them and see what we can do with the future of the Dockers,” Henry said.

“They’re two different types of players. They’re two blokes I wouldn’t want to be playing against, so it’s magnificent that I’m going to be training with them and being at the same club as them.”