Maverick Weller was picked up by Gold Coast in 2010 and now plays for St Kilda. Tom Langdon made a huge impression in his first season at Collingwood this year, playing 19 games.
Their younger siblings are now Freo Dockers after the club selected them at last Thursday’s AFL National Draft.
Lachie and Ed have received very comparable advice from their already-established AFL brothers, and the theme was grasping chances.
“He told me it’s a cutthroat industry,” Lachie said of Maverick.
“Obviously ‘Mav’ didn’t quite work up at the Gold Coast Suns, but he never gave up and got a second chance.
“When I moved up to Gold Coast I got to live with him so I got to see first hand what an AFL player goes through and how they live.
“He told me to (put my) head down and work hard.”
Tom Langdon was one of the most impressive first-year players in the league this season after being picked up in 2013, but in 2012 he encountered great disappointment when he was not selected.
Ed said that experience taught his brother an important lesson; one he has already passed on.
“Tom experienced not getting drafted and then he worked hard and ended up getting drafted,” he said.
“He’s taught me a lot in the past two years, especially the past year.
“He said don’t take anything for granted, make the most of your opportunities and work as hard as possible.”
Ed did not watch last Thursday’s draft.
“Tom did that his first year and it was a pretty tough experience for him and the family when he didn’t get picked up,” he said.
“I thought I’d sit in the car and listen to it on the radio with my girlfriend.”
