It wasn’t quite the ideal start to living out his childhood dream when young GIANT Xavier O’Halloran joined the club at the end of 2018, but he can’t wait to see what season 2020 brings.

O’Halloran was a first-round draft pick in the 2018 NAB AFL Draft, along with teammates Jye Caldwell and Jackson Hately.

However, a knee injury sidelined the then 18-year-old for over three months during the early rounds of the GIANTS’ 2019 campaign.

At the time the injury was the worst possible thing in the eyes of the new recruit, but he reflects back on that time as one of the biggest learning curves so far in his short career and is somewhat grateful for it.

“Being out of the game was a big change for me,” he said.

“Before moving up here I’d never really been injured before – maybe missed one week max.

“I think that time out of the game really helped me develop as a player in a different way though.

“You see the little things that you might not see when you’re just going with the flow out there. The attention to detail, the rehab exercises, the stretches and the recovery – it’s quite interesting.”

Despite his setbacks in 2019, O’Halloran said his body is fit and fighting and he is enjoying a tough but good second take at a GIANTS pre-season.

“We’ve been back for a few solid weeks of training now and us second year boys are starting to go into a bit more depth in terms of training loads which is good,” he said.

“I didn’t do too much of a pre-season last year, but from what I saw there is definitely a bit of a jump in terms of what is happening on-field, in the gym and the expectations on us. 

“I think we’re all coping really well though.

“We had our year to adjust and get use to the swing of things, we’re not the new kids anymore, so now we can really have a crack and start to develop our professionalism.”

O’Halloran’s form in the NEAFL was impressive in the lead up to his unfortunate setback. 

The 186cm midfielder featured in the best players in his last three games before he was sidelined. 

From his time in the NEAFL, both pre and post injury, O’Halloran averaged 20.3 disposals, 14.8 kicks and 5.9 marks.

A senior debut is always the peak aspiration for budding players that enter an AFL club. 

The dream could become the reality for the 19-year-old who said remaining 100 per cent fit will give him the best chance of making the cut.

“I’ve just got to make sure I’m doing my extras, staying in touch with the coaches, watching vision, those sorts of things,” O’Halloran said.

“The games I got to play (in NEAFL) last year were a really good experience and just being able to watch the AFL side closely and how they train and their professionalism has just helped me come into this year with a strong mindset. 

“We’ve got one of the strongest midfields in the competition, so I just try to learn and modify my game off them every opportunity I get.

“My body is feeling good, so I’m just hoping to continue pre-season strong and come out and play some good footy.”