The GIANTS have secured PM Capital GIANTS Academy players Jack Steele and Jeremy Finlayson at today’s NAB AFL Academy Players Bidding Meeting.
The GIANTS will select Steele with pick 23 in next month's NAB AFL Draft after the club matched a second-round bid from North Melbourne. Finlayson will join the GIANTS with the club's final draft pick after no other clubs bid on him.
Steele, from Belconnen in the ACT, has impressed in the PM Capital GIANTS Academy and will join the GIANTS as an Academy selection player.
The 18-year old is a medium sized forward/midfielder with good marking ability, impressive poise and balance and is clever around goals.
He was named the Most Valuable Player for the NSW/ACT Rams in this year's NAB AFL Under-18 Championships and selected in the 2014 Under-18 All Australian team.
2014 was a busy year for Steele who represented the UWS GIANTS and Belconnen in the NEAFL and was awarded the PM Capital Academy Player of the Year at last month’s Kevin Sheedy Medal presentation.
Steele will become the second player from Canberra on the GIANTS list, joining co-captain Phil Davis, who grew up in the ACT. The GIANTS play four games a year in Canberra as part of a 10-year partnership with the ACT.
Finlayson is a 195cm mobile forward who also has the ability to play in defence, on the wing and in the ruck.
The 18-year old grew up in Culcairn in the Riverina and came through the PM Capital GIANTS Academy before moving to Sydney and playing for the UWS GIANTS and Sydney Hills Eagles in the NEAFL.
Finlayson is one of four players who spent a week with the GIANTS in January this year and was mentored by GIANTS forward Jeremy Cameron.
GIANTS List Manager Stephen Silvagni said: “We are delighted to secure Jack and Jeremy as Academy selection players.
“They’re both young players with bright futures from our zones in Canberra and southern NSW and a great example of the benefits of the Academy system in NSW and QLD to identify and develop local talent.
"They are growing the talent pool for the game across Australia but, importantly, they have earned their selection on merit and hard work.
“We’ve already seen Zac Williams and Jake Barrett progress from the PM Capital GIANTS Academy in recent years and it’s fantastic that Jack and Jeremy will join these players at the GIANTS."
Dream Academy
The GIANTS have secured PM Capital GIANTS Academy players Jack Steele and Jeremy Finlayson at today’s NAB AFL Academy Players Bidding Meeting.