Swan Districts AFL Draftee – Darcy Jones

Darcy Jones had heard that the GWS Giants were on the lookout for a lively small forward and he couldn’t be happier to have been drafted there as he now looks ahead to beginning life in the AFL.

Jones burst onto the scene throughout 2022 at Swan Districts beginning in the colts, going on to play for Western Australia's State 18s team and then showing exciting signs at league level in the WAFL late in the season.

Then at the Draft Combine, he beat the long-standing agility record of Stephen Hill to attract the attention of AFL clubs around the country, and it was the Giants who snapped him up at the AFL Draft with selection No. 21.

The 18-year-old excitement machine who might only stand 175cm tall but can have a significant impact with all his tricks did have an inkling the Giants were keen on him, and he couldn’t be happier to be heading there now.

"I seriously couldn't be happier. I love GWS and always have, and it's just a special time to be going there. I can't wait to meet all the boys and get started. I'm super grateful for the opportunity," Jones said.

"Obviously I'm seriously rapt to be part of the Giants. I honestly wasn’t expecting it, but I'm super glad it happened and super grateful.

"I did speak to the Giants straight after the combine and my manager explained that they were after one of four smalls in the draft. I happened to be one of them and I ended up being the first one which was good to hear."

As he now embarks on his AFL journey with the Giants, Jones can't be more thankful to Swan Districts for the help and support they've provided him to now get to live out his dream.

"Swans have been huge for me especially going back from the start of the colts when I started to pick up my footy," he said.

"They've been huge, they've done everything really for me with the gym, running and everything to do with my footy.

"Then playing those three games at league level, I think I was ready for that by that stage and it does give me a bit of confidence about what it can happen when I use my speed and agility that it will hold me in good stead."

Jones played a lot of football in the midfield or on the wing in the colts at Swan Districts, but at league level late in the season showed his capabilities as a small forward.

In time, he imagines himself being able to play on the wing or off half-back if he is able to find a spot in the AFL team at the Giants, but to start with he might need to lock into focusing on being a crafty small forward.

"Last year for my colts underage year I played a whole season as a wingman and I loved it. I think it kind of suited me so I think that might be a possibility for me to do again in the near future," Jones said.

"I think for the start I'll be a small forward I'd say where I can just learn that role, and learn off the club and the other players there.

"I think I'll be a bit of a half-forward to start and maybe in the near future I could potentially play on the wing or half-back or anywhere to be honest. I don’t really know where they see me or what they are thinking, but if I had to guess I'd start there at half-forward."

Getting the chance to play three league matches for Swan Districts late in the WAFL season is another thing that Jones feels will only help him adjust to life in the AFL quickly.

"It was unreal getting to play those league games. I'm so glad I was lucky enough to get those games and it was a good eye-opener," he said.

"I'm extremely fortunate for that and I think i didn’t find it too hard because they weren’t paying me too much attention.

"They'd never seen me before and thought I was quite small and could let me do my thing so that's why I was able to have quite a bit of it before they locked me down a bit in that last game I played with Swans."

As for what happened on draft night, Jones wasn’t expecting to be selected in the first round so it wasn’t one of those big draft parties planned with the wild celebrations.

However, he did have a slight inkling that the Giants might take him with that pick 21 to close the night and the moment was able to be captured where his name was announced.

"Honestly not much was going on at home on draft night," Jones said.

"None of us expected us to go that first night and I had planned on having a few mates over on the second night when I thought I might have been more a chance.

"It was literally just a couple of family members who were over and it was a bit of a shock to the system when I heard my name called out.

"When it did happen, it was pretty special and we actually got the camera out for the last pick just in case and managed to capture it all on film. It looks like everyone had just seen a ghost but it was a pretty amazing moment."