Thirty-two days after being signed by Richmond in the Mid-Season Rookie Draft, Jacob Blight will make his AFL debut.
Thirty-two days after being signed by Richmond in the Mid-Season Rookie Draft, Jacob Blight will make his AFL debut this Sunday against Carlton.
The intercepting defender, who stands at 196cm, was taken by the Tigers last month with pick No. 2 from WAFL club Peel Thunder.
Blight’s competitive nature and professional character caught the eye of Richmond recruiters, who were impressed by his aerial ability and defensive mindset.
The 22-year-old was in fine form in the lead up to becoming a Tiger, producing a standout performance for WAFL against SANFL in a state game at Optus Stadium, in which he took seven intercept marks and had 17 disposals
Blight, who will wear No. 51, has since made a seamless transition into his career at Tigerland, averaging 18.6 disposals, 7.6 marks and 5.6 inside-50s across three appearances, polling coaches votes in two of the games.
Richmond VFL coach Steve Morris said recently that it was pleasing to see Blight “stamp his authority on VFL footy really quickly”.
“He’s just a wonderful kid to work with… (he’s) fitted into the group really well,” Morris told Richmond Media.
“He’s a big body that’s going to help us moving forward.”
Blight was amongst the VFL Tigers’ best in their recent loss to Box Hill, finishing the match with 18 disposals, eight marks and four rebound-50s.
Morris described him as a “wall down back”.
“I thought he gave us an opportunity to win the game by really reducing the impact of their tall forwards,” Morris said.
“He took a number of intercept marks, and his defence was really solid on the day.”
Blight’s AFL debut is the result of many years of hard work and a refusal to give up on his dream.
“I don’t think people realise the years of hard work and the setbacks and everything that goes into that sort of thing… the battles that you have to overcome,” Blight told SEN WA after being signed.
“I sincerely believe I’ll be more than ready to go.”