THE wait is nearly over for another generation of Australian Football League hopefuls, with the 2021 National Draft taking place over two nights this week.

The National Draft will begin at 7pm tomorrow evening with the first round of selections and conclude on Thursday evening with any remaining picks.

91 picks have been distributed amongst the 18 AFL clubs for this National Draft, with approximately 60 players expected to be selected.

More than 800 footballers have nominated for this year’s National Draft and among them are a handful of locals who have emerged from south west Victoria’s grassroots football community.

Josh Rentsch (Penshurst), Hamish Sinnott (Camperdown) and Marcus Herbert (South Warrnambool) have all entered nominations after impressive seasons within the NAB League under-19 competition, as has another Greater Western Victoria player – 18-year-old Portlander Jamo Ballantyne.

Ballantyne, who is a recently graduated student from Portland Secondary College, is also hoping to have his name on an AFL list by the end of this week after a big year of football.

“I’m in a really good place at the moment, I know that I’ve done everything I can this year to put myself in a position to be selected and it’s out of my hands from now on,” he said.

“I’m happy with the work that I’ve put in and it’s a pretty freeing feeling knowing that it’s up to the clubs and the order of the draft and how it all unfolds.

“Sometimes my mind starts racing a million miles-a-minute but I’ve got a good plan of attack for the last few weeks, so we’re nearly finished.”

Despite the challenges of both VCE studies and the on-going impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Ballantyne has found a way to rocket into contention for selection after a big year at representative level.

Ballantyne started on the wing in all 10 of Greater Western Victoria’s matches this year and played a key role in seven of those matches ending in wins.

He was selected for the Victoria Country squad that was due to play in the AFL’s Under-19 National Championships, and took part in the AFL Victoria Country Draft Combine in early October.

Over the past week, Ballantyne has attended one last combined training session between the Victoria Country and Victoria Metro squads and attended an additional camp where he got the chance to meet a handful of AFL icons.

“We had a session on Monday with the Vic Metro and Vic Country boys and that was great,” he said.

“That was one last chance to have a kick in front of a few selectors from AFL clubs, but the mood was pretty relaxed and it didn’t feel like you were being put under too much examination.

“It was great seeing all the boys in action again, everyone was really happy to get out and about together after two or so months apart.

“I got the chance to attend the Red Bull Utility over Thursday and Friday and that was pretty special.

“We got to meet Travis Boak (Port Adelaide) for a questions and answers session and he spoke to us a lot about the weight of expectation when it comes to this time of year for young players hoping to make it.

“After that we had a session with Ben Crowe (director of Mojo) who gave us a session on mental health and motivation.

“I got a lot out of that, it was really interesting and addressed a lot of tools to work with when it comes to the same topic, the weight of expectation.

“On Friday we met up with Christian Petracca (Melbourne premiership player) at the MCG and that was great.

“We had a tour of the venue and going out onto the ground when the stadium was empty gave me chills.

“Christian was really relaxed and so down-to-earth, and he gave us some really cool insight into how he approaches his career and his fitness, it was interesting the way he spoke about making the most out of his mornings and getting into the gym early on.

“It’s something that’s clearly worked for him in recent years given how his career has progressed and knowing that he’s only 25-years-old, I think for a few of the boys it just made the dream of playing footy seem even more achievable because there isn’t that much separating us from him at all.”

Selection this week will come down to a huge range of factors, from how private interviews with AFL clubs have unfolded, how recruiters have graded a player’s performance at representative level and perhaps most importantly, the order in which players of certain prototypes are selected.

Ballantyne is classed as a tall midfielder and has drawn praise at different levels this season for his running patterns and elite endurance, and at the Draft Combine he ranked top five in Australia in the two-kilometre time trial.

While tall midfielders with elite running abilities are a unique class of player, there’s still more than a few available in this year’s National Draft and the way in which early selections unfold will have a large impact on whether or not Ballantyne is selected.

Ballantyne said he was prepared for either outcome.

“Whether I get selected or not, I know that next year I’ll still be trying to play quality football at the highest level possible,” he said.

“It’s my dream to play in the AFL but if it’s not meant to happen like this then so be it, I love playing the game and I’ll be playing next year at the highest standard that’s open to me.

“A number of people have spoken to me in recent weeks about how the National Draft isn’t the end of the line in terms of making it, and that a lot of players come through different pathways after missing out.

“I love playing footy and that’s what I’ll be doing next year regardless of how this week unfolds.”