Lloyd Meek has achieved his AFL dream after being selected by Fremantle Dockers with pick 69 in the AFL Draft on Friday night.
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The Greater Western Victoria Rebels ruckman was the only player selected from the TAC Cup team, with the selection coming as a surprise to the 19-year-old from Mininera.
“All of us were pretty messy from crying, mum and dad were so happy and proud of me and it was just amazing,” he said.
“I got a few winks of sleep last night and now excitement is the overriding emotion.
“When my name was called out it was a massive wave of relief and excitement and lots of other emotions then I started getting messages from some members of the Dockers’ leadership group which was just surreal.”
The selection was a reward for not giving up on his dream after he went undrafted in the 2016 draft.
Meek returned to the Rebels to play another year and focused on developing some of his weaker areas which paid off when his name was called out in the fourth round.
The former SMW Rovers player has already spoken to Fremantle coach Ross Lyon and will start his AFL career at his first preseason session in Perth on Monday.
The 19-year-old said he was grateful for all the support he has received from everyone around him.
“I owe the Rebels so much, Fitzy (coach Gerard FitzGerald and Parto (talent manager Phil Partington) and Orren Stephenson for what they have helped me achieve,” he said.
“I think it is just the nature of the industry that some are drafted and some aren’t.
“They are all such strong characters and I have no doubt they will all continue to put in work to achieve their AFL dreams.”
The 202cm recruit will continue his development under All-Australian Aaron Sandilands and Sean Darcy, something he is excited about.
“The sort of character I am, I am always going to learn from as many people as I can and Fremantle have had some great ruckmen and coaches along the way,” he said.
“I have not really sat down and thought about what I want to achieve next year, for me it is just getting through preseason right now,” he said.
“It will be one of the biggest ones I have ever done, so I just want to get in there, earn the respect of everyone and just get stuck into training.”
The die-hard Cats fan said the family might have to get used to supporting a different team now.
“We have all grown up as Geelong but that has all changed now, I think everyone is going for Fremantle now,” he said.
The ruck prospect spoke to about half the clubs throughout the year with no club talking to him more than twice. Meek is the second AFL recruit in the past two years from the Ararat region.