Pull Quote
“I’ve dreamt about this ever since I could dream,” Western Bulldogs recruit Zac Walker.
From the Phillip Island kennel to the Western Bulldogs kennel.
Last Wednesday night was a dream come true for Gippslander Zac Walker who was selected by his childhood club, Western Bulldogs, at pick 12 in the Mid-Season Rookie Draft.
The 19-year-old was viewed as an outside chance to be selected going into the night, though he had been interviewed and completed a medical at Whitten Oval.
It was positive pandemonium at his Phillip Island house when his name flashed on the Mid-Season Draft livestream, confirming he was bound for an AFL list.
The eight mates with which he watched the AFL Draft with swarmed him as Walker tried to absorb his new reality.
“I was pretty numb for the first 30 seconds after the boys jumped on me and after that I was a bit emotional and full of excitement,” Walker said.
“It was a dream come true.
“It’s such a long journey so to finally get the reward of being on an AFL list is crazy.
“My whole life, I’ve always dreamt of playing alongside ‘the Bont’ (Marcus Bontempelli) or even just being in the same room as him, and now I get to live that out.
“Ever since I could talk, I’d tell everyone I want to play for the Dogs.”
Just two weeks ago, Walker was a typical 19-year-old who made his coin by working at the San Remo Hotel and Newhaven College while playing footy on weekends.
Last Thursday, he was flocked by hundreds of students seeking his autograph when he went into Newhaven College to farewell everyone and officially resign.
Rewind six months, he had never even played a Coates League game, nor been listed by the Gippsland Power.
AFL footy was a pipe dream.
Friday was Walker’s first day in at Whitten Oval and he moved in with fellow Mid-Season draftee Michael Sellwood, from Peel, on Sunday.
Given Sellwood was the first player selected by the Dogs and plays a similar position to Walker, he doubted whether they would take a punt on him.
“It was insane,” Walker said.
“I knew a few things needed to go my way and they did.
“I’ll give 100 per cent to every training session and I definitely won’t take anything for granted because I know how special it is.
“I’ve dreamt about this ever since I could dream.”
After suffering a head knock a fortnight ago in his last game for Gippsland, Walker entered 21-day community concussion protocols, so his Footscray VFL debut is set for Friday 13 June against Frankston.
A development player unlikely to feature at AFL level in the short-term, Walker nominated an 18-month contract but has shown flashes of brilliance which suggest he’ll excite Dogs fans in the future.
An athletic, intercept marking dynamo, Walker has developed his kicking in recent times, given it was cited as the reason he missed Gippsland’s squad in 2023 and 2024.
“The God-given stuff and stuff he does well is really tough to teach,” Gippsland coach Rhett McLennan said.
“His ability to impact and to stop possession chains from the opposition is a natural thing that he’s got.
“He knows how to take the ball at its highest point, he knows how to attack a contest with full energy and the other thing we didn’t see much of this season but he definitely has, is genuine leg-speed.
“Zac getting drafted a testament to a kid who wants to work on his craft and get better.
“He never whinged about not making a list, he just asked what he needed to do, and he did it with us and away from us at his home club.”
Walker has also built sturdy resilience given those setbacks, going back to local club Phillip Island and influencing results across a three season span despite his young age.
McLennan noted the significant benefit several Gippslanders get from the exposure that local clubs afford them to play senior footy.
“I think it’s a huge benefit and the people you have at your disposal at local football clubs who are willing to invest time into people like Zac,” McLennan added.
“I don’t think it should be lost on his story that Cam Pedersen, Beau Vernon, Jamie Taylor and the guys at the Phillip Island Football Club had a massive impact on his development and welfare with the time they put in.
“It’s a really good advertisement for how football clubs can be a really positive environment – if you’re willing to do the work, there’s people there with knowledge willing to put in the time.”
Taking out the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition Rising Star in 2024 under the coaching of Cam Pedersen was the perfect footnote for Walker’s playing days at the club.
“Phillip Island, I owe everything to them,” Walker added.
“No matter where I am in the future, I’ll always find time to get back down there because they’ve given me every opportunity since I was a little kid to succeed and I think if I wasn’t at a club as great as Phillip Island, I wouldn’t be sitting here saying I’m on an AFL list.”
