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Essendon SSP signing hoping for early AFL debut after practice match haul
Lachlan Geleit • February 21st, 2025 9:49 am
Essendon SSP signing Tom Edwards certainly didn’t have your typical journey to landing on an AFL list.
The 24-year-old forward from Swan Districts in the WAFL has been one of the state league’s best players in recent campaigns, leading AFL clubs to show interest in him as he booted 70 goals from his last 37 games at the level.
While some of that interest was shown before 2025, a knee injury and missing a deadline to nominate for a draft meant he continued to be overlooked until the Dons came knocking this off-season.
Even though Edwards gets his chance a little later than he would have liked, he certainly feels there’s plenty of development left in him.
“It’s definitely something that came about a little bit later for me than the typical story of getting drafted as an 18-year-old,” Edwards told SEN WA Breakfast.
“I’ve just been sticking at it and putting the work in at state league level and I feel like I’ve put together a few good years.
“I had a few hiccups along the way, but I still feel like I've got a lot of development to go which is exciting.”
After impressing at training, Edwards stamped his ticket to becoming an AFL player with a strong performance in an unofficial practice match against the Dogs last Saturday where he kicked four goals in a half up forward.
The 191cm left-footer was pleased to be able to play off instinct in that clash and it clearly paid off as he was able to show his wares against top-level opposition.
“I was just trying to stick to the processes,” Edwards said.
“We had a few practice games and intra-clubs where I felt pretty comfortable.
“I knew the structures going into those games, so I was just trying to relax and play my natural game, I guess.
“They were really supportive of me playing off instinct, so that was really good.”
While Edwards would love to make his AFL debut against Gold Coast during Opening Round, he’s taking things one day at a time with his next chance to impress coming against Geelong in an AAMI Community Series clash at GMHBA Stadium next Tuesday.
“I’d like to get an opportunity as early as I can, but at the moment, I'm sort of just focusing on playing Geelong next Tuesday,” Edwards said.
“I’m not sure what level I'll be playing, so I just want to sort of tick that off and see how I go.
“From there, I’ll let all that take care of itself. But it’d definitely be nice to get a crack early.”
Listen to the full chat with Edwards below:
