TOMORROW night’s Showdown between Port Adelaide and Adelaide could see a Swan Hill-based subplot influence one of the most heated rivalries in AFL football.
Swan Hill product Jesse Palmer was last night sweating on the news of whether he had done enough to earn a second AFL game, with the prospect of facing star Crows forward and former Lake Boga player Josh Jenkins.
Palmer made his AFL debut in Port’s loss to Melbourne last week.
Speaking to The Guardian ahead of team selection last night, the 19-year-old said he was excited to finally play AFL football and wanted to take Jenkins’ Crows on in the highly anticipated Showdown.
If Jenkins gets thrown into the ruck, he could find himself contesting for the ball with Palmer — a mouth-watering contest for their fans in the Mallee.
“It was pretty exciting to debut, I had all the family over and it was a great match,” Palmer said.
“It was great to run out in front of the crowd. It was an exciting time for me, hopefully I will play in the Showdown.
“The Crows are in good form and if we can play our best footy, we will challenge them.
“Josh is also in good form and it would be good to go against him.”
Palmer was relatively coy about his chances of taking on Jenkins but the Crows tall didn’t mix up his words when asked about the prospect of facing a fellow Central Murray product.
“It would be a nice little plot for us in the game … hopefully we have a couple of contests against each other and as long as I come out on top, that is all that matters,” Jenkins said.
“There are more pressing issues for us and trying to get the win is the main one, but it will be cool to be out there with Jesse.
“There are only two Swan Hill players in the competition, it will be fun.
“I watched a little bit of his game on the weekend and thought he did some nice things and didn’t look like a fish out of water … I know his parents and they will be here in Adelaide, it would be so great.”
While both players are hoping to be thrust into the limelight tomorrow, Palmer said his debut was an absolute dream come true.
He was selected by Port Adelaide with pick 78 in the 2014 national draft and watched his then-teammate and Kerang junior Jaden McGrath get drafted to the Brisbane Lions.
Moving away from the Mallee to pursue his footy with Ballarat in year 11, Palmer said Adelaide had been good to him.
“I like Adelaide, it is a good group over here and it is a nice quiet town,” he said.
“The coaching staff is great and it is a good place to develop.
“I have a long way to go and hopefully I can play good footy and cement my spot in the team.”
