Past #6: Jason Horne-Francis - NM have been informed by JHF's management that he will seek a trade to SA [contracted for 2023]

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Frank Thring said:
JHF must be loving all of the good stories coming out of Arden St lately.

We have 3 young guns yet yo play for us still in Edwards, JHF and CCJ. You can also throw in pick 20 to add to our impressive young list.
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You could, probably, add Comben too.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
So, JHF is still in SA, but he is very keen on North!
 

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MODS: THE KID WILL BE SPECIAL
Why Adelaide Crows great Tony Modra thinks Jason Horne-Francis will live up to the pre-draft hype
MATT TURNER
IT WAS at a milk factory in dairy country, 60km from Adelaide, that one of South Australia’s most popular footballers of all time was introduced to the state’s likely first No. 1 draft pick in 15 years.

Tony Modra met Jason Horne- Francis when they appeared together on a podcast previewing the Great Southern Football League grand final at the headquarters of competition sponsor Fleurieu Milk in September.

The Crows great works in a corporate role with the dairy company through Little Heroes Foundation and the South Adelaide prodigy has been a delivery truck loader for it this year.

A week after their encounter, Horne-Francis made another impression on Modra.

The 1997 Coleman Medallist was tuning into the Panthers’ SANFL preliminary final to watch co-worker and ex-teammate Clay Sampson’s son, Hayden, then spotted a familiar face.

“I was watching Clay’s lad ... and then I looked and thought ‘that must be the kid I met at the factory’,” Modra told News Corp.

“I haven’t watched too much local footy this year but I watched that final. I only had to watch him once to think ‘he’s going to go all right’.

“I haven’t seen a young player around like that for a while, that’s for sure.”

There has been hype for more than 12 months around Horne-Francis, who on Wednesday will almost certainly land at North Melbourne with the top pick in the national draft, making him SA’s first top call since Bryce Gibbs to Carlton in 2006. But that Friday night two months ago stands out as the 18-year-old’s statement game.

Desperate to try to get the Panthers into their first grand final since 1979, the midfielder/half-forward kept them in the contest with a three-goal, 24-disposal, best-on-ground performance in the 28-point loss to Glenelg.

“Everyone’s been going on about him since and you can tell why,” Modra said.

“He’s just got that natural ability, hasn’t he? “His second and third efforts – he knows where the ball is – and he can read the play.

He’s going to be really special.”

Along with eye-catching football talent and the Fleurieu Milk link, Modra and Horne-Francis have something else in common – both are products of Christies Beach Saints.

One of Horne-Francis’s last games for the Southern Football League club, where Nigel Smart, Dean Brogan and Nikki Gore were also juniors, was an under-15 grand final in 2018.

He kicked three goals and finished best-afield in a losing side – Christies fell by 10 points to Flagstaff Hill – to claim the RW Oliver Medal.

The gritty showing was reminiscent of his preliminary final for the Panthers.

“That particular year we didn’t have access to him much through the season because he was playing under-16s then under-18s at SANFL level but he came back for the finals,” his former Saints coach, Richard Schirmer, said.

“He brought back such a level of professionalism and brought players up with him.

“They (Flagstaff Hill) put a fair bit of work into him, even though it was under-15s – they tagged and rotated players against him.

“It was disappointing to lose but it was an amazing finals series he put in.”

Schirmer said Horne-Francis was one of the most polite young people you can meet. He also happens to refuse being beaten in a contest, according to Schirmer.

“Jason’s a pretty unassuming young fella off the field but when he gets on it something clicks,” he said.

“Even vocally and leadership wise, and there’s a little bit of swagger about him.”

Schirmer said it had been awesome to see Horne come through the ranks.

“That final (for South), that reminded me exactly like those couple of (Christies Beach) finals,” he said.

“I sat back and went ‘oh my goodness, he’s doing that at this level now’.

“I think he can do some damage early on at AFL level because he’ll bring that same sort of competitive streak.”

Family friend and former Christies Beach football operations manager Barry Head recalled Horne-Francis being a class above in his time at the Saints.

“There wasn’t a kid who could touch him,” Head said. “We built the team around that lad.”

Head also remembered Horne- Francis telling him a couple of years ago “I want that No. 1 spot” in the draft. “I looked at him and said ‘it’s a lot of hard work’ and he just said ‘yeah, I know’,” Head said.

“He wanted to be the No. 1 draft pick, he busted his backside and got to where he wanted to be. He’s stepping up every single week.”

Head, the uncle of cricketer Travis Head, said Horne-Francis shared similar traits with the Australian and Redbacks batsman.

“They’re absolutely determined, confident but not cocky,” he said.

Head has known Horne-Francis since the Panthers star was about eight or nine, when the SA under-19 captain arrived at Christies Beach.

He struck up a friendship with Horne-Francis’s stepdad, ex-Port Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne wingman Fabian Francis, who previously coached juniors and seniors at the Saints.

This year the South Adelaide youngster added Francis to his surname in recognition of his stepdad’s huge role in his life, along with his mum, Trish.

South Adelaide talent manager Mark Clayton said Horne- Francis’s character has stood out as much as his disposal, decision-making, athleticism and will to win.

“He was a good person from the start who had really good values,” Clayton said.

“He’s quiet, reserved, likes spending time with his friends, very respectful, always comes in and says hello.

“He wanted to be here all the time and around his mates at the footy club all the time.

“He always had a football in his hand, carrying around a football, kicking a football.”

Clayton had heard about Horne- Francis’s potential from people within the club before he had coached him.

The Fremantle supporter went on to play state under-16s in his bottom age year.

In 2020, the club promoted him from under-18s to the Panthers’ league side in 2020 as a 17-year-old, skipping the reserves.

“He’s strong, competitive, I thought he could compete against men,” Clayton said.

“His prelim final was very good but I thought he could get to that level and I think he can go past that level.”

North Melbourne has rejected offers from rival clubs for the No. 1 pick in Wednesday’s first night of the draft with eyes firmly on Horne-Francis.

“I think he’s going to be impressive in the next couple of years and is ready to play at the next level,” said Clayton, a former teammate of Francis’s with Port Adelaide Magpies.

“He’s respectful, hard-working and honest, and there’s no reason why he shouldn’t because he’s talented enough.”
 

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3 days!
 
TennisPlayerAndy said:
Nice of the BF Mods to pen an article.

Must have been difficult with the Chaddy Foodcourt being closed up until recently.
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You’d think the opposite
With the food court being closed one of them would have had time to write it
 
JHF will be on draft radio at 1:15pm today
 
Sees his role as a mid/forward next year.
 
He hasn't been told whether he'll be the #1 pick yet.
 
"No they havent said anything to me yet. It is still a mystery. Hopefully they do pick me at # 1 and i'll be very happy but I don't mind, what ever happens"
 
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