Senior Callum Wilkie

Remove this Banner Ad

George

George

Premium Platinum
St Kilda - Marcus Windhager Player Sponsor 2023 St Kilda - Marcus Windhager Player Sponsor 2022 St Kilda - James Frawley Player Sponsor 2021 Saints Pledge Contributor St Kilda - Doulton Langlands Player Sponsor 2020 St Kilda - Nathan Freeman Player Sponsor 2018 St Kilda - Robbie Young Player Sponsor 2019 Reimagine Moorabbin
Aug 17, 2015
45,306
127,288
Victoria
AFL Club
St Kilda
Other Teams
Phi Eagles & Phillies, Liverpool, PAO FC
“Clear up the desk mate, we’ve just taken you! You play for the Saints now.”

Some phone calls just change dinner plans. Others change lives forever.

Callum Wilkie was sitting at his desk in an Adelaide CBD accounting firm late on Friday afternoon, but his mind was elsewhere.


The 2018 NAB AFL National Draft had wrapped up two hours earlier, and the club that was most likely to select the SANFL star – St Kilda – had just picked three mature-age players.

The 22-year-old had a year to remember for North Adelaide, winning a premiership and clinching the Roosters’ best and fairest.

But despite his credentials, Wilkie conceded his chances were slim.

“I was waiting for the Rookie Draft to start and just thought, ‘Na, I’m dust here’,” Wilkie relayed on Monday.

“I figured the Saints would be picking someone else.”

So when the intercept defender received a call from Chris Toce, St Kilda’s National Recruiting Manager (SA/WA), he was understandably overwhelmed.

“You play for the Saints now!” Toce repeated.


With the Rookie Draft starting earlier than expected, he hadn’t seen his name appear and was now utterly speechless.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” he said.

I just walked out of the office in disbelief, it was ridiculous.”

After enjoying the night with his family, including his “hysterical” mum and a surprise visit from his premiership-winning North Adelaide coach Josh Carr, the young accountant returned to the office for one final visit.

“I went back in on Saturday morning and cleaned out the desk,” Wilkie said.

“It was pretty surreal knowing I wouldn’t be coming back.”

A one-way flight to Melbourne followed, before he pulled on the Saints training kit on Monday morning for the first taste of life as a professional footballer.

“Getting picked was more of a relief to be honest,” he said.

“I know I’ve worked bloody hard since juniors, and it was always in my head that I could make it.

“I’m just pinching myself at the moment.”


Go Saints
 

Log in to remove this ad.

Screen Shot 2019-03-23 at 11.43.12 pm.png
Callum will make his debut this weekend, full credit to him. All that hard work since being overlooked for several drafts has paid off and now is his chance to impress on the big stage in an important game for the sainters.

Over the JLT, Wilkie was used mainly to come on later in the game with some fresh legs. However, the saints depleted backline through injury means that Wilkie will get to fill the void Roberton has left as the third tall defender.

Here is how Wilkie's performances were throughout the JLT:
JLT 1 vs North- 4 disposals * was used as the 2nd ruckman as Pierce got injured.
Took this very nice mark as well

D2OgqBaVYAEDJup.jpg



JLT 2 vs WB- 4 disposals *only played in the 4th quarter.







Callum sharing the news with his Mum
 
Round 1 vs Gold Coast

Callum was solid in his debut game against the suns. He really fought hard on Burgess and Lukocious (Burgess kicked 1 goal, Lukocious 0 goals.) Wilkie had 11 disposals with 4 marks. Wilkie was praised by Richo in the post game press conference 'I was really impressed with Wilkie late, a really important mark when they were comimg pretty hard at us.'


gettyimages-1132399271-612x612.jpg
Celebrating the win post game
 
Very impressed with Wilkie during his first game . He looked solid and never flustered . He took important marks at times which is something we haven’t had since Robbo got injured. He looks like being a great pick up for us .


Don’t Panic !!
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

Wilkie inks two-year deal
Clair White
Apr 18, 2019 5:19PM




190327-Contract-Re-sign-Wilkie-hero.jpg


It’s been a whirlwind since the draft and I’m excited to secure my future here.​
Callum Wilkie
Callum Wilkie’s rapid rise has been rewarded with a new two-year deal at St Kilda.
The emerging defender has played all four matches this season after being selected in the 2018 AFL Rookie Draft.
The 23-year-old has impressed with his composure and intercept marking, and was one of the Saints’ best in their win over Hawthorn in Round 4.
WATCH: Callum Wilkie recieves jumper
“Since Callum has arrived at Moorabbin, we have all been really impressed with his attitude, the way he has transitioned into life as an AFL footballer and more recently his on-field performances” Saints List Manager James Gallagher said.
“He’s smart and courageous, and as we saw on the weekend, isn’t afraid to attack the ball in the air.
“We look forward to seeing him develop over the years to come.”
READ MORE: Wilkie's debut dream
Wilkie said he was thrilled to put pen to paper.
“It’s been a whirlwind since the draft and I’m excited to secure my future here,” he said.
“It’s been great to start repaying the faith the club has shown in me early in the season.
“I know I have to keep working hard and keep improving to help the team get where it wants to be.”
“It’s great being a Saint.”
The former accountant was selected at No.3 in the Rookie Draft after winning the best and fairest for SANFL premiers North Adelaide in 2018.
 
St Kilda rookie Callum Wilkie has gone from life as an accountant to life in the AFL in the past six months
AFL


Callum Wilkie on the move for St Kilda last weekend.Source: News Corp Australia
One minute Callum Wilkie was sitting at his desk at the accounting firm he worked at in Adelaide, the next minute he was on St Kilda’s list. It happened that fast.
The North Adelaide premiership star had been overlooked in four National Drafts, so he wasn’t getting his hopes up last November. But when a text message from St Kilda recruiter Chris Toce flashed up on his phone, he had a feeling his life was about to change.
And change it has. The Saints swooped at Pick 3 in the Rookie Draft forcing the 23-year-old to quit his job on the spot. He said goodbye to his work colleagues that night, packed up his things the next morning and arrived at Moorabbin the following day.


“Everyone was packing up when the Rookie Draft started because it was about five o’clock on a Friday and I was packing up as well,” Wilkie recalled this week as he sat on the deck at RSEA Park reflecting on how quickly his life has changed.
“Then Chris messaged me asking if I was watching this. I was planning on going home and then watching it there but it started early. I flicked on the live tracker and the Saints were the next pick, so I thought that it was weird he was texting me.
“Then I refreshed it and it was up to Pick 8 and I had been taken and he called me straight away. As soon as I got that call I left the room so I wouldn’t have to take that call in front of people. It was an unbelievable call. When I came back through they were all waiting for me.
“It was a pretty amazing time. I cleaned out my desk on the Saturday and then came here on the Sunday. It all happened pretty fast.”
b9d3e7d85a087db98aa5e2b3867802a5
Callum Wilkie celebrates North Adelaide’s premiership win over Norwood last year.Source: News Corp Australia

Wilkie spoke to six different clubs last year. Foxsports.com.au understands Richmond and Gold Coast appeared keen, but St Kilda was the most interested.
Toce met with him a handful of times. On one occasion, they spent nearly two hours together in the foyer of an Adelaide hotel, after the once dour defender blossomed into an attacking weapon across the space of a South Australian winter.
National recruiting manager Chris Liberatore also spent time with Wilkie and the pair exchanged messages in the lead up to the draft. Throughout the whole process, Wilkie’s determination shone through. He desperately wanted this opportunity.
“You never know, but I did think they were the most interested after speaking to a few clubs. I spoke to six clubs in total, but I spoke to St Kilda the most and they seemed the most interested,” he revealed.
“I didn’t really have an inkling until Chris [Toce] texted me because the fact they picked up three mature-age players in the National Draft, I thought there was no chance they were going to take a fourth. Lucky enough, they picked me.”
a736a1e1348e5a9b17667026f68da34c
Callum Wilkie and Ben Paton fight for a ball in front of Paul Puopolo last Sunday.Source: Getty Images
Six months on from that life changing Friday afternoon, Wilkie has settled into life at a new club in a new city, with his long-term girlfriend moving over in February into a place in Elwood, after he spent the first few months living with budding star Jack Billings in East Brighton.
He earned a spot in Round 1 and has played the first four games in St Kilda’s new-look defence, before earning a two-year extension on Thursday following his fast start to life in the AFL.
“It is really hard to sum up: it has probably been a bit overwhelming, to be honest. It has been so exciting. This opportunity has changed my life for the better. It has taken me out of my comfort zone,” he said.
“You do pinch yourself just running out onto the oval. There were 40,000 fans at Optus Stadium, even on the weekend there were 40,000 there. They are ‘pinch yourself’ moments.
“And when you have close wins like we have had, they are ‘pinch yourself’ moments — this is real.”
It is certainly real now.
He faced another mature-age recruit in Gold Coast forward Chris Burgess — someone he has played on before in the SANFL — in Round 1, before cranking things up a notch when he spent time on All-Australian forward Jake Stringer the following week.
b556915440cea06712ae349f221d38b6
Callum Wilkie is tackled by Fremantle forward Cam McCarthy at Optus Stadium in Round 2.Source: Getty Images
Then he played on Fremantle recruit Jesse Hogan and Cam McCarthy in Perth, before producing his best effort yet against Hawthorn premiership stars Jarryd Roughead and Jack Gunston in St Kilda’s thrilling five-point win at Marvel Stadium last Sunday.
“I thought I was capable of playing straight away because the SANFL is a good standard and you play against Port and the Crows’ reserves,” he said ahead of Saturday’s clash against Melbourne, where he likely to spend time on Christian Petracca and Jake Melksham.
“Obviously AFL is a massive step up from state league footy, but I thought I was able to come in and play straight away. Even just training over the pre-season with AFL players helped a lot.”
While he has hardly put a foot wrong since Alan Richardson picked him in Round 1, Wilkie wouldn’t be playing right now if star defender Dylan Roberton hadn’t been ruled out for the rest of 2019 midway through March due to an ongoing heart issue.
Roberton collapsed during a game at GMHBA Stadium in Round 4 and didn’t play again last year.
He returned to training over the pre-season, played the opening JLT Community Series game against North Melbourne, before experiencing an irregularity in the closing stages of the Saints’ second and final game of the pre-season.
e245044f3e0010e825f2764e0f44f66a
Dylan Roberton after that scary incident at GMHBA Stadium last year.Source: AAP
St Kilda’s list management knew they needed some insurance down back in the event Roberton suffered another setback. They needed someone experienced, who could lock down on a forward and provide drive at the right time.
And that’s what kept leading them back to a guy in the SANFL who went from finishing runner-up in the best and fairest in a team that finished on the bottom in 2017 to the best and fairest winner in a premiership year in 2018.
“We spoke about that in the lead up to the draft and in the hours between the National and the Rookie Draft,” St Kilda list manager James Gallagher told foxsports.com.au this week.
“We had Pick 3 so we were pretty sure we were going to be able to get the player that we wanted. We had that discussion and that was one of the key points of our discussion.
“All the signs were looking good for Robbo at the stage, but we weren’t 100 per cent sure. We thought this was a good option if we needed to replace him.
“The odds are against him to play again; hopefully he does, but there are some challenges there. We see Cal as someone who can do the role that Robbo has done so successfully for us.
“There is an opportunity there for Cal longer term if the news doesn’t get any better for Robbo.”
1fbe8f385ddd3f99aa97d8985b9506e6
Callum Wilkie poses for a photo ahead of last year’s draft combine.Source: News Corp Australia
St Kilda was confident Wilkie could come in and perform a role when required. He had proven his ability to play on all types and sizes week in, week out in the SANFL. But they weren’t expecting him to look so composed, so soon.
“We were pretty confident he could (make an impact) because he was a very, very good SANFL player, both as a true defender and also as a drop off, offensive player in defence. He has performed really well over two or three years in big games so we were confident in him,” Gallagher said.
“But I think he has surprised even us with just how well he has performed in his first month in the AFL. He has been very impressive.”
Gallagher, who was working for Macquarie Bank before being appointed the Saints’ list manager in August, said it wasn’t just Wilkie’s game that appealed to St Kilda, it was his determination to improve across all facets of his life.
4e79d7ea76f00c725ed8889acfb324a1
St Kilda's 2018 draftees, including highly rated key forward Max King.Source: Getty Images
“He didn’t get drafted as an 18-year-old, which he would have thought as a 15 or 16-year-old that he would have been a chance, but what that says to me is he isn’t a kid that sat and sulked and didn’t get on with his life,” he said.
“He thought: right, it didn’t happen now; I’ll be the best person and footballer I can be and get on with the rest of my life.
“Those behaviours show me that he is a resilient kid with a growth mindset and you want to get guys like that at your club.”
That growth mindset has already led Wilkie to reach out to St Kilda’s finance manager Adrian Deluca, who played 46 games in the ruck for Carlton, and the Saints’ general manager of finance Yohan Periera about work experience in the future.
It is a small thing, but an insight into why St Kilda’s football department thinks so highly of him right now.
And with at least another two and a half years at RSEA Park, there is no doubt Wilkie is going to get plenty out of himself during his time at St Kilda, both in the two-hour patch we all see each weekend, and behind closed doors.
 
Awesome pickup and well deserved 2 year contract.
Doug Hogan 23 called it and was spot on about this bloke being another Sam Fisher
 
Wilkie has been a very welcomed addition to the side - one thing I know , everytime I hear he has the ball in the back line I know the ball will be delivered out everytime - very good footballer
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top