Meet Riley Thilthorpe — the 17-year-old West Adelaide young gun in line to be the first player picked in the 2020 AFL Draft

He made his SANFL league debut just days after his 17th birthday and his coach says ‘you won’t find a better package’. But 2020 No. 1 pick contender Riley Thilthorpe — who will be on show at the MCG on Saturday — won’t be lost in the hype.

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Remember the name Riley Thilthorpe.

He’s the 17-year-old West Adelaide young gun who is in line to be the first player picked in next year’s AFL Draft.

The 199cm big man made his SANFL league debut just days after his 17th birthday and booted eight goals from six senior appearances in 2019.

Thilthorpe has played — and dominated — as a ruckman at under-18 level but he also fancies himself as a midfielder.

And with his elite endurance and ability to win the ball on the ground, it’s not hard to see why.

“With a combination of attributes, talent and work-rate, you’re not going to find a much better package, I don’t think,” West Adelaide talent and development manager Paul Streatfield says.

“His ability to adapt to multiple roles is probably the best that I’ve seen.”

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Riley Thilthorpe celebrates a goal with West Adelaide teammate Kenny Karpany at league level. Picture: Dean Martin/AAP

The praise isn’t just internal, either, with Thilthorpe’s name well and truly in the top-pick conversation among AFL recruiters.

But you won’t see the Goodwood Saints junior being lost in the hype in 2020.

“It’s just outside noise, to be honest. I’ve still got another year of footy and I’m here at Westies next year so I’ll take it one step at a time,” Thilthorpe said as he prepares to play in the Under-17 NAB All Stars futures match at the MCG on grand final day.

It sounds cliché but there’s not one hint of an ego in Thilthorpe’s voice as describes how he will handle the next 12 months.

After suffering an anterior subluxation in his left shoulder earlier in the year and a badly sprained ankle in June — an injury which saw him miss the under-18 national carnival — the strong-marking right-footer just wants to play footy in 2020.

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“The main goal is to play the full season, get through without injury and play a consistent year,” Thilthorpe said.

“I’m just trying to be the best I can, I’m not really fussed about what people think of me.”

It’s Thilthorpe’s want — and reason — to play senior football, however, which speaks volume about his character.

“It’s great being out there with footballers who are better than you, stronger than you, faster than you, it makes you know what you need to work on,” Thilthorpe explained.

Streatfield echoes the assessment of Thilthorpe, describing his maturity as “well over and above what we’d expect from someone at this age”.

Riley Thilthorpe pictured in the West Adelaide Football Club gym ahead of the Under-17 NAB All Stars match at the MCG on Saturday. Picture: Roy VanDerVegt/APP

At one stage mid-season, however, the year appeared it would play out very differently.

Both Thilthorpe and Streatfield feared the worst when the Adelaide High year 11 student hurt his ankle in June.

“We were nervous when he injured his ankle that it might have been his year over — we didn’t know,” Streatfield recalls.

“But he came back very quickly on the back of hard work.”

After taking eight contested marks and booting 3.3 against Norwood in the under-18s, in a performance Stretfield labels “his breakout game at junior level”, Thilthorpe was called in to Gavin Colville’s league side the following week, skipping the reserves altogether.

“It was unreal. I never thought I’d be there after the start to the year I had — I just wanted to be playing footy again,” Thilthorpe said.

Riley Thilthorpe in action against North Adelaide in his SANFL league debut. Picture: Brenton Edwards/AAP

For Thilthorpe, who finished with three goals in his second game, the challenge was more “mental than physical” but there weren’t many around the club surprised at the ease in which he handled the transition.

“It was probably a quicker jump than many expected but I’m not surprised because Riley works really hard to be as good as he possibly can be,” Streatfield said.

Teammate — and top 2019 draft prospect — Will Day agrees, speaking highly of the player he believes will be a “top-three pick next year”.

“Not only are his physical attributes impressive but him mentally, the way he works, you see him doing extras in the gym, just strengthening every part of his body — whether he’s had an injury or not,” Day said.

This year’s likely No. 1 pick Matt Rowell was the best player on the ground in the Under-17 curtain-raiser in 2018 but Thilthorpe is just looking forward to the occasion and getting to know some of the other young stars around the country.

One of which is Western Bulldogs next-generation Adademy member Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, who has drawn comparison to superstar Lance Franklin and is another 2020 top-pick chance.

Thilthorpe admits he has plenty to work on over the next year and debate about where is best position is will continue.

“If you had asked me last year, I would’ve said forward but I didn’t mind the ruck as much this year,” Thilthorpe admitted.

“Longer term as a forward, pinch-hitting in the ruck” is Streatfield’s view.

“But Riley fancies himself as a bit of midfielder as well,” the under-18 coach added. “I think that’s why he likes playing in the ruck, he gets around the contest and he’s got the attributes to do it.”

“I love Patty Cripps — I think of myself as a bit of a midfielder. Watching him is exciting, how tall he is and how well he moves and the stuff he does,” Thilthorpe said.

Something many might be saying about him in the near future