Adelaide jumps the queue to draft excitement machine Anthony Wilson

ADELAIDE has admitted to taking a punt on excitement machine Anthony Wilson, conceding his drafting “may be a fraction early for him’’.

21/09/2014 SANFL Grand Final between Port Adelaide and Norwood at Adelaide Oval.Players celebrate with the fans. Pic Mark Brake

ADELAIDE has admitted to taking a punt on excitement machine Anthony Wilson, conceding his drafting “may be a fraction early for him’’.

But the Crows say if they didn’t select the Norwood speedster in this year’s rookie draft they might have had to have paid a bigger price next year.

“That was the discussion we had, that if we waited until next year then Anthony Wilson would probably have dominated the SANFL, have played State footy and everyone will be wanting to draft him,’’ national recruiting manager Hamish Ogilvie said.

“So we thought we would bite it off now and address the speed in our group, which is something we’ve had to think about.’’

They don’t come much quicker than Wilson, who the Crows took with their final pick (No. 44) at the rookie draft. While the 22-year-old wingman says he hasn’t had his speed officially tested for “a few years’’, Ogilvie claims he is “probably the quickest player outside the AFL and maybe quicker than most in the AFL’’.

“We just saw Anthony as having elite speed, he’s as quick as they get,’’ Ogilvie said.

“He’s a very light frame, he’s got some things he needs to fix and he’s got a lot to learn.

“I’m sure he’ll improve quickly when we get him here, so he’s well worth a crack.’’

Wilson, 181cm and a lightweight 74kg, possesses sizzling pace and broke some games open for Norwood this year with his run and carry, playing a key role in the club’s third consecutive premiership.

After starting his career as “just a skinny little kid with speed who wasn’t doing much at all’’ at the Magpies, Wilson joined the Redlegs last year.

After making his league debut on Anzac Day he quickly cemented his spot in the Norwood side, playing 16 games, including the grand final.

Wilson paid tribute to Crows champion and dual Norm Smith Medallist Andrew McLeod for helping with his rapid improvement.

“He’s given me many good tips on how to improve my game and while I sometimes thought he was being hard on me, he was actually helping me out,” Wilson said.