Will Ashcroft would be proud to call his brother Levi a Brisbane Lions teammate
What’s better than one of Marcus Ashcroft’s sons playing for the Lions? Two of them joining Brisbane.
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For Will Ashcroft, there will only be one thing better than following in his father Marcus’ footsteps at the Lions, and that’s the chance to play alongside his brother Levi in a Brisbane guernsey.
A potential No.1 AFL draft pick, Will has already nominated the Lions under the father-son rule and has agreed to a four-year deal with Brisbane, where his dad won a hat-trick of premierships from 2001 to 2003.
“It’s always been definitely what I wanted to do in my heart,” 18-year-old Will said on Friday in Melbourne, where he currently lives and plays for the Sandringham Dragons in the VFL,
“Following in Dad’s footsteps was always a pretty cool little scenario that if it did eventuate, which it has, I would have been very grateful for.”
👀 pic.twitter.com/XMQiS95cmw
— Brisbane Lions (@brisbanelions) August 12, 2022
However, the icing on the cake would be for his younger sibling Levi, a standout performer in the recent Under 16 national development championships, to eventually join him in Brisbane.
“If that were to happen, I’d be very proud of him and pretty happy to play alongside him – I’m looking forward to that possibility, for sure,” Will said.
“(But) he’s got his own decision to make and if he’s good enough, he’s in the same position as I am. I think he will be, but he’s got a lot of work to do as well.”
Will praised his father for not putting any pressure on him and Levi.
“What Dad’s done really well is he hasn’t forced anything on us. He’s just been taking a back seat role and supported us really well, and guided us in the way we wanted to go and let us do it ourselves,” Will said.
“He’s been a huge support. Him and Mum have been huge for not only me, but my brother and sister (Lucy).”
Will admitted it would be tough leaving his family behind in Melbourne when he headed to Brisbane later this year for pre-season training.
“I was from Queensland, and I lived on the Gold Coast for a lot of my life, but it’s still a very significant decision,” he said in reflecting on nominating the Lions rather than going on the open draft in the likelihood of being selected by a Victorian club.
“My family’s still living in Melbourne, and they’ll continue to with my brother and sister schooling here.
“It was weighed up pretty heavily. I’m glad it’s finished now, but it’ll still be a big move and I’m looking forward to the challenge, for sure.
“I’m pretty happy with where I’m at, but there’s always ways to improve and I’m looking to do that.”
Originally published as Will Ashcroft would be proud to call his brother Levi a Brisbane Lions teammate
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