Richmond draftee Hugo Ralphsmith joins under-18 teammates on AFL list
Hugo Ralphsmith looks a bit like a star teammate from his under-18 side. So the midfielder hoped it wasn’t a case of mistaken identity when Richmond swooped on the son of a gun.
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Hugo Ralphsmith hopes the Richmond did not make a mistake in picking him in the national draft.
It would not be the first time he was subject to mistaken identity, with recruiters having been known to get him mixed up with a Sandringham Dragons teammate who could pass as his twin brother – Josh Worrell.
“I love playing with Josh and he was doing some good things and got confused with me. So that’s probably why I got drafted,” Ralphsmith said with a laugh.
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“Chuck Miles Bergman in that team as well and who knows who.”
Worrell found his way to Adelaide at pick 28 in Thursday night’s national draft, while Bergman is now on Port Adelaide’s list after going at pick 14.
The Tigers pounced on Ralphsmith with pick 46, which capped off a big November for the teenager.
He turned 18 on November 9, got braces taken off his teeth, passed his drivers licence test and finished Year 12 exams at Haileybury College before finding an AFL home.
The selection brought even the ‘Terminator’ to tears, that being his father Sean Ralphsmith who played 30 games for Hawthorn and St Kilda in the 1980s and 90s.
“He didn’t have many words or advice, it was just more tears, I think,” Ralphsmith said.
“He was over the moon as well. He was probably just as stoked as me. He’s been on this journey for the last couple of years with me so he was absolutely over the moon.”
Ralphsmith said he could not take off a Richmond scarf for almost 24 hours after being drafted, quickly forgetting about his allegiance to Hawthorn, who he had supported his whole life.
Text messages quickly came in from a host of new teammates, including Tom Lynch, Jack Riewoldt and Daniel Rioli.
“My phone’s been blowing up, which I was not expecting,” Ralphsmith said.
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An outside midfielder or half-forward, Ralphsmith averaged 11 disposals and kicked two goals from three games for Vic Metro at the national championships this year.
Liked by the Tigers for his speed, endurance and athletic abilities, he hopes to mould into a more permanent onballer in the future.
“Definitely over the years I want to put on a bit of size and push into the midfield and forward, swap between that,” Ralphsmith said.