ISAAC QUAYNOR FELT connected to the Collingwood faithful long before he officially donned a black and white jumper.

Years before Quaynor was drafted, or linked to the club through its Next Generation Academy, he sensed the power of the Magpie Army as a 10-year-old attending matches at the MCG with his best friend’s family.

He recalls watching the 2010 Grand Final victory from a live site at the nearby AAMI Park.

At the time he felt connected to Collingwood premiership defender Harry O’Brien, who has since reclaimed his birth name, Heritier Lumumba.

“I remember vividly being at the footy with (best mate) Andrew (Fasanella) and his brother Nick,” Quaynor says.

“We would do a little three-man weave as we used to run through the MCG and I remember people saying, ‘that’s Harry O’Brien ... that looks like Harry O’Brien’.

“That was something that really stuck with me. It was the first connection with me that he (Lumumba) just looked similar. I had the ‘fro. I had the same skin colour, I played the same position (defence).

“It was a no-brainer for me as a kid.”

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Their circumstances and experiences may have been starkly contrasting, but their shared stories and pride in their African heritage have connected Quaynor and Lumumba recently from half a world away.

Lumumba, born to a Brazilian mother and a Congolese-Angolan father in Rio de Janeiro, moved to Australia when he was three.

Quaynor was born in Melbourne to an Australian mother and a father who followed his heart from a small town in Ghana to this country.

While Lumumba’s estrangement from Collingwood over his treatment during and after his playing career remains a sad postscript to a decorated AFL career, it has not stopped him from taking an interest in Quaynor’s journey.

Nor has it quelled Quaynor’s delight in receiving feedback and support from Lumumba – who now lives in Los Angeles – via social media.

“I have actually had a little bit of contact with (Lumumba) in the last six months,” he says.

“He has been really positive and has been saying, ‘you are doing well’.

“To have him staying somewhat connected to my journey, I am grateful for. Every now and again, I get a little Instagram message just in terms of him tapping into my football, and I think that’s pretty cool.”

Quaynor’s experience at Collingwood differs significantly from Lumumba’s, and he sees no benefit in buying into the schism that has created many headlines.

“I love the club, they’ve been great for me,” he says.

“I’ve actually barracked for them since probably about Grade 2.”

Who knows, maybe he might one day prove a conduit in a rapprochement between Lumumba and his former club.

SIDE BY SIDE IN LOCKDOWN

QUAYNOR, WHO TURNED 21 in January, is about to enter his third AFL season looking to further solidify his spot across halfback after impressing with 11 of his 15 career games in a COVID-interrupted 2020.

His season was almost derailed by a sickening leg injury, but he fought back to finish the year strongly.

The kid from Beverley Hills (the Melbourne suburb near Doncaster) came to Collingwood via East Doncaster and Oakleigh Chargers. He is considered one of the most exciting young talents in the game.

The 2018 No.13 draft pick is already displaying a maturity some believe could see him in a leadership role at the club sooner rather than later.

Being away from his family in the AFL’s northern hub was tough, but he says he was able to further connect with his teammates and coaches.

“It was a challenging year in a sense, but it was a year that I really enjoyed from a pure footy sense,” he says.

“I got a lot closer to the boys at the club. I felt, as a younger player who hadn’t played that many games beforehand and who hadn’t quite proved himself, it was really big for me personally.

“You are living with your teammates 24 hours a day, so you have a better connection with them. We’ve got some great connections down at the Pies, but I sort of felt we have become even closer by the experiences.”

Collingwood great and Herald Sun footy analyst Mick McGuane sees Quaynor as a long-term prospect for the Magpies.

“He’s exciting, particularly when Collingwood wins the ball back, with his great bounce, his energy and run, and his ball use is getting better,” McGuane says.

“Let’s face it, in that part of the ground, you have to use the ball well, because if you turn it over there, it is hard to defend.

“The area of improvement for Isaac ... is in his one versus one ability. That is an area where he can get better as he matures.”

FROM GHANA TO MELBOURNE

FATE, AND A MUSIC FESTIVAL, brought Quaynor’s parents together in Ghana – which sits on the West African coast – more than two decades ago.

His mother, Kate, had been travelling with her sister when she met Yaw, from the Ghanaian town of Kibi.

Yaw ultimately chose to move to Australia to be with Kate.

“Mum is a music primary school teacher and she was going on a music trip,” he says.

“She bumped into Dad and the rest is history.”

Quaynor is the oldest of four boys born to Kate and Yaw. His siblings – Ben, 17, Luke, 14 and Matthew, 13 – are among his biggest fans.

“Who knows, there might be a few more Quaynors coming through in a few years,” he says.

But his family has grown bigger over time. Kate and Yaw separated amicably around the time he started high school.

Both now have new partners, swelling the numbers in the family.

“The situation was handled as smoothly as it could be by my parents,” he says.

“I’ve basically got two families now.

“Dad has a new partner and they have two kids together, so I have two half-siblings. Mum’s new partner, Paul, has four kids, so there are potentially eight kids at the Quaynor household every second weekend.”

He is exceptionally close to his mother and her side of the family.

“I would probably say I am a bit of a Mummy’s boy,” he says with a smile.

“My papa (grandfather) is a very passionate footy man ... He always sends me a text message after a game and I am super grateful for his support.”

Quaynor sees his father as often as he can. Their bond was strengthened on his sole trip to Ghana a decade ago.

“I went when I was 10 and I had my 11th birthday in Ghana,” he says.

“It was a very different experience. I have heaps of family over there.

“It was cool to go from city to city and to meet people. I still keep in contact with some of my cousins over there. I talk to them a bit on Instagram.”

He plans on a return trip with his father when the COVID pandemic is over.

“It’s definitely somewhere I want to go again in the next couple of years and Dad wants to do the same,” he says.

Being away from his family and his girlfriend, Jasmine, was tough at stages in 2020, but he always had their support from afar.

So, too, the support of the Australian-based Ghanaian community.

“There’s a pretty good demographic of Ghanaian people here,” he says.

“I am fortunate to have a lot of them supporting me, even though some of them don’t know much about footy.

“They are all super eager to follow my journey, so I have a super cool little fan base, which I appreciate.”

LAYING THE GROUNDWORK

QUAYNOR SPENT THE FIRST 2020 lockdown with his family and did all he could to keep fit.

It included activities with his brothers – on the tennis court and basketball ring at home – as well as fitness sessions with then Magpie assistant Matthew Boyd and current assistant Hayden Skipworth.

It also included an unexpected training session with former Essendon captain Jobe Watson, arranged by Skipworth.

“It was a shocking morning in Port Melbourne, pouring with rain and freezing,” Quaynor says.

“I was able to pick his brain a little bit and we did a fair bit of ground ball stuff, which is something I have worked heavily on over the last 12 months.

“He was an elite ball winner, so we did a little bit of technical stuff. It was almost like going back to under-12s. It was all about getting low and keeping your head low and not raising it too early.

“I felt I have definitely made some ground in that area. There is still work to be done, but from where I was about 24 months ago, I’ve come a long way.”

After starting the 2020 season resumption out of the senior team, he worked hard to get back into the side.

By Round 6, he was back, and played six games until a freak incident put his season at risk. Quaynor was laying a routine tackle on Sydney’s Sam Wicks in the Round 10 clash at the SCG when he felt something unusual.

‘I DIDN’T SHOWER FOR TWO WEEKS’

THE SKIN ON HIS calf was ripped open with a deep 20cm gash.

It was caused by illegal boots worn by the Swans debutant, with a particularly gruesome social media post from Quaynor later showing the extent of the damage.

“I was making sure I didn’t allow (his opponent) to get past me ... I kind of leapt at him and all my weight and his studs must have somehow perfectly aligned and clean cut my leg straight down,” he says.

“I looked down and my leg was all white. I am not too bad with the gruesome stuff. I didn’t feel sick.

“I was OK initially, but there was some pain after it. I said to the physio, ‘what’s going on?’ I suppose I was in shock, thinking, ‘how does this happen?’”

Wicks later apologised, and AFL players were reminded those studs were banned, with the Magpie saying: “There’s no bad feelings about him.”

Doctors told Quaynor the risk of infection was serious and could ultimately end his season prematurely.

“The docs were pretty adamant I had to keep it clean and dry,” he says.

“I didn’t actually shower for just over two weeks. I was wiping myself down with a warm tea towel or a face washer, and that’s how I was keeping clean.

“I was told I was running the risk (of missing the rest of the season) if it became infected. I wasn’t going to risk the rest of my season for a shower.”

Incredibly, Quaynor was back playing for Collingwood by Round 14, having missed just three games in the compressed fixture.

He didn’t miss a game for the rest of the season, including two finals – the against-the-odds elimination final win over West Coast in Perth and the semi-final thrashing at the hands of Geelong.

“It was unreal (the win over West Coast),” he says.

“We just rode all the bumps and bruises and kept doing our thing (in a hard quarantine in Perth where Collingwood was labelled ‘the dirty Pies’).

“To beat them by a point was incredible. It was a win for (the) ages.

“I don’t know what happened (the next week). People asked me if we were flat, if the warm-up was bad, or if there were any bad feelings. To me, everything felt fine and good. You have to take your hat off to Geelong. They were too good.”

Collingwood faced a tough off-season with four players – Adam Treloar, Jaidyn Stephenson, Tom Phillips and Atu Bosenavulagi – controversially traded, much to the anger of many fans.

Quaynor says while it was tough to see it play out, he will remain close to the four players, especially Bosenavulagi, with whom he was drafted.

But he is equally confident the Magpies can attack 2021 with confidence in their playing and coaching groups as well as their game plan.

“We’ll be a strong side,” he says.

“We have a really well balanced list and it has been good to bring in eight new faces (via the draft).

“We can’t wait to see what happens (in 2021).”