Palmerston coach Josh Heath pumped to train one of the all time greats, Gary Ablett Jr

It has been a season of positives for the Palmerston Magpies, and now getting the chance to coach Gary Ablett Jr is one positive Josh Heath will cherish forever.

Getting the chance to coach one of the all-time great players in Gary Ablett Jr is a moment Palmerston coach Josh Heath will cherish forever.

It has been a season of ups for the Magpies with a number of key pre-season signings, a rise up the NTFL ranks and now AFL legend Ablett Jr joining the ranks for a match.

Ablett coming to the party is something which everyone at Palmerston, players and coaches alike, has been waiting for since its announcement.

And now the time has arrived with the dual Brownlow Medallist and two-time premiership champion to join the Magpies fold against reigning premiers St Mary’s on Friday.

“We’re very excited, and I think the guys are all pretty pumped to get around him at training,” Heath said.

“We’ll get the fanfare out of the way early and then it’s back down to business, there’s nothing different as we still need to execute our game plan as we would any other game.

“And from what I gather from Gary he’s the ultimate professional, he won’t be coming in flat, he will be right to go.”

Palmerston coach Josh Heath will coach Gary Ablett Jr in Round 8 of the 2022-23 NTFL season. Picture: Patch Clapp / AFLNT Media

Ablett isn’t the only former AFL great to grace the Palmerston jersey this season, with Eddie Betts, Travis Varcoe and Neville Jetta all having pulled on the black and white this season.

Then there’s Ablett’s good friend and Palmerston junior Mathew Stokes who will be making his return alongside the Little Master.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind to be honest to coach guys like Gary, and obviously we’ve had Eddie, and Neville Jetta and Travis Varcoe,” Heath said.

“It’s been a pleasure and an honour to coach them and be a part of it with them, and we’re all learning off one another as well.

“It’s very exciting to say I’ve coached Gary Ablett Jr, and it’s something later on down the track I can talk to my son about, and hopefully his kids as well.

“It’s something I will cherish for the rest of my life, we don’t know what he will do after this and it might be his last game, so it’s pretty special.”

As for where the great man will play, the answer is still in the air until Heath gets a chance to see him run around with the rest of the group.

Palmerston currently sit third in the NTFL with four wins and a draw from six matches, but have a chance to surge back to the top of the table with top side Tahs in their bye week.

And with the occasion drawing plenty of attention it’s also a chance for Heath and his staff to showcase the talent right across the Magpies list.

Baxter Mensch, Sam Clohesy and Tristen Waack have been three of the finds of the season for Palmerston

“Don’t want to lock him into a position just yet, we want to see him out on the track with the boys first,” Heath said.

“This is a real opportunity for the club and for the community to see one of the best players come up and play.

“It’s also a great chance to showcase all of our talent, and all of the players that are on our list.

“The boys that are lucky enough to get picked will be able to show off their wares on the night as well, with this game pretty much being played on the national stage.”

Gary Ablett ‘wants to help us win’, NTFL veteran reveals

From premierships to winning the Nichols Medal, Phil Wills has enjoyed a decorated NTFL career, but even he admits he’s pinching himself at the prospect of playing with one of his idols.

Gary Ablett Jr has long been one of Wills’ favourite players and getting the chance to play with him as been at the back of his mind all season.

The dual Brownlow Medallist is the latest in a line of AFL greats to turn out for the Magpies this season.

Phil Wills playing for the Palmerston Magpies in the 2022-23 NTFL season. Picture: Celina Whan / AFLNT Media

“It’s going to be a real tick off the bucket list to play with a legend of the game, and one of my favourite players growing up,” Wills said.

“I’m extremely excited, to be able to play in a game with him is unbelievable.

“I’ve been a fan since he was a young fella at Geelong and the success he had there, and to be able to take the leadership to Gold Coast and dominate in that side is just crazy.

“It’s a really exciting time to be a Palmerston player and to have the type of players we have like Eddie Betts, Neville Jetta and Travis Varcoe and what they’ve done so far.

“And Gary playing is something that’s been in the back of our minds since we found out, something we’ve been waiting and waiting for and now the time has come.”

The 2018-19 Nichols Medallist is no stranger to success in the NTFL captaining the Nightcliff Tigers in their premiership threepeat.

His move to Palmerston for the 2022-23 season has also come with success, as the side that has not won a premiership in 20 years quickly found its way to the top of the table.

The switch in clubs also presented the NTFL veteran, who also previously played with Buffaloes, a chance to further his footy career in an assistant coaching capacity.

Former Geelong great Gary Ablett will play for Palmerston in the NTFL. Picture: Michael Klein

And for that reason, alongside a niggling injury, he stayed off the field in Round 6, ahead of a Round 7 bye, to ensure he was as fit as possible to play with one of his footy heroes.

“The beauty of the bye rounds is us older guys can take those opportunities to rest up if we have a niggle,” Wills said.

“For me with my assistant coaching role at Palmerston it was good for me to rest in the game against Buffaloes and get to coach.

“And then also utilising the bye to come in as fresh as I could into this massive game.”

While the players haven’t yet been in direct contact with Ablett, coach Josh Heath has kept regular track of his progress ahead of the match.

“Josh has been speaking on the phone with him a fair bit, staying in close contact,” Wills said.

“It’s always cool to hear they’ve spoke, and then you joke with Josh after saying ‘give me his number, I’m going to ring him up’.

“He can basically play any position and I think he just wants to come in and add value to the team, and obviously help us get the win.”

To tag or not to tag? Gary Ablett AFLNT opposition strategy is out

St Mary’s premiership coach Anthony Vallejo has declared whether or not tags will be placed on Gary Ablett Jr when the Geelong and Gold Coast superstar runs out with NTFL club Palmerston on Friday night.

Ablett’s one-game cameo with the Magpies has attracted national attention as he works on his fitness and ability to cope with Darwin’s tropical heat and humidity.

The 7pm clash between the Magpies and the Saints is Ablett’s first competitive game since playing in Geelong’s losing grand final against Richmond in 2020.

Ablett’s 2007 Cats premiership teammate Mathew Stokes will also line up for the Magpies.

However, two-time premiership player and Magpies recruit Travis Varcoe has returned to Melbourne while Eddie Betts announced on social media he will back to Cazalys Arena on November 26.

Gary Ablett Jr, with former Geelong captain Joel Selwood, will play for Palmerston on November 18. Picture: Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

But Vallejo is making no radical changes to his match preparation and more specifically, the two-time Brownlow medallist and dual AFL premiership player with Geelong.

“We won’t be tagging him, I’d assume he will be playing out of the goalsquare with occasional runs in the middle, so that’s where our planning will be focused on,’’ Vallejo said.

“As for who we’ll be playing on him, I’m pretty comfortable with our full back Matty Green who has been a star player for us this season on the talls and shorts and we expect that to continue.’’

But Green is not the only option to play on the great man.

Kieren Parnell has again been a superb contributor across the back half for Saints where he has been opposed to to frontline forwards all season.

And Harrison Ling, a first year NTFL player from sister club St Mary’s in the Geelong Football League, has put up his hand to mind Ablett.

St Mary’s coach Anthony Vallejo says he will not tag Ablett on Friday night. Picture: Warren Leyden.

“Harry is from Geelong and idolises Gary Ablett and he might get the matchup, so they are the three we’ll probably look at,’’ Vallejo said.

“It all depends where Ablett lines up and how much footy he’s played in the last couple of years, which is none as far as we know.’’

The Round 8 clash looms as a pivotal one in the context of the 2022-23 season, with Palmerston third on the ladder and St Mary’s moving to sixth after beating Nightcliff on Saturday night.

“Obviously we didn’t make a great start to the season, but with a couple of good wins in a row – Southern Districts and Nightcliff – we’ve found a bit of form,’’ Vallejo said.

“I saw Palmerston’s game last week when they beat the Buffaloes ... (Neville) Jetta was another good player, so they’ll be hard to beat.’’

Originally published as Palmerston coach Josh Heath pumped to train one of the all time greats, Gary Ablett Jr