AFL Draft 2021: Jason Horne-Francis starting to realise North Melbourne will soon be home

Everyone in the AFL world is talking about Jason Horne-Francis. So how is the likely No. 1 pick dealing with it all? He shares his thoughts a month out from the draft.

South Adelaide young gun Jason Horne-Francis is starting to see himself as a North Melbourne player, a month out from the national draft.

“It’s hard not to when there’s a lot of media stuff about it,” Horne-Francis said at SA’s draft combine on Saturday.

“They (North Melbourne) have spoken to me and said that.

“They’re keen, obviously.”

The Kangaroos are almost certain to take Horne-Francis with their top pick on November 24 after interviewing him last Saturday on the back of his standout SANFL season with the Panthers.

Horne-Francis, who registered 24 touches, 11 clearances and 3.3 in South’s losing preliminary final, said North Melbourne told him it saw him in a mid-forward role next year.

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Jason Horne-Francis at the SA AFL draft combine testing last week. Picture: Russell Millard

Adelaide and Richmond tried to secure the No. 1 pick from the Kangaroos during the trade period so they could get the 18-year-old, only to be knocked back.

“It’s a big honour to have clubs put up that for yourself,” he said.

“It’s a bit crazy but I feel like it’ll take care of itself.”

Horne-Francis only completed jumping tests at UniSA Mawson Lakes on Saturday but the fact the SA under-19 captain attended, when he did not need to prove anything to scouts, highlighted his competitive nature and desire to support his mates.

As the hype around him has mounted, Horne-Francis has taken it all in his stride.

“I feel like I’m usually pretty good with the head space and not looking into it too much,” he said.

“It is tough when your mum posts on Facebook every time she sees your face (in the media).”

Horne-Francis said playing two seasons of state league held him in good stead for the elite level.

“I feel like I can make an impact straight away,” he said.

“I’m excited to have footy as a job and you can do what you love every day.”

Horne-Francis said his stepdad Fabian Francis, who played 86 AFL games for Port Adelaide, as well as 23 for Melbourne and Brisbane, had been a big influence.

Horne-Francis says his mum is already starting to accept an interstate move.

“He’s just like any other dad, just with a bit more knowledge of football,” he said.

“He’s been really good to develop me as a person and player.”

As for Horne-Francis’s mum Trish, she is already starting to accept an interstate move is on the cards.

“It’s going to be a bit tough for her but she’s slowly getting her head around it,” he said.

SANFL talent manager Brenton Phillips said North Melbourne “should be all over” Horne-Francis.

“I haven’t seen too many 18-year-olds like that at that particular level (in a SANFL preliminary final) pick up a side by the scruff of the neck and almost get them across the line,” Phillips said.

“It highlights the maturity, the work ethic and the competitive nature.”

Why Dogs won’t rush father-son prodigy

The Western Bulldogs plan to take the same cautious approach with father-son draft hope Sam Darcy in 2022 as they did with last year’s No. 1 draft pick Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.

Bulldogs general manager of list and recruiting Sam Power said the club would not put a ceiling on what the 18-year-old could achieve next year, but would be mindful that he had played minimal football across the past two seasons, due to the pandemic.

Asked if the club would tread carefully without putting too much pressure on the highly-rated forward, Power said: “Absolutely, and we do that with any 17 or 18-year-old coming in.”

“We need to be even more so with those draftees coming in now, given they haven’t played too much footy (in the past two seasons).

The Bulldogs plan to take a cautious approach with Sam Darcy. Picture: Martin Keep/AFL Photos via Getty Images

“We saw that with Jamarra (Ugle-Hagan) this year. He hadn’t played (in 2020 because of the Covid pandemic) and we didn’t really have expectations on him this year.”

Ugle-Hagan, who missed the entire final season of his TAC year, had to wait until Round 17 to make his AFL debut. He played five AFL games this year, with the Bulldogs intent on taking a conservative approach on a player they see as a 10-plus-year footballer.

“We needed to get him (Ugle-Hagan) to get a good grounding at VFL level, so that when he did get an opportunity at AFL level, he was as prepared as he could be, and that he was able to have an influence at different times, and hold his spot for a period as well,” Power said.

The Grand Final runners-up were not big players in the trade period by design as they looked to bring in the necessary points as a safeguard to claim Darcy as a father-son selection in next month’s draft.

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Jamarra Ugle-Hagan was eased into his first season. Picture: Michael Klein

They brought in Hawk Tim O’Brien as a free agent and facilitated moves for Patrick Lipinski (Collingwood) and Lewis Young (Carlton) in their search for greater AFL opportunities.

Power said he hadn’t had any indication on whether an early bid would come on Darcy, whose father Luke and grandfather David represented the Bulldogs with distinction.

“We know he (Darcy) is a promising kid that has a bright future,” he said. “We prepare for every scenario.”

“Coming into the trade period, that (getting enough picks) was a key focus and a priority to increase our points which we were able to do by trading pick 17.

“We also had a couple of players who had requested trades to get more opportunities at other clubs.”

“We’ve come out of it with a really good hand from a points’ perspective.”

He said the Bulldogs would now finalise their draft plans across the coming weeks.

Roos drop biggest hint yet on No. 1 draft pick

— Marc McGowan

North Melbourne has given the best indication yet that South Adelaide midfielder Jason Horne-Francis will be next month’s No. 1 draft pick.

There is a consensus top three among draft experts that includes Horne-Francis and father-son prospects Nick Daicos (Collingwood) and Sam Darcy (Western Bulldogs).

The Kangaroos’ general manager of football talent, Brady Rawlings, volunteered on Thursday that they were one of the few AFL clubs yet to pick first in any draft.

They have so far rejected “spitball” offers for the top selection from Adelaide and Richmond, and North is yet to completely rule out bidding on Daicos or Darcy.

South Adelaide's Jason Horne-Francis looks to be North Melbourne-bound. Picture: SANFL

But every sign points to the Roos crowning Patrick Dangerfield clone Horne-Francis as the dux of this year’s draft class.

“He’s clearly right up at the top, with Nick Daicos and Sam Darcy, throughout the year and there are a couple of others very appealing as well up at that pointy end,” Rawlings said.

“What you saw from Jason, especially in that last month of footy in the SANFL, we’ve seen that for two years … so going into this season he was well and truly up the top, and he’s had a terrific year.

“That’s all I’ll say, but you can’t put any better performances than what Jason Horne-Francis has done over the last couple of years.”

Rawlings lauded Horne-Francis’ versatility to play as an inside or outside midfielder, as well as forward and back, and said “his attributes are pretty special”.

“He’s got the ability to win the ball at ground level and in the air, he’s great at clearance, he can run, he’s got speed and he’s competitive,” Rawlings said.

“If we are to bring him into the club; we’re bringing in a player who has all the attributes we look for and he’s got the ability, as we saw in that (SANFL) preliminary final, to change the game.”

Originally published as AFL Draft 2021: Jason Horne-Francis starting to realise North Melbourne will soon be home