Richmond will blood 24-year-old key defender Tylar Young against Adelaide on Saturday, completing a meteoric rise for the former VFL-listed Tiger.
Young was selected with pick No. 26 overall at last year’s Rookie Draft after an impressive season playing under Steve Morris in Richmond’s VFL program.
A talented soccer, cricket, and table tennis player as a junior, Young was convinced to make the switch to football to play with his mates at North Albury for the 2019 Ovens and Murray season.
Young’s raw athletic ability and speed for someone of his size immediately stood out, with his rate of improvement earning him a VFL debut at Frankston before the end of the season.
The Albury product signed full-time at the Dolphins for the 2020 COVID ruined season before resuming his fledgling football career in 2021.
Richmond recruiters swooped on the youngster ahead of the 2022 season, attracting him to join the VFL program, and his rapid rate of development saw him drafted by the end of the year.
Young played in both of Richmond’s AFL practice matches throughout the pre-season before narrowly missing out on senior selection last week.
Speaking to the media, coach Damien Hardwick said that Young had made an immediate impact since arriving at Punt Road full-time.
“We have been impressed with this kid,” he said.
“He has been in our system for five minutes, but he has taken us by storm, really. We have been impressed by how he has gone about it.”
Young will play in the Tigers' backline and will be capable of assuming a match-up on both tall and small forwards; such is his flexibility.
