FATHER-son selection Billy Stretch says he’s “absolutely ecstatic” to join Melbourne – the club his Dad Steven played 164 matches for from 1986-93 – after he was claimed at selection No.40 on Monday via the bidding system.
Adelaide bid its second round pick (No.30) on Stretch, which was then matched by Melbourne with its third round selection (No.40). It means the Demons are now bound to select Stretch in the November NAB AFL Draft with its third round selection.
Stretch said it had been a big build up and a tense few days, but he was over the moon with the outcome.
“It’s certainly a huge amount of relief. Myself and the family are absolutely stoked with the result,” he told melbournefc.com.au.
“It’s certainly been an emotional rollercoaster this year with the national champs and playing some senior footy for Glenelg and being part of the AIS academy program.
“It’s certainly been great to finally land at the Dees and it’s a real advantage for me as well, because you don’t have to wait until the end of November to find out the result.”
Stretch said there was a “huge sense of relief” after he found out via the streaming of the father/son bidding on afl.com.au.
“At the Combine, I still didn’t really know what was going on and over the weekend it was still a little bit up in the air and it wasn’t in concrete,” he said.
“But it’s fantastic and really exciting news.
“I got a call straight after from [national recruiting manager] Jason Taylor and he congratulated me and welcomed me to the club and shortly after I got a call from the coach Paul Roos, who welcomed me to the club. They’re all happy to have me on board, which is great.”
Stretch said it was an emotional moment for the family, when it was realised that Billy was following his father Steven’s footsteps. For the record, Steven also played 25 matches with Fitzroy in 1994-95, including a season with Paul Roos in 1994, for a total of 189 VFL/AFL matches.
“It was just a great day to celebrate and I’m sure it’ll be one we’ll never forget,” he said.
“It’s the start of an exciting journey and the hard work starts now.”
Asked to describe himself as a player, Stretch said he was a “really good runner with a combination of speed and endurance”.
“I’ve also got a pretty good skill set to compliment that and I’d like to think I make some good decisions under pressure and I’m clean below my knees,” he said.
“I pride myself on my character and my professionalism, so they’re probably some of the traits that best describe my game.
“Hopefully they will help me take my game to another level.”
