FULFILLING a dream to play AFL at the top level is still in the sights of Lake Nash Young Guns teenager Jamison Billy.
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Blessed with natural talent and skill, the sky is the limit for the Australian Rules Football prodigy.
Billy, 19, hopes to crack the big time in the AFL but knows he has to concentrate on his football and keep improving.
The lightning quick forward – who has arguably the best skills in the competition — currently sits at the top of the AFL Mount Isa goalkickers’ leader board.
He averages more than four goals a game, but Billy says he still isn’t content.
“I still have a long way to go before I achieve my dream of playing in the AFL,” he said.
A relative novice to the game with only four years’ experience, Billy possesses the natural ability to make something from nothing in front of goal.
“I still get nervous before every game but once the adrenaline kicks in, I just follow my instincts out on the field,” he said.
“Especially with the crowd cheering you on, I feel as though there is nothing I can’t do.”
A basketball junior, Jamison credits Lake Nash AFL legend Clarence Campbell as the biggest influence on his career.
“Clarence first got me into the team and has taken me under his wing to teach me all he knows,” he said.
“Without his knowledge and coaching, I wouldn’t be where I am today, that’s for sure.”
Last year, Billy was also invited to play two games for the Darwin Buffaloes in the Northern Territory Football League.
“The competition playing for Darwin is a whole lot stronger, which is great for my game,” he said.
“I’m going back to play for them in the off-season of the Young Guns again this season.”
Billy is hoping to use this as a springboard into the AFL, with other notable AFL players Andrew McLeod and Matthew Whelan being products of the Buffaloes’ system.
“The training and coaching in Darwin pushes me to be the best player I can be,” he said.
“There are also scouts watching most of the games up there, so I want to impress them and hopefully get noticed.”
Billy isn’t looking too far ahead though, as his Young Guns’ side is the form team of the Mount Isa AFL league.
“We have won three matches in a row and we are starting to find the form we know we are capable of,” he said.
Young Guns’ coach Rohan Webb has his troops playing exciting footy and Billy credits the improvement to their three intensive sessions each week.
“Rohan pushes us hard every training session we have with him, because he can see the potential in all of us,” he said.
“Rohan has helped me strengthen up and practice my set shots in front of goal, both things I needed to improve.”
The Young Guns currently sit second on AFL Mount Isa ladder and with only four rounds remaining tomorrow’s clash with Rovers takes on extra importance, according to Webb.
“We need to keep building momentum into the finals and ensure we finish in the top two,” he said.
“It might come down to percentage at the end of the season, so we need to make sure we play our best and beat Rovers.”