This week he became, like his dad, an Essendon player. The Bombers have rookie-listed the son of the Norm Smith Medallist and iconic figure of change within the game.

Jake was born in Melbourne when his dad was playing, moved with the family back to Darwin when his dad finished playing and then five years ago accepted a scholarship with Scotch College and, like his first cousin Cyril Rioli before him, moved to Melbourne to board at the school.

"It's not easy being down here by yourself, but he was adamant he wanted to be in the black and red.  It didn't pan out as easily as we thought it would - being here under the father-son rule - but that is okay, it's all worked out well," said Michael of Jake's path to Essendon.

"He has been doing the hard work off the field here and at Scotch College so he has earnt it himself. It's always hard to tell (judging your own child's talent) because you never want to push your kids too far or too hard but he has pushed himself and said 'I want this' and that is just as important, it means he is hungry and he wants to be a part of what I have achieved but make his own mark in his own life."

Unlike another son of a former Essendon star and product of the James Hird Academy, Joe Daniher, the path to Essendon was not so direct. The Bombers did not nominate Jake as a father-son recruit before the national draft and so he was available to any other club.

The Bombers instead lodged with the AFL their intention to nominate him as a father-son rookie if he was not taken in the national draft by another club, so once the draft was completed Jake was a Bomber.

Having endured an ankle injury for most of last year which also saw him miss the national under-18 championships, the Bombers were always confident he would get through the national draft and be available to them.

"He never got drafted because he never got exposed enough because of his injuries, so we just felt that he was going to get through so we nominated him as a rookie father-son," said recruiter Adrian Dodoro.

"We are as confident with Jake as we are with our two picks in the national draft.

"It's a different pathway, he moved to Melbourne and went to Scotch and he has been with us for quite a while. We have seen him grow up, we know him intimately and what he can and can't do."

Dodoro said he had elements of his dad's game - "his run and his speed, his agility, his game awareness" - but like his father arriving at Windy Hill, he needs to add some weight to his body and build his aerobic fitness.

He also has something of his dad's dry humour, saying Michael pestered him to watch old videos of himself.

"He tells me often, here look at this clip. He loves himself," Jake said.

Michael interrupted: "Jake was a compulsive liar as a child."

Jake laughed: "nah, he is very humble …  You try to (model your game), you want to be like your dad but you sort of want to make your own mark and that is what I want to do at the club."

To help the transition to football and deal with life in the AFL not only for Jake but other Essendon players the Bombers have hired former Melbourne player Matthew Whelan as the full-time Aboriginal programs and welfare co-ordinator.

Hawthorn and West Coast both have dedicated indigenous welfare officers and it was identified as an area of need for investment and attention for clubs in a review by the AFL and  AFL indigenous players. The problem of the retention of indigenous players in the game has been a cause for concern in recent years.

Whelan, an indigenous man originally from Darwin, said typically it fell to a loose expectation that mentoring would be done at clubs by the oldest indigenous player and while that would still happen by default, it also overlooked the needs of that older player himself and their capacity to be the best mentor and sounding board.

"One of the most important things is realising the boys are from all parts of Australia and are not all the same, some grew up in remote areas others grew up in urban areas, so it is completely different, it is not a one-size-fits all," said Whelan.

"It's been a massive problem, there are not many indigenous people employed by AFL clubs apart from players. Not many work in the staff or in the footy departments so it makes sense to have an indigenous person in the footy department for the benefit of the players and protecting their investment, they are paying these guys some good coin and it makes good sense to hire someone to look after them who knows their stuff."

It was a slightly ironic hiring to appoint Whelan to Essendon to work within James Hird's footy department. Whelan as a Melbourne player knocked Hird out with a heavy high bump (that would now be a report) just before half-time in the 2004 elimination final.