JACK Sinclair was in the midst of doing chores around his Balwyn house when he found out he would be a St Kilda player in 2015.

Home alone, the classy ex-Oakleigh Chargers premiership player suspected the Saints had an interest in him, but nevertheless found the six days between the National and Rookie Drafts the most excruciating of his life.

“I’m just pretty relieved and glad the wait and the uncertainty is over,” Sinclair told SAINTS.com.au on Friday.

“That was probably the worst thing about not getting picked up in the National Draft. The next four days felt like two weeks and I’m just glad it’s over.

“I just couldn’t believe it when I saw my name there at pick one… I can’t wait to get started now.”

RELATED: Sinclair selected with pick one

Sinclair put down his pan and brush, picked up his phone and immediately the text messages began to flood in.

Well wishes from family members, old friends and even Jack Billings followed by the dozen.

But the message from Billings wasn’t a surprise for Sinclair, who has been close friends with the up and coming left footer for as long as he can remember.

“I’ve known Jack since Auskick,” Sinclair recalled with nostalgic grin.

“We played footy, cricket and basketball together as kids and went to Scotch College together.

“We thought our last game together was a couple of years ago and who knows, maybe next year we might be playing together… He was pretty happy with me and stoked that I will be there with him.”

Like Billings, Sinclair’s sporting prowess extended beyond the football field.

A promising wicket-keeper batsman for Scotch College, he even rejected the Oakleigh Chargers in favour of school cricket in 2013, only to surprise himself the following footy winter and take up a TAC Cup spot as an overage player last season.
Prioritising cricket ahead of footy was a decision that he suspected would work against him.

It didn’t.

“Initially I probably thought I would go further with cricket but I had some pretty good footy form in my final year at school,” he said.

“I had chosen not to play with the Oakleigh Chargers that year so it probably hurt my chances a bit last year. They invited me back as a 19-year-old and also managed to play a few games with Port Melbourne.”


Luke McDonald (North Melbourne), Jack Billings and Tom Sinclair were a formidable junior footy trio for Kew Comets.

RELATED: Now the hard stuff starts

And the three games VFL experience proved invaluable for the classy midfielder/forward whose grandfather played 15 matches for St Kilda in the 1950s.

“I played better each week at Port Melbourne and my final game against Box Hill was my best game. To play against guys who were on AFL lists gave me great self-belief and confidence that I could take the next step.”

A brief visit to the club on Friday morning with his parents began with a tour of the Linen House Centre, before Player Welfare Manager Tony Brown briefed him and Brenton Payne on their upcoming trip to New Zealand.

“I met a few of the players, a lot of the staff, and got kitted out with all of our gear to take to New Zealand tomorrow morning,” Sinclair said.

“I am looking forward to meeting the group and getting a taste of training in that elite environment.”


Bill Gleeson was a rover in 1955-56.

So what does 2015 have in store for Sinclair?

“I won’t put any limits on it, but I will certainly take inspiration from what Eli Templeton did last year. He came in as a rookie, had a strong impact and played senior footy in round one. That’s the goal.”

Jack Sinclair may be the fifth Jack on St Kilda’s list, but evidently he’s committed to making a name for himself, beginning tomorrow in Queenstown, New Zealand.