It’s been a long and incredibly patient wait, but Oscar Clavarino will make his senior debut this Saturday against North Melbourne 1283 days after being drafted.
The young defender was told the news by Brett Ratten and Strength & Conditioning coach Steve Forcone at this morning’s team meeting, making him the 1626th AFL player to don the red, white and black.
Clavarino was selected with pick No. 35 in the 2017 National Draft – a class that included Hunter Clark, Nick Coffield and Ben Paton – before being moved to the rookie list at the end of 2020.
The 22-year-old has spent the past three-and-a-half years at reserves level, lining up for Sandringham in 37 games plus a handful of modified scratch match outings in Noosa.
A syndesmosis injury at the start of 2019 and a persistent hamstring injury throughout 2020 slowed his progress, but the wait is finally over for the untried Saint.
Clavarino becomes St Kilda’s third debutant this season alongside Tom Highmore and Paul Hunter.
