Tom Derickx still has plenty of growth in him . . .
For someone who’s nearly 23 years old, and stands 201cm tall, that statement may seem a tad strange.
The growth in this instance, however, refers to his football development.
Derickx, who was selected by Richmond at pick 63 overall in last week’s National Draft, is a late bloomer.
Up until a couple of years ago, he was playing football for the Augusta-Margaret River club in Western Australia’s South West League.
The talent scouts at WAFL club Claremont liked what they saw in the big bloke and, at the end of 2008, he moved to Perth to play with the WA Tigers.
He spent the 2009 season in Claremont’s reserves, before making his senior debut with the club in the opening round this year.
Claremont smashed Peel Thunder by 110 points, with Derickx producing an impressive first-up display in senior WAFL ranks.
Here’s how veteran WA sports writer, Ken Casellas, described Derickx’s debut . .
“The 22-year-old Derickx has improved at a remarkable rate since making his first appearance for the Tigers last year in the reserves competition. Tall, willowy and possessing a splendid leap, Derickx was pitted against the well-credentialled Daniel Murray, a WA under-18 representative in 2008 and a rookie with the Brisbane Lions last year.
Derickx, extremely mobile for a 200cm ruckman, showed excellent technique at the bounce-downs and boundary throw-ins to win 23 knocks. He also took three marks, had nine kicks and made seven effective handpasses . . .”
For the rest of the season, Derickx was a solid contributor in Claremont’s re-emergence as a force in the WAFL competition, culminating in its nail-biting loss to Swan Districts in the grand final.
Claremont’s football manager, Dean Horsington, is convinced Derickx has the necessary attributes to make the grade at the game’s highest level.
“He has very good athleticism for such a tall player . . .he covers the ground well, he reads the play well, and he does a lot of the hard things, like tackling and chasing. His work ethic is really good,” Horsington said.
“Character-wise, he’s outstanding. He’s one of the most genuine players we had at the club. He worked as a builder . . . he got fully qualified after moving away from home, and did it the hard way, with not a lot of money.
“To his considerable credit, he’s got himself in a good position to improve as a footballer. He managed to do the extra sessions in the gym and on the track. Football-wise, he just didn’t miss a beat, really.
“The real upside for Tom is that he’s just got a lot more improvement in him. That’s the beauty of him.
“Getting him in the AFL system now, with the development he’ll receive, I think he’ll just keep improving.
“He’s going to be quite exciting . . .”
