NSW’ Sam Martyn to become a Crow

The news came as a huge surprise to the talented athlete who has only been playing AFL for three years.

“I found out last night on the internet, I didn’t even realise I had been taken,” Martyn said.

“I was told in August they were going to take me, whether in the national draft or rookie draft, but then I looked on the internet because they said they were going to announce the changes to their playing list and then my name popped up as a rookie.

“I was pretty ecstatic. I went and yelled out to mum and dad to come and have a look at the website and they were pretty excited as well.”

Martyn is now one of seven NSW and ACT players to join an AFL club this year, with a further 39 players on NSW Scholarships with various AFL Clubs.

Coming from an athletics background, Martyn has made the successful transition to AFL through the guidance of the AFL (NSW/ACT) Talented Player Program and the Adelaide Crows.

“It took me a while to develop the footy smarts, I had all of the athletic attributes, it was just trying to think my way through a game,” he said.

“I’m still developing but it’s just going to be even better to get over there and to be training full time.”

This year alone a number of AFL club rookies made their way onto the playing field, none bigger than Collingwood’s Jarryd Blair who played in the two 2010 Toyota AFL Grand Finals.

Martyn said he’ll be looking to emulate the achievements of NSW-born Crows players Taylor Walker, who has played 32 games in two seasons, and Aidan Riley, who is a graduate of the NSW Scholarship program.

“Taylor [Walker] has helped me out a lot. Every time I go down to Adelaide he takes me under his wing and takes me out for lunch and dinner,” Martyn said.

“He’s open to questions so if I have any problems or I have any questions about how to improve something he always helps out.”

AFL (NSW/ACT) Talented Player Program Coach/Manager Jack Masters discovered a speedy 15-year-old runner who whizzed past him while at a school visit in 2007.

Following an invitation to play his first real AFL game for the Cats at the Joss State Zone Trials in Riverview that year, Martyn attended the rising RAMS [NSW/ACT state team] camp and scored 15.12 in the beep test and ran 3km in 9.19 minutes. Both of which are scores players in the AFL reach – not a 15-year-old.

The Adelaide Crows noticed his talents and within 24 hours of the rising RAMS camp they signed him on a NSW scholarship.

“The Crows showed a lot of courage and foresight in terms of taking a bit of a risk on a kid who hadn’t played a lot of footy but his level of improvement, especially since he missed 12 months of footy when he was 16-years-old with OP [osteitis pubis], his development has been nothing short of extraordinary,” Masters said.

“The Adelaide Crows and the AFL (NSW/ACT) Talented Player Prorgam should be recognised and commended for what they’ve done with him because he’s a real player in the making no doubt about it.”

Adelaide Crows National Recruiting Manager Matthew Rendell said he has high hopes for Martyn.

“I think he’s an AFL footballer, absolutely – we wouldn’t be putting him on if we didn’t think so,” Rendell said.

“He’s certainly got AFL running capabilities, he knows his way around the ground, he’s got a bit to learn about game sense but he’s got great work ethic and he’s a ripping kid.

“I think he could have a long career [in the AFL with the Adelaide Crows].”