From rookie list to the top

Dean Terlich grew up on a farm between the small Riverina towns of Osborne and Henty in southern NSW and thought he’d realised his AFL dream when he was rookie listed by the Sydney Swans in 2008.

It wasn’t to be and Terlich was delisted after just a year at the club. Five years later and Terlich’s AFL dream finally come true, making his debut for the Melbourne Demons in Round 2 at the age of 23.

And after just 20 games in the Demons’ red and blue, Terlich has finished third in the clubs’ Best and Fairest award to take out the Rob Barassi Snr Memorial Trophy.

The mature defender was of the bright spots of the year for the Melbourne side, playing all but two matches in his first season.

Vice-captain Nathan Jones narrowly edged out backman Colin Garland to win his second consecutive Keith ‘Bluey’ Truscott Memorial Trophy.

Terlich began playing for Osborne Cats at 12 years-old and then tried out for the Murray Bushrangers in Victoria’s TAC Cup competition, training hours away in Wangaratta and playing in Melbourne each weekend.

He played for the NSW/ACT Rams in the Division 2 winning side at the 2007 National Championships alongside current AFL players Craig Bird, Luke Breust and Taylor Walker.

Terlich missed just one game after making his debut and impressed with his composure and consistency, including a standout game against St Kilda in Round 13 when he amassed a career-high 28 disposals.