NEW CAT COMING IN FROM THE COLD

ROCKING a moustache and always wearing long sleeves — while also acting as a barber in Geelong’s Perth hub and fancying himself on the PlayStation — Brad Close is a modern, old fashioned footballer.

Hailing from the classic country “Arctic weather” in Mount Gambier, Close has embraced one of the roles in vogue in current day football as a high half-forward.

It’s that balance of the old and new that has helped Close climb from the fringes of the SANFL to a premiership player, mature age rookie selection at Geelong and now an AFL debut.

In perhaps the most starkly modern of circumstances, when the 21-year-old called his parents to tell them of his selection to face Fremantle, his family had to deal with the disappointment of not being able to watch him in person.

“They were just pretty excited and their first reaction was just trying to see if they could get into WA to watch but obviously the border is fully locked down, which is a bit tough so they will watch it from home,” Close said.

Close’s father Andrew is country football royalty, having played 382 games with North Gambier and West Gambier in the Western in a role similar to the one he will fill as he replaces injured teammate Luke Dahlhaus.

Speed is one of his best attributes but it might be the long sleeves that stand out as he carries on a tradition forged on chilly Saturdays back in South Australia.

“Being from Mount Gambier, she was pretty cold so I was always wearing the sleeves in the Arctic weather,” Close said.

“It was the same in Adelaide, so I got used to it and it’s sort of a comfort thing now so I just roll with it.”

Close will debut alongside a pair of teammates in Zach Tuohy and Cam Guthrie who are known to don the sleeves at halftime during matches.

As one of the new torchbearers for the classic footballer look, Close doesn’t admonish the pair for only putting in a half effort.

“Anytime I can see (the sleeves) out there I am happy with it, if it’s only a half it’s better than nothing,” he said.