Schoolmates blown away as Suns land the old one-two
A LONG-RUNNING joke between best mates has become a reality as Matthew Rowell and Noah Anderson prepare to continue their football journey together at Gold Coast.
The Carey Grammar graduates were selected by the Suns with picks one and two in last night’s national draft, in both a talent coup and clever retention strategy by the club.
Rowell revealed he was told he would be taken at pick one during a home visit from the Suns last Thursday.
But Anderson was left sweating without anything official until moments before the draft.
The pair played junior football with and against each other, played in a junior basketball championship together, and grew up living minutes apart in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs.
“We’d kind of joked about maybe playing for an AFL club together, and now it’s actually real,” Rowell said.
“We’re best mates, so to go up and to share this journey with him will be pretty special and something we’re both looking forward to.”
Anderson said he was overwhelmed to join Rowell in a move north planned for the weekend. “I’m pinching myself a little bit. It’s awesome,” he said. “The opportunity that we have now is awesome, so we’ll make the most of it and have some fun.”
Rowell follows in the footsteps of players such as Luke Hodge, Brendon Goddard, Nick Riewoldt and Marc Murphy as a No. 1 pick. But he said he was unfazed by the expectations to come.
“There will be expectation and a bit of pressure, but I think pressure’s a privilege and I’ve just got to put my head down and work hard from here,” Rowell said.
“It’s just a number from here, so I’ve just got to work hard at the club now and earn my spot.”
A Carlton supporter — something that runs in the family — Rowell said it would be “no problem” converting his inner circle to Suns fans.
Sunscreen will be a priority on the packing list for the fairskinned Rowell, who has already been copping it from his mates.
“There will be a lot of sunscreen, a lot of slip, slop, slap,” Rowell said. “A lot of my mates have joked about that if I do go up, saying maybe put something in your contract for something with sunscreen.”