Will Setterfield couldn't quite believe it. He was walking through the halls of Caulfield Grammar and teachers would come and stop him. "You're in the paper!" they would say. He didn't need reminding. Setterfield was at the centre of a storm earlier this year as several powerbrokers in Victorian footballer – most notably Eddie McGuire – railed against the academy concessions given to Greater Western Sydney over young talent in their zone, especially in the Riverina region.
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The fuss over Setterfield is justified. The 190-centimetre midfielder will be picked up at the pointy end of Friday night's draft in Sydney, and remains in the discussion to be taken at No.1 by Essendon, the club that his dad Mark gave him no choice but to support growing up. Will's hero was a fellow tall, blond midfielder: James Hird.
If not the Bombers he'll probably end up at the Giants, who can claim him at a discount even though he moved away from Albury at the start of year 10 to board in Melbourne and play for the TAC Cup's Sandringham Dragons.
So it was no surprise his name was at the top of the list of players mentioned in May when the academy issue became footy's hot topic for the week, leading to another chapter in the public sparring matchbetween McGuire and the NSW clubs. "It was a bit surreal at the time when it first happened," Setterfield said.
"It was obviously humbling that you're being talked about as one of the best academy kids.
"After a month of it – teachers coming up to you – you're kind of sick of it.
"You try to accept what's happening."
Setterfield thought it best to stay at arm's length from the politics."It was best not for me to buy into it. I don't really have much say. It was best not for me to have an opinion."
Setterfield barely had time to think about it anyway, in what was an extremely busy year for the teenager. There was travel aplenty. Stuck between two football lives – one in NSW and one in Melbourne. Even despite a niggling run of injuries this year – foot, shoulder and concussion – Setterfield pulled on the jumper of no fewer than five teams in 2016. In addition to Caulfield Grammar and the Dragons, there was NSW/ACT, the Allies, and Australia.
It was complicated by his year 12 studies, with football commitments meaning he needed to get assessments moved. "It was pretty hard to concentrate on both," he said. It all meant he didn't have the luxury of such fripperies as watching TV or listening to music.
Sport has been the epicentre of his life for a long time. It's been the case in Melbourne, where he has a lot of extended family, who have taken him to watch the footy regularly. Setterfield's older brother James – who turns 21 next month – has also moved to Melbourne to study commerce at Deakin University.
That support network has helped smooth Setterfield's move away from mum Anne and Mark in Albury. While he enjoys the relaxation that comes from his visits back to the border, boarding hasn't fazed him. "I guess you're always involved in something, making new friends." Soon there will be a new group of friends, as Setterfield joins an AFL list. Whether he stays in Melbourne though remains to be seen.
