Jackson Callow may have gone unselected in last year's national draft, but AFL clubs will be watching him as closely as ever.
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The 2019 North Launceston premiership sensation will line up in the SANFL next season after accepting an offer to play under fellow Tasmanian forward Jade Rawlings at Norwood.
Should the 18-year-old's SANFL output match his TSL feats, it surely won't take long for reports to reach the ear of Rawlings' younger brother - North Melbourne football boss Brady - and others in the AFL.
"He's a player we've been watching for some time now - close to three years," said Rawlings junior, who returned to North Melbourne in 2019 after six years with West Coast.
"He's only 19 this year and he's certainly a player that we've followed closely and would have followed him closely again in Tassie this year, but now we'll have to do it watching him in the SANFL.
"The big thing with guys that do miss out in their first year that they're draft eligible is that it's not all over ... we just rookied Connor Menadue from Werribee who had been delisted from Richmond a couple of years ago.
"So hope isn't lost for a player like Jackson and the same goes for any other 19 and 20-year-olds out there - there's still opportunities."
Callow is one of several Tassie Devils moving to the SANFL this season, with Launceston midfielder Jared Dakin and North Hobart ruckman Hamish Allan set to play under Martin Mattner at Sturt.
Kingborough midfielder Kieran Lovell (West Adelaide), former Magpies Aaron Joseph (Glenelg) and Aiden Grace (Central District) and delisted AFL pair Fraser Turner and Mitch O'Neill (South Adelaide) are among other Tasmanians playing in South Australia this year.
Rawlings said a new partnership announced last week, which offers eight Tasmanian footballers the chance to play with North Melbourne's VFL side, would have been perfect for Callow had he chosen to remain in the state in 2021.
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