A trio of sought-after Launceston talents have reflected on their time at the Blues before the mainland potentially comes calling.
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AFL draft hopefuls Colby McKercher, James Leake and Arie Schoenmaker - who have been touted as talented prospects - have all come through the Blues' junior pathway.
Between them, the trio have played 37 Tasmanian State League senior games, Leake leading the way with 17, while McKercher and Schoenmaker have both played 10.
McKercher was the first to debut, bursting into the Blues' senior side in 2021 for six games as a 16-year-old.
"Being quite a skinny kid, I felt as if it fast-tracked my development somewhat, getting to be exposed to senior men and the pace of football is a lot different to unders football," he said.
"I felt as if I learned a lot and throughout the whole season, I just really nitpicked my game and learned off the older players like Jay Blackberry, Mitch [Thorp] and Jobi Harper just to name a few.
"I felt as if it really prepared me for that bottom-aged NAB League season [in 2022]."
While McKercher and Schoenmaker were playing for the Tasmania Devils last year, Leake put together almost a full season of senior football.
He was in development league for the first five games before earning a call-up and never leaving - becoming a premiership player at just 16 years of age after 14 matches.
"I was at Launnie playing with a lot more senior players which is something that helped accelerate my development as a player," Leake said.
"I was very grateful to have people with lots of experience - Jobi Harper, Jackson Thurlow - who really took me under their wing.
"I think that was something that was really good for my development as a player and helped me going into this year."
Schoenmaker made his senior debut this season, reminiscing on what was a special night against North Launceston in round one as his Nanna presented his guernsey.
The memorable moment came after the 18-year-old was hit with an internal suspension from the Tasmania Devils' program following a pre-season incident.
"After the suspension, Launceston took me under their wing, especially Mitch as well with that, and were a support environment for me and to go back and build strong relationships there was massive for me," he said.
"Without Launnie, I probably wouldn't be in the position I am currently so I'm pretty grateful for what Launnie did for me and I really enjoyed my footy there this year."