Former Northern Blues vice-captain Joel Wilkinson’s dream of reaching the elite level of American football has become a reality.
After retiring from the VFL midway through last season to pursue his NFL ambition, Wilkinson, 24, has been signed by the Arizona Cardinals.
Just like his earlier rise to become an AFL player at the Gold Coast Suns, the gifted athlete has wasted no time in learning his new sporting craft.
Wilkinson, who has Nigerian and European heritage and was a VFL Multicultural Ambassador, didn’t start playing Australian football until he was 17. He quickly rose through Queensland’s underage ranks to be taken by the Suns with a zone selection in 2010, where he played 26 games mostly as a small defender.
After being delisted in 2013, Wilkinson then relocated to Victoria, playing 27 games at the Northern Blues during 2014 and 2015.
His next move will be of a much bigger magnitude, and Northern Blues General Manager Garry O’Sullivan said the club wished Wilkinson luck in the US.
“All of us at the Northern Blues are rapt for Joel,” O’Sullivan told the Northern Blues website.
“He’s his own man and was certainly very determined when he set his mind to a career in American football. For this to come to fruition is a great achievement and hopefully the start of a good thing for Joel.”
After announcing his retirement from the VFL last year, Wilkinson talked about what helped him pick up the game of Australian football so quickly when he was younger.
“I believe I worked very hard in those early times to try and fast-track my progression,” Wilkinson said in July.
“Have I been blessed with certain athleticism? Sure, but to get to the AFL, I felt I worked my way into earning that spot. I remember a lot of extra training I was doing.
“I’m sure that to start playing, it was my athleticism (that helped), but to get drafted I felt I showed more than just athleticism.”
An appetite for hard work now sees Wilkinson on the roster of a team that in January played off for a spot in the Superbowl. The 2016 NFL season commences in September.
Last Modified on 17/02/2016 16:58
