You might think that the possibility of being drafted to an AFL club would have a potential draftee on the edge of his seat, surrounded by family, straining to hear his name called out.

Not so, Bailey Williams.

“I was at a friend’s house - I wasn’t watching it at all - I was having pasta watching Home and Away and I got a phone call saying I’d been picked up at 48, to the Bulldogs.”

Williams was this week allocated the number 34 guernsey, the same number worn by Brian Gilmore, the man left holding the footy when the final siren sounded on Grand Final day 1954.

The 189cm midfielder said that once he’d heard he’d been drafted it took a little while for it to feel real, at least until all the phone calls started to roll in.

“[I was] shocked. I didn’t know what to feel, actually. My phone wouldn’t stop ringing and then it started to sink in.”

The next step for the South Australian was to make the move to Melbourne, something that had its own challenges.

“Mum cried. But there was people at the airport, so that was good. It’s starting to settle in now living with Josh [Dunkley] and Lin Jong, it’s good.

“They’ve been nice.”

But don’t be fooled by the Glenelg product’s laid back nature. Underneath it all is a fierce competitor with elite level agility and excellent decision making skills.

He can also play forward or back and has a 56-disposal performance against SANFL club, Woodville-West Torrens under his belt.