Essendon’s Darcy Parish has been named the NAB AFL Rising Star nominee for round two.

The Bombers top draft pick has made a seamless transition to senior football.

The 18 year old collected 25 possessions on debut against Gold Coast in his first game and he followed it up with another polished performance against Melbourne.

“Darcy’s first two games have been extremely pleasing,” Essendon Coach John Worsfold said.

“He’s really been strong in the contested area of his game and he’s laying a high number of tackles.”

Parish picked up 21 possessions, laid eight tackles and kicked the sealer against the Demons.

“He really hunts the footy and he’s got a good knack of getting on the end of it and then he shows composure when he gets his hands on it,” Worsfold said.

“And when he gets on the outside, his ability to finish with a goal on the run is also pretty handy.”

Parish was the Bombers top pick in last November’s National Draft.

Recruited from the Geelong Falcons, Parish was a two-time All-Australian at under age level.

He was a highly sought after prospect and List and Recruiting Manager, Adrian Dodoro, was delighted to secure the Winchelsea product with pick number five last November.

“Darcy’s just a very good player,” he said.

“He’s been in the system for a couple of years; he’s been an All-Australian under 16 and under 18 player. Darcy’s got the appetite and the constitution to be a very good AFL midfielder.

“A lot of our fans have been saying we should draft a class midfielder and we’ve got one.

“He’s got a lot of growth to go in his body obviously, but he’s going to complement our midfield for many years to come.”