“IT WILL always be home.”

The journey from Brunswick to Carlton took a few extra detours on the road for Francis Evans, but when it all comes down to it, the new Blue will officially become Carlton player No.1243 on Thursday night when the ball is bounced.

It’s quite fitting that - after everything - Evans has ended up here. From someone who didn’t start out in the elite talent pathway and was plucked from initial obscurity in a footballing sense, he’s now readying himself to pull on the Navy Blue guernsey in front of 80,000 people at the MCG.

In 2019, Evans was playing for Brunswick NOBs in the VAFA, having missed out on the Calder Cannons initially. But after being seen by Geelong’s veteran recruiter Stephen Wells, Evans was on the way to life as an elite footballer - even if he didn’t realise it, and even if he definitely didn’t think it wasn’t a mate winding him up.

“Yeah… I obviously thought it was a pisstake! It took me a while until a few more serious people said it, and then I realised it wasn’t a joke,” Evans told the VAFA Podcast.

“I was always playing juniors and lucky enough to transition to seniors at Brunswick NOBs. During a few of those earlier games for NOBs, I think Stephen Wells got a call, came down and watched a game. I must’ve gone alright and they saw enough.

“It’s a bit of a different process to what most 18-year-olds getting drafted go through, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

In the five years since, Evans has played senior AFL football with initially Geelong and then Port Adelaide, including three finals last year. However, it was at the end of the 2024 campaign when after a busy off-season for the Power, Evans returned home - setting the wheels in motion for a career at IKON Park.

To start off with, it was becoming the first new player that signed on with the Carlton Reserves ahead of the 2025 campaign. For the self-professed “Brunswick boy”, there was a natural fit to playing his football on Royal Parade… and the driven Evans refused to give up on his AFL dream.

“I had a plan, and was confident I would be able to get into the AFL system.

“It all happened pretty quick. Once the delisting happened, the Blues got in contact: I thought it was the best program for me to come and try to get back on a list. Being so close to home, all the VFL coaches are brilliant and I still had opportunities to train with the AFL as well.

“I’ve had a fair bit to do with Luke [Power], and I can’t speak highly enough of him both personally and as a group - the amount of work he puts in, a lot of stuff behind the scenes that a lot of people don’t see.”

His gratitude for the Carlton Reserves program is evident, as is his affinity for the Brunswick NOBs: the place where he started, the place where his mates continue to play, and the place where he’s looking forward to spending more and more time around after a few years away from home.

“They gave me an opportunity as a 15-year-old to play seniors, and that springboard my own development in my career. It’s a great club… it’ll always be home.

“For me and so many of my mates, we played juniors there and transitioned to seniors.”

Those mates plus a few more are likely to venture to the home of football on Thursday night, when Evans runs through the banner alongside fellow Club debutants Lucas Camporeale and Nick Haynes… those mates just have to make sure they’re seated when the sirens go to not miss a moment.

Unlike his very first AFL game, that is.

“I actually had a few mates that were driving down that were stuck in traffic, and they were watching on the phone trying to find a park. A few of my mates missed it, I kicked it too early for them… but lucky I got another one later for them to see!”

When this interview took place late last month, playing in Round 1 was simply a goal that Evans was trying to set for himself - now, it has become a reality.

“I’d love to play Round 1, but that’s up to the coaches: I’m just going to keep presenting, keep doing what the coaches and team needs me to do.

“It starts with my pressure and defence, being the best teammate I can. I’m going to play hard and train hard to put myself in the best position.”

See you at the MCG, Frankie.