On Monday he completed his VCE exams at Melbourne Grammar. Tonight Tom Temay heard his name called with Carlton’s second-round selection (35th overall) in the 2012 AFL National Draft.

It’s been a hell of a week for the son of a former Saint, the 52-game Paul Temay who chased the leather between 1980 and ’86.

“This is a dream come true. I’m just so excited that it’s happened and it’s happened pretty fast.  I really didn’t think I was going to go early because I didn’t want to get ahead of myself,” said Tom with modest reflection on his recruitment to the mighty Blues.

“I was sitting here on the couch at home when my name was called and people here just hugged eachother. It was a bit emotional.”

A level-headed kid if first impressions are to go by, Tom described his father as an enormous influence “and very influential this year in terms of my development”.

“Dad has taught me to use the recent setback I’ve had as motivation to improve,” Tom said. “I missed out on the Grand Final for Sandringham Dragons last year, but he told me to use it as a spur. So I went out and trained pretty hard, put on five kilos in the gym and I reckon I put in the best season I’ve ever had.”

A “small defender/midfielder who is a great competitor and rarely beaten in a one-on-one contest” according to the AFL draft blurb, Tom has also benefited from the tutelage of the Carlton premiership half-back (now director football operations) Andrew McKay, his year 11 coach at Melbourne Grammar. As he said: “He’s a ripper bloke, Andy, and it’s terrific we’re going to reunite”.

An impressive endurance athlete who represented his state as a 3000-metre runner three years ago, Tom found his “aths” a means of complementing his footballing craft.

In the end, he had to make the call for one over the other “and footy was my passion because I loved it”.

Carlton’s National Recruiting Manager Shane Rogers said that while Tom played back pocket for Sandringham for most of this year, “he played midfield/wing for Vic Metro, which is where I see him playing”.

“He’s definitely a wingman/midfielder with silky skills and he’s obviously a good runner,” Rogers said.