“It was good to make my debut in Juddy’s first game in front of 80,000 people; there was no pressure at all,” Edwards said following his 12-disposal, one-goal performance.
“It was all right though, I enjoyed it. It was good to get a snag early which is always handy, but there were a couple there that I missed which I was pretty disappointed with.
“Fevy and all the boys down there really made me feel at home with all the set-ups and that sort of stuff. They were really pumping me up to back myself, so I didn’t really feel out of place at all.”
The former Western Jet, taken 36th overall in the 2005 NAB AFL Draft, came close to senior selection late last season, but was thwarted by injury.
He continued a long family tradition when he ran out for his first game on the MCG, with father Allan – better known as Butch – having played 113 games in stints at Richmond, Footscray and Collingwood, and grandfather, Arthur, notching 120 matches with the Bulldogs.
“I’ve been playing footy since I was about nine and it just made it all worth it,” he said.
“I must admit I took about 30 seconds there just to look around and realise that this is it, this is why you play the game. Especially with my family background, it made me feel really proud to run out there and represent the navy Blue.”
The 20-year-old received a helping hand with the unusual scheduling of the match not giving him time to get nervous about his big day.
“It’s come and gone really quick,” he said.
“Being a Thursday game all my mates have been asking ‘are you pumped and excited?’ but I’m not used to playing on a Thursday, so waking up it just felt like a training day. It still hasn’t quite sunk in yet.”
Edwards had a good tussle with Kelvin Moore for most of the night and said learning about different opponents and his positioning would continue to be his main goal as he strives to cement a senior spot.
“I actually found it a bit easier to get a kick [than in the VFL] at times because the kicks are better, the skills are better and if you get in the right spots they look for you; I am adjusting,” he said.
“It was good, but unfortunately we didn’t get the four points which is the main thing.”
