NEW Blue Michael Gibbons has set his sights on making an immediate impact at Ikon Park.

After years of hard work to get onto an AFL list, Gibbons finally realised a dream when he was informed by Carlton that he would make his way onto the rookie list for the 2019 season.

And after five seasons in the VFL, Gibbons said he didn’t want to spend too much more time in the state league competition.

“I’ve played VFL for a few years now, and I don’t really want to play too much VFL anymore,” Gibbons said.

“I’ve got an opportunity to play AFL football if I get a chance, that’d be great.

“At the moment, we’ve got a strong team of young players along with the elite players of ‘Crippa’, ‘Kreuz’ and ‘Murph’. If it takes a while to crack in, I’m okay with that.”

Gibbons — who said he expected to play a mix of forward and midfield — said pre-season was one which had involved a lot of learning and development.

He said the JLT Series was one which he’d set his sights on to make an impression and gain an understanding of how to play with his teammates.

“At the moment, I’m focusing on the JLT games. We’ve got a practice match against Hawthorn and hopefully I can get the call-up for that game,” Gibbons said.

“From there, hopefully I can get a call-up for JLT and then get up a call-up for Round 1 if possible.

“Every club has their different languages so at the moment I’m just honing in on that.”

Gibbons’ path is one which has its fair share of similarities with a certain premiership player he knows very well: Kane Lambert was a former teammate of his at Williamstown.

Gibbons said his path was one which he was looking to model.

“‘Lambo’ reached out to me after the draft but also reached out again on the weekend,” Gibbons said.

“Someone like him that gritted his teeth for a long time and showed that he could do it, he’s definitely a good role model for me.”

Working part-time as a floorer, Gibbons has understandably put that old life on hold.

“I definitely gave my boss the call the other day saying I won’t be back for the next 12 months… He was a bit dirty,” he joked.

“University is on break at the moment as well which I’m working on with the Club at the moment."