THE CARLTON Football Club have welcomed two promising recruits to IKON Park in the 2021 NAB AFL Mid-Season Rookie Draft with Alex Mirkov and Jordan Boyd joining the Club.
The Blues have landed - quite literally – a big acquisition in Mirkov with the 210-centimetre ruck prospect signing an 18-month contract to wear the Navy Blue.
He featured in the opening two games of Carlton’s VFL season in 2021 and has played the last two years of football at Old Ivanhoe in the VAFA after playing volleyball at AGSV level for Ivanhoe Grammar.
Mirkov proved his wares as a tap ruckman for the Carlton Reserves in the opening fortnight of the VFL season after impressing in practice matches, recording 36 hitouts against Brisbane in Round 2.
After turning 21 last November, Mirkov now adds depth to Carlton’s ruck division alongside Marc Pittonet and Tom De Koning.
From Spotswood to IKON Park, via Footscray, Boyd’s football journey took a significant step on Wednesday night when the VFL Bulldog was officially drafted by Carlton.
Selected on a six-month contract, Boyd has been made to do it the hard way for his chance on an AFL list.
A product of the Maribyrnong Sports Academy where new teammates Josh Honey and Sam Ramsay also hail from, Boyd was given his chance with Footscray after impressing for Spotswood in the Western Region Football League.
The medium forward, who has shown his versatility by also playing down back in 2021, has not missed a beat, kicking three goals against eventual premier Richmond on his debut while playing every game for the undefeated Dogs so far in this VFL season.
A classy finisher around the ground and in front of goal, Boyd uses his pace to his advantage and has spent more time up the ground so far in the 2021 VFL campaign.
Head of List Management Nick Austin said both players have well and truly deserved their opportunity having forged their unique journeys to the elite level.
“We’re delighted to welcome Alex and Jordan to our AFL playing list,” Austin said.
“We’ve got to know Alex well during his time with our VFL team: he’s really committed to his craft and someone who we see can take his game to a few more levels. We identified the ruck position as an area where we wanted to add too, and Alex certainly does that.
“He’s shown throughout the VFL pre-season and opening weeks of the campaign that he’s able to give the midfield group first use and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.
“We can’t wait to get Alex into our program and working with our ruck coach Matthew Kreuzer, which we think is really going to accelerate his development.”
“Jordan is 22 years of age and someone who has fought for everything that’s come his way: he really grasped the opportunity of VFL footy with both hands and we feel he’s the kind of player who can thrive in an AFL environment.
“We’ve liked his work mainly as a forward but he’s also someone who can get involved and work up the ground. He’s a good ball user and a lovely finisher around goal, so we think he’s going to complement what we’ve got in that forward mix.”
