AFL draft mature-age hopeful Leek Aleer is a natural despite many roadblocks along the way

Leek Aleer will never forget the concern he felt for a fallen rival, even when his first act in footy as a schoolboy hinted he might become a star in the future.

A footballing lifetime away from smashing the AFL draft combine’s previous record for a running vertical leap, the strong draft chance was called to take up rucking duties in an under-12 game in Adelaide.

Aleer was smaller than his rival ruckman. But showing the athleticism that is now exciting club recruiters, he soared high for the tap and somehow felled his opponent in the process.

It was a legal contest. There was no whistle. But it shook Aleer for a second. He loved playing footy and had a fleeting fear it might be taken away from him.

“I remember that I jumped as high as I could and what happened, essentially, is that I kneed the other ruckman right in the abdomen,” Aleer says.

“He went down and, well, I froze for a bit because I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to apologise to him. But, at the same time, the game kept going.

“It is a memory I will have forever. That is essentially where it all started for me.”

AFL recruiters have watched the Central District defender blossom in the SANFL this season, mindful the mature-aged prospect still has a significant spring in his step.

Last month in Adelaide, Aleer’s running vertical leap was measured at an eye-catching 107cm, five centimetres higher than Nic Naitanui managed in his draft year of 2008.

The 20-year-old’s development, since a series of horror leg injuries threatened to end his career before it had even started, has him now being lined up to join an AFL cohort of South Sudanese-born Australians including Aliir Aliir, Changkuoth Jiath, Mabior Chol and Majak Daw.

Nor is he the only draft hopeful of South Sudanese heritage likely to be selected in the November 24-25 draft, which will be held virtually again due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Mac Andrew, who was born in Egypt to South Sudanese parents and is a member of Melbourne’s Next Generation Academy, is expected to be a top 10 selection.

Aleer’s footballing talent is only one facet of a man determined to make the most of an unimaginable opportunity, far removed from the turmoil of South Sudan.

With age has come an increasing awareness and gratitude for the sacrifices his family made in pursuing a new life in a foreign land.

“Safety was the main concern. There are a lot of political things that are not in shape and a lot of political things that are not well,” Aleer says.

“During that time when we kind of slowly fled and came to Australia, the main intention was to get to a place where famine and hunger, which could affect your progression in life, was not resonant.

“I think the main thing for my mother was to bring her children to a place where they could build a future for themselves. And I think a lot of South Sudanese kids who are in Australia today have a similar story to mine.”

After arriving in Adelaide with his mother Tabitha and younger sister Agot in 2006, Aleer soon fell head over heels for footy.

He would watch with fascination as his uncles hollered and shouted their support for either the Adelaide Crows or Port Adelaide, like so many in the South Australian capital.

At school, he could not wait for the recess bell to ring. He would race to the gym, grab a footy and head straight to the oval to play kick-to-kick with his new mates.

Aleer was still to master English. But he realised the game had its own language. He did not need to talk to be able to participate.

“You can come over here, to a country that is completely alien in comparison to where I was coming from, my home country of South Sudan, where everything was completely different,” he says.

“But sport is one of those things that can really bring people together. It is one of those things that helps in terms of communication.

“People come from all different walks of life, all different backgrounds. Footy was one of those things that really helped me form relationships and build bonds.

“It was something that essentially guided me and helped me build confidence in myself to talk to people and communicate and kind of get out there and make friends.”

Even when Aleer was showing promise as a teenager, Tabitha insisted he continue to pursue his education, mindful it could be crucial to his future.

His breakthrough season with Central District has been combined with a double degree in human movement and teaching at the University of South Australia.

Aleer has good reason to value his studies, having pushed through a sustained period where he believed his footy career might be over before it had really taken off.

The Bulldogs defender suffered a brutal injury early in 2019, breaking his fibula and dislocating an ankle at a crucial development stage after his leg was caught in a tackle.

The ligament damage he sustained in his ankle restricted movement in the joint and caused further tightness, which subsequently resulted in stress fractures to his foot.

An initial diagnosis of six months on the sidelines, which he found hard to stomach at the time, ballooned to 18 months as he tried to overcome repeated setbacks.

“It was something completely new to me, because I had never really been injured,” he says.

“I didn’t know how I was going to get through rehab. I had so many doubts as to whether I was going to be able to come back and play the way that I knew I could play.

“I had missed 15 months and then the coronavirus came around as well. Everything was just kind of out of whack.”

His resilience, optimism and commitment to his rehabilitation has since sat well with potential recruiters.

A pre-season chat with Central District coach Paul Thomas, where he asked Aleer whether he would be willing to be trialled in defence, proved his next turning point.

The draft prospect’s athleticism, speed and ability to read the play saw him emerge as one of the best intercept defenders in the South Australian league in his first season of senior football.

Thomas says Aleer has shown an ability to adapt to different situations and can play differing defensive roles, confident an AFL environment will only fast track his development.

Samuel Chol Aleer meanwhile has watched his nephew seize his chances in Adelaide with pride.

He arrived in Australia in 2002 and, having put himself through university, sponsored the passage of his sister and her children to a new home four years later.

Whenever the newcomers had a question about the footy, he would do his best to explain.

Now working with a company that has links to the Crows, he would love nothing more than to watch his nephew playing on Adelaide Oval, no matter the colours he ultimately wears.

“When he came here, he was just a little one and we were all living together with his mother and his little sister,” Samuel Aleer said.

“I would love to have played footy myself, but we are so happy to have been able to create that chance for him.

“That is why we are so proud of him. Australia is a place where there is no lack of opportunity.

“You can do anything you want to do. If you want to, there will be people who will give you that knowledge, their time, to help you become who you want to be here.

“We are really happy with the path he has taken in his footy career.”