Shadowed by the colossus of the Great Southern Stand, respected Carlton administrator Shane O’Sullivan stood with his newest recruit, a fresh-faced teenager from Adelaide, and stared out at the expanse before them. This young man had recently arrived for an induction weekend, having been selected with pick 15 in the 1994 AFL draft.
“Have you ever been to the MCG?” O’Sullivan asked on the teenager’s first day at Princes Park. The answer was a definitive no. The bustling metropolis of Melbourne was a world away from the tranquil charm of Woodville Oval in suburban Adelaide.
Part of O’Sullivan’s role in 1995 was to integrate new players into the Carlton system, a task that involved managing the intimidation factor of playing at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. “Round one we’ll be playing Collingwood here,” O’Sullivan told the youngster, “There’s probably gonna be about 85,000 people. You reckon you’d like playing in front of that?” The teenager nodded, eager to prove himself.
The Journey Begins: Scott Camporeale’s Rise
Confidence was not an issue for Scott Camporeale. Just weeks later, on April 2, 1995, the 19-year-old donned the number 16 navy blue guernsey and ran onto the MCG in front of 87,119 screaming fans. By the season’s end, the kid from Woodville-West Torrens had etched his name into Carlton’s history books.
Five players debuted for Carlton in 1995, but Camporeale was the only one recruited via that season’s national draft. “I was actually sitting in a trade school exam at Regency Park back here in Adelaide when it was happening,” Camporeale recalls. “Carlton was one of the teams I hadn’t spoken to at all. I thought I was going to Melbourne.”
Carlton swooped on Camporeale with their first pick at number 15, undercutting the Demons, who ended up taking future Richmond coach Adem Yze with the next pick. “I asked Shane O’Sullivan at the time, ‘you didn’t say anything to me before the draft’,” Camporeale says. “And he said, ‘well, we didn’t want anyone to know we were going to pick you’.”
Matt Clape’s Unexpected Call
Meanwhile, Matt Clape’s journey to Princes Park was similar to Camporeale’s in its unpredictability. “I thought I was going to Adelaide,” Clape says from his Perth home. “But the first I knew of being picked was when David Parkin called me on the way to work.”
At almost 26 years old, Clape had been seeking a change after four seasons with West Coast, where he played 29 games but never featured in a final. “It was tough back then,” Clape explains. “I’m playing halfback, and you’re going up against guys like John Worsfold and Guy McKenna.”
The Eagles offered Clape a one-year contract extension, but he felt it was time for a change. “I’d just got married at the end of 1994, and me and my wife just said, you know, let’s go into the draft and see what happens,” Clape says.
Overcoming Challenges and Seizing Opportunities
Simon Beaumont, another debutant, had been taken with pick 18 in the 1993 draft but spent 1994 developing in the reserves. “I certainly needed that 12 months development in the VFL before I was ready to play at the next level,” Beaumont says.
By round 10, Beaumont found his name highlighted on the team list after Thursday training. “They’d have their match committee after training, so the coaches would go into a room, and they’d be there for an hour, maybe an hour-and-a-half,” Beaumont recalls.
Glenn Manton, who joined Carlton after being delisted by Essendon, also found his place in the team. “Carlton literally came out of left field,” Manton says. “I attended my first training session during the preseason without as much as a pair of boots.”
From Debut to Premiership Glory
As the season progressed, these new recruits became integral to Carlton’s success. The Blues went on a 15-game winning streak, culminating in a grand final victory over Geelong. “You knew that if everyone just performed their role, that they were going to beat any team, on any day,” Beaumont says.
For Camporeale, the journey from a draft pick to a premiership player was surreal. “I think 1995 set me up professionally in footy because you learn how to win and you learn how to train,” he reflects.
The 1995 Carlton team remains one of the most dominant in AFL history, and for the debutants, it was a season that changed their lives forever. “It was a different shape and time around the community back then,” Manton says. “Now, I feel sorry for the modern athlete who never gets that type of release.”
As the club celebrates the 30th anniversary of their last premiership, the stories of these debutants serve as a reminder of the impact that a single season can have on a player’s career and life.
