WESTERN Jet Harrison King lost a team-mate when 17-year-old Nathan Prince died after a heavy knock in the chest playing junior footy for Bacchus Marsh. Eighteen months on since the tragedy, the significance of receiving an award named in his fallen team-mate’s honour wasn’t lost on King. The Jets recently announced King was this year’s recipient of the Victoria University Nathan Prince Scholarship after showing promise both on and off the field.
The award will go toward his studies of Exercise and Sport Science.
“I thought that to get it would be such an honour for me because I actually knew (Prince),” King said.
The 18-year-old is gearing up for his top-age year in the TAC Cup and like most of contemporaries is chasing the AFL dream.
However, as King prepares to juggle his new-found study commitments with footy, he admits 2013 will hopefully not be as stressful as 2012.“Hopefully, it’s not as intense as Year 12, and if it is, and it will be tough, I guess with all the help from my mum and friends and all that it should be OK,” King said.
“There are a couple of kids that did the course last year, and I can always ask them for help, so I think I should be OK.”
Touted as a natural leader by Jets’ region manager Shane Sexton, King hopes to form part of the leadership group again this season.
“I’m just hoping to play the majority of the games, if not all and give myself the best opportunity I can to get drafted and hopefully be a part of the leadership squad,” King said.
Sexton told Star final squads won’t be finalised until at least the end of February.
