THREE years ago, Hamish Hartlett's big brother was drafted by Carlton. Last year, he toured South Africa with Trent Cotchin, Cale Morton, Addam Maric and others, as part of the AIS-AFL Academy before playing, a few months later, in the South Australian state team captained by Brad Ebert. For a large part of this year, he's had to sit and watch them doing exactly what he wanted to be doing.

Has it been a frustrating wait for his own turn? "It has, it really has," said Hartlett, whose chance will finally arrive this morning. "Being in the same team as those guys — even playing against a lot of them — you feel like the opportunity you always wanted has started to get close. But then to have to wait and watch so many of them play AFL footy just gets under your skin. I really wanted it to hurry up at times but, having said that, I think this year's done me the world of good. I wish I was there already, but I can see that it's been a pretty good thing to be at home for another year, to just get myself ready for it."

Already, he has some practice in the real world. Hartlett, who finished year 12 last year, didn't want to sit around for all of this year doing nothing, so he got himself a job. For most of the season, he was getting up at 5.30am and getting to work — in customer service for Adelaide Metro, the city's public transport service — by 7am, so he could sneak out in time to train.

The job has done more than keep his mind occupied. "I think it's been good for me just to deal with people, to be speaking to a lot of people every day and having to get myself organised and off to work every day," he said.

"It's actually been good just to have a bit of money, and to be a bit more grown up and have that independence, I guess. And at the same time, home is home and it's been good to have another year there. It's probably all got me a bit more ready to leave, if that's how it happens to pan out."

He's had some recent time to think about it. Having wriggled into some form in the last part of this year's national championships — Hartlett had a particularly hard time against West Australian whippet Stephen Hill — he wrenched his shoulder a week after returning to West Adelaide, had surgery to repair a torn tendon and had to watch the last six games of the season.

There were things he still hoped to show the recruiters he could do — "There's always something more you think you could do," Hartlett said — but his mind was eased by the belief that he had found ways past his taggers, and remembered things don't always happen as you expect them to. With the nationals, it was something I didn't prepare myself for mentally," he said. "I probably just thought that having played there last year, and played some senior football for West Adelaide, that things may have come a little bit easier than they actually did.

"That was a bit of a downfall for me, especially in the early games, but then I realised that I actually had to start working a bit harder and, funnily enough, things started to fall into place later on in the carnival.

"I started to think it through a bit better. When I was younger and I got tagged, I was able to play my natural game and get through it OK. But when you've got a better quality player on you, you have to adjust your game and find other ways to get through it. It's something you've got to drill into your mind, to keep running, running and running no matter how tired you are. It was a good lesson to learn, it was valuable for my footy I think, and it's not something I'm going to forget."

Hartlett had his surgery in early August, and is able now to lift some weights, run around and kick the footy. By the time he lands at his new club, he hopes to be able to do everything but tackle and get bumped. He was only 13 when his brother, Adam, moved away from home, but he spent a few weeks with him not so long ago, and understood again how ready he is to start living the same life.

"That was probably the first time I've got to spend a good, full couple of weeks with him and it was good," Hartlett said. "I got to really experience what it's like being in his shoes, training a few times every day and going off to his uni course, and living a pretty busy life. It's a good lifestyle, and I'm really looking forward to it. I just want to get accustomed to it all as soon as I can."