JAEGER O'Meara has heard it all.
"The next Chris Judd", "Genetically blessed", "Ready to take AFL by storm", "Can do anything". And it goes on.
It's all a bit embarrassing for the quietly spoken 18-year-old from the small West Australian coastal town of Dongara, 370km north of Perth.
Asked how many times he has been interviewed, O'Meara sheepishly estimates more than 50.
Yep, this is a kid still yet to play a senior AFL game.
Age restrictions stopped him from doing that for Gold Coast last year, but that hasn't dulled the hype over a midfielder who kicked four goals on his WAFL debut in 2011.
He joined the Suns in the 17-year-old mini-draft and has worked methodically towards his AFL debut.
O'Meara has been like a Christmas present that has been sitting under the tree for a year.
Seemingly every person you speak to raves about the talents of the dynamic midfielder - an All-Australian selection as a 15-year-old and the favourite for this year's NAB Rising Star Award.
"I try not to focus on it (hype) too much," O'Meara said.
"Obviously you cop a bit of flack from your mates and that sort of stuff and the comparisons to Chris Judd are very humbling, but I've still got a very long way to go. He's obviously a superstar of the game.
"Genetically blessed? My parents would be happy to hear that."
While many of his contemporaries enter the AFL system having overcome self doubt and rejection, O'Meara has had to bat away the sort of praise and hype reserved for a select few.
Not that it weighs on him.
"That's all external pressure. At the moment I'm just taking each day as it comes and working on what I need to work on," he said.
Asked if he puts pressure on himself, O'Meara replied: "I think if you don't put pressure on yourself you're in the wrong industry, playing AFL.
"There's always that pressure you put on yourself to succeed and I like to do that myself, which I'm sure is the case for all players."
Being drafted a year early has given O'Meara the chance to complete two pre-seasons and he's used them to add 7kg to an impressive frame and undergo surgery to fix the groin problems that ended his 2012 season with the Suns reserves.
And he's done it all in the relative anonymity of the Gold Coast.
"It definitely suits me coming from a small country town where we didn't have any massive hype over who was going to be next Gary Ablett and all that," he said.
"I've been able to get in the gym a year earlier and put on the weight I needed to. I'm a lot stronger now and I've sat down with the coaches and picked the brains of guys like Gary Ablett and Karmichael Hunt and stuff.
"I think you're crazy if you're playing alongside him (Ablett) and not asking him questions.
"Last year obviously I wasn't in contention to play AFL, but this year is different.
"I'll be looking to gain selection come Round 1, but my main focus is still on the pre-season and I have a lot of work to do before I get that opportunity."
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