West Coast Eagles mid-season draftee Oliver Francou is set to make his debut under Friday night lights, suiting up in the blue and gold to face Adelaide at Optus Stadium.
Recruited from North Adelaide with the Eagles first pick, the 20-year-old inside midfielder has impressed at WAFL level since his arrival at the club, averaging 24 disposals and eight tackles from his four games.
"I never really expected myself to be put in the team (this week), we've got a lot of quality players," Francou said.
"We had a joint Captain's Run with the WAFL today, and I noticed a couple of cameras around, and Mini (Andrew McQualter) brought everyone in and said that one of the best parts about his job is letting young kids know they are going to debut, and I thought 'this could be it'.
"And then he said 'Oli, you're debuting', and it was a rush of emotions, and it was very cool."
Francou has built a reputation as a hard-working and competitive midfielder who is comfortable in the contest and around stoppages.
"The environment that West Coast have set up, it's made it really easy to settle in, especially with my new teammates," Francou said.
"There's a lot of good leaders here and when you're settling in you make new friends and you get comfortable going out on the field with them, and you just build on that as time goes on and start playing your best footy, and now i've landed here."
He becomes the sixth AFL debutant for West Coast this season and 10th Eagle to play their first game for the club in 2026.
The Eagles v Adelaide clash will kick off from 6:10pm, with the game broadcast live in WA and SA on Channel 7 and 7plus, and nationally on Fox Footy and Kayo.
