Sebastian Ross

Before the Saints
Ross had strong ties to Essendon before joining the Saints, being cousin to Bombers' captain Jobe Watson. Watson also provided some valuable advice to Ross, which helped him improved his endurance. "Maybe the endurance is a genetic thing," Ross explained with a laugh in late 2011. "When he was drafted, Jobe wasn't the same player he is now. He has made a name for himself with how hard he has worked behind the scenes. Now he is one of the fittest guys at Essendon. At the start of the year I identified it as a part of my game to really work on.[1]  Ross began a challenging training regime, which included weekly boxing sessions, torturous interval training, and running by himself on a nearby oval in hometown Horsham [2]  Ross was inspired by Richmond midfielder Dustin Martin, and would sprint distances from 100 to 500m, then reverse the order as part of his impressive endurance training, in a bid to be drafted to an AFL club. [3]  Ross also represented Vic Country, and averaged 25 touches a game for the Rebels. [4]

Ross was renown at the Rebels, and was described by his coaches "as among the most improved on the Rebels list, known for putting in a lot of extra training sessions. He has developed his body and work-ethic into an elite midfielder — he wins his own football and makes the right decisions.[5]

Despite his ties to Essendon, Ross actually grew up supporting Hawthorn. [6] =Draft and Early Years 2011-= Ross was selected with the Saints' first round pick, number 25 in the 2011 AFL National Draft. It was rumoured that Essendon was interested in the talented teenager, so the Saints used their first pick to secure the talented young man. Compared with Saint star Nick Dal Santo, Ross was highly-rated by the Saints and Ahmeet Bains described him as “a very good stoppage midfielder, who runs hard and can take a strong mark.” [7] =Statistics=