{"id":44383,"date":"2025-11-28T07:00:32","date_gmt":"2025-11-28T01:30:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/?post_type=story&#038;p=44383"},"modified":"2025-11-28T10:27:05","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T04:57:05","slug":"jai-saxena-teen-footballer-rising-through-australias-beloved-sport","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/story\/cover-story\/jai-saxena-teen-footballer-rising-through-australias-beloved-sport\/","title":{"rendered":"Jai Saxena: Teen footballer rising through Australia\u2019s beloved sport"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>(November 28, 2025) <\/strong>When Australia&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.collingwoodfc.com.au\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Collingwood Football Club<\/a> announced, \u201cWe\u2019ve got another Next Generation Academy graduate! We\u2019ve welcomed Oakleigh Chargers small forward Jai Saxena, who will become the second AFL player with two Indian-heritage parents,\u201d it marked an important moment for the 18-year-old Jai Saxena, and the culmination of a childhood spent chasing a ball across oversized oval fields. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Oakleigh Chargers is an Australian rules football club that plays in the Talent League, the top statewide under-18 competition in Australia&#8217;s Victoria. Moving further ahead in his sporting journey, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jai has been drafted through the AFL Rookie Draft. It&#8217;s a process in which professional clubs select young players from development leagues and give them a contract, training access, and a pathway into senior-level competition.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> It is the moment when a promising player officially becomes part of an AFL club\u2019s list, eligible to work toward a debut in the top league. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Jai, this means that when the 2026 season begins in March, he will be on Collingwood\u2019s books as a rising forward, learning from elite coaches and preparing to play in one of the world\u2019s most physically demanding football codes.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRTgn6OEuuL\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<div style=\"padding: 16px;\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\">\n<div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: auto;\">\n<div style=\"width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\"><a style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRTgn6OEuuL\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A post shared by Collingwood Football Club (@collingwood_fc)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2><b>Growing up Indian at home and Australian on the field<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jai\u2019s story begins in suburban Melbourne, where he was raised in a home grounded in Indian traditions with regular prayers, temple visits, and dinners that reliably featured dal and rice. Bollywood songs and devotional music drifted through the car depending on who chose the playlist. Despite this, his sporting world was firmly anchored in Australia.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI started playing when I was five,\u201d Jai recalls. Coaches saw talent early, and\u00a0 he moved into junior clubs, then the Oakleigh Chargers, one of Australia\u2019s strongest youth pathways. Eventually he was brought into Collingwood\u2019s Next Generation Academy, a program designed to support players from multicultural backgrounds. It was here that his football education accelerated.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>A big milestone<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To understand the scale of Jai\u2019s achievement, it helps to know what he is stepping into. Australian rules football, commonly called \u201cfooty,\u201d is an athletic, fast-moving 18-a-side game played on huge oval grounds. It is a sport deeply woven into Australian identity, with crowds of thousands regularly gathering to watch matches in Melbourne\u2019s stadiums.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Within this world, Jai\u2019s position as a \u201csmall forward\u201d is crucial as he is the kind of player expected to find space, read the play before others do, and kick important goals. It is a role that demands sharp instincts and quick decision-making as much as physical ability.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>A Hawthorn household and an early sporting imprint<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>Although drafted by Collingwood, Jai grew up idolising Hawthorn, which is a different club and one of the AFL\u2019s most successful teams. \u201cI have always been a Hawthorn fan, mainly because the whole family goes for Hawthorn, so I never had a choice,\u201d he said with a smile, recalling how his uncle (his mother\u2019s brother) was especially devoted to the team and pushed everybody in the family\u00a0 to support it. Even during family visits to India, Jai carried a football with him and kicked it around in local parks.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DQlc2TPj0Qf\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<div style=\"padding: 16px;\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\">\n<div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: auto;\">\n<div style=\"width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\"><a style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DQlc2TPj0Qf\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A post shared by AFL Desi (@afldesi)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><b>From Talent League standout to Collingwood recruit<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jai\u2019s selection this November by the Collingwood Football Club followed an impressive year in the Coates Talent League, Australia\u2019s top under-18 competition. His season began with a burst of goals that restored the confidence he had lost during a difficult 2024. His performances grew stronger as the year progressed, earning him selection for Vic Metro, one of the teams in the national under-18 championships. For a young forward, the recognition placed him among the best emerging players in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">His ability to read the game, especially against opponents taller and heavier than him became a defining strength. Coaches often praised how he positioned himself, anticipated the flight of the ball, and made smart decisions under pressure.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Collingwood\u2019s rookie draft arrived, his name was already in conversations. The club sealed their faith by assigning him jersey number 43, linking him to players who had risen from the same starting slot and gone on to long careers.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Role models, guidance, and the people behind his rise<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When asked about the influences who shaped him, Jai did not hesitate. \u201cAll my coaches,\u201d he said. \u201cDad obviously does everything that I ever ask for.\u201d His father, who grew up in Delhi watching cricket rather than footy, nonetheless embraced a sport entirely new to him, and supported his son&#8217;s interest in it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jai also mentioned a current AFL player he admires: \u201cIf you ask for [a] footy player, maybe Zac Bailey\u2026 I would one day like to be something like he is today.\u201d Bailey is known in the AFL for his clean skills, sharp instincts, and ability to perform in big moments. These are the traits Jai hopes to emulate as he steps into the professional game.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>A historic path, and a grounded teenager<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While his selection has stirred excitement among Indian-Australian families and Indian sports fans discovering a new code, Jai remains focused on his own development. His milestone is significant. If he plays at AFL level, he will become the first male player of full Indian heritage to do so. For now, he is balancing training with schoolwork. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">His parents encourage him to approach football with ambition and academics with equal seriousness, creating the steady foundation that has carried him through highs and lows.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-44386 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena-.webp\" alt=\"Jai Saxsena | Footballer \" width=\"450\" height=\"581\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena-.webp 613w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--232x300.webp 232w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--400x516.webp 400w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--480x619.webp 480w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 450px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 450\/581;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-44386 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena-.webp\" alt=\"Jai Saxsena | Footballer \" width=\"450\" height=\"581\" srcset=\"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena-.webp 613w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--232x300.webp 232w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--400x516.webp 400w, https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Jai-Saxsena--480x619.webp 480w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/noscript><\/p>\n<h4><b>What the future holds<\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the 2026 AFL season approaches, Jai enters Collingwood\u2019s system with an opportunity that few players his age experience. The rookie draft secures a place within the club, a full year of development, and the opportunity\u00a0 of stepping onto the field in front of tens of thousands of spectators.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Collingwood, he represents the success of their multicultural pathways. For the Indian diaspora, he is a young man broadening the horizon of where sporting dreams can lead. And for Jai himself, the journey from a\u00a0 boy who began kicking a ball at age five to\u00a0 now preparing for the next, most demanding chapter of his sporting life, is a significant leap in his journey as a sportsperson.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Follow Jai Saxsena on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jai_saxena_27\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.globalindian.com\/youth\/story\/cover-story\/harjas-singh-aussie-punjabi-prodigys-epic-314-runs-and-35-sixes-that-shook-australian-cricket\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Harjas Singh: Aussie-Punjabi prodigy\u2019s epic 314 runs and 35 sixes that shook Australian cricket<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(November 28, 2025) When Australia&#8217;s Collingwood Football Club announced, \u201cWe\u2019ve got another Next Generation Academy graduate! We\u2019ve welcomed Oakleigh Chargers small forward Jai Saxena, who will become the second AFL player with two Indian-heritage parents,\u201d it marked an important moment for the 18-year-old Jai Saxena, and the culmination of a childhood spent chasing a ball across oversized oval fields. The Oakleigh Chargers is an Australian rules football club that plays in the Talent League, the top statewide under-18 competition in Australia&#8217;s Victoria. Moving further ahead in his sporting journey, Jai has been drafted through the AFL Rookie Draft. It&#8217;s a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":44387,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","story-category":[215,2584],"story-tag":[5202,4142,9574],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Jai Saxena: Teen footballer rising through Australia\u2019s beloved sport<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Jai Saxena, The Indian-Australian teen footballer rising through Australia\u2019s beloved sport, has been drafted through the AFL Rookie Draft.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/old.globalindian.com\/youth\/story\/cover-story\/jai-saxena-teen-footballer-rising-through-australias-beloved-sport\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" 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