Former Essendon captain Jobe Watson praises top WA draftee Jacob Farrow for Bombers start

Essendon great and former captain Jobe Watson has been impressed the composure of top West Australian draftee Jacob Farrow as he prepares for the biggest game of his blossoming career. Farrow was taken with pick 10 in last year’s draft, the first name called in WA’s crop, and has already played four games in his debut campaign, showcasing his quality decision-making and silky left boot. Watson said the West Perth product had been a “really great addition” to the Bombers ahead of a blockbuster clash with Collingwood at the MCG on Anzac Day. “He looks really calm,” Watson, a Seven expert commentator, said of Farrow. “It’s not easy being a defender because there is pressure on all the time, particularly that part of the ground. “Every time he’s around the ball or has the ball in hand, he doesn’t look phased. “He looks like he’s got a lot of confidence in his own ability and I think it’s a really important attribute to have as a young player. “He’s slipped in really well, he looks really comfortable at the level. The speed of the game isn’t overbearing for him and then he looks very calm with decision-making. “That’s such an important trait to have as a defender, especially one that, they like to get the ball in his hands, so he has to be really competent under pressure and I’ve seen that in his first few games with the footy club, which is really exciting.” Farrow will play his first game at the MCG in front of an expected crowd of more than 90,000, as the Bombers and Magpies go head-to-head in the biggest game of the home and away season. The Anzac Day clash, broadcast live and free on Seven, 7mate and 7plus from 12pm AWST, is the 250th meeting between the two Victorian powerhouses and is expected to draw millions of viewers across Australia. Watson conceded the occasion will be intimidating for Essendon’s young cohort, with nine Bombers playing in their first Anzac Day game. “It will be a bit daunting early. That is just the experience of Anzac Day for everyone, because the crowd is so enormous,” Watson said. “There is such a big feeling. The noise and the pre-game is very unusual, so I think that could be something that takes them back a little bit, all of these young guys who are playing their first Anzac Day. “But once the game starts it turns into a very normal game.”