A mid-season position switch has propelled Western Jets forward Oskar Ainsworth onto the 2025 AFL Draft radar.
The powerful marking talent played a consistent second half of the season, spearheading the Jets' attack, which elevated him to the Vic Metro squad during the U18s National Championships and has caught the attention of clubs.
Enamoured by his athletic profile and ability to hit the scoreboard in different ways, some recruiters view him as a prospect that could be selected early in the second round.
He slammed home 17 goals in his last seven Coates Talent League games of 2025, which came after playing his best footy in the forward line last season, but he started the season as a half-back rotating into the midfield.
That earned the Williamstown CYMS product a Vic Metro trial game, but not a spot in the final team, sparking the change.
He was told that his kicking execution wasn't at the level it needed to be, driving an increased focus on fundamentals, and that his strong athletic numbers weren't reflected via his in-game running.
“I sat down with my manager and (Western Jets coach Christian Stagliano) and we decided to play me forward because it was where I was just really clunking my marks and showing my speed,” Ainsworth said.
“So we wanted to bring my strengths and attributes out more and thought my versatility and x-factor down there would work well.
“Being able to use my endurance, power and winning most of my one-on-ones was really positive.”
A pre-season training block at Williamstown VFL's seasoned state league and former AFL midfielders helped set up Ainsworth for his breakout campaign.
It was a good insight into the professionalism required at senior state league footy, having previously been immersed in high-level basketball programs, but with limited representative footy experience outside of his 2024 season with the Jets.
Ainsworth played only local footy in 2023 as basketball took priority, with the Wyndham representative basketballer part of the state development program in that year.
“Making it professionally in basketball is extremely hard to do especially if you want to go to America as well,” Ainsworth reflected.
“You had to be the best player out there, no matter what age you were.
“Obviously, I loved basketball and spent so much time on skills and everything so it was a hard decision but I think it came down to what's best for me and my future and what I'm most likely to achieve.”
Ainsworth got himself into the eyeline of the broader footy public with a viral highlight in August which capped off a period of growth of which the foundations of his draft case were built.
Playing for school side Westbourne Grammar against rivals St Michael's on a Saturday night at Port Melbourne, Ainsworth fended off tacklers and curled through a stunner from the boundary line.
The highlight was posted on Baseline Footy, attracting more than 40,000 likes on Instagram and 203,000 watches on TikTok, making it the most-watched video on the popular social media account since it was posted.
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“It was the last quarter, there was not long to go, and I was feeling it a little bit, and had a pretty hard tag on me all game, which is annoying, but I just really wanted to beat him,” Ainsworth said.
“I was getting targeted most of the time down in the forward line so I could get my hands on the footy.
“I just picked it up, turned around and it came perfectly off the boot and it sealed the game.
“Everyone was yelling and I was like ‘what just happened?'
“I kicked a similar one from that same pocket a few weeks earlier for Jets so I knew I could do it.”
A mad Geelong supporter, Ainsworth models his game on Cats star Patrick Dangerfield and hopes to bring a modicum of his strength and explosiveness to his own footy.
The teenager believes playing for a Western Jets outfit that won just three games this year and missing the initial Vic Metro squad gives him character strengths that he'll bring to an AFL club.
“I'll bring resilience and determination and will always go at what I want to achieve,” Ainsworth said.
“I think as well as that I want to bring loyalty and I think I'm pretty humble and team first so I would do everything with a winning mentality and try and use my strengths to help the team win.
“I'm pretty unique and versatile being able to play taller than my position and impact like a tall and also use my speed like a small so I think I'm a hard matchup.”
