Few AFL rookies experience a better senior debut than Tim Kelly did on the weekend, as he showed he can be a pivotal contributor to Geelong in their three point win over the Demons in round one.

Kelly started his AFL career on fire with 27 disposals, four clearances, six inside-50s and a goal in front of the MCG crowd.

The mature-aged midfielder had such a superb performance that his game ranked within the top 10 best debuts by any AFL rookie since 2010, according to Champion Data's Schick AFL Player Ratings.

  1. Jason Tutt (WB) - 2011 Round 22: 30.8 points
  2. Michael Barlow (FRE) - 2010 Round 1: 22.1 points
  3. Dan Butler (RICH) - 2017 Round 1: 21.4 points
  4. Sam Gray (PORT) - 2014 Round 4: 21.4 points
  5. Clay Smith (WB) - 2012 Round 1: 20.2 points
  6. Tom Papley (SYD) - 2016 Round 1: 19.9 points
  7. Ollie Wines (PORT) - 2013 Round 1: 19.5 points
  8. Tim Kelly (GEEL) - 2018 Round 1: 19.3 points
  9. Hugh Greenwood (ADEL) - 2017 Round 9: 19.3 points
  10. Jarrad Jansen (BL) - 2016 Round 11: 18.8 points

Kelly notched 19.3 AFL Player Ratings points against the Demons, which is holding him in high regard with his senior coach.

Cats coach Chris Scott told afl.com.au that Kelly "just looks like an AFL player already" and seems to be excited about his future with Geelong.

โ€œFor a long time Iโ€™ve wanted to play in the big games and in front of the big crowds, so Iโ€™m looking forward to the crowds getting bigger and the games getting bigger,โ€ Kelly told the Geelong Advertiser.

โ€œI just wanted to come in and play my role, and I was able to have a significant impact so I was happy with my debut and happy to get the win."

โ€œIโ€™ve had a really good pre-season and I feel like Iโ€™ve fitted in nicely with the rest of the boys."

Kelly said he is looking forward to the opportunity to play against the Hawks in Geelong's round two match up at the MCG.

โ€œI watched parts of their game, I didnโ€™t take too much out of it, but no doubt theyโ€™re still a quality side," Kelly said.

โ€œCyril looked good, so did a lot of their veterans, they can still play and are great players โ€” theyโ€™ve been great players for a long time โ€” so itโ€™s going to be a massive challenge and Iโ€™m just looking forward to it.โ€

"For me itโ€™s just about continuing to get better, itโ€™s only one game, and no doubt the team will take a lot out of the game and find ways to improve and so will I personally.โ€