St Kilda admit to draft message blunder on second night: ‘Whoops’

St Kilda have admitted they got a little surprised after they reached out to one of their new players on the second night of the AFL’s draft.

After bringing in Tobie Travaglia with pick No. 8 and Alixzander Tauru with No.10 on the opening night, the Saints then added James Barrat, Hugh Boxshall, Alex Dodson and Patrick Said to the club on Thursday.

The draft’s second night is a little less glamorous than the opener with hopefuls typically glued to their TVs, waiting for their names to be called out along with family and friends.

It can, however, make for exciting homemade videos with wild scenes of celebrations when a player’s AFL dream is suddenly realised.

The Saints certainly had a busy couple of days and after securing Dodson — a 203cm basketball-convert from South Australia — the social media team decided to reach out to their new ruck option to see if he had any videos of the moment his name was called.

But there was a problem ...

“Hey Alex, welcome to the Saints from the media team here,” the text message read.

“If you have any videos from the reactions at your place tonight that we could share on our social channels please send it through!”

But the response wasn’t quite what the social team was expecting.

“You’ve got the wrong number, my names Garron and im a professor at ***** plus l’d only sign for the Pies!” fired back the reply.

“Best to find Alex’s real number because this is a big moment for him and he deserves your credit and support. Congratulate him from me :),” professor Garron amusingly continued.

St Kilda replied: “Whoops! Always welcome to jump on the Saints though...”

Later revealing to fans: “We eventually got onto Alex Dodson don’t worry.”

While the number may have been wrong, the Saints were certainly happy to snap up the big man.

Dodson captained South Australia and represented Australia‘s U18 basketball team before proving his football talents in the SANFL and for his state in the AFL U18 Championships.

He ended the year with under-18 All-Australian honours to go along with his basketball AA recognition.

“We’re pleased to have James, Hugh, Alex, Patrick and their families join us at St Kilda,” St Kilda’s football boss David Misson said.

“James is a powerful intercept defender whose aerial numbers were elite for Bendigo. Combined with his powerful kicking, it makes him an exciting player to watch at the Saints.

“Hugh is an athletic and tough inside midfielder who is a very exciting prospect and will be a great addition to our midfield mix.

“Alex is the elite ruck in this year’s draft and his ability to not only win the hitout but also follow up on the ground is a great asset for us.

“Patrick is a hard-running, skilful half-forward who has played some time in the midfield for Calder and played well. A very exciting prospect for us who adds versatility.

“We wish James, Hugh, Alex and Patrick all the best at St Kilda and look forward to welcoming them to the club very soon.”