Be confident and back yourself in.
That’s been the mindset of South Australian draft prospect Jevan Phillipou all year, the younger brother of St Kilda’s Mattaes, who is supremely confident in his own abilities.
When asked who should be selected with pick 1 at this year’s draft, Phillipou’s confidence shone through.
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“I would take myself, just because of my all-round athleticism and my dual-sided kicking. I’ve got really good skills and I’ve got smarts as well, I feel like I’ve got it all,” he told foxfooty.com.au.
“I feel like I can be utilised straight away. I’m very versatile, I can play half-back, half-forward and eventually hopefully in the midfield. I’d pick myself, that’s not arrogance, that’s just confidence in my abilities.”
It’s that confidence that makes Phillipou the player he is. Phillipou is an athletic type who oozes talent, finds plenty of the footy, hits the scoreboard and flies for big marks.
“I’m a very exciting player, sometimes you don’t know what I’m going to do. I could pull out a big pack mark, break out the front of a stoppage, go for a big run on the wing or kick a big goal from the pocket. I can pull that stuff out and I’ve got those tricks,” he said.
“I reckon the main one is to always be confident and never give up. Confidence is a huge part of my game and as a person as well. I’m pretty introverted but when I’m playing I’m such a confident player and I’m so confident in my abilities. I feel like I know myself really well, if I wasn’t like that I don’t think I’d be the same player.”
Jevan Phillipou is seen as a likely first round prospect.Source: SANFL
Phillipou is a midfielder-forward who can turn a game on its head. He’d likely start his career as a half-forward at AFL level, but he’d also be well suited to half-back, where he could use his precise kicking and unique intercept marking ability to great effect.
“I’m mid-sized, but I can play small and tall. I can take marks and also have ground impact. Either half-forward or off half-back, I feel like that’s an easier position to get my confidence up, use my kicking skills and rack it up, damage the opposition with my kicking out of the back half,” he said.
“Using my marking too. That’s not seen heaps as a mid-sized half-back, intercept marking is usually the bigger guys but I can do that as well.”
But Phillipou is more than just a confident youngster ready to make his mark on the big stage. He’s a well-spoken individual who comes from an elite sporting background with strong family ties to Aussie Rules.
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‘PRETTY FIERCE’ BACKYARD BATTLES
If you didn’t know how close the Phillipou brothers were, you’d be forgiven for thinking they despised each other given how intense their battles growing up were. But make no mistake, they’re two peas in a pod and share a very close bond.
“They still are pretty fierce to be honest. Whatever it was, basketball, football, boxing, tennis it didn’t matter. We were competing at it. I was always a little bit smaller getting beaten up, I feel like that’s probably what toughened me up,” Phillipou said.
“I think that’s helped me with football to be a tough player, he probably helped me with that. Being a young kid getting hit and dealing with him, but it was great. We’re so competitive with each other and I think that’s where my competitiveness stems from. That competitive fire started when we were little kids.”
Phillipou believes those backyard battles against Mattaes played a key role in shaping him into the player he is today.
Mattaes has been a huge influence on Jevan’s life, both on and off the field. When Mattaes was drafted by St Kilda with pick 10 in the 2022 National Draft, it was “tough” for the younger Jevan at first.
Jevan Phillipou idolises Gary Ablett Jnr.Source: Getty Images
“It was tough at first, we were so close and still are. He’s like a best friend as well as a brother. We never lost contact, we’re still super close. He never forgot about me or anything like that. He’s always helped me whenever I need. He’s a role model for me and guides me,” Phillipou said.
“He’s big on being confident and backing yourself in. I guess doing everything to the best of your ability and being as professional as possible, that’s the sort of stuff he helps me with and I’m applying into my life and my football.
“It didn’t really change much, he left but it was like he was still here. He was so good, even though he was gone, it was like he hadn’t left.”
The Phillipou boys have played a little bit of footy together, especially during their school years. Jevan recalled one time where he was in awe, as Mattaes went in to bat for his younger brother.
“I was playing up, I remember he was so dominant. I was just little and running around, trying to do as well as I could and he was dominating. That was pretty sick, to be honest. I sat back and admired it,” Phillipou recalled.
“There was a play on the wing on a Saturday morning, I was chasing this bigger kid from another team and couldn’t quite get him. I kind of fell over and looked up and Matteas came flying in and just absolutely smashed him.
“You’ve got parents on the outside yelling at him because he’s so rough and poleaxed this guy. I looked up and was loving it. I absolutely loved playing with him for that short period when I was very young. I’m excited by the chance I might actually be able to play with him.”
Jevan watched on with pride as Mattaes realised his AFL dream several seasons ago, but now it’s his time to shine.
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FINDING THE SILVER LININGS AFTER ‘TOUGH’ INJURY
Coming into a draft year, every kid in the talent pathways just wants a chance to prove themselves. The cream of the crop get the chance to represent the AFL Academy, the best strut their stuff during the National Championships and others ply their trade at state league level.
For Jevan Phillipou, a broken arm meant he didn’t get the chance to feature during the National Championships at all.
And while he couldn’t press his case in front of club recruiters during that carnival, Phillipou was determined not to let the weeks and months go by without improving himself. When he reflects back on the time he spent on the sidelines, he knows he’s learned some valuable lessons that will hold him in good stead when his AFL career begins next week.
“It was really good to be honest. Obviously the injury wasn’t good but going through that and going through a detailed rehab program for a serious injury was tough, but it was really good and I really enjoyed it because I know that it’s going to be really beneficial for my football moving forward,” he began.
“When it happened I just tried to flip my mindset quickly into positive, don’t feel sorry for myself, it’s a part of it, this is going to happen and you’ve got to deal with it and come out of it a better player. I tried to do that to the best of my ability, but I don’t view it as a negative at all, I view it as a positive because going through it at a young age is beneficial because when it happens again, I’m ready for it. I know what to expect and I guess I’m excited by those experiences moving forward.”
While he missed the National Championships, Phillipou certainly gave recruiters something to think about after dominating in the SANFL competition in the second half of the year. In his three under 18 SANFL games late in the year, Phillipou starred, averaging 28 disposals and two goals.
He was also given a taste of state league action, plying his trade in the SANFL seniors with Woodville-West Torrens. Despite the Eagles battling at different stages, Phillipou showed glimpses of what he could turn into at the top level and he certainly wasn’t overawed.
Jevan Phillipou at the Draft Combine.Source: Getty Images
“I absolutely loved it and learned so much. Playing against the bigger bodies, playing high half forward was very structured, it was intense. There was a heavy focus on defensive running and defensive application and that’s something I learned and something I knew that I could improve during that period,” he said.
“It’s a little bit different to the under 18s where I could get away with just running hard offensively and just attacking, trying to kick goals. In the League you couldn’t because you’d get cut up and your half-back would do damage. I learned so much in that time under Sam Jacobs, he was an absolute class act. We were struggling in that period, we were getting smashed and I was up forward, but I feel like I developed my game so much through that period even under those circumstances.
“Straight away it gave me a really good taste of how strong the guys are and how physical it is. That step up in physicality, I remember breaking a tackle, yeah I broke the tackle but I feel like I’ve just been hit really hard. Whereas in the under 18s, I can wrap someone up and bear hug them and get them down easy.
“These guys they’re hard to tackle, they’re very strong and if they hit you, you’re going to feel it and that’s what I felt straight away. Growing up with Matteas as well, he’s probably a bit of a benchmark on how strong they are because he’s a very strong body and a big strong body, so I guess I’ve got a really good taste and those experiences were super beneficial.”
Phillipou might’ve missed a significant chunk of time through injury this year, but he’s come out the other side with plenty of key learnings and takeaways and made sure that recruiters around the country haven’t forgotten his capabilities on the field.
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‘I WANT TO BE LIKE THEM’: CONTINUING THE FAMILY LEGACY
The Phillipou’s are a footy family.
Jevan’s grandfather, Peter, played 272 games for the Eagles between the 1960s and 1980s. Jevan’s father, Sam, played three AFL games for Footscray in 1995 and also had a decorated SANFL career, playing over 150 games during stints at both the Eagles and Port Adelaide.
Now it’s Jevan and Mattaes’ turn.
“It’s been a dream to play footy since as long as I can remember to be honest. I was a little kid, little toddler running around and I’ve had a footy in my hands since then. It’s always been what I wanted to do,” Phillipou said.
“I watched my dad play amateur league when I was very young. I’ve seen replays of his short AFL career and his long SANFL career… Seeing replays of my grandfather’s career too, I just wanted to follow that path. Mattaes was playing as well and I begun as early as I could. It’s been heavily a part of my life and I love it.”
Jevan is well aware of the successes his family have had on the footy field.
“He didn’t start until he was probably 16, but he was a really good athlete, so fast, so athletic. He could take screamers and was so quick. He had skills naturally and was a star,” Phillipou said of his grandfather.
“I used to hear that all the time and I still do.
“Watching my dad play as a young kid, seeing him on YouTube and watching his replays, you admire it and I want to be like them. Whatever I do, I want to be at the top level, that’s why the AFL is what I’m going for.”
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 24: Mattaes Phillipou of the Saints celebrates a goal during the round 24 AFL match between Greater Western Sydney Giants and St Kilda Saints at ENGIE Stadium on August 24, 2025 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
The youngest Phillipou has always had the drive to make it to the top level, but that’s not to say he hasn’t suffered any setbacks along the way.
This year it was a broken arm, but in the past, he’s had his doubters.
When asked what one of the biggest challenges throughout his footy career has been, one moment stuck out to Phillipou, when he was snubbed from the under 16s state side.
“I didn’t make the under 16s state team and didn’t play a game. I kind of grew later than everyone else, hit puberty and developed later. I ended up having a really good start to the season and was playing really well and got added to the squad, but didn’t quite get picked and they gave me a bit of feedback that in my mind wasn’t necessarily accurate,” he said.
“I went back to the SANFL and absolutely dominated a few games straight away and ended up getting a few emails from them congratulating me for that part of the season responding from that challenge and that adversity.
“I’m always aware of motivation, that’s there and I love using motivation, that lights a fire in my belly. I just always want to dominate and I think that added to it. It was definitely very satisfying when I was killing it, even if I wasn’t in the best team in the state according to them.”
Phillipou is just one of those guys who is elite at any sport he puts his mind to. Previously, he had a promising decathlete career, while he’s also an elite basketballer, two sports which he believes has helped his footy career greatly.
“It’s helped hugely. It’s so beneficial for my athleticism all round, repeat, hard efforts, that speed over a short distance and explosive power in jumping. Also vision, I feel like that gets neglected hugely, former basketballers have such good vision in traffic and they can see things unfolding before they happen. Agility as well is huge,” he said.
But like his grandfather, father and older brother before him, footy was always Jevan’s number one calling.
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‘DREAM COME TRUE’: THE ‘UNBELIEVABLE’ POSSIBILITY THAT COULD SET THE SAINTS UP FOR A DECADE
Jevan Phillipou isn’t a footy nerd like other draft prospects. He doesn’t really have a team, although he’s certainly developed a fondness for the Saints since Mattaes lobbed there.
“In recent years since Mattaes got drafted I guess (I support) the Saints and want them to do well because he’s playing for them, but when he’s not playing I couldn’t really care less to be honest. I just want him to do well,” he said.
The Saints are one of 16 out of the 18 AFL clubs that have met with Phillipou this year, but they currently don’t hold a selection before pick 50 and Phillipou is viewed as a mid to late first-round prospect. There is a chance however, the Saints get creative and target Carlton’s pick 11, which the Blues are willing to deal given they’re targeting father-son star Harry Dean and NGA prospect Jack Ison.
The Crows, Giants and Hawks are other clubs believed to be keen in Phillipou’s services.
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 25: Mattaes Phillipou of the Saints rues a missed shot on goal during the 2024 AFL Round 24 match between the Carlton Blues and the St Kilda Saints at Marvel Stadium on August 25, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
If the Saints could swindle a draft night surprise, playing alongside Mattaes in the red, black and white would be a dream come true.
“It would be awesome, it’s not just playing with him, I’d be able to live with him, be able to train with him. I’d be able to be closer to him and be a part of everything with him,” Phillipou said.
“He’s got so much knowledge already, I’d learn so much straight away. In at the club, it would just be unbelievable.
“I do (think they’re keen)… we’ll see what happens, there’s still a lot to play out.”
But whether it’s at Moorabbin with Mattaes or at another club, Jevan is just ready to turn his childhood dream into a reality.
“It would be a dream come true. It would be so exciting, it’s what I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid, since I can remember, to be honest,” he said.
“I would be so excited to get into a club and start training straight away.”