But the Lions never planned to groom Paparone into a ‘gorilla’ up forward.
Instead, the elite endurance athlete from East Fremantle (the same junior club that produced Matthew Leuenberger and Simon Black) is likely to fill an important ‘connecting’ role across half-forward and occasionally on the wing.
This was evident at the time of his drafting when National Talent Manager Rob Kerr said: “He'll be a really good connector for us - connect the backline to the forward line”.
Paparone is just 18 months and eight games into his AFL career, but is feeling more comfortable now than ever at senior level.
“I feel like I’ve adapted and am just more confident against the bigger bodies and keeping up with the speed of AFL,” Paparone said on the Fancast.
“I’ve still got a bit of weight to put on, definitely. I’m still pretty skinny. But in terms of contested footy, I feel like I can win contested footy against the bigger blokes.
“I just need a bit more strength behind to help on my one-on-one marking.
“In primary school I was never a big runner, but in U16s I found out that you need a big tank to play AFL, so I focussed on my running and it obviously paid off a couple of years later.”
Paparone was one of the few shining lights against the Gold Coast Suns last Saturday, booting two goals to take his career tally to seven.
But kicking goals isn’t the only responsibility for the 19-year-old, who plays an important one in Senior Coach Justin Leppitsch’s new game plan.
“With the change of game plan, Leppa wanted me to be that running half forward to hold the perimeter,” Paparone said.
“So I’ve been working on running pattern and my skills.”
Although Paparone is still yet to re-sign beyond 2014, he remains steadfast that Brisbane is where he wants to continue playing his football.
“I’ve loved it. I’ve relished the opportunity to play AFL footy and am loving it up here in Brisbane,” he said.
“I have no desire to go home and am loving the opportunity I’ve been given at the moment.”
