FORMER Bendigo Pioneers' captain Harvey Gallagher will make his AFL debut for the Western Bulldogs on Sunday.
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The Bulldogs on Thursday afternoon confirmed Gallagher would be in their round one side to take on Melbourne at the MCG.
With Gallagher's confirmed selection for the Bulldogs the Pioneers are poised to have two debutantes on Sunday.
While the West Coast Eagles' squad was still to be confirmed at the time of publishing, it's expected much-hyped No.1 draftee Harley Reid - like Gallagher a former captain of the Pioneers - will also make his AFL debut on Sunday.
The Eagles play Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval.
Gallagher's round one selection for the Western Bulldogs comes after he endured an injury-interrupted first year at the Whitten Oval in 2023.
A combination of a hamstring injury, infected leg, broken hand, knee and glandular fever hampered Gallagher's first year with the Bulldogs after he had been drafted by the club with pick No.39 in the 2022 National Draft.
Gallagher, 20, was told of his debut after the Bulldogs' training session on Thursday morning.
"It has been a bit of an interrupted first year, but after a solid pre-season it has been good to get the runs on the board," Gallagher said.
"It's pretty cool debuting at the 'G too - I've never played there, so that will be pretty nice as well."
After being overlooked at the 2021 Draft, Gallagher, who came through the ranks at Sandhurst, put that disappointment behind him by winning the Pioneers' best and fairest in 2022, particularly revelling late in the season when he moved to defence, capturing the attention of the Bulldogs.
"We're very happy for him," Harvey's dad, David Gallagher, said on Thursday afternoon.
"Like most kids, going back to when he first did AusKick he wanted to play AFL footy, so it's always been something that he has aspired to.
"When he got drafted he had hoped to have got a game last year, but he just had too many injury setbacks and wasn't able to get a good run at it.
"This year though he hasn't missed a session and that obviously puts him in the selection conversation so to speak.
"And from a Sandhurst point of view, it's great to see another of our players who has progressed through the juniors and make it all the way through to getting an AFL game."
