JACK Newnes and Leigh Montagna sit at opposite ends of the footballing spectrum but the first few steps of their careers have had remarkable parallels.

Montagna was drafted to the Saints with pick 37 in the 2001 draft after playing for TAC Cup team Northern Knights and school footy with Marcellin College after a stint with junior team Ivanhoe.

Exactly 10 years later the Saints once again found themselves with the 37th pick, only to use it on another lightly-built 18-year-old who had followed the Ivanhoe/Marcellin/Knights pathway.

The common ground extends to their respective families, with Montagna's younger brother a close friend with Newnes' older brother Phillip.

The identical introductions to the AFL system have not been lost on Newnes, who sought out Montagna soon after the Saints drafted him at the end of last year.

"There are a lot of similarities. It's good to have a chat to him every once in a while. It's good to have that connection as well," Newnes said.

In the decade since joining the Saints, Montagna has earned two All-Australian selections, three top-three best and fairest finishes and played in three Grand Finals.

Newnes would naturally be thrilled if his career could continue along the same path.

"I'd be rapt if my career could be like that. In a few years I'd love to work towards what Joey's done," he said.

In some respects, Newnes has got a head start on his senior teammate, having played five senior games in his first season compared to Montagna's one.

Those five appearances have exceeded Newnes' pre-season goals, which he says have had to be reassessed.

"To get those under my belt has been a big surprise. At the start of the year I would have been rapt with one game," he said.

"Initially I wanted to get a bit bigger and improve in the VFL then try to get a couple of games. Another few games would be great as well."

A couple of years back it looked as if Newnes' AFL journey would take a completely different direction when he seemed earmarked for a spot as one of Greater Western Sydney's 17-year-old selections at the end of 2010.

The AFL's 18th club had its pick of the best bottom-age players in Australia and whispers were emerging that Newnes was on their radar.

The attention on Newnes had grown and his form suffered as a result.

"Some player managers got wind of it and they were into him very quickly before GWS had even spoken to him. It was a huge distraction for him," Knights region manager Peter Kennedy said.

"They'd already named a few but they still had about four picks to go. It wasn't his fault and GWS hadn't spoken to him directly, but the player managers starting coming out of the wood work, sending letters and ringing him."

Newnes admitted he struggled both during and after the season with the attention that had begun to come his way.

"I didn't know too much about it but there was a little bit of talk. I played the year and got invited to the draft combine as a bottom-age player. There were about 10 of us that got invited to that and I just missed out," he said.

"It played on my mind a little bit because I went to the draft camp knowing I could be either at an AFL club or back to the 18s at the Knights."

History showed that Newnes got to stay in Victoria and he still lives at the family home in Fairfield in Melbourne's north, which is a surprisingly easy commute to the Saints' Seaford base in bayside Melbourne.

"I just jump on the Eastlink to Seaford every day which is about 45 minutes," he said.

"It's cruise control all the way down."

Luke Holmesby covers St Kilda news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter - @AFL_Luke