NOT MUCH stays secret for long in football. Everyone is searching for solutions in obscure places. That's why Collingwood met with Liam Puncher inside Bunnings Warehouse near Adelaide Airport before the Mid-Season Rookie Draft.

The original plan was to conduct the interview in a hotel nearby, but when Magpies national recruitment manager boss Shane O'Bree and list administration manager Shannon Collins spotted two Crows recruiters in the vicinity, they quickly pivoted.

Across more than an hour over a coffee in the back corner of Bunnings, Puncher backed up his stellar development in the SANFL with an impressive interview that convinced the Magpies they had someone who could step in if required to plug a hole in defence.

Softly spoken but confident, the 195cm key defender detailed why he moved from New South Wales to South Australia to take his football to the next level, why he then moved clubs for opportunity, all the while building a professional career as an accountant.

Puncher didn't tell his boss at LM Chartered Accountants in Parkside that he was any chance in the Mid-Season Rookie Draft until five hours before the Magpies picked him. He didn't believe he was. Collingwood was his only chance. They were the only club to reach out. Ever. 

But now the 22-year-old is returning to South Australia to play against the Crows under the bright lights of Thursday night football at Adelaide Oval after playing the past three games for Craig McRae's side since being selected at pick No.15 in May.

"I feel so lucky to be out there. It's crazy playing for Collingwood, I'm still pinching myself. It just doesn't feel real yet, but it has been such a good three weeks," Puncher told AFL.com.au this week at the KGM Centre.

"I can't really believe this is happening. That debut game was perfect; I felt like it had absolutely everything and we won by a goal. Then to run out in front of 83,000 [against Carlton on Saturday night], the experience has been so awesome."

Puncher hasn't been back to his office since everything changed in late May. He was working there three days a week as an undergraduate accountant while completing his commerce degree at The University of New South Wales.

"I loved working over there. They were such great people. I kept (Collingwood's interest) pretty quiet. I called my boss maybe five hours before the draft and said, 'I'm a chance here, so just forewarning you'. They were pretty much the only person that knew. So it came out of the blue pretty quickly. I just wanted to keep it pretty quiet."

Puncher doesn't think he would be in this position if he didn’t bite the bullet and transfer clubs at the end of 2024. Sturt had recruited him out of the Sydney Swans Academy, but he was stuck in the queue. He played only six league games around 36 reserves appearances in two seasons with the Double Blues.

The move to Woodville-West Torrens started slowly due to a stress fracture in first pre-season he developed while walking and training all over Europe.

"Yeah, that was a setback. I was a bit eager to make a good first impression, so I probably pushed myself a bit too hard," he recalled.

But after playing four senior games and eight in the reserves in 2025, Puncher was picked in round one this year and improved so much each week that Collingwood’s recruiters thought his game could translate to the next level, just like they did last year when scouting another SANFL player.

"I'm so grateful for the opportunity that Woodville-West Torrens gave me," he said. "Who knows if I didn't take that opportunity, would I be here? I'm rapt with that decision now. And in hindsight it was the perfect decision. I'm so grateful to that footy club and Sam Jacobs (the former Crows, Blues and Giants ruckman and now Eagles' head coach)."

Angus Anderson traversed a similar path before he was drafted by Collingwood with pick No.57 last November. He moved to Sturt from the Swans' Academy and lived with Puncher, while they also working together building marquees for Olympic Party Hire. It took Anderson a full season to progress out of the SANFL reserves. But now the 2025 Jack Oatey Medallist will also head back to South Australia this week after playing 11 games so far for the Magpies. And this time, Puncher will join him.

"It's been huge having him here," Puncher said. "I remember calling him straight away and chatting to him. So just having that familiar face is so good, and I constantly message him and just ask him those silly questions. He's just always there to help navigate this first part together."

With Darcy Moore managing only four games this year – the captain has been ruled out for the rest of 2026 due to hamstring surgery – and Reef McInnes recovering from another knee reconstruction, a spot has opened for Puncher to grasp, alongside Billy Frampton and Jeremy Howe.

Development coach Nathan Murphy and backline Jordan Roughead have helped guide him every step of the way, upskilling him on the run, while welfare managers Alex Agrotis and Brady Grey have made the relocation as smooth as possible.

"They have been huge," he said. "I'm just learning the game plan, the structure, little craft things which I can obviously keep learning from, but they've been so good for me."

The last time an accountant was plucked out of the SANFL at the age of 22 and was added to a rookie list was Cal Wilkie. The North Adelaide premiership star has now played 173 consecutive games since making his debut and is St Kilda’s co-captain.

"Yes, I am aware of that," Puncher says. "If I could live up to anywhere near his story, that'd be pretty nice."

Footy, like accounting, is a numbers game. Puncher arrived at Collingwood on a six-month contract needing to make every opportunity count. After three games in black and white, a career in finance might have to wait.