Former Tyrone minor star Conor McKenna is making some early waves Down Under with Australian Football League outfit Essendon.

The Irish News reports that McKenna will line out in his first AFL game tomorrow against Richmond after impressing in warm-up games during the Victoria Football League and interim coach Matthew Egan is excited by his early promise.

"He's an absolute competitor, he hates losing," Egan told the Essendon's club website.

"He has a beautiful snap for goal, obviously kicking the round ball all his life, he snaps the ball really well. He had a game against Geelong where he kicked four goals from snaps.

"He's an excitement machine, he adds some speed to our team, which is what we've probably missed a little bit with guys like Travis Colyer not playing."

While Egan admitted that there is still some fine tuning to do with McKenna, he says he has been happy with the Eglish lad's progress to date.

"He's still a little bit out of sync with the game but, I tell you what, he's got that Irish dynamic," he added.

"He's a very happy person, very strong over the ball, super quick and he knows how to kick a goal. We just want him to enjoy himself. I hope he goes out and plays with some flair and takes the game on."

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