After playing in Essendon's last three games of his debut AFL season in 2010, the enthusiastic talking, strong marking, hard to fluster 19-year-old had to wait until round 18 to play his first game of this season.

He has played every game since, is performing well, has signed a two-year contract extension, and is less than two weeks away from playing Carlton in an elimination final. He's quietly pleased with how it's going.

""I'm pretty stoked with where I am and certainly can't complain,"" Carlisle told essendonfc.com.au.

Between missing several VFL games with back spasms in the first half of the year, Carlisle put together some excellent form and was given an opportunity in the Essendon senior team against Carlton, after it was struck by injuries to key defenders Cale Hooker and Dustin Fletcher.

Carlisle has filled the breach comfortably. He knows being versatile will help his cause to stay in the team – he was able to push forward on Sunday and kick two first-quarter goals against Port Adelaide – but is enjoying the challenge of defending.

""I think it helps me get into the game a lot more and I feel a lot more involved,"" Carlisle said.

""I'm happy to play at either end, and they both have their advantages and disadvantages, but I don't really have a preference. I'm just happy I've kept my spot and I'm still playing.""

Carlisle's marking is the standout feature of his game. Standing at 198cm helps his cause, but he also has the innate ability to judge a ball in its flight. He has strong hands, courage, and rarely gets bumped off the ball.

Until he was 16, however, he played as a midfielder, before growing 22cm in 18 months and being selected by the club with pick 24 in the 2009 NAB AFL Draft. Essendon backline coach Sean Wellman has encouraged Carlisle to use his attributes in defence.

""It's really weird because when I first started playing back at the start of the year I sat down with 'Welly' and we went through a lot of tapes,"" Carlisle said.

""And there were times where I spoiled the ball when I could have marked it, so he said that when the ball's in the air it's a neutral contest.

""I've given myself a mindset where if the ball is in the air I'm going to mark it and then at the last second if I'm in the wrong position or caught out, I'll try to spoil it.

""If the ball's in the air I back myself against whoever I'm up against.""

It says much about Carlisle that, only nine games into his career, he's confident of matching it with the best forwards in the competition. It's not arrogance – Carlisle, with a country twang to his voice, plays down his obvious potential – but a knockabout self-belief that if the ball is there to be won, there's no reason he can't win it.

Unless the opponent is Carlton's Andrew Walker, who took his mark of the year contender over Carlisle in the Blues' round 18 win.

""There wasn't much I could do there,"" he laughs.

""He was up on my head and then he fell down and I said, 'You just took mark of the year on me'. Then he gave me a smile, and afterwards I said, 'I don't know what to say, it was a good mark, at least I'll be remembered for something.' It was all smiles.""

However, Carlisle wants to be remembered for more than that. At one end of the ground he's learning from Dustin Fletcher, and at the other is picking up tips from Michael Hurley. He's also under the watchful eye of assistant coach Mark Thompson, keen to build on his wiry frame.

""Whenever we go to lunch, 'Bomber' always goes up to the cook and tells him to put more food on my plate to build me up,"" Carlisle says.