North Melbourne’s Majak Daw will become the AFL’s first Sudanese-born player when he makes his debut against Brisbane on Sunday.

The Kangaroos confirmed on Thursday that Daw, who was elevated off their rookie list for this season and showed eye-catching form in the pre-season, had been included to face the Lions.

Daw, 22, is a 195cm forward-ruckman whose extraordinary athleticism has seen him build an impressive collection of highlights at VFL level while spending the past three years on the Kangaroos’ rookie list.

The Kangaroos’ announcement was a surprise after coach Brad Scott indicated before training on Thursday morning that Daw was close, but hadn’t quite done enough to break in to the side.

But it’s believed another of the club’s forwards pulled up sore during training, opening the way for Daw’s debut.

“If something happens to a key position player he’s probably the next one in, so he’s very close,” Scott said before training.

While Daw’s exotic background has already earned him fame well beyond that afforded to most players yet to debut, Scott said the hype didn’t faze him.

“Maj has got really good at dealing with all that, the hype is largely external,” Scott said.

“He knows exactly where he sits internally.

“It’s a bit like our club’s focus, we focus on the facts.”