It is far removed from the norm, because most people look at "The Dorff" and see a lanky fast bowler primed to play a key role in Australia's Cricket World Cup bid.

So why does Floros see him like that?

Because that's all Behrendorff was when the pair were growing up, sleeping over at each other's houses and waking up early to load cricket kits into a family car for a trek up the highway.

At least, that's all he was until the stocky little Tuggeranong batsman had a growth spurt and discovered a newfound knack for fast bowling.

Oh, and the name? Floros was the first "Jason" in their junior Tuggeranong side, so Behrendorff was christened "Jack" by a coach looking for a way to differentiate the pair. It seems Floros' red hair wasn't enough.

"We were definitely pretty tight all the way through," Floros said.

"We used to have to drive up to Sydney on a Sunday morning [for representative games]. I used to sleep at his place when it was his parents' turn to take us up there, and vice versa, he would come over to mine, sleep the night, get up early and drive the three hours all the way to play a game of cricket.

"When he first started [with us] in about under 13 or 14s, he was actually a batsman. He was actually quite a tubby little kid, and around that 14 or 15 mark he started to get a bit of height and thinned out a bit.

"All of a sudden he learned how to swing it and no one could hit him. He decided to stick with that, and the rest is history.

"I remember, even all the way to under 19s, standing in the slips, especially to left-handers, and no one could hit him. They would just play and miss, play and miss, play and miss. I was already for a catch."

Not even the country's brightest prospects could get him away.

Floros always knew Behrendorff was bound to be something special if his body held up - but then again, that's how he felt about most of his representative teammates in the ACT under 19s squad of the time.

Nathan Lyon was the captain, long before he was plucked off a roller and thrown into the big time. He has since become Australia's greatest off-spinner, the leader of the team song, and a World Cup inclusion.

Beyond that, one of the most impressive underage squads the territory has ever assembled boasted Behrendorff, future Queensland captain Floros, Ryan Carters, Ashton May and Tom Thornton.

So, not a bad side then?

"You're not wrong," Floros said.

"We were blessed in the sense that we had a lot of guys in our under 17s and under 19s that were pretty good cricketers. I think we had seven or eight players out of our under 19s team we played in that went onto play first class cricket.

"It was hard to pick who was going to go really well, but Jason, whenever he was fit no one could touch him. You knew he was going to go well if his body could hold up for long enough for him."

Some of Western Australia's best judges clearly felt the same way about this tall fast bowler from Canberra, snapping him up on a rookie contract for the Warriors after Behrendorff impressed for the ACT.

It would bring an end to their days of playing together - but Floros and Behrendorff would be sure to cross paths for the best part of the next decade.

"We were both looking at going to Sydney for that 2009-10 season to play grade cricket," Floros said.

"We both got lucky enough in that off-season, we both went up to the academy [in Brisbane] for a week at a time. It was nice that a few coaches were around to be there and watch us.

"We both got picked up which was nice. It was sad in a sense that he had to go all the way to Perth, and I was in Queensland so we got split up.

"But that's the stuff you had to do if you want to make it from Canberra."

And so Behrendorff began to turn heads across the Nullarbor. Two Big Bash League titles, two one-day championships, a record-shattering 14-wicket haul in the Sheffield Shield soon followed.

But all the while it seemed as though a plethora of injury woes would keep Behrendorff from realising his dream.

That is, until Behrendorff found himself wearing green and gold in Ranchi during the spring of 2017. He had finally realised the dream injury has so often threatened to take away.

Now the 29-year-old is raring to go for Australia's World Cup defence - one they will begin against Afghanistan on Saturday night.

So what will that moment feel like when Behrendorff finds himself with a ball in hand during the World Cup? One man that has been there since almost day one has a fair idea.

"He'd be feeling more relief and excitement than he has for a long time," Floros said.

"He has been troubled with injuries for most of his professional career, but all through juniors it was the same sort of stuff. He would spend a long time out with a stress fracture or an ankle or whatever it was.

"It's good to see his body starting to hold up, and we're seeing him perform the way he could have for a long period."