 His persistence paid off when he was selected with the 61st pick in the 2005 AFL Draft by the Geelong Football Club.It was not until his seventh game, making his mark against Port Adelaide in Round 15, 2006, that he kicked two final-term goals to lift Geelong's finals chances, one of which he marked and kicked from 40m out under pressure.For the rest of the year Stokes was inconsistent and as a result was in and out of the team.