Clay Smith, left, and Daniel Giansiracusa answer the media’s questions at Whitten Oval. 77552 Picture: DAMJAN JANEVSKI
By MICHAEL ESPOSITO
“HE’S pretty good. He’s got it already,” said Western Bulldogs veteran Daniel Giansiracusa of new recruit Clay Smith.
He was talking about Smith’s response to a question posed to him by the media at one of those carefully managed pressers at Whitten Oval last week.
When Smith was asked whether he was nervous running out to the ground for the first time in a Bulldogs jumper in the NAB Cup, he said something about sticking to structures and doing the team thing.
While the cliched response wasn’t overly insightful, as is often the case with players who undergo extensive media training, it did suggest that Smith was a quick learner.
It helps that his style of play is exactly what coach Brendan McCartney loves. Smith is a fierce, take no prisoners inside midfielder who loathes losing a contest.
“That’s how I have been playing my whole life and obviously that’s the way he (McCartney) likes the game played. I’ve come to a club and I’m lucky that’s the coach’s game style,” Smith said.
Not too long ago the Bulldogs were maligned for having too much flash and dash, not enough crash and bash. These accusations can no longer be cast.
If anything, the Bulldogs might be a bit light-on for polished outside players, but if Adam Cooney and Lindsay Gilbee can both rebound from an injury-riddled 2011, the Dogs just might have a nice balance.
McCartney recently commended Smith’s gutsiness and said fans would warm to him quickly. To pick Smith at No.17 in the draft, ahead of say, the flashier Elliot Kavanagh, suggests McCartney wants to impose a game plan that can stand up when the pressure is on, where bigger bodies winning the ball in the clinches is vital to success.
There’s no shortage of players who Smith can look up to. His mentor is Liam Picken, the epitome of courage and persistence. If anyone can inspire Smith, it’s Picken, who laboured at VFL club Williamstown for years before landing that coveted AFL contract.
“I think there’s a lot of players like that, like you’ve got Boydy (Matthew Boyd) leading as captain, he does that every week, and still got the young ones like Mitch Wallis and Libba (Tom Liberatore), and they’re only in their second year now and that’s how they base their game as well,” Smith said.
Smith said he still had plenty to work on, particularly his fitness and kicking, and did not have expectations to be a regular fixture in the senior side this year.
“I’ve been relatively fit my whole life but it’s a whole other step up for this, and then you’ve got your (movement) from offence to defence and just getting the right structures and working back. And obviously my kicking needs a little bit of work as well, but that’s going to come along way coming from training one or two days a week to pretty much five days a week with a ball in hand.”
