Jarrad Grant’s first look at AFL football has not been easy. First he had to get the plaster-cast off his arm from an injury suffered last season. Then the youngster made the evening news the day he was tipped to play his first AFL game by stepping on a stingray during an early morning recovery session at Port Melbourne Beach.
 
For the LeasePlan Western Bulldogs top pick in last year’s National Draft, things are now getting easier but he still needs to learn how to sing the new theme song at VFL affiliate Williamstown…
 
The first game of a new season is always a nervous time. I was relieved to kick four goals last weekend for Williamstown in our first VFL match because I have struggled for form recently. I regained some good confidence through my marking and kicking for goal and hopefully I can continue that this week.
 
There is a really good forward structure at Williamstown with a good mix of local and Western Bulldogs players. Even though we have only played a handful matches together, there is a pretty good understanding between the forward players. Jason Cloke and Callum Urch are good targets and have plenty of experience. Personally, not being solely focused on as a forward line player helps and it might give me a little bit more freedom to kick more goals.
 
It certainly helps that Brad Gotch is the coach at Williamstown and also our development manager at the Western Bulldogs. He is giving us the best opportunity to succeed and understands what is expected of us to become Western Bulldogs players. His feedback is very important and he makes sure we are always learning to be better footballers.
 
Apart from pre-season training, adapting to senior football has probably been one of the toughest things I’ve encountered since arriving at the Bulldogs. It has taken my body a while to get used to the demands of full time training. During pre-season I was quite fatigued and would get home after training absolutely stuffed. As my fitness and strength has improved I’ve noticed the difference, particularly the day after a big session when I used to feel quite stiff and sore.
 
One thing that needs to improve is singing Williamstown’s song after a victory. With so many new players in the team, there was no rhythm to the club song after last week’s win over Werribee. It might take a little bit of getting used to but I guess that’s a pretty good incentive to keep winning; to learn the song a bit quicker!