19-year old Henry White packed his bags and headed to Melbourne from North Adelaide after being selected by the Western Bulldogs in the 2007 Rookie Draft. Here he explains that it’s not just his family and friends that he left behind in South Australia.
What a great opportunity I have been given to further my football career by coming to the Western Bulldogs. Life has seemed like a blur since I arrived here during pre-season.
I speak to someone back home on a daily basis, whether that is a family member or a friend. It’s nice to stay in touch. I also have university commitments back home to with the University of Adelaide.
I’m in the second year of a double degree in Law and Commerce which I am studying by correspondence. With football commitments taking up a lot of time I am only able to do one subject each semester. This semester I’m concentrating on financial accounting. It’s not the most enjoyable subject but it’s something I’ve got to do to complete the course. At this rate I think it will take me about 12 years to finish everything.
Development Coach Simon Dalrymple has been very supportive since I moved across. Along with Brad Gotch, he has been able to do some interesting activities for younger players like myself in the development group.
Recently we visited the Youth Justice Centre as part of a personal development exercise. We met people, of similar ages to us and got to know a little bit more about their life and why they were there. I guess it was a reality check for both parties and it really hit home how fortunate I’ve been with the opportunities I’ve been given.
We have organised to visit the justice centre on a monthly basis to monitor the progress of those in there long term. Initially it was a bit overwhelming but if we can act as some type of mentor for them then that’s a positive thing.
