Senior Josh Battle

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School is finally out for Josh Battle.

After juggling his final year of study with his first year of senior football, the time has finally come to leave his Haileybury College uniform and his books behind.

Now, the budding forward will be at the club on a full-time basis, focused on adding to his one game of senior experience.

“I finished my exams two weeks ago, so it’s definitely good to have school out of the way now,” Battle told saints.com.au on Wednesday afternoon.

“Now that school is out of the way now I can just focus more on footy and focus on getting stronger in the gym, fitter and improving my footy all round.

“Last year we had our workloads managed a bit, but this year I think we will be thrown into the deep end a bit more which will be good.”

Battle, who was selected with pick No. 39 in last year’s NAB AFL Draft, said his brief glimpse into the game at the highest level is driving him to see much more of it in the future.

“Last year was a pretty phenomenal experience,” Battle said of his debut against Essendon in Round 17.

“It was disappointing we got beaten, but it was great to see what it’s all about and play that one game.

“Leading into next season now, hopefully I can string a few more games together.”

The 193 cm spearhead has started his second pre-season impressively and is working closely with another key spearhead in St Kilda’s future, Paddy McCartin.

“Paddy has been really good for me so far. Obviously the older boys are away at the moment so I’ve just been sticking with him,” he said.

“He’s helped me so much so far and he’s got himself in great shape already so I think he’ll have a pretty good year next year.”
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He might only be midway through his first proper pre-season in the AFL, but St Kilda forward Josh Battle is demonstrating a level of professionalism beyond his years.

Battle, 19, juggled his final year at Haileybury College with his first year of league football in 2017, breaking through for a debut against Essendon in Round 17, amid 14 appearances for Sandringham in the VFL.

But with school now behind him, Battle has thrived in a full-time environment, drawing praise from Senior Assistant Coach Rohan Welsh for his diligence on the track and in the gym this summer.


“His professionalism has been brilliant; you can’t fault him in that area, he is a real pro,” Welsh told saints.com.au on Friday afternoon.

“He gets all his work done on the track and in the gym, as well as with edits and his diet.

“Since ‘Dicko’ [Ben Dixon] has been down here he’s been out there doing his shots in the morning before training and then he’s always one of the last ones to get off the track at the end of training.

“He’s been able to do a lot more work in the gym and put on some size, so he’s much stronger than he was last year; I suppose that’s the benefit of having him in the program full-time.”

Despite standing at 193cm, Battle has quickly established himself as one of the leading distance runners at Linen House Centre, finishing amongst the leading back in the 3km time-trial at the start of January.

But while Battle’s endurance is an asset, Welsh said the Dandenong Stingrays product has had to work on his running patterns during the pre-season to transform him into a more dangerous option deep, rather than between the arcs.

“It’s been a real learning curve for him this pre-season. Because he’s such an elite runner, he thinks he needs to run up and back, whereas we need him to play as a key forward,” Welsh said.

“We want him to get the ball in the vicinity of the goals and not 100 metres away. He’s in a real learning phase of his footy.

“We spend a lot of time out on the track working through running patterns and we do more of that in craft sessions where we work out patterns for when we win the ball in the defensive half.”


Can’t wait for 2018 season.
 
Josh Battle took a bite last year, but it’s only made him hungry for more.

The teenage key forward earned a debut late in the year and played 14 VFL games in a year where he juggled VCE study at Haileybury College with football at St Kilda.

With school now behind him, the 19-year-old is two-thirds of the way through his first proper pre-season and determined to add to his one game of senior experience in 2018.

“I think definitely having that taste last year has really made me want to play again this year,” Battle told saints.com.au at Geelong Grammar.

“That’s always in the back of your mind when you’re training.

“Hopefully the harder you train the luckier you’ll get. So I can’t wait for this year.”

Renowned for his appetite for hard work, Battle has relished being able to focus all his attention on football this summer.

The Dandenong Stingrays product has added a few kilograms to his frame, through his work in the gym and with his diet, and charged up the list in the endurance running.

“It’s been a lot better because obviously, you can do a lot more work when you’re here all the time. So no more ducking out and going to school which is good,” Battle said.

“I’ve been loving it. I’ve been able to focus on things I need to work on like putting on a bit more size so I can try and take my game to the next level."

Battle said Senior Assistant Coach, Rohan Welsh, who has taken over the forwards from Aaron Hamill this summer, has fuelled his belief in the past few months, encouraging him to take the next step this year.

“'Woosha' [Welsh] has personally been really good for me; he’s shown a lot of faith in me,” he said.

“I think the group loves him because he’s a bit of a character and he gets around all the boys which is really good.”


Can’t wait for 2018 season.
 
Will be interesting to see how Josh goes this year now that he is training full time . Also he won’t have resting ruckman getting in his way like last year . If he has a big year for Sandy then the selectors will have to make a tough decision on other players in the Saints forward line depending on their form .


Still looking forward to this season.
 

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ST KILDA has rewarded second-year forward Josh Battle for an encouraging start to his AFL career with a two-year contract extension.

AFL.com.au understands the 19-year-old put pen to paper recently on a deal that will tie him to Moorabbin until the end of the 2020 season.

Battle's signature comes off the back of the Saints re-signing prized 2017 first-round picks Hunter Clark and Nick Coffield this week.

Taken with pick 39 in the 2016 NAB AFL Draft, the hard-running forward played one AFL game last year and has been close to senior selection this season.

The Dandenong Stingrays product has waited patiently for opportunities over the past 18 months, but strong VFL form with Sandringham has him right in the selection conversation alongside fellow tall forwards Paddy McCartin, Tim Membrey and Josh Bruce.

He kicked 3 goals and had 25 possessions in a recent match against Footscray opposed to impressive young Western Bulldogs key defender Lewis Young.

Battle was considered a big chance to play against Greater Western Sydney at Etihad Stadium on Saturday until Membrey proved his fitness on a knee injury.

One of the straightest kicks for goal at the Saints, Battle was mentored by Essendon great Matthew Lloyd during his time at Melbourne's Haileybury College.


Go Saints
 
Prodigiously talented. Scarily athletic. Deadly accurate.

They’re big, bold attributes usually only reserved for experienced campaigners, but St Kilda thinks this kid has what it takes.


The 19-year-old put pen to paper on Monday to repay the faith shown in him by the Saints.

Having finished Year 12 at Haileybury College last year, Battle has been able to shift his focus entirely to football on a full-time basis, a luxury he’s revelling in this year.

“I feel a lot freer now and have more time to prepare,” the key forward said on Monday.

“I’m obviously here full-time now, so I’m spending more time out on the track trying to get fitter.”

Conversion inside 50m is an area in which the Saints have so far been hit-and-miss, whilst Battle has hit his straps nicely for Sandringham and is nipping at his teammates’ heels for a spot in the senior side.

The second-year Saint showed class and composure to outplay Bulldogs key defender Lewis Young in Round 1 of the VFL, finishing with three goals in the Zebras’ win over Footscray.

Battle also stood out against Geelong a week later, where he produced the goal of the day, roosting a miracle goal from well outside 50m on the boundary.

The Matthew Lloyd-trained dead-eye is hoping for more opportunities to play senior football in 2018 as he looks to correct the Saints’ conversion woes.

“Hopefully I can crack into the AFL side sometime this year and if I get that chance, take it with both hands,” Battle said.


Go Saints
 
Josh Battle (3.1) 10 kicks, six handballs, five marks, three tackles

In his own words, Josh hasn’t been at his best for the last couple of weeks, so his positioning has been a little out of whack and we haven’t helped him with opportunity. He’s progressing nicely and got on the end of a couple, basically through his good, solid work rate.


Go Saints
 
“Josh Battle is a worker.”

That simple assessment from his VFL coach Aaron Hamill sums up the promising young forward.

330 days have elapsed since Battle last tasted senior footy, and he gets his second chance at the elite level after being selected to face the Swans on Saturday night.


In his second year at the Saints, Battle has been chomping at the bit to build on his solitary senior outing.

The 19-year-old’s stellar pre-season demonstrated a level of professionalism well beyond his years, but the ex-Haileybury Collegian has been forced to patiently ply his trade at Sandringham until now.

Standing at 193cm, Battle will complete the tallest forward line the Saints have fielded in over two months, alongside Paddy McCartin at 194cm and Tim Membrey at 188cm.

The trio will give the Swans something to think about on Saturday night, whose relatively undersized backline’s tallest player Heath Grundy will likely start on Tim Membrey.

Battle’s Year 12 studies last year meant that he could only undertake a part-time training load, but he’s relished in working as a full-time footballer this year, and it’s paying dividends for his fitness and form.

Earlier in the season, the talented spearhead signed an extension on his contract which will see him at the Saints until the end of 2020.

Senior Assistant Coach Rohan Welsh was dually complimentary of Battle’s work ethic.

“His professionalism has been brilliant; you can’t fault him in that area, he is a real pro,” Welsh told saints.com.au.

“He gets all his work done on the track and in the gym, and he’s been able to do a lot more work in the gym and put on some size, so he’s much stronger than he was last year.”

If Josh Battle’s attitude and athleticism are anything to go by, big things are yet to come.


Go Saints
 
Josh Battle knows better than most just how tough the long road to senior football can be.

The 19-year-old Saint played just his second game in the red, white and black on Saturday night, and while his team were put to the sword in the first term, it was Battle that stood up in the fight.

The athletic forward cut the figure of a man possessed, hunting the football whenever it was in his vicinity, and he showed a hunger for the contest that others seemed to lack early on.

Within the first three minutes, Battle had flown three times into the fray to crash a pack, bringing the ball to ground each time and showing all the signs of an experienced, dangerous forward.

Senior Coach Alan Richardson was delighted with the second-gamer’s performance and singled the youngster out as one of the only Saints who were “at the level” in the opening quarter.

“Josh Battle was a shining light out of the game,” Richardson told saints.com.au.

“He kicked a couple of goals, but it was probably more his physicality, his ability to be able to put enormous pressure on when he had the opportunity to tackle.”

Battle’s desire to make an impression was obvious and was best encapsulated by two bone-crunching tackles in the first half to win back possession.

“I thought some of his tackles were tackles where someone’s prepared to sacrifice their body, take a bit of heat and wear one for the team, and he did that,” Richardson said.

“The young fella showed some signs, so he’ll certainly get another opportunity next week against Gold Coast.”
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